|
|
Imerys Sanitaryware is the world leading supplier of raw materials with the largest range of minerals for sanitaryware. Our product line includes ball clay, chamotte, kaolin and feldspar. We are also number one in the production of fully prepared bodies. With a strategic presence in Asia, Europe and the Americas, we have the resources to serve customers anywhere in the world.
Imerys Sanitaryware supplies raw materials with exceptional product homogeneity that meet the international quality control standard ISO 9001:2000. We offer a specialised range of products for all types of sanitaryware applications: vitreous china, fine fireclay (FFC), conventional casting and pressure casting. For instance, for customers using pressure casting techniques, we have products such as our Hycast Rapide ball clay and our Maxicast kaolin which have been specially developed to optimise performance in automated processes. As for FFC production, we offer an unrivalled package which includes Hycast FFC, a FFC-specific ball clay; renowned chamotte from AGS; and Spica, our prepared body plant specialised in FFC.
We make product recommendations according to the specific needs of individual customers. A wide variety of factors can affect performance such as the plant's capacity to work different production slips simultaneously or the restrictions on the number of ball clay and kaolin products that they can store. Equally important are production conditions: slip temperature, density, human handling and so on. In order to strike the best balance between all these variables and to make the most meaningful recommendations we invite you to contact us for a discussion with one of our technical sales managers.
A sanitaryware plant's yield is the ratio between the number of pieces put in for production and the good pieces actually produced. Imerys Sanitaryware's research and experience with customers show that this is one of the most important drivers of profitability in a sanitaryware plant. For this reason, our goal is to achieve optimal yield and productivity for our customers using a tailored approach which helps them to improve performance; to reduce costs; and to develop their processes for higher efficiency.
Further information
Search and download product information
Imerys Sanitaryware production sites
|
|
|
|
Fine fire clay (FFC) is a strongly growing part of sanitaryware production with rising market demand for larger and more complex designs. Imerys Sanitaryware is the only one-stop provider of all minerals for fine fire clay with an FFC-specific ball clay and specialised technical support. AGS, our chamotte producer, is world renowned and Spica has a wealth of experience from serving the most innovative sanitaryware designers.
Click for further information on our fine fire clay solution.
Fine fire clay (FFC) products |
|
Conventional casting & vitreous china |
|
Conventional casting of vitreous china is currently the most widely used application within the sanitaryware industry, although fine fire clay and pressure casting production volumes are gaining ground.
Imerys Sanitaryware has a strong track record of helping customers to optimise their plant yield and consequently, optimise their bottom line. Our kaolin products such as NSC or Remblend, and our ball clay range, Hycast VC in particular, have become industry standards. Quality products and technical expertise are integral to our success and we continue to invest into Research & Development to bring more value to our customers.
Plant conditions are extremely important and can vary considerably from one plant to the next. For this reason we develop solutions tailored to the requirements of each customer's specific plant. Our dedicated technical support and technical sales teams work closely with customers to design the most compatible body formulation. Imerys Sanitaryware has a comprehensive range of products and the expertise to help sanitaryware manufacturers achieve performance and process improvements.
Further information
Convention casting products
Vitreous china products
Imerys Sanitaryware production sites |
|
|
|
With the widest minerals range in the sanitaryware industry, Imerys can offer solutions for any type of production. Pressure casting is an increasingly used method, as it casts faster and is much less labour intensive compared to more traditional methods. For bottlenecked factories, pressure casting may also be a means to increasing plant capacity.
At Imerys Sanitaryware, we continue to focus much of our research and development efforts on providing the best possible raw materials and technical advice. Although many combinations of clays can be adapted to make them suitable, specially developed clays and bodies work best for pressure casting systems.
Research shows that for pressure casting bodies, a low cast moisture and associated wet strength is preferred to assist handling and prevent slumping and deformation of the pieces when removed from the mould. This is important in the production of the heavier pieces, especially water closets (WCs). Good plasticity is also necessary to facilitate the cutting and punching of the cast pieces. Bodies showing good particle packing produce lower cast moisture pieces. These are produced by using high-density slips adjusted to a suitable casting rheology.
Imerys' range of products developed specifically for pressure casting include:
- Ball clays: Hycast Rapide, Hycast Veloce, Hycast VC, Hycast LR
- Kaolins: Maxicast, Kernick, Kerspeed, Supercast, Remblend
We also have several other products that are suitable for use in pressure casting systems. Our technical sales managers can help to determine the best combinations to match specific production conditions and goals.
Further information
Pressure casting products
Balancing Firmness with Packing in Pressure Casting Sanitaryware, an article by an Imerys technical expert published in Ceramic Forum International (March 2005). |
|
|
|
In addition to our comprehensive range of quality raw materials for the sanitaryware industry, Imerys also offers customers the possibility to purchase prepared, sanitaryware bodies.
