ICA 2023: Manufacturing innovations for energy efficiency gain importance

The 17 th edition of Indian Ceramics Asia 2023 was held on 15-17 February at Helipad Exhibition Centre in Gandhinagar, Gujarat.

There was a large participation from India and abroad with 250+ exhibiting brands spread out across 12,000+ sqm of exhibition space, and 7,221 visitors. Also worth to mention: Knowledge-rich conferences, 130+ Buyer-Seller meetings, and ceramics job fair, co-located with iBaRT and ETC Expo.

Organized jointly by Messe Muenchen India and Unifair Exhibition Service, this is India’s only trade fair for the bricks and ceramics industry. ICA 2023 witnessed participation from leading companies such as Hindalco Industries, HLT Industry, Imerys Ceramics India, Keda Industrial Group, Lamberti India, Modena Technology, Monte-Bianco Diamond Applications, Prism Johnson, Projecta Engineering SRL, Sacmi Engineering, Sukaso Ceracolors, System Ceramics India, FCRI Co Ltd, and many more.

Strategically located in Gandhinagar, this trade fair attracted manufacturers from the neighbouring city of Morbi which is known as the ceramics capital of India. The show continued its strategic partnerships in the interest of the ceramic and brick segment. It received immense support from Indian Council of Ceramic Tiles and Sanitaryware (ICCTAS), All India Brick & Tiles Manufacturers Federation (AIBTMF), All India Pottery Manufacturers’ Association (AIPMA), Federation of Ceramic Industries Panchal Ceramics Association Vikas Trust, Central Glass & Ceramic Research Institute (CGCRI), Association of Italian Manufacturers of Machinery and Equipment for Ceramics (ACIMAC), Indian Ceramics Society, Bangladesh Ceramic Wares Manufacturers Association (BCWMA), Morbi Ceramics Association, and the Chemical and Allied Products Export Promotion Council (CAPEXIL).

Regarding the success of this edition, Vijay Aggarwal, Chairman, Indian Council of Ceramic Tiles and Sanitaryware (ICCTAS), said, “India is poised to become one of the leading ceramics manufacturers in the world, and this trade fair has exposed the Indian industry to global trends and technologies. Bricks and ceramics manufacturing is a highly energy-intensive process, and the Indian industry is swiftly adopting globally competitive solutions to venture into newer markets. I am happy to experience the vast range of solutions presented at this forum.”

Kirit Patel, President (Sanitaryware Division), Morbi Ceramic Manufacturers Association, said, “This is the most relevant trade show for the ceramics industry. This trade show brings raw material suppliers and machinery manufacturers on one platform and benefits the entire Indian ceramics industry. Visitors to this trade show get to witness the latest in raw materials and technologies under one roof.”

Alessandro Liberatori, Director, Italian Trade Commission, said “We have been participating in ICA for several years now. We have seen the show prosper over the years. This is the best platform for global companies to be present in order to expand in the Indian market.”

This edition of ICA also witnessed engaging presentations at the conferences by distinguished speakers and panellists. Some of the key conferences covered timely subjects such as energy efficient technologies, sustainability, and the use of alternative fuels.

The co-located shows iBaRT for the bricks and roof tiles industry, and ETC Expo for the engineering and technical ceramics supply chain also brought together leading raw materials and technology suppliers to make the Indian industry globally competitive. For example, the conference on ‘Developing a Roadmap for Environmentally Sustainable Brick

Industry of India’ witnessed attendance of 100+ active participants.

One of the unique features of this edition was the dedicated Buyer-Seller zone that facilitated meetings between key buyers and suppliers, thereby unlocking significant commercial value for India’s ceramics ecosystem. In addition to generating leads at their respective booths, exhibitors could also leverage pre-fixed face-to-face meetings with top buyers at this dedicated Buyer-Seller forum.

Creating jobs and upskilling the workforce is a critical concern for the ceramics and bricks industries, and this was successfully addressed through the job fair at this edition. The global job placement service witnessed 100+ candidates seeking to fill 53 vacancies in 38 companies.

Expressing gratitude for the success of this latest edition, Bhupinder Singh, CEO, Messe Muenchen India, said, “This edition reflects the importance placed on energy efficiency and climate-friendly technology solutions by the Indian industry. The vast range of raw materials, technical ceramics, processing machinery and equipment exhibited during these three days showcases the global competitiveness of the domestic industry. India is likely to emerge as one of the world’s leading ceramics exporters and this is reflected in the scale of technologies, level of conferences, and vibrant buyer-seller meetings. We thank all our customers and industry partners for supporting us in creating this platform to enable meaningful handshakes and unlock business opportunities for the bricks and ceramics manufacturing ecosystem in India.”

Ken Wong, General Manager, Unifair Exhibition Service, said, “This edition once again proves that Indian Ceramics Asia is the most important platform for business cooperation in the Indian ceramics industry, and we are delighted with the visitor turnout and strong interest in global technologies. The conferences are a good platform to gauge the industry’s direction in terms of research and development, and we are happy to explore several areas of cooperation between international suppliers and Indian manufacturers. Overall, Indian Ceramics Asia 2023 was a good success.”

The next edition of Indian Ceramics Asia will be held on 6-8 March 2024 at the Helipad Exhibition Centre, Gandhinagar, Gujarat.◆