Page 10 - ICJ-March-2021

INTERACTIONS

Conservation, F) Innovation, G) People associated with need to be inclusive and take special care of the needs of the
construction. I see the durable, sustainable, responsive and poorest and most vulnerable. The main hurdle in implementing
green construction requirement for sustainable development sustainable construction practices is a time lag between research
is going to be the trend which will have major impact on outcome and commercialization & transfer of technology in
construction business in India. the field. Major challenges India may face while implementing
sustainable construction are:
Question 3: As a leader, how do you view your organisation’s • Inadequate government’s policies & procedures
obligations to sustainability?
• Deficient incentives to encourage adoption
Answer: As a premier R&D organization for cement,
concrete and construction sector, we clearly understand our • Expensive equipment and products
responsibilities and obligation to the sustainability. We also • Lack of skilled manpower and subject matter experts
understand the infrastructure development need and demand of • Awareness in the people
cement and concrete in the journey of economic progress and Therefore, in my opinion academia, research institutes, industry
holistic and integrated sustainable development.
and government needs to work in coherence to overcome these
We cannot think of construction without concrete. It is the challenges.
largest man made material which has a per capita consumption
of 1.5 tons per annum in India. National Council for Cement Question 5: What are some of the initiatives that the concrete
and Building Materials (NCCBM) is currently doing research construction fraternity needs to immediately implement for
& innovation across the value chain of cement, concrete and achieving sustainable development?
construction industry. Our research focus is based on principle Answer: Construction fraternity needs to recognize and
of “Creating waste to wealth” i.e. on how to use more and immediately implement the following aspects in developing a
more inorganic and organic waste of other industrial process sustainable infrastructure in our country:
and convert them into values added product such as use of • Plan, design and adopt specifications based on
fly ash and other cement substitutes in development and use performance and service life
of low carbon cements, use them as an alternate fuel & raw • Adopt sustainable construction practices
materials for cement sector etc. Similarly, we are focusing on • Select sustainable construction materials
use of manufactured fine and coarse aggregate, use of sintered • Use construction and demolition waste
fly ash lightweight aggregate, use of Construction demolition
and Recycled aggregates, durable construction, use of local • Focus on energy conservation
materials to reduce the carbon footprint associated with We need to encourage the use of less water and less portland
transport, energy conservation, renewable energy etc. NCCBM cement in concrete production. We also need to promote, use
is supporting Bureau of Indian Standard and other standards & of more blended cements and tailor-made organic chemical
policy makers in formulating the Indian Codes and guidelines admixtures for durable and sustainable construction.
for enhancing the usage of sustainable materials in construction.
Our research is supporting the country’s cement industry in the Professionals involved in the cement and concrete industries
mission of reducing its carbon footprint by 45 per cent by the have the responsibility to create lasting innovations to protect
year 2050. It is also working on future technologies which can the industries’ future viability, as well as the health of our
have huge impact on construction sector in future. Few such environment. Recycling and creating sustainable construction
examples are Geopolymer concrete, Digital concrete etc. designs not only contribute to reduced disposal costs but also
aid in conserving natural resources. This conservation provides
Question 4: What are some of the typical challenges that you technical and economic benefits. It is necessary for those
foresee in India while implementing sustainable construction? involved in the cement and concrete industries to eliminate
For implementing sustainable construction, strategies need to waste and take responsibility for the life cycle of their creations.
be ambitious, action-oriented and collaborative, and to adapt To be responsible engineers, it is necessary to think about the
to different levels of development. Sustainable development will ecology, equity, and economy of our design.

B. N. MOHAPATRA is the Director General of NCCBM and has rich experience in research along with industry experience.
He has worked with several well known Cement organisations in varied leadership roles. He has cross functional experience in raw mix
design optimization, product development & diversification, total quality management, alternate fuel & raw materials, environment
management and quality control and has pioneered contribution in use of alternate fuel by utilizing hazardous wastes and all kinds of
agricultural wastes. He has published over 120 technical papers in various reputed national and international journals and authored
a book. He is the chairman of Cement Sectoral Committee of Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) and member of various technical
committees of Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and various research committees across India. With a new thinking and energy in the
working of NCCBM, he focusses on projects promoting sustainable construction such as usage of Alternate Fuel & Raw Materials
(AFR), utilization of low grade limestone, development of Low Carbon Cements, utilization of wastes as Supplementary Cementitious
Materials, reduction of GreenHouse Gases (GHG) from cement production, energy efficiency, Carbon Capture and Utilization (CCU).

10 THE INDIAN CONCRETE JOURNAL | MARCH 2021