Prepared bodies are attractive to sanitaryware manufacturers who might, for example, have limited slip production facilities or who are developing bodies with particular characteristics which cannot be met from normal production slips.
A prepared body is usually a combination of ball clay, china clay, flux and quartz components which are blended together in precise proportions to achieve the desired target body properties. Prepared bodies can therefore be tailor made to meet an individual manufacturer's particular needs.
In this way, bodies can be developed for the conventional and pressure casting of vitreous china and fine fireclay sanitaryware. Specific requirements for strength, casting rate, shrinkage and other properties can also be met.
Prepared bodies are available in a number of formats including slips, spray dried granulates and in plastic form.
A full technical service is available to support and complement the supply of prepared bodies. In many cases this leads to a strong co-operation between supplier and customer.
For customers who do not prepare production slips themselves and who prefer to buy prepared bodies, Imerys can become an integral part of the manufacturing chain. Imerys is therefore able to bring its extensive technical know-how to achieve the highest performance in a customer's plant.
Prepared bodies are available from various Imerys plants:
- Spica: located in Civita Castellana, cradle of Italian design and production of sanitaryware. The Spica plant has for decades supplied prepared bodies and raw materials for the manufacture of sanitaryware and has a wealth of knowledge and experience.
- K-T Monterrey: situated in Mexico. This plant supplies prepared bodies and ball clay slurries to many of the key sanitaryware manufacturers in the region. A strong relationship has developed between the Monterrey team and production and technical leaders at customers' factories.
- Cliffe Vale: located in Stoke-on-Trent (The Potteries), England. This plant is mostly devoted to the blending and mixing of clays to make a broad range of bespoke products in slurry, powder and bulk form.
Further information
Click for a presentation of the Imerys Spica site
Click for a presentation of the Imerys K-T Monterrey site
Click for a presentation of the Imerys Cliffe Vale site
Imerys Sanitaryware production sites
|
|
|
|
Imerys offers customers the possibility to purchase prepared, sanitaryware bodies. Prepared bodies are attractive to sanitaryware manufacturers who might, for example, have limited slip production facilities or who are developing bodies with particular characteristics which cannot be met from normal production slips. Prepared bodies are available in various forms and Imerys has two dedicated plants.
Click for further information on our prepared bodies solution. |
|
|
|
Fine fireclay (FFC) is a strongly growing part of sanitaryware production: market demand is moving toward bigger and more complex shapes as many customers want to transform their bathrooms into enjoyable living areas. The FFC production technique, which results in lower shrinkage and deformation than vitreous china, makes it possible to produce difficult pieces with a high production yield.
Imerys Sanitaryware is the only one-stop provider of all minerals to help sanitaryware makers successfully produce FFC. AGS's chamotte is renowned around the globe and we provide a specially designed ball clay to fulfil the most demanding fine fireclay needs.
- AGS, a member of Imerys, produces ball clay chamotte near Bordeaux in France. AGS has wide expertise in FFC production, chamotte production and chamotte grinding. There is a variety of products available, from raw to refined 'epuree' chamottes. There are also high dilatometry (HD) versions of these chamottes.
- Hycast FFC ball clay has been specially designed to meet the demands of FFC production. It is fast casting, with low residue and carbon contents. It gives an excellent performance in FFC production, and can be also used very successfully in vitreous china production.
Imerys Sanitaryware does not only offer minerals. We also provide a first-tier service and expertise on FFC:
- Spica, is our full prepared body plant located in Civita Castellana, cradle of the Italian fine fireclay. Arguably the most experienced FFC producers in the world are located there, many of whom are Imerys clients. We prepare the production slip for many of them, which is why we have such extensive expertise in FFC production and a thorough understanding of the needs of sanitaryware manufacturers.
- Our technical support team and our technical sales managers help improve customers' knowledge of their mineral needs in order to optimise their factory yields and reduce losses. In our laboratories we can analyse your slip body and propose customised solutions. A full reformulation process is occasionally needed to optimise results, but is only implemented if the benefits offset the costs. Imerys Sanitaryware is also committed to the long-term viability of our solutions and we often make repeat visits to fine tune new processes.
Further information
Fine fireclay (FFC) products
AGS website
Imerys Spica site presentation
Fine Fireclay - An Overview of Raw Materials and Body Formulations, an article by an Imerys technical expert published in Ceramic Forum International (March 2008).
|
|
|
|
Pressure casting is an increasingly used method, as it casts faster and is much less labour intensive compared to more traditional methods and can even lead to plant capacity increases in bottlenecked factories. Imerys Sanitaryware has a range of over ten products specifically developed for pressure casting systems. Many other products are also suitable for this application.
