Seminar on 

MARKET OUTLOOK FOR COPPER & COPPER ALLOY TUBES IN INDIA

Mumbai

 25^th November, 2010

Indian Copper Development Centre organized the seminar on "Market Outlook for Copper & Copper Alloy Tubes in India" at Mumbai on 25th November, 2010, with an objective to provide a forum to both the tube manufacturers and users for closer interaction and thereby assessing the Indian market with respect to demand, quality requirements and future opportunities.

Over 80 participants attended the programme from all over the country. They represented primary producers of refined copper, manufacturers of copper & copper alloy tubes, end users of copper based tubes viz., air-conditioning & refrigeration, refineries, power plants, etc., and academic institute.

During the opening session, Mr. Nitin Agrawal, Executive Director, Multimetals Ltd., welcomed the participants. He mentioned about the promising market demand of copper based tubes in the country.

Mr. T.U. Shenava, Managing Director, Industrial Tubes Manufacturers Pvt. Ltd., started his introductory remarks by showing respect to Late Dr. L.R. Vaidyanath. He emphasized the importance of the theme of the seminar in today’s context particularly considering overall growth in industrial activity, need for quality improvement and R&D, necessity for understanding end user’s requirement, and threats & opportunities prevailing in the market.

Mr. S. K. Sharma, Sr. Vice President – Marketing, Hindalco Industries Ltd. (Unit : Birla Copper), in his address mentioned about the crisis faced by copper chain during the global meltdown and how the copper industry came out of the crisis successfully.

Mr. Puneet Jagatramka, Chief Marketing Officer – Copper & Zinc Sector, Vedanta Resources Plc., also addressed the participants during the open session. According to him, by 2015 India is likely to be the third largest consumer of copper in the world.

Dr. D. De Sarkar, Chief Executive Officer, Indian Copper Development Centre, apart from proposing the Vote of Thanks, stated that the Indian industry has apparently come out of the crisis of global meltdown and the country appears to be back to its fast growth path with encouraging GDP. It is the right time for the copper industry to utilize the opportunity and grow. He also mentioned about how the copper industry as a group should face the challenge posed by the substitution threat, by working together for reverse substitution to gain back the lost market and also to explore new opportunities. He stressed on the need to create awareness on Life Cycle Cost rather than First Cost.

The two technical sessions held during the seminar was chaired by Mr. T. U. Shenava and Prof. K. Baba Pai, Dean – Faculty of Technology & Engineering, Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, Vadodara, respectively.

	Mr. Nitin Agrawal delivering the welcome address and (L – R) Mr. S.K. Sharma, Mr. T.U. Shenava, Mr. Puneet Jagatramka and Dr. D. De Sarkar are also seen on the dais.
	A view of the audience
	Another view of the audience
	Interactive Session in progress
	Panel discussion in progress

The following papers were presented during the above mentioned two technical sessions of the seminar:

· Copper in Air-Conditioning Industry

by Indraneel Samanta, Blue Star Ltd., Thane

· Outlook for Copper Tubes in ACR Industry

by M. S. Vasu, LG Electronics India Pvt. Ltd., Greater Noida, U.P

· Copper Tubes for AC & R Compressors

by Naveen Adlakha & Venkat Kalluri, Tecumseh Products India Pvt. Ltd., Ballabgarh & Hyderabad

· World Class Copper & Copper Alloy Tubes Production in India

by Dinesh S. Wagh, Nissan Copper Limited, Mumbai

· Copper and Copper Alloy Tube Manufacture in India – A Developmental Approach

by Mukesh M. Mehta, Mehta Group of Industries, Mumbai

· Copper Alloys – Experience Sharing

by Debashis Mitra, Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited, Visakh Refinery, Visakhapatnam

· Case Study on Failure of Admiralty Brass Tube

by P. K. Ghosh, Indian Oil Corporation Ltd., Gujarat Refinery, Vadodara

· Application of Copper Alloy Tubes in NTPC

by G. S. Rehal & H. K. Sandhir, NTPC Ltd., Noida, U.P.

· Copper Base Components for Iron & Steel Industry in India – Some Facts

Before conclusion of both the sessions, very lively discussion took place during which the authors of the papers answered various queries raised by the audience.

The programme concluded with a panel discussion co-ordinated by Dr. D. De Sarkar. The panelist included Mr. N.G. Ramakrishnan, Mehta Group of Industries; Mr. B.M. Sharma, Chief Marketing Officer, Hindalco Industries Ltd., (Unit: Birla Copper); Mr. Ratan Mardia, Managing Director, Nissan Copper Ltd and Mr. Gurmit Singh Arora, Managing Director, Rajco Metal Industries Pvt. Ltd. The discussions highlighted the present status of copper and copper alloy tube market and the new opportunities that are available in India. Some action plan has been identified, so that the market is not only retained, but expanded also.