WHAT THE MARKET NEEDS,

The modern market demands a high level of technology from any form of production so as to ensure that products are both viable and competitive. The answer to the question "to be or not to be" most often lies with the consumer, but the producers themselves also have to take an active part in the creation of consumer demand, offering things that are new and advanced. As they say, it's good to produce, but it's better to produce well. We put our questions to the chairman of the board of the company Azbentonit, Aydin MamMAdov.

- Azbentonit is currently one of the largest producers of dry building compounds in the country. To what extent does the company's potential meet the needs of today's market?

- Our company was originally given the objective of exploring and making a study of the available raw mineral reserves in Azerbaijan, and on that basis of setting up the production of various goods for the needs of the national economy. The principle "without high technology, modern equipment, an up-to-date management system and professional staff the demands of the modern consumer can hardly be met" became a priority in our strategy and, as experience has shown, it has justified itself. We set up the production of cement consisting of seven production lines meeting international standards, building plaster and calcite consisting of two production lines, and dry building compounds consisting of four lines, and we also set up the production of paints and lime.

We created a central testing laboratory equipped with the Adwanse diffractometer and the Explorer spectrum analyser (German production).

Taking due account of the government's policy of pursuing intensive production, which is especially evident in the construction sector, guided by the latest developments in the production of building materials and, finally, bearing in mind the specific features of the local market, Azbentonit set itself the strategic goal of creating and developing a dry building compounds sector on the basis of its plant. To achieve this goal, we have set up production lines for powdered calcite (up to 3,000 tonnes per month), gypsum (up to 3,000 tonnes per month), and also a line for the production of dry building compounds, fitted out with modern automated equipment, with a total monthly capacity of 6,000 tonnes.

Of course, the main aim is to provide the consumer with a high level of products in terms of both quantity and quality. But the creation of a dry building compounds sector and our belief in the need to develop it intensively has stimulated the production of raw materials (cement, building plaster, powdered calcite, washed and graded sand etc) for these goods. As we can see, it is precisely a comprehensive approach to the work that enables us to meet the ever growing market demand for these types of goods.

- To what extent does the technology for the production of dry building compounds justify itself on the domestic market?

-I have to say that there has been a rapid development of the dry building compounds industry throughout the world in recent years. According to various reports, in the countries of Western Europe, where the construction sector has already stabilized, the demand for dry building compounds totals 30 kg per head of population. It is well known that until recently the bonding material for ceramic tiles was made by craftsmen using the primitive method of an ordinary mixture of cement and sand, and the putty from a mixture of gypsum, chalk, glue, soap and other things on the actual building site. Of course, this meant there could be no question of any correct fractional composition, nor of any stable physical characteristics (moistness, firmness, setting times etc), nor of the correct dosage. All this led to unnecessary expense and an unstable, often low, level of quality.

But nowadays it would never enter anyone's head on a building site to resort to such primitive methods of producing the materials. In the coming years we will witness the use of such materials as dry compounds for laying work, for internal and external plastering (Azbentonit has already started production of glue for ceramic tiles, ground and finishing putty, and also the said three dry mixes), dry hydroinsulation, and sound-proofing and decorative plastering, which will become irreplaceable in the building industry.

I also ought to point out that, in line with traditional, established stereotypes, Portland cement is still the leading bonding material for ceramic in Azerbaijan (and throughout the world). I don't think this traditional approach is totally justified, especially as it also involves excessive expenditure. For example, on the basis of the quite unfounded motto "the higher the grade of cement, the higher the quality", people use a large quantity of high-grade Portland cement for the production of ordinary plaster. How justified is this? Using the most carefully selected mix of filler and bonding material for plastering and laying work (gypsum and lime can be used for this) would be more effective both in terms of economy and quality. I would add that Portland cement is made from clinker at a temperature of 1,450 degrees C, gypsum at 170-200 degrees, and lime bonding material (CaO) at 900-1,000 degrees. On the other hand, production of the latter two materials requires less expenditure, and the country has quite large raw material deposits for these purposes. Azbentonit is therefore developing major projects for expanding the production of these building compounds, giving preference to non-traditional bonding materials. The price factor will obviously also be taken into account along with the convenience of the customer. User-friendly packaging, the design of the packaging of dry building compounds, the selection of the best composition and a dozen other factors will help these products take their place on the domestic market within a very short space of time.

-What is the demand for these products at the present moment?

-As I have already said, dry building compounds are an irreplaceable material for the Azerbaijani market. I'll cite just one fact: sand of the same fractional composition, with harmful elements (clay traces, salts etc), is currently used for laying work and plastering. In using cement people don't take into account the high natural moisture level of sand, the solution lacks a sufficiently uniform and stable composition, as a result of which construction work tends to be unstable and relatively low-quality, and proceeds at a slow pace. Also, defects at the primary stage make secondary finishing work unavoidable, which leads to additional expense in terms of materials and time.

All of these negative factors are taken into account during the manufacture of dry building compounds according to centralized procedures. The use of cement above or below the norm is excluded, the sand is washed in the correct proportions and is sifted, and special modifiers and additives help achieve better usage.

I should point out another important factor: there is a large amount of international experience in the mechanization of construction work with the aim of reducing costs. In the West, plastering and finishing work has been done for a long time now with the use of special equipment, which makes it possible to reduce the amount of heavy and expensive manual labour. For this, of course, special modifying agents are added to the dry building compounds, which cannot be done on the building site and can only be done by centralized procedures. As a result we have further irrefutable proof of a forthcoming expansion in demand for dry building compounds.

It is well known that bringing sand and cement into the already overburdened central part of the city creates certain difficulties (especially for small-scale repairs). I would also cite another point, the relevance of which requires no further comment: and that is the plastering of walls with special sound-proofing compounds in areas with high levels of crowding and traffic.

The growing pace of demand for dry building compounds means that in the near future they will be firmly established on the building materials market. And the rapid development of the construction sector in the country means we can say that the level of demand for them will rise to the European average (30 kg per head of population) in the coming few years. Considering the growth trend in consumer demand for this output and its prospects for the Azerbaijani market, the company Azbentonit will actively develop this area by introducing new technology.