International Zinc Association (IZA), a leading industry body dedicated exclusively to the interests of zinc, in association with Hindustan Zinc Limited, organized a webinar on Structural Galvanization and its scope in India today. The webinar, chaired by VR Sharma (Chairman – India Galvanizers Association & MD, Jindal Steel and Power) saw participation from leading experts including Mahandran (CEO, Metals and Chemicals Technology, Malaysia), Bernardo Duran (Manager Technology and Market Development – IZA, USA), Amirta Singh, (Director – Sales and Marketing, Vedanta Limited) who came together to discuss the applications of zinc-coated or galvanized steel along with relevant technologies to enhance the overall capacity of steel that is at par with global standards. The webinar highlighted the global emerging trends in corrosion-free infrastructure, like galvanized steel, and its application across sectors for sustainable development.
Director (India) of International Zinc Association, Dr Rahul Sharma spoke about the scope of zinc’s application in industries like automobile, agriculture and infrastructure projects including railways, roadways, and highways along with enhancing consumption of zinc for sustainable construction. He said, “Over the last few years, zinc has found a strong application in construction and automobile. Solar panels, power storage batteries and fertilizers are the three new areas where zinc market has ample scope to grow in India. We’re hopeful that leading authorities will take cognizance of its benefits and adapt to more sustainable ways of construction.”
Galvanization finds its application in automobile industries, fertilizers, rebars, home appliances, solar panels, power storage and die-casting. Steel structures with zinc coating are environment friendly, has the lowest life-cycle cost and possess properties that can significantly enhance the life of any structure with minimum maintenance.
The Chief guest of the session VR Sharma (Chairman – India Galvanizers Association & MD, Jindal Steel and Power) assured all speakers and participants of the work being done on scaling up the consumption of zinc across the above sectors and underpinned its relevance in robust nation building. “The Iron & Steel industries are backbone of any nation role and their role in development cannot be emphasized enough. But to achieve longevity of this sector and its structure, India needs a strong mechanism the safeguard it from external factors such as corrosive climates, natural calamities, and extreme weather conditions. And therefore, the need of galvanized steel structures”, Sharma said.
Other experts including Amrita Singh (Director – Sales & Marketing, Vedanta Limited) and Bernardo Duran (Manager Technology and Market Development – IZA, USA) shared interesting insights on application of zinc-coated steel in leading global economies and how India can benefit from these practices. Bernado Duran stressed, “India is on the cusp of infrastructure boom. To make the most of this rapid urbanization and support Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of smart cities, it is imperative to use technologies that have much longer life-span than the conventional material and are sustainable.”
