Rockwool plant starts commercial operation

Rockwool plant starts commercial operation

CIKAMPEK, W. JAVA (JP): PT Nichias Rockwool Indonesia, the
first rockwool producer in the country, has started commercial
operation with a full production capacity of 4,800 tons per year.

"The operation of this plant at full capacity from the
beginning shows that the demand for rockwool is increasing
rapidly," Director General of Metal, Machinery and Chemical
Industries Effendi Sudarsono said here yesterday when he
dedicated the rockwool plant.

Sudarsono noted that Indonesia's domestic demand for rockwool
is 5,000 tons per year. It will increase in line with the growing
number of high-rise buildings and industrial plants.

Rockwool, which is made of minerals -- ironslag, pyrophilate
and phenolresin -- is a product designed to be heat- and fire-
proof and sound-tight. The minerals are fused into anorganic
fibers through the process of centrifugal force spin.

To produce 4,800 tons of rockwool, the plant needs 120,000
tons of ironslag -- still imported from Japan -- 50,000 tons of
pyrophilate and 12,000 tons of phenolresin per year.

The products of Nichias Rockwool include MG felt, MG mighty
cover, MG wired blanket, MG lath board, MG mighty roll and MG
elbow cover.

Sudarsono pointed out that 20 percent of the company's
production will be exported, while the other 80 percent will be
sold on the domestic market.

He said that the plant's operation will help Indonesia save
about $8 million per annum from imports.

He said that because demand for rockwool is rising, the
company will also increase its capacity, particularly in making
products for high-rise buildings.

Sudarsono at yesterday's occasion also witnessed the departure
of the company's first export to Malaysia. The export volume was
12 tons at a value of $24,000.

Nichias Rockwool was established in March 1995 by Nichias
Corporation of Japan with an investment of $9.5 million. It is
the first rockwool plant set up outside of Japan. (13)