19th Global Gypsum Conference, Exhibition & Awards
23 - 24 October 2019, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
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The 19th Global Gypsum Conference, Exhibition and Awards has successfully taken place in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, with around 280 delegates from 39 countries and 37 exhibitors in attendance. The 20th Global Gypsum Conference will take place in Estoril, near Lisbon, Portugal, on 28 - 29 October 2020.
The 19th Global Gypsum Conference was attended by delegates from around the world, with especially large delegations from Asia, notably Japan, Thailand, India, Oman, Malaysia, Singapore, Korea and, especially, China. Substantial numbers of Germans and Americans were among the many delegates who had made substantial efforts to attend. The event started with a welcome reception in the exhibition area, at the InterContinental hotel, which was well attended and saw delegates interacting with providers of equipment and services from around the world. Notable this year was the large number of Chinese technology providers.
At the start of the conference itself, Joe Harder, from OneStone Consulting, firstly pointed out that the available forecasts on the global gypsum are fairly poor. Using a variety of data, Joe presented updated statistics for the industry. He pointed out that China is the largest producer of natural gypsum, with a global market share of 28.2%, followed by the US, Iran, Thailand, Turkey, Spain and Oman. Around 241Mt of phosphogypsum is produced annually, and around 137Mt of FGD gypsum. The cement industry is the largest user worldwide, with a share of 57.3%, followed by wallboard, plaster and fertiliser. Joe suggested that worldwide capacity utilisation in the wallboard industry is 79%, with an average weight of 8.3kg/m2. The average capacity of a wallboard plant is around 31Mm2/yr. Dr Harder suggested that around 140 new wallboard plants will be built by 2035, with an average size of 50Mm2/yr.
Next Robert Morrow of Innogyps firstly reviewed the merger/takeover of USG and Knauf, suggesting that the merger is going well, with no significant issues in technology, culture or financing. Robert pointed out that new wallboard plants continue to be built around the world, primarily in the developing world, notably in India and Oman. Previously landfilled FGD gypsum may increasingly be mined, as well as calcium sulfite, which will also need a reprocessing step before use as gypsum. Gypsum supplies from FGD gypsum are precarious in some parts of the world where coal fired power is no longer in vogue, but in China and India there is no shortage, with increasing use of scrubbers on an increasing number of power plants. Robert commented on the politicisation of business and trade, with political factors increasingly important. He also suggested that one of the most important issues facing the industry is that of finding quality personnel, particularly with regards to their use of recreational drugs and opiates, retention issues and therefore higher training costs.
Shawn Xu next spoke on behalf of BNBM, the world’s largest gypsum company by capacity. The total consumption of gypsum in China in 2018 was 129Mt, of which 84% was synthetic gypsum. There are 16 wallboard lines with a capacity of over 50Mm2 in China, with all of those with a capacity of below 10Mm2/yr now eliminated by the Chinese government. In 2018 the wallboard output of the country was 3.21Bm2, with a value of Yuan25bn. In China 80% of gypsum board produced is used for ceilings and 9.5mm board makes up 85% of the total market. Chinese government plans stipulate that prefabricated buildings should account for 15% of new buildings by 2020 and for 30% by 2025. Wallboards will incorporate air-quality improvement characteristics, as well as being manufactured with decorative facings. “It is an inevitable trend that Chinese gypsum board enterprises will enter the world,” stated Shawn, before giving an unequivocal invitation to all independent wallboard producers worldwide to consider entering into partnership with BNBM. Lest it be overlooked, it is worth pointing out that this was probably one of the most significant sentences uttered in the whole of the event.
The next presentation was given by Elizabeth McCaffrey, on behalf of US industry expert Rob Crangle, on the effect of ‘cheap’ natural gas on synthetic gypsum costs in the US, using publicly-available data. Despite many coal-fired plants being retired, synthetic gypsum availability and use has increased, while millions of tonnes of synthetic gypsum are still being landfilled. More synthetic gypsum is produced than can currently be used, so that the price of gypsum, both natural and synthetic, has stayed stubbornly low in the US.
