Cement Energy and Environment

, ..,... I LAFARGE TO AWARD INNOVATIONS IN SUSTAINABLE CONSTRUCTION Building materials' maker Lafarge has invited players at different levels of the construction chain to propose innovations for sustainable construction. Entries from entrepreneurs, start-ups, engineers, architects, consultants and academicians in India will compete for the company's Lafarge Invention Awards, the second edition of the award programme, after one in Europe last year. Lafarge plans an incubation programme for the winners where the company will help start-ups with technical assist~nce to develop the idea. INDIA'S INFRASTRUCTURE : ROAD TO SUCCESS Indian infrastructure has gained tremendous importance in the past few years, and provides immense opportunities for growth and development. Therefore, it is clear that the infrastructure Sector in India, offers large investment opportunities. Many of the new investments (such as gas pipelines) seem to be viable on commercial terms and should be suitable for partnership with private investors. For many other infrastructure investments Public-Private-Partnership (PPP} is emerging as the preferred SUSTAINABLE CONSTRUCTION "India is seeing a need for building infrastructure and housing, and these needs have to be met by sustainable methods and innovations in construction. The innovations cannot be implemented without interactions and collaborations amongst the different players. Bringing about such collaborations is what we basically hope to achieve after this competition," Mr Pascal Casanova, Director, R&D, Lafarge, told Business Line. Stressing the need for trained architects and technicians in the construction industry in India, Mr Casanova said that Lafarge, through the collaborations that the competition might bring about, will focus on training for instrument, where the private sector gets its normal financial rates of return while the public sector partner provides concessional funding based on the long-term direct and indirect benefits to the economy. Roads The basic infrastructural need is good connectivity and development of roads is directly proportional to progress. The country's road network consists of expressways, national highways, state highways, major district Roads, and other district roads and village roads. The National Highways Development Project (NHDP), the largest architects technology and engineers, and product innovations, and increasing awareness on the need for sustainable construction in India. In this context, Lafarge recently entered into collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology, Madras for research in quality and durability of concrete. The company also plans to enter into such collaborations with other universities in India and with other material science and construction experts in the country. Courtesy: The Hindu Business Line, September 9, 2011, Bangalore highway project ever undertaken by the country. The Golden Quadrilateral (GQ-5,846 km} connects the four major cities of Delhi , Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata. The last link in the chain is rural roads. The access to villages within a district or between different districts is provided by Other District Roads (ODRs) and Village Roads (VRs). These roads also meet the social needs of the villagers and are also a means for transportation of agriculture pro– duce from the villages to nearby markets. Rural connectivity is a key component of rural development and contributes 35