The Institute of Indian Foundrymen (IIF) is looking at building common reclamation units to reclaim waste sand generated from major foundries, a statement said Friday.
The move is aimed at reducing the dependence on river sand besides curbing illegal mining.
About 1,200 delegates from 15 nations, including Germany, Italy, China, Japan, the UK and US, are participating in the 67th Indian Foundry Congress (IFC) at the India Expo Mart.
"Institute of Indian Foundrymen (IIF) is looking at putting up common sand reclamation or recycle units in major foundries set up at Agra, Ghaziabad, Moradabad, Aligarh, Kanpur and Lucknow in order to reclaim waste sand generated from foundries," IFC said in a statement.
IIF President Shashi Jain said the association will encourage foundry clusters to jointly set up sand reclamation units in order to recycle and reuse the sand to lessen the dependence on river sand to further check illegal mining and save the environment.
"About 2 million tonnes of sand is used in UP foundries annually for production process," he said, adding that the move will also address waste disposal problems and benefit small units.
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He said the used sand will be reused in casting production and the recovery is about 70-80 per cent.
The remaining waste generated from the reclamation process will also be used to make paver blocks and hollow bricks, the statement said.
IFC also urged the MSME and environment ministries to provide funding to industrial clusters to jointly set up sand reclamation plants.
The auto sector is the largest consumer of the foundry industry as major components are supplied by it. About 4 million tonnes, approximately 30 per cent of the production of foundries valued at USD 4 billion, is consumed by the auto industry at present, the statement said.
Auto sector casting demand is expected to grow 35-40 per cent in the coming years.
Jain said exports from Uttar Pradesh foundries is likely to double to USD 500 million in the next five years.
At present one million tonnes of foundry items amounting to USD 2 billion are manufactured annually in main foundries in Uttar Pradesh. Around 50,000 families are earning their livelihood from these foundries, the statement added.
Headquartered in Kolkata, with regional offices in Delhi, Chennai and Mumbai and 27 chapters across India, IFC is a member of the World Foundry Organization (WFO), UK and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).