Specialist flooring company Flowcrete has launched its first manufacturing facility in India. Located in Chennai, the new plant will enable Flowcrete to significantly reduce lead times to customers and also reduce the impact on the environment by using locally available raw materials. A range of resin-based products are being manufactured at the plant including the self-smoothing Flowshield SL, Flowcoat SF41 and HS, Deckshield, the watertight car-park decking system and Flowshield LXP. The latest product to be added to the range is the polyurethane (PU) concrete antimicrobial Flowfresh, making Flowcrete the only company in India with PU concrete as part of its locally manufactured portfolio. Current production capacity at the plant is 9,000 tonnes per annum, with expansion plans set to bring capacity to 21,000 tonnes per annum within the next six to nine months. Flowcrete Operations Director Dave Kelly says, “Demand on the Chennai facility has already multiplied to the extent that we are looking to add another modular plant adjacent to the current site. This will house a filler plant and allow for additional resin production and warehousing space.” This capacity is scheduled to be streamed in by mid-2012. A number of prestigious projects have already been secured on the strength of the local facility and its ability to reduce lead times for delivery. Some 15,000 sq. metres of Deckshield ID car-park decking system have been supplied to Kanakia Builders of Mumbai. Other large projects secured include work for Hilton Hotels Chennai, Godfrey Philips Mumbai, Fourts Pharma Chennai and Reid & Taylor Bangalore. All material for these projects was supplied from the new Chennai facility. At the same time, Flowcrete has been able to use the new plant to increase the volume of resin being supplied to its existing network of applicators.l
