Galvanizing plant for Southeast Europe - Slovenian Maxim opened plant worth €21 million in Indjija

(Photo: Metal cinkara)

- Metal Cinkara, the largest and the most modern galvanizing plant in Southeast Europe, which has been ceremoniously opened in Indjija, has already signed contracts on the delivery of 6,000 tons of zinc-coated steel elements to domestic and foreign companies - Metal Cinkara CEO Mirsad Draganovic told eKapija.

- For now, we are to deliver 6,000 tons in 2011. We cooperate with our partners Amiga Kraljevo, Autoflex Becej, Zastava inpro from Kragujevac, Tobler Presevo, and all these are the companies that have been growing over the past few years at the same rate at which we have been developing – Draganovic said and added that they were also negotiating with the companies from England and Libya.

He stated that Metal Cinkara was also cooperating with Fiat through Trimo and Amiga.

- Until recently, it was impossible to galvanize an element 13.7 meters long in our vicinity. The nearest hot-dip galvanizing lines are in Verona and in Austria. The opening of our factory points to greater capacities of Serbian economy in the metal-processing industry. Our line is also significant for the surrounding countries, Croatia and Bosnia in particular - Draganovic explained.

Maxim Group from Celje has had the plant in Indjija, worth 21 million euros, built in only one year, with the help of the Vojvodina Investment Promotion (VIP) Fund, SIEPA and the municipality of Indjija. Metal Cinkara currently has 50 employees.

- A galvanizing plant usually does not employ many workers, but it is important for the employment of people in the region because it affects the metal-processing companies. Its greatest value is the fact that it stimulates further production, most of which is intended for export – said eKapija's interlocutor.

The factory's annual processing capacity in two shifts is 60,000 tons, which is twice as much as other galvanizing plants in Serbia galvanize altogether. Hot-dip galvanizing as an anti-corrosion protection is not yet as common in Serbia as it is in the EU.

As the Director of the Indjija-based plant told us, the line will be slowly introduced to the production during the first four to six months, after which the employment of processing capacities is expected to reach 65%.

- This plant also comprises a small line for centrifugal galvanizing, of which capacity of 5,000 tons enables a brand new way of processing small elements. Because of the big line, the small one is a bit neglected in today's presentation, but it is significant because such lines do not exist anywhere else in the region – Draganovic emphasized.

The contractor and technological constructor of the plant in Indjija is Gimeco from Milan.

- The Italian factory has built the equipment construction know-how in our years of experience. Since this is one of the state-of-the-arts hot-dip galvanizing lines, we expect metal-processing experts from around the world to visit us in the following period and check how our plant functions – says Mirsad Draganovic.

The construction works on Metal Cinkara were entrusted to Gradjevinar Kocic, while the plans for the plant were drawn by Sabac-based architectural bureau Set.

- Beogradmontaza was working on the electrics together with Slovenian Elektro Signal, while the team of Ljubljana-based Bemija was in charge of installations. We assembled 2,400 tons without any problem – said our interlocutor.

Speaking of the metal-processing market, Draganovic said that the situation was improving, primarily because the works that used to be done by the Chinese were being taken over by European companies.

- The European Union has become aware of the fact that it will become dependent on China if it keeps moving the production to that country. Some of the works that are going to be done by us are the same works that were done by the Chinese last year.

Metal Cinkara's opening ceremony was attended by the prime ministers of Slovenia and Serbia, Borut Pahor and Mirko Cvetkovic, as well as by Serbian Minister of Economy Mladjan Dinkic, Prime Minister of Vojvodina Bojan Pajtic, and Indjija Mayor Goran Jesic.

Cvetkovic pointed out that Slovenia was one of the largest investors in Serbia and that the galvanizing plant in Indjija was one fo the biggest individual investments.

Slovenian Prime Minister said that the economic cooperation between Serbia and Slovenia in 2010 was on a rise and that the level of exchange of goods in the first ten months had grown by 11% against the same period in 2009.

Factory of special containers

Maxim Group also plans to have a factory of special containers built next to Metal Cinkara in Indjija and invest 22 million euros and employ about 200 people in it.

- A land of 6 ha is ready and the construction should commence before 2015 – Draganovic announces.

Significance of hot-dip galvanizing

The service of hot-dip galvanizing - the protection of steel elements with zinc, is an ecological, long-term and economically available anti-corrosion protection procedure. A high percentage of dilapidation of steel structures is a consequence of corrosion, which also negatively affects the natural environment and requires the funds in amount of 10% of the national income in Serbia. Hot-dip galvanizing can be used in the protection of larger steel structures, facilities, road equipment, various fences, trailers, floor grids, stable equipment, as well as in the protection of smaller products for garden, house, or a commercial facility. When compared to alternative methods of protection of steel structures, hot-dip galvanizing offers important advantages - economic, ecological and technological ones.

Beginnings of hot-dip galvanizing

The beginnings of hot-dip galvanizing, as a procedure for anti-corrosion protection of iron and steel products, date back to the 16th and 17th century, when trading in zinc was registered for the first time in China and Northern India. That is when the use of the term "corrosion" started. In 1742, French chemist Paul Jacques Malouin described a method of coating iron by dipping it in molten zinc in a presentation to the French Royal Academy. In 1836, French chemist Stanislas Sorel obtained a patent for a method of coating iron with zinc. The first galvanizing plants started to appear in France, England and Germany after 1840.