The client’s need
A refractory materials manufacturer set out to build its first calcium silicate board line from nothing. It had no process know-how for the product, no equipment, and no capability to manage cross-border delivery and installation itself — it needed one partner from formulation through to a running line.
The site team worked in Arabic, and there would be no resident Chinese technical staff on site. Every problem after start-up would have to be diagnosed and solved from a distance.
Scope of supply
Process: mixing → conveying → reactor → dewatering → hydraulic forming → green-board handling → drying. Curing by autoclaving at 190–200 °C for 6–20 hours, then hot-air drying at 100–180 °C to below 5% moisture.
Temperature grades, process routes, equipment by section and standards for lines like this one are set out on our calcium silicate insulation board and pipe section production line page.
LINE 1 — COMPLETE LINE (2018–2020)
| Equipment | Quantity / rating |
| Mixer | 1 set, 17 kW |
| Conveyor | 1 set, 4.5 kW |
| Main forming unit (slurry distribution, steam–water separation, air compression) | 1 set, 21 kW |
| Steam–water separator | 1 set |
| Discharge unit | 1 set, 3 kW |
| Hydraulic press | 1 set |
| Connecting conveyor | 1 set |
| Mould frames | 300 sets |
| Trolleys | 20 sets |
| Automatic control system | 1 set |
LINE 2 — EXPANSION EQUIPMENT (2023–2025)
| Equipment | Quantity |
| Pipe-section press, 200 t, 1,000 × 1,000 mm platen | 1 |
| Pipe-section moulds, made to the client’s drawings, with stainless-steel liners | 16 |
| Board press, 500 t, 1,500 × 1,500 mm platen, with 1,200 × 1,200 mm and 1,200 × 400 mm (×3) moulds | 1 |
| Automatic demoulding machine with vacuum lifting and PLC control | 1 |
PRODUCT AND FORMULATION
| Board thickness | 6–100 mm |
| Board size | Up to 600 × 1,200 mm; 1,200 × 1,200 mm with the line 2 press |
| Density | 250–300 kg/m³ |
| Compressive strength | ≥ 0.55 MPa |
| Flexural strength | ≥ 0.5 MPa |
| Service temperature | 1,050 °C |
| Formulation | CaO : SiO₂ molar ratio 0.95–1.05; fibre 1–8%; mineral additives 0–12% |
| Reinforcement | Alkali-resistant glass fibre, 2–3 cm |
Our role
- Process and formulation design: the full process route, the CaO : SiO₂ formulation system, and autoclaving and drying parameters
- Equipment selection matched to design capacity; for line 2, the 200 t and 500 t presses and custom moulds for the client’s expansion
- Manufacturing follow-up with the equipment makers, including the long-lead reactor, hydraulic press and moulds
- Factory inspection with measured results, and inspection reports before shipment
- Export documentation including certificate of origin; freight coordination and container loading
- Installation guidance on site by our engineers, twice: line 1 (November 2019 – February 2020) and line 2 (May 2025, two engineers for press installation and start-up)
- Live remote support — our process engineers connected with the site team through dedicated messaging groups
- Commissioning and process optimisation
- English operation manuals, equipment lists and mould drawings
- Ongoing spare parts and process support, continuing today
Challenges and how we solved them
| Challenge | How we solved it |
| Travel stopped in early 2020 — in the middle of installation | We issued an official situation report to the client and moved guidance to live video and messaging the same week. Installation was substantially completed in February 2020, on schedule despite the shutdown. |
| Steam pressure collapsed whenever both reactors ran at once | Diagnosed remotely as a boiler-capacity limit, not an equipment fault. We reset the reactor operating cycle to match the boiler’s steam output, so both reactors run without pressure loss. |
| Slurry leaking during pressing because of mould fit | Pressing time extended from 1 to 5 minutes at a lower pressing speed. |
| Surface cracks in finished boards | Our process engineers traced the cause to the slurry and reformulated it — adding pulp (dry pulp : water = 1 : 1.5) and adjusting water dosing. Cracking was eliminated in September 2021 and has not returned. |
| The hot-air flow diagram for the tunnel dryer was missing | Obtained from the manufacturer’s engineers and passed to the site. |
| An Arabic-speaking site team with no resident Chinese staff | An interpreter, multilingual messaging groups, and every key parameter confirmed in writing in Chinese and English. |
Results
The clearest measure of this project is that the client came back — twice.
- In production since 2020; every process issue after start-up resolved remotely, with normal production from September 2021; still running steadily in September 2025
- Regular production at about 3,000 m³/year
- Second line: contract in October 2023, installed by our engineers in May 2025
- Third line: in June 2026 the client asked us to plan a new line, including 1,200 × 1,200 mm boards and the plant layout
- A working relationship since 2018 — eight years and three lines