Leonid Friedmann of Claudius Peters next spoke on how Industry 4.0 will impact on the global gypsum industry. Leonid suggested that the use of his company’s CPportal can allow all users of a system to access all relevant data on a project, including spare parts data. QR codes on each piece of equipment can lead engineers to a full store of documentation online, including current revisions in real time. 3D models from laser scanning are now commonly used in both greenfield and brownfield project planning. Building Information Modelling (BIM) can also be used to optimise the building of new projects, and allows clients to see and influence the project outcome - including the use of immersive virtual reality. Continuing-on from BIM, a digital model or ‘twin’ can be used to test, in a virtual world, any modifications to the system, or to help to diagnose any problems. Meanwhile, back in the real world, a wide range of sensors can be used to monitor machine condition and the data can be used to manage maintenance and to avoid any catastrophic failures. Finally, data can be aggregated to allow comparisons between plants, for example in terms of energy consumption, in order to optimise plant performance.
Mark Flumiani of Gyptech, Canada, next gave his gypsum industry wish list: flexibility (such that a factory would be able to use different types of gypsum - synthetic, natural and recycled - or blends of different types); lower energy processing (particularly through reducing the amount of water used in manufacturing which must then be evaporated) and lower energy in use, such as those products that include an air barrier; that gypsum products should be seen as pure or ‘green’ (including processes to remove asbestos from recycled plasterboard, and processes to remove radioactivity from phosphogypsum); increased usability (lighter weight boards or lift-assisting technology); reduced labour during production (such as automatic dunnage, automated guided vehicles and machine learning); 100% accuracy (3D dimensional scanning of every board and automated void detection); beauty (aesthetic panels which might also include valuable physical properties such as acoustic attenuation or insulation, or even that just smell nice). Mark’s wish list points towards a to-do list for the gypsum industry.
Next up was Tim Collath of TEWS Elektronik GmbH & + Co. KG, who spoke about inline moisture-profile and density measurements of plasterboards with microwave technology. The company’s equipment can produce 2000 measurements per second with a repeatability of 0.03%. The best process locations to take measurements are before and after the dryer, while microwave measurements can also be taken from powder as well.
Meli Baran Kiliç of Erba Makina gave the final presentation on the first day of the conference, on improvements in foam-generating equipment. The self-contained unit that the company offers is physically robust and has already been supplied to wallboard producers in a number of countries around the world.
Global Gypsum Awards Dinner
After the end of the first day’s presentations, delegates boarded buses for the trip to the spectacular Tamarind Springs, where the Global Gypsum Awards were presented during dinner. Knauf Gips KG was awarded gypsum company of the year, GypTech received equipment supplier of the year and Sicit Group was named additive supplier of the year. The Saint-Gobain Placo Iberia Zaragoza plant received the gypsum plant of the year award and Georgia Pacific’s DensElement Barrier System received the award for gypsum-based product of the year. Gypsum innovation of the year was awarded to the Bozzetto Group’s Flube C40F fluidiser, while BNBM was awarded the prize for ‘outstanding contribution to the global gypsum industry,’ a repeat of the award it received in 2013. Four ‘gypsum personality of the year’ awards were made; Fevzi Aker from Erisim; Nicolás Alverde of Panel Rey; Bryce Neal from Evans Adhesive; and Ushio Sudo from Yoshino Gypsum of Japan.
Conference second day
Jeff Warren from Gyptech started the second day by suggesting that “it is more difficult to make board these days,” since lines are high speed, making lightweight board, with a diverse range of products, with complex chemistry on more complex equipment. Jeff asked which are the measurements and metrics that can help managers to make good board, that can help to produce good raw materials, that can aid in good board formation and in good drying. Stucco analysis involves material characterisation primarily in terms of free and combined water, stucco constituents, reactivity, water demand and particle size analysis. Accelerator potency can be gauged by thermal set analysis. Good formation is controlled by slurry fluidity (measured by slump), slurry density, slurry set analysis and by controlling board dimensions. Measurement of cup weight (weighing a cupful of slurry) allows a fairly accurate gauge of board weight. Dimensions required are width, profile, edges, taper and weight, which are measured today with high frequency and accuracy. Good drying involves operating the dryer at the correct temperature, with a balanced dryer moisture profile.
Dany De Kock of Johns Manville started the third session at the conference, on ‘adding value to gypsum products,’ by speaking on the optimisation of the distribution of glass fibres in boards. Fibres are added to boards to improve core cohesion and strength under fire testing. Dany pointed out that unless fibres are properly distributed, they will not be able to impart strength properly to the board, so dispersion is a critical property and homogeneous distribution of glass fibres is ideal. Dany described a new testing method which forms a sheet of fibres, which can be measured more easily than the fibres in a beaker test. It is most important that bundles of fibres are separated quickly in the mixer, so that the absence of bundles and presence of single fibres is a key metric.
