Beumer has released a technical report for its global competence centre

Pooling knowledge worldwide

Beumer’s Centre of Competence (CoC) was established for the cement business unit to provide optimal systems and plants as a full-range supplier to customers all around the world and is designed to optimise global communication amongst company experts.

"China and India are still the two main growth markets," said Dr Christoph Beumer, Chairman and CEO of Beumer Group. "When we went to China during the late 1990s, the country produced approximately 700 million tpa of cement, today that is almost 1.2 billion t". According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), production in China gained further momentum during 3Q13 and reached 417 million t, an increase of 8.2% y/y. Andre Tissen, Head of the Cement Business Unit at Beumer Group, said, "This positive long-term development is not going to change. Compared to international standards, the urbanisation ratio in China is rather low, with just over 50%. The rate for the USA and Japan is at over 70%. This explains the continuing high demand in infrastructure and urban construction."

The Beumer Machinery (Shanghai) Co., Ltd, built in 2006, allowed the company to expand its operations in the country. Beumer Machinery (Shanghai) covers the whole logistics value chain in China from sales, project planning, engineering to production and service for the Chinese market. More than 200 employees work on a production area of more than 13 000 m².

The acquisition of Enexco Teknologies India Ltd in 2011 strengthened the Group's presence in the country’s cement industry. The company’s portfolio includes belt conveyor systems with horizontal and vertical curves, belt bucket elevators, heavy-duty high capacity belt bucket elevators for particularly large delivery rates and heights and apron conveyors for clinker fitted with chains or belts as traction elements. The intralogistics specialist also provides systems for filling, palletising, packaging and loading, as well as grinding mills and silos for the Indian market. In addition to supplying the complete machines and electrical equipment for the plants, Beumer is usually responsible for the entire process as well. This includes the design of the system, as well as the coordination and supervision of the installation and commissioning.

Exploiting synergies

"As a provider of full-range solutions, it is our goal to offer optimal support to international construction materials groups such as HeidelbergCement or Holcim for their projects worldwide," said Tissen. To pool the expertise of all Beumer branches that are active in this field, the Group established the Centre of Competence for the cement segment. The centre is responsible for research and development, sales, project management, purchasing and the support of the group companies worldwide. The Chinese government supports large and profitable companies in order to further promote the cement industry and become a global leader in this segment. The supported companies benefit from low-interest loans, for example, or can acquire building areas more easily and quickly in order to expand further. The companies are also publicly supported when new projects are assigned.

Good cooperation is based on trust

China's market leader produces about 12 000 tpd of clinker at several sites for different applications and requirements, such as Portland or slag cement. The cement manufacturer was significantly involved in the construction of various large-scale projects, for example, the Oriental Pearl Tower in the Pudong district, the Shanghai Pudong International airport and the Beijing–Shanghai high-speed railway. The company is now selling its products in more than 20 countries in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia.

The manufacturer places particular value on production methods that are both energy efficient and environmentally sound and has been using Beumer loading systems, belt conveyors and bucket elevators for years. The company has delivered and installed about 140 bucket elevators since 1995. The cement producer has ambitious goals to be able to compete with internationally leading companies and to stay prepared for the ongoing construction boom in China. The demand for cement is continuously rising, making constant improvements in their technology and equipment necessary. There are now also discussions regarding the supply and the installation of belt apron conveyors, filling systems and high-level palletisers. "As the competition from local companies is significantly increasing, we offer our products at favourable conditions to the Chinese manufacturer," explained Tissen.

Another important aspect of good business relations is the Beumer Group Customer Support. The agreements with the customer can range from only maintenance and inspection to a long-term placement of service personnel onsite. In order to guarantee trouble-free intralogistic processes and a value-adding material flow, employees ensure the modernisation of the plants and systems to meet upcoming performance and technology demands. "On principle, our service agreements are specially designed to meet the individual requirements of the customer," explains Tissen. "The service schedules as well as the reaction times are agreed upon in the contract." The 'Beumer Belt Management', for example, helps to avoid downtime through regular inspections and timely replacement of bucket elevator belts. The "Residential Service" comprises technical support, preventive maintenance and inspection, emergency plans, system and process analyses and optimisation as well as spare parts and facility management. "We make sure that the customers can keep pace with the increasing requirements," said Tissen.

Adapted from press release by Rosalie Starling

Read the article online at: https://www.worldcement.com/europe-cis/14012014/beumer_has_released_a_technical_report_for_its_global_competence_centre_591/