India Volume 6

66 Market Over the last few years, stone surfacing has evolved from its basic functionality of floor and wall covering to becoming a key element in design and aesthetics for both residential and commercial projects. Growth of the niche engineered marble and quartz market is driven by high end home users and businesses that are willing to explore unique and less commonly used surfaces without compromising on quality or utility. Application areas of engineered marble and quartz have now progressed to include kitchen countertops, transaction tops, shelf partitions, engraved wall coverings, wall highlighters, bathroom vanity tops and as various design elements used in furniture. Growth of the surfacing industry is closely related to performance of the housing market and any pickup in construction activity augurs better times for business. While engineered stones are quite popular overseas, it is an emerging and fast growing concept in India and is largely driven through project specification by architects and interior designers. Based on internal estimates, the domestic market for engineered marble and quartz in India is roughly approximated to be around H 500 crore. Out of this, quartz market is approximately H 350 crore. This industry has been Bridging the gap between nature and technology by maintaining the look and feel of natural marble while eliminating all the problems that are prevalent in natural marble, Johnson Marble & Quartz has created a niche market for itself as one of the major players in the engineered marble and quartz business in India. such as schools and healthcare facilities. With this certification, these products qualify for LEED points under Indoor Environment Quality (IEQ). Some of prestigious projects where Johnson engineered marble and quartz products have been used include Maruti Nexa Showrooms, Mumbai International Airport, Delhi International Airport, Hinduja Hospital, projects by Chitrali Properties, Runwal Developers and Ashford Infotech. History Johnson Marble & Quartz is the engineered marble and quartz division of H&R Johnson (India) – a Division of Prism Johnson Limited. The plant commenced operations in 2012 with a state-of- the-art facility being set up in Gujarat. Johnson came into existence in 1903 in the UK. H&R Johnson started off in 1958 as a tile manufacturing company with a manufacturing plant in Thane, Maharashtra. Today, H&R Johnson (India) is India’s only company offering end-to-end home lifestyle solutions that include tiles, engineered marble and quartz, sanitary ware, bath fittings, tile-fixing adhesives and grouts, and modular kitchens. Johnson also has the largest pan-India distribution network of over 1000 dealers and 10,000 sub-dealers, helping take Johnson products to every part of the country. Product Johnson engineered marble and quartz is essentially a mixture of over 90% natural minerals like calcite and quartzite processed with polyester resin, pigments and catalysts. Manufactured through a unique vibro-compression vacuum process, the engineered slabs maintain look and feel like natural marble and granite eliminating the many flaws associated with natural stones. Johnson engineered marble slabs are available in dimensions of 10 ft x 4 ft with customised thickness ranging from 12 mm to 20 mm. Quartz slabs come in standard dimensions of 10 ft x 4.76 ft with thickness ranging from 15 mm to 30 mm. Application areas include flooring, wall growing steadily at a CAGR of 25-30%. Quartz export from India has surged over the last couple of years, buoyed mainly by a demand spurt from the US market. Export of quartz surfaces to the US continues to show strong growth, with the US$ 764.9 million in 2016 showing a 25.6% growth from 2015. While China was the biggest exporter of quartz to the US, India’s export in 2016 moved up by 30.3% to US$ 33.5 million compared to the previous year (Source: US International Trade Commission data). From the current trends and after evaluating various growth drivers, it is forecast that engineered quartz market will exhibit a much steeper CAGR compared to its compatriots in the coming years. Rapid growth of the product can be attributed to the material’s superior physical characteristics, its attractive relative value, as well as broad array of colours and ease of fabrication. Rising demand across various residential sