THE ECHO - Ferrostaal

In May 2004, a consortium led by MAN
Ferrostaal signed the contracts for the
delivery, assembly and commissioning of
the process equipment for gypsum and
gypsum plaster board plants in Mumbai
in India and Port Klang in Malaysia. The
customers are the subsidiaries of British
Plaster Board plc, England. The assembly
and commissioning of the two plants were
planned and realised within three months
of each other.
The plants manufacture gypsum plaster
boards for finishing the interiors of private
and commercial buildings. In the gypsum
plant, natural or synthetic gypsum is
converted into stucco through calcination
(dewatering). Stucco is the raw material for
the manufacture gypsum plaster boards
and can be mixed with chemical additives
to produce plaster. In the gypsum plaster
board plant, the stucco is mixed with water
and other additives and poured into
02 03
04
a mould made of special board to give
a continuous running sheet of plaster
board. This sets as it passes along a conveyor
belt, at the end of which an electronically
controlled cutter is used to cut the strand
into gypsum plaster boards of any length.
These are fed through a continuous-flow
10-deck drier with a length of approximately
90 meters. Once they have passed
through the drier, the gypsum plaster
boards are adjusted and then automatically
stacked and grouped together in packages
ready for loading and distribution.
The plant in India has the capacity to produce
12.8 tons of stucco per hour and 1,610
meters of gypsum plaster boards per
hour. In Malaysia, 14.2 tons of stucco are
produced per hour and 2,343 metres of
gypsum plaster board.
The process equipment was supplied by
European, Chinese and local manufacturers.
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THE ECHO 1/2006 39
Precise planning and coordination with
both the customer and the authorities
were required to ensure a seamless implementation
of the machinery and equipment.
The mechanical assembly began in India in
January 2005 and in Malaysia in April 2005
and ran according to schedule in both
cases, although the construction site in
India presented some problems due to the
weather conditions (the heaviest rainfall
for decades) and the isolated rural location.
The provisional acceptance (take-over) of
the two plants took place in December
2005 and February 2006 respectively, as
per the project plan.
Jan Uder, Walter Sante
01. Assembly of the calcination unit in India
02. The gypsum plaster board plant in Malaysia
03. The calcination unit in Malaysia
04. The drier outlet, India
05. Cross conveyor and drier inlet for gypsum
plaster boards, Malaysia