Sri Lanka’s red clay industry to produce export oriented ceramic products
The Sri Lanka Ceramics Council is keen to develop the red clay industry in the country and move away from old machines which doesn’t give the right finished product for export.
Mahendra Jayasekara, President of the Sri Lanka Ceramics Council (SLCC), told the Business Times on the sidelines of the 11th AGM held at in Colombo last week, that, “The biggest hope the SLCC has is the efforts to infuse new life to the red clay industry in Sri Lanka which is not vibrant enough at the moment. The industry has great potential to grow in terms of introduction of advanced technology and also in improvement of the product. There are around 350 to 400 factories in the country using ancient technology and processes to manufacture ceramic products.”
The SLCC is working with the Sri Lanka Standards Institution (SLSI) to introduce the SLS mark to the red clay ceramic products such as building bricks and roof tiles. The industry needs to update the technology, not by spending billion rupees, but by improving processes and adding modern machinery. After the SLS mark is obtained the ceramic products becomes export oriented, noted Mr. Jayasekara.
China and Italy are some of the countries that manufacture ceramic products made of red clay using modern technology in the factories.
Ministry of Industry and Commerce Secretary Anura Siriwardena speaking at the event said, “The SLCC being incorporated in 2003 and affiliated to the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce which is the oldest association in the country, has made a vast difference among the ceramic product manufacturers. The brand new products that are manufactured nowadays shows the rich and glamorous heritage of the products.”
In a keynote address, Dr. Shehan De Silva, Senior Scientist from the Sri Lanka Institute of Nanotechnology, explained how nanotechnology could be applied in the manufacture of ceramic products at the event.
“Nanotechnology has to be applied in the ceramic production process for industrial growth but the industry players have to take their own initiative and apply it in their products and processes. This will bring new investments to the country. Nanotechnology has been involved in ceramics worldwide and we have to use it as a part of the production process to achieve real advantage,” stressed Dr. De Silva.