13th GPCA Agri-Nutrients Conference to take place in Qatar in September

The conference will take place from 17-19 September 2023 at the Ritz-Carlton, Doha, Qatar, under the theme “Sustainable Transformation in Practice – The Future of Agri-Nutrients”

The 13th annual edition of the Gulf Petrochemicals and Chemicals Association (GPCA) Agri-Nutrients Conference will take place from 17-19 September 2023 at the Ritz-Carlton, Doha, Qatar, under the theme “Sustainable Transformation in Practice – The Future of Agri-Nutrients”.

The global population is estimated to reach 9.8 billion by 2050 , while 68% of the population is projected to live in cities by 2050 . Increasing population and urbanization, macroeconomic instability, poverty and inequalities, geopolitical tensions, conflicts, food security, and climate change are just some of the ongoing challenges facing the agri-nutrient industry.

The agri-nutrients industry, while responding to these challenges, is focused on building a more resilient and sustainable market for the future. This entails a substantial change in both advanced economies and developing countries and will be the key focus of the 13th GPCA Agri-Nutrients Conference.

Policymakers, academia, industry leaders, technology providers, and value chain partners will converge to discuss the need to realign and chart the roadmap to a sustainable transformation here, in the Arabian Gulf region, and globally. Industry stalwarts will delve into the transition paths forward to preserve the diversity of agriculture and our food systems while striking a balance between short-term productivity gains and longer-term resilience, environmental health, and sustainability gains.

The opening remarks on day one, 18 September, will be delivered by Abdulrahman Al-Suwaidi, CEO, QAFCO and Chairman, Agri-Nutrients Committee, GPCA, while the keynote address will be delivered by Abdulrahman Shamsaddin, CEO, SABIC Agri-Nutrients, and Vice-chair, Agri-Nutrients Committee, GPCA. Later that day, the program will feature a plenary session on ‘The far-reaching implications of geopolitics on the agri-nutrient sector’ as well as three strategic panels: Adapting food security to climate change, Mitigating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the agri-nutrients sector, and Biodiversity strategies and their impact on the fertilizer industry.

Eng. Yasser A. Rahim Alabbasi, CEO, GPIC and Board Member, International Fertilizer Association (IFA), will welcome delegates on day two, 19 September. He will be followed on stage by Prof Robert Stavins, AJ Meyer Professor of Energy and Economic Development, Harvard University, for the keynote address on day two. On the last day of the event, esteemed industry experts will discuss the financial implications of transitioning to a sustainable future, adopting technologies to transform the agri-nutrient industry, capturing the supply chain value leakage, and market trends in the agri-nutrient industry.

On 17 September, delegates can attend an Operational Excellence Workshop which will provide practical knowledge and insight into how to drive efficiencies and improvements across agri-nutrient plant operations.

Dr. Abdulwahab Al-Sadoun, Secretary General, GPCA, commented: “The agri-nutrient industry needs a sustainable transformation which must be led by talent, innovation, and technology adoption, and accelerated through cross regional partnerships and cooperation. Never before has the importance of solving food security challenges been more pronounced, as the world population grows exponentially and demand for our finite resources continues to increase. Stakeholders in this region and the world share an important responsibility to address the challenges and improve the industry’s competitiveness in order to meet the needs of an estimated 9.8 billion people by 2050.”

www.gpcaagrinutrients.com

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Zero Emission Heavy Transport Now Possible

World-first electric vehicle eliminates carbon impact of large construction projects

A new zero emission heavy transport vehicle has been created, which can remove the carbon impact of installing large infrastructure such as bridges, wind turbines and power station components. Mammoet – the world’s largest heavy lifting and transport company – is responsible.

It works by converting existing Self-propelled Modular Transporters – or SPMTs – from diesel to electric power. SPMTs are the workhorse of heavy industry, used in almost every large energy and construction project worldwide.

Mammoet developed a retrofit kit to replace diesel engines in the vehicles with electric motors. Once converted, each SPMT works in the same way as before: transporting objects up to thousands of tonnes at walking pace, using a remote control.

The new vehicle shows Mammoet’s strong commitment to the energy transition, and to its own sustainability. Fitting new engines in existing SPMT fleets cuts down on both waste and additional construction, compared to purchasing new zero emission equipment.

The new SPMT can eliminate the carbon footprint of site transports. This allows our customers to reduce the impact of large infrastructure projects on surrounding people, businesses and infrastructure.

It reduces noise levels at project sites, making working conditions quieter and safer. Communication between staff is clearer, while work can take place for longer at sites with sound restrictions.

This solution was part-financed by the DKTI, a Dutch government program to develop climate technologies and innovations in logistics. Mammoet worked with a leading provider of zero emission powertrains for heavy industry to bring the electric power pack solution to market.

