Industry

A Simara-based Nepali company has started manufacturing ceramic tiles using local raw materials. 

Two entrepreneurs, who have been importing foreign tiles and hardware materials to the country, came up with the idea of setting up a title manufacturing plant using indigenous raw materials. 

After an in-depth study on tile manufacturing in India, they established a joint-venture company in Jitpur Simara Sub-metropolis-8. Nepal Ceramic Industries Pvt Ltd has introduced its products into the market under the brand name Nepaovit this year. 

The factory, established at the cost of Rs1.5 billion in a plot that sprawls over five bighas and 12 katthas, has 400 people on its payroll. 

According to the managing director of the company, Manoj Rauniyar, almost 50 per cent of the clay used for tiles production is sourced from Nepal. The company has a plan to manufacture the tiles completely based on Nepali clay and sand after some months, he said. 

Different types of clay have been brought from Bara, Makawanpur and Dolakha districts for manufacturing tiles after rigorous test procedures. However, colouring and glaze materials for the tiles are imported. 

In the first initial months, clay as a raw material was imported from Rajasthan, he said, adding that they started exploring Nepali clay later on.

“Heated at the temperature of 1,200 degrees Celcius, Indian clay melted only 32 per cent, while Nepali clay melted 45 per cent,” Rauniyar explained. “So, Nepali clay is found exquisite for tiles production.” 

According to Rauniyar, tiles made from soil imported from India are found to carry a load of 350 kg, while those made from Nepali soil can bear loads up to 430 kg. Procuring soil from India costs Rs8 per kilo, Rs5 more than bringing in soil from local sources.

The plant uses 7,200 tons of soil per month. Rauniyar said that in the study conducted when the industry started almost three years ago, tiles worth Rs30 billion were being imported from abroad every year. 

Nepal Ceramic currently puts out 350 different designs of tiles in the market worth around Rs200 million per month. The company is using a large network of sales agents to make its product readily available all across the country.

Company chair Shambhunath Jha claimed that their production even surpassed the quality of Indian tiles being imported into Nepal. 

According to him, the company has invested more than Rs700 million in the Italian-made equipment of the manufacturing plant. 

“Our products are of better quality than Indian ones available in Nepali markets,” Jha claimed. “And we are selling at a cheaper price.”

In the first stage, the company is producing floor tiles of different sizes. But the company is planning to diversify the production of tiles that can be used for walls soon, he said.

"After we launched our products, other business entrepreneurs have followed suit – preparing for launching their own productions. 

“If we proceed in this way, Nepal can be self-sufficient in tiles in 5-7 years," Jha said, urging the government to lend support in managing raw materials and marketing. 

With RSS inputs