Click for further information on our pressure casting solution.
Pressure casting products |
|
Conventional casting & vitreous china |
|
|
|
|
|
Ball clay is essential for sanitaryware production because of its high plasticity and strength.
Imerys Sanitaryware supplies a wide range of the highest quality ball clay products with varying strengths and casting concentrations to match any raw material requirements. Ball clays have also been developed specifically for fine fireclay (FFC), pressure casting and vitreous china which offer the following important properties:
- Highly controlled rheological properties
- High plasticity
- High unfired strength
- Controlled organic content
- Controlled residue
Most of Imerys Sanitaryware's ball clays are sold in shredded form, but facilities exist for a range of further processing options.
Imerys Sanitaryware ball clays are mined in England, France, China, Thailand and the United States. |
|
|
|
The world's best ball clay deposits are found in England, in the three areas of the Petrockstowe basin, North Devon, the Bovey Basin, South Devon and the Wareham Basin in Dorset. The bulk of the Imerys Sanitaryware ball clay range is sourced from these deposits.
English ball clays are renowned for their unique rheological properties and their rare combination of strength, plasticity, rheology and whiteness; all of which are maximised by Imerys for the benefit of our customers.
Production process
Opencast mining combined with a specialised knowledge of the different clays in the deposit allows for the extraction of different seams of clay with great accuracy. The individual component clays are stored separately before blending according to product requirements in a central processing plant.
For example, Imerys' Hycast VC ball clay is made from 16 different component clays sourced from many different quarries. The blend comprises 45 parts, which are sub-divided into three sub-blends. These sub-blends are shredded and then fed through a paddle mixer, which mixes the final product. This production process is designed to give a high level of uniformity, ensuring that each consignment from a production batch is the same as the next.
This state-of-the-art recipe confers outstanding properties to Hycast VC. The shredded and mixed blend is then stockpiled to await despatch or further processing.
Most Imerys' ball clays are sold in shredded form, but facilities also exist for further processing options.
Further information
|
|
|
|
Chamotte is a calcined clay made from ball clay or another raw material feed. The calcination process takes place in a rotary kiln at high temperatures of 1400 - 1600ºC. Sanitaryware pieces are fired at lower temperatures of around 1200ºC, therefore the chamotte is inert at the firing stage and acts like a skeleton to produce ware with lower shrinkage, better cracking resistance and lower deformation.
It is the introduction of chamotte that characterises the production of fine fireclay, which enables the production of bigger and more complex sanitaryware pieces. Fine fire clay is becoming well established in western Europe particularly in the Civita Castellana cluster, near Rome, Italy; it is of growing importance in the sanitaryware world.
Imerys Sanitaryware chamottes are produced near Bordeaux, in France by AGS, which is part of the Imerys group. AGS chamottes are well known for their high quality and consistency; offering reduced cracking, shrinkage and deformation of large complex sanitaryware pieces. These raw materials also make it possible to manufacture the most innovative design-driven pieces.
The following properties are of particular importance in chamotte:
- Controlled particle size distribution
- Minimal cristoballite to avoid dunting, cracking and health & safety issues
- Low magnetic content
In consultation with customers our products can be tailor-made to match their requirements.
- We provide chamotte in pellets or milled form. Milling quality is particularly important to the properties of the chamotte. AGS has the facilities and experience to perform state-of-the-art milling.
- The main products are "SMD" regular chamotte and refined 'epurée' chamotte - the only refined chamotte available to the sanitaryware market.
Approximately 30% of the energy used by AGS for chamotte production comes from biogas, which leads to a reduction of carbon emissions by 6,500 tons annually.
Further information
|
|
|
|
The kaolin deposits, in the southwest of England, are internationally renowned for their quality. They have been worked since the mid-18th century and are now mined by Imerys Sanitaryware. The precise requirements of customers can be met by the use of substantial resources and unparalleled technical experience in the processes of extracting, refining and drying of kaolins. To satisfy our customers' requirements, the Imerys portfolio contains specially engineered kaolins to ensure the products on offer cover a wide range of casting rates and casting concentrations.
Imerys supplies a range of kaolin products optimised for both traditional and pressure casting. Some of the main properties include:
- Highly controlled rheological properties
- Highly controlled casting rate and deflocculant demand
- Good dry strength
- Excellent particle packing and associated good factory yields
- Outstanding whiteness
A range of product forms are available with the most popular being lump and powder.
Imerys Sanitaryware kaolins are mined in England, France, China, Thailand and the United States.
English kaolin production
Traditional "wet mining" has always been the industry standard in the UK. It starts with the removal of topsoil, the exposed kaolinised granite is blasted with explosives and then washed with a 'monitor', a high-pressure water hose. The resulting kaolin-mica slurry flows to the lowest point of the pit and then through a series of mechanical classification systems to remove any unwanted sand and mica before being pumped to the surface of the pit.
