In the last three issues of FRP TODAY, I tried to highlight the use of composites in green buildings, green transport and water management. Farming is yet another sector where composites have great potential, but, for some reason, this area of application is not very much explored in the country. The word farming here includes agriculture, animal farming, fish farming and sericulture. The use of FRP boats for fish farming is the only application that has received reasonable attention in India. Other farming applications did not get the required attention even in the international market. Farming as a theme is not seen in composites exhibitions and not many products developed for farming are exhibited. This may be because farming is not a main area of composites business in advanced countries or may be because farming is not as glamorous a topic to attract attention as the transport, infrastructure or wind energy sectors get. Also, villages are far away from the production centres of composites in India and the marketing personnel may not believe that the effort put to reach out to the villages may not yield the required return.
With 70% of population living in villages and with a majority of them engaged in farming, Indian economy is still agrarian. The purchasing capacity of many middle class farmers may be as high as that of the urban middle class. Farming sector is also the largest employment generator. With a huge pool of manpower available for production, the labour-starved industry can get workers in villages. Composites industries in Gujarat have taken the lead of moving their production units to the villages. With a huge shortage of manpower, it will be good for a few of the composites industries to move their production to the rural centres particularly to those places that are located by the side of the national highways. This will benefit the villages and the industries equally. Even an advanced country like Japan take advantage of the women folk in villages for making composite products.
Making products for farming sector is another way of expanding composites activities to the villages. Many products required for the farming can be made locally engaging local labour. Natural fibres required for the green composites can be processed in the villages itself.
Products required for farming sector ranges from small tanks for wormi-compost, small refrigerated containers, cold storages and refrigerated containers for transportation of oil, milk and water, water storage tanks, pipes etc.
Sandwich composites can be used for making thermally controlled from small containers to the walk in/drive in type cold storages for preservation of fruits, vegetables, meat, fish, egg and milk. Such facilities could help farmers to preserve these products until their values in the market go up. The development is possible by a joint effort by all stake-holders of the industry.
Dr. N.G. NAIR
Honorary Editor
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