The Technology Upgradation and Skill Development Company (Tusdec) has started setting up first phase of the ADB CFC Programme-funded Ceramics Development and Training Institute (CDTI) in Gujranwala.
The CDTI is designed to help resuscitate the local sanitaryware industry and enable it face competition in international markets. According to a Tusdec spokesman, the land for this Rs 314 million project has been acquired in village Attawa near Gujranwala. The project team has been hired and construction is slated to start shortly.
The facility, being developed under the Asian Development Bank's $12 million SME sector development CFC Programme, will be housed in a pre-engineered building. It will be made up of a modern common facility centre specialising in sanitaryware but will also include a testing laboratory to help the entire ceramics industry in Pakistan.
In addition, to CDTI, another three CFCs ie Peshawar Engineering Support Centre (PESC), Hyderabad Engineering Support Centre (HESC) and Quetta Engineering Support Centre (QESC) are to be set up under the ADB programme. The CDTI will house modern equipment and machinery to be used by the local sanitaryware cluster as a common facility to help it adopt modern technologies and upgrade their productivity and quality. It will also house facilities to provide training and exposure to contemporary technology through hands-on experience.
The facility, after having become operational, would not only help increase Pakistan's sanitaryware exports but would also help local products in competing with imports pouring in from various countries of the region. The Tusdec is planning further initiatives in tableware, industrial ceramics and refractory with the objective to revive production in these segments while being cost-effective and internationally competitive.