Developed by Mammoet in 1984 and with over 40,000 axle lines in use globally, the SPMT, or Self-propelled Modular Transporter, revolutionized heavy industry by moving any heavy load safely, efficiently and with precision.

This next step in its story will be just as significant, reducing their CO2 and NOx emissions to nil and pointing the way towards a sustainable future for heavy transport.

For more information, visit www.mammoet.com

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Seven-Up Bottling Co. Ltd (Nigeria): Four Sacmi Lines Already Operational, With a Fifth on the Way

COMBO Blo2Fill plays pivotal role in water and CSD bottling operations. The company has also taken delivery of the first CCMs, strengthening an already solid partnership on the crown cap front. Mr. Ziad Maalouf (Managing Director): “We’ve gone for the best available technology on the market so we can push ahead with our mission of producing high quality drinks on behalf of the major global brand owners”

Seven-Up Bottling Co. Ltd was founded in Nigeria in 1960, on the same day the country gained its independence from the United Kingdom. Ever since that first bottle of 7Up, the company has grown steadily by remaining faithful to its mission of using the best available technology to package high quality beverages on behalf of the world’s most renowned brand owners.

What’s more, it also enjoys a rewarding partnership with the SACMI Group, which has been supplying the company with crown cap manufacturing machines for over 20 years (the latest, delivered in 2022, has an ultra-high output capacity of 5,000 caps per minute). That partnership now continues with the recent decision to invest in further development and modernization of the bottling lines, with SACMI-developed technology playing a huge role in 4 of the country’s 9 plants (i.e. Ikeja, Aba, Abuja, Enugu and, most recently, Kano). Note that further investments are already in the pipeline.

Mr. Ziad Maalouf (Managing Director) gives us an analysis of the present scenario and future prospects.

Mr. Ziad, which brands does Seven-Up Bottling work for?

“The Seven-Up Bottling Company Ltd is one of Nigeria’s largest manufacturing concerns. Our nine factories produce and distribute some of the best known, best loved beverage brands. These include Pepsi, 7Up, Mirinda, Teem, Mountain Dew, H2oH!, Lipton Ice Tea and Aquafina premium mineral water”.

How did the partnership with SACMI develop, and what technologies were involved?

“Ensuring our customers get nothing but the best is our number one priority. That’s why we’ve drawn up an ambitious technological/plant modernization plan for all our production facilities. The SACMI range has proved to be a winner as it covers all the various needs of a modern bottling plant. In 2022 we successfully installed and started up four water and CSD lines at the Ikeja, Aba, Abuja and Enugu plants, while a fifth ‘hybrid’ line is expected to become operational at the Kano site by the end of 2023”.

Let’s talk about stretch-blow molding and filling. Why did you invest in the SACMI Blo2Fill ‘COMBO’?

“We selected this solution after careful assessment of the alternatives. The primary advantage of Blo2Fill is that it offers a unique response to the multiple needs of a modern bottling factory. Another decisive factor was the extremely high productivity provided by the ‘dual cavity’ option on this solution, both on large sizes of up to 2 liters and on medium-small formats such as 500 ml. In other words, we needed outstanding versatility. However, we also wanted the reliability of a sole partner and a single platform, capable of responding to our diversified needs”.

Tell us about the order in more detail.

“Three of the new, already-operational lines are dedicated to the stretch-blow molding, filling and capping of carbonated soft drinks (CSD). Here, the solutions include the SACMI ESF 12/120/20 filler, which delivers output rates of up to 48,000 bottles per hour in the standard 300 and 500 ml formats. The fourth water line, instead, features the AWS 12/60/20 filler. This produces up to 52,000 bottles per hour with small formats (500 ml), 45,000 with medium-sized 750 ml products and 24,000 with the classic 1.5 liter PET water bottles. Last but not least comes the fifth line being supplied to Kano, a so-called ‘swing’, or hybrid, line for bottling both water and CSDs”.

What further advantages have you gained from an integrated plant engineering perspective?

“In this case we need to mention the new SACMI labelers, the market-leading OPERA 400 RF machines. These extremely fast machines are designed to apply up to 60,000 cylindrical labels per hour and feature an advanced handling system that enables the labeler to keep pace with the speed of the bottling line, regardless of the size being produced. In practice, we’re talking about extremely powerful labeling machines that are well suited not just to our high line speeds but also, more generally, to the total automation of the entire plant that this sort of configuration requires”.

Tell us about the cap lines.

“In glass bottling, we’ve enjoyed a decades-long partnership with SACMI, which has supplied us with its world-beating crown cap manufacturing machines. The last such order, delivered in 2022, was for a high-speed line producing 5,000 caps per minute. With this latest investment plan, our partnership with SACMI will now be extended to include the supply of two CCM plastic cap-making machines. Once again, we were attracted by their internationally recognized technological leadership and the advantages the machines offer in terms of speed, quality and low consumption”.

www.sacmi.com

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