Eleanora Chernyshova of Lanxess Deutschland GmbH next spoke on how urbanisation is affecting the biocide industry. Whenever moisture and any kind of food source is present, mould can grow. Insulation and hermetic sealing of dwellings can be a source of moisture and are problematic for wallboard, which can be prone to mould growth. Biocides are now commonly used to prevent, destroy or control various types of harmful or unwanted organisms, including the growth of mould. However, products now not only need excellent efficacy, with broad spectrum application at good cost/performance ratio, but must also meet ‘green label’ expectations of environmental performance.
Anna Marie Dijk-van Delden of Avebe next spoke on enhancing the performance of gypsum-based dry mortars with starch rheology modifiers. Starch ethers can aid in thickening, can extend working time and add anti-sag properties, improve workability and improve the adhesiveness of the mortar to the substrate. The performance of the starch depends on the pH of the formulation, so that the thickener must be carefully tailored to the process parameters. The starches may also have a role in thickening and stiffening foamed gypsum for lightweight board core.
Liyu Yang of Jiangsu Efful Science and Technology Co., Ltd. spoke about the key technology for preparation of an alpha hemihydrate gypsum from phosphogypsum. Large amounts of phosphogypsum are produced in the creation of phosphate-based fertilisers and large amounts, into the tens of billions of tonnes, are currently stored in piles around the world. Three technologies currently exist for the production of alpha hemihydrate gypsum from phosphogypsum: the autoclave process, the hydrothermal process and the normal pressure salt process, but each has its own disadvantages, including high energy costs, low product strength and large amounts of waste water. Liyu Yang presented an improved autoclave process involving pretreatment and the use of citric acid crystal modifiers, with a washing step that can be used to improve product performance.
Kent Ward of Gypsum Consulting Services Inc., speaking for Sicit Group, next spoke about the use of retarders for the optimisation of the production of wallboard. Retarders are used for a number of purposes, including to delay setting to help keep the mixer and hoses clean of set gypsum, to help improve board formation and wet bonding of paper liner, and to provide a means to control setting characteristics on the board forming line. Accelerators and starters are added to the slurry to initiate and to accelerate setting: a retarder can be used to precisely control the final setting point of the slurry. One of the main points of using a retarder is to reduce the water requirement of the slurry.
Victor Zerr of Gebr. Pfeiffer next spoke about the possibility of grinding and calcining 100% FGD gypsum and recycled plasterboard gypsum in the MPS GC vertical mill. He gave details of several projects currently underway around the world, including one in North America that can deal with natural gypsum rock from 75-95% while also grinding recycled material in a range of 5-25%.
Sebastian Gurgul of UCL presented the final paper at the event, which was a kinetic and mechanistic study into the transformation of calcium sulphate hemihydrate to dihydrate, using a variety of techniques including XRD, FTIR and the use of the Diamond Synchrotron near Oxford. He suggested that the transformation is a one-step dissolution-reprecipitation process, that conversion never reaches 100% even if enough water is provided and that nucleation is the rate-limiting step.
Conference prizes and farewells
At the conference Farewell Party, in Bentley’s Pub, a number of prizes were awarded, based on delegates votes on the conference questionnaires. Dany De Kock of Johns Manville was awarded third prize in the best presentations for his paper on fibre dispersion, while in second place was Anna Marie Dijk-van Delden of Avebe for her paper on starch in wallboard. In first place was Mark Flumiani of Gyptech for his paper on a ‘wish list’ for wallboard production.
Delegates rated the conference highly for networking and content. In fact, this was the most highly-rated Global Gypsum conference ever overall. The announcement of the next conference destination as Estoril, near Lisbon, Portugal, was widely approved and it looks likely to set new records for the Global Gypsum Conference and Exhibition on its 20th anniversary in 2020.
Delegate comments on Global Gypsum Conference 2019
- Everything was very good
- Very well organised overall and a great opportunity to network in a specific market
- Good balance, excellent organisation!
- Thank you for everything and supportive team!
- Well organised! First time participating but really felt very welcome by the organisation.
- Thank you for the effort on the organisation of the event.
- The Gala Dinner this year was fabulous.
- Great job guys!
- Keep up the good works!!
- Very good balance this year!
- See you in Lisbon.
