Milestones – Electro Minerals

Carborundum Universal Limited (CUMI), established as a tripartite joint venture in 1954, is a leading materials sciences engineering solutions provider. CUMI, part of the 120-year-old Murugappa Group, is listed on the NSE and BSE.

CUMI is a Mines to Market Company whose integrated operations include mining, power generation, fusion, manufacturing, marketing, and distribution. CUMI has over 5,000 employees worldwide who collaborate, innovate and develop high-quality material solutions and world-class services in abrasives, electrominerals, ceramics, refractories and energy storage materials, serving customers in diverse industries including engineering, fabrication, auto and auto components, infrastructure, steel, glass, power generation and distribution, mining and aerospace. CUMI has a wide geographical presence spanning five continents and exports products to over 50 countries.

Murugappa Ajax Furniture Company in established in 1938

1938

1954

CUMI Established – CUMI started its voyage in 1954 as a tripartite venture between Carborundum of the USA, Universal Grinding Wheel, UK and the Murugappa Group, India

1964 – Brown Fused Alumina, Edappally, India

1964

1965

1965 – Bauxite Calcination Plant at Okha

1965 – Bauxite Mining Bhatia, Gujarat, India

The Electro Minerals Division of CUMI, also known as CUMI Minerals, started as a supportive division to its Captive units – Abrasives & Super Refractories. Its supreme manufacturing facilities are strategically located in the Indian states of Kerala and Gujrat, leveraging maximum advantages of raw material availability, power costs, closeness to customers, logistic facilities and most importantly, availability of a large well trained work force.

The journey started in the year 1964, when CUMI Minerals commissioning its Brown Fused Alumina Plant at Kalamassery, Cochin. The very next year, CUMI spread its productive presence across India with a different perspective and advance technology added with maximum facilities. In The year 1965 CUMI started The Bauxite Mines and Calcination plant in Okha, Gujarat. This secured the Raw Material needs for Brown Fused Alumina manufacturing and even today continues to suffice the Bauxite requirements of CUMI.

1965

1984

1984 – Silicon carbide plant, Koratty, India

CUMI Minerals set forth its journey into non-oxide minerals. The Kerala Village Koratty at Thrissur witnessed the flourishing of a novel production unit of Silicon Carbide in 1984. Quick to realize the vast applications of SiC micro grits CUMI commissioned The SiC Micro Grit Plant at Koratty in 1988.

1988 – Silicon carbide Micro grit plant, Koratty, India

1988

1992

1992 – Fused Alumina, Plant 2, Edappally

Knowledge in fusion helped the expansion into White Fused Alumina and Fused Mullite. In 1992, CUMI started White Fused Alumina Plant with a Tilt Furnace at Kalamassery.

Apart from Bauxite, power is a key input in the manufacturing of CUMI Minerals. To secure this, CUMI Started the Hydro Electric Plant in Kerala at Maniyar near Pathanamthitta in the year 1994. This was another landmark which was a great support to its energy intensive units and today caters to more than 30% of the power requirements of the captive power requirements.

1994 – Mini-Hydel Plant at Maniyar

1994

2004

2004- Modern Micro grit plant, Koratty, India

Micro Grit Plant in Koratty was modernized in 2004 to enhance quality controls and product deliverables. Our most promising plant, the AzureS (Sol-Gel) Plant was commissioned in 2006 at Kalamassery. This plant today competes at a global level with leading players as a preferred product for both Bonded & Coated applications.

2006 – AzureS (Sol-Gel) plant

2006

2007

2007 – VAW, Russia

Global Expansion of EMD came about with the acquisition of the Russian Unit, Volzhsky Abrasive Works in 2007. VAW is the 2nd largest manufacturer of SiC in the world and this put CUMI in the global arena of mineral players. CUMI then made its second global acquisition into the strategic materials of Zirconia with the acquisition of Foskor, Zirconia in South Africa in 2008. With this, CUMI added the Calcia Stabilised Zirconia & Monoclinic Zirconia products to widen its offering to the refractory market. 2008 was one another remarkable year which witnessed the initiation of the Treatments Plant at Kalamassery. CUMI Minerals today offers a wide variety of treated grains including – heat treated, blue fired, Red oxide or CC, High Temperature Ceramic Coating, Silane & also Chemical Coatings.

2008 – Acquisition of Foskor Zirconia, South Africa