In 2017 the first sanitaryware collections were shipped from the new
AKIJ Ceramics Bangladesh plant in
Trishal : all fully made with European technology, with
SACMI ceramic sanitaryware manufacturing lines playing a pivotal role. Following this primary stage, which set the production bar at 250,000 pieces a year, AKIJ continues to aim high, as its current goal is to achieve a broad product mix totalling
1.2 million pieces, much of it earmarked for
export.
The 'star' of this ambitious growth plan is the
111-metre TWS SACMI-Riedhammer kiln (which has an effective load width of 3.6 metres). Equipped with
pulse-firing burners, the kiln also features SACMI-Riedhammer's top-of-the range
EMS 400 system, which allows
complete recycling of heat produced by the kiln. Because the air is pre-heated to temperatures as high as 400 °C,
net kiln consumption is as low as
890 Kcal per kg of fired product (with a 17-hour firing cycle).
A major contribution to performance optimisation comes from the SACMI-supplied 12-metre
pre-kiln, installed in line with the TWS, which receives hot air from the
cooling fumes of the kiln itself. At the end of the process, residual hot air is diverted to a customer-provided pre-dryer to ensure
total recycling of all used thermal energy. SACMI has also supplied AKIJ with a
complete system for handling the 103 kiln cars to maximise automation and line efficiency.
Tested and started up in record time - much to the customer's satisfaction - this latest kiln is part of a wider investment plan that will also see AKIJ supplied with a
new one-piece casting bench (produced by SACMI Istanbul) and a
complete modelling solution, made entirely by
SACMI Imola, that includes the supply of resin case moulds and the mould to make the de-moulding supports. To ensure results are exactly as expected during final production, new models will undergo
comprehensive laboratory testing using the customer's slip.
These projects confirm SACMI's status as the Bangladeshi giant's leading partner and the
number one global supplier of green manufacturing solutions for the sanitaryware industry.