Over the years as Imerys UK kaolin pits have become deeper, increasing amounts of energy is required to break down the clay and to pump the kaolin slurry up to the surface for further processing. We now use a ‘dry mining' process to reduce energy consumption and production costs.
The system has been designed to operate as economically as possible, particularly in terms of water usage. There are many re-circulation facilities within the process that can be used to maintain a high density final product; i.e. several tank overflows can be used for make-up water supplies further upstream in the process.
This "dry mining" process enables Imerys Ceramics to manage production and energy costs and offer customers products with the same quality and technical know-how at a controlled price.
Further information
|
|
|
|
Feldspar acts as the main vitrifying or fluxing agent in sanitaryware bodies. It is a very important ingredient as it further strengthens and ensures the durability of the fired body. Imerys, as the leader in industrial minerals, has unmatched mineralogical knowledge and can assist customers in ensuring that the proportions of feldspar in the body recipe are exactly right to avoid over vitrification during firing.
In addition, our geological expertise enables us to identify the highest quality deposits. In recent years, Imerys has expanded our feldspar portfolio with purchases, in 2007, of the Feldspar Corporation in the US and Jumbo Mining in India. Currently, Imerys extracts feldspars from France, Spain, Portugal, Turkey, India and the United States.
Further information
Technical data on Imerys Sanitaryware feldspar
|
|
|
|
Quality control is of prime importance throughout all stages of the production process, which is accredited to the ISO 9001:2000 quality assurance standard. Full testing on a range of properties and characteristics is carried out to ensure that products conform to specification before being released for dispatch.
All of our products are backed by the highest standards of technical support and customer service.
Top
|
|
|
|
Imerys Sanitaryware provides innovative solutions by the development of raw materials (ball clay, chamotte, feldspar, kaolin) and the reformulation of ceramic bodies to meet both current and future customer requirements. At the heart of this is our technical support team. This team helps to maintain long-term partnerships with customers; using its extensive knowledge of the sanitaryware process and mineral properties to design tailor-made solutions for our customers and partners.
In order to provide the highest standards of technical support there is a structured testing procedure in place. This starts with a thorough evaluation of the customer's production slip and raw materials. The casting properties of the slip are determined by using both plaster moulds and the Baroid apparatus. The rheology is characterised by the Brookfield and Gallenkamp viscometers. A Bohlin rheometer is used when a more in-depth analysis is required. A thorough assessment of each supplied raw material is also conducted and may include testing its chemical, mineralogical, physical and ceramic properties. The results of this complete study are used as the benchmark for recommendations.
Imerys can offer a wide range of raw materials to meet the specific requirements. Customers can be supported at every development stage, starting with laboratory testing and finishing with plant trials based on Imerys' recommendations.
The guiding principles for Imerys Sanitaryware technical support are:
- Performance improvement, using productivity, yield and quality as key measures
- Cost reduction
- Process development, in the form of new technologies for further performance and cost benefits
Imerys Sanitaryware's technical team is mainly based in Cornwall, in close proximity to our ball clay and kaolin deposits in southwest England. We have a number of technical support teams and quality control facilities in Italy, Thailand, Mexico and the US and all our production sites are equipped with specialists. We can also rely on our Ceramic Centre for further back-up support.
Further information
|
|
|
|
Imerys Sanitaryware offers a fully integrated logistics service. We have a full team of logistics professionals dedicated to transporting our products from the pit to our plants and to our customers premises.
Our industrial sites are all well served and connected by seaport, rail and road facilities and it is our objective to ensure that all our products reach their destination, in perfect condition, on time and in a cost effective manner.
Imerys Sanitaryware works closely with shipping lines, forwarding agents and local carriers in order to provide a rapid response to customer needs. We also benefit from a global network of commercial sites, sales managers and distributors; therefore we are fully versed in regional regulations and documentation. This combined with numerous strategically located storage facilities and supply posts ensure a flexible, customer-centred approach.
Our logistics service offers customers the benefits of our large shipping volumes, influence with ship owners, efficient planning, dependable quality control and reduced administrative responsibilities.
Minerals shipping is a complex business with hidden costs and constraints. Those that choose to manage their own logistics should bear the following in mind:
- Securing vessels through volume-based long-term deals with major ship owners is key to ensuring good prices and service.
- Timely notification of orders and shipping requirements is fundamental.
- Vessel freight rate only covers the cost of vessel from departure to vessel arrival in port of destination. Numerous additional costs may occur that have to be taken into account.
Further information
Click to download information on the Imerys Fowey port and FOB conditions
Imerys Sanitaryware production sites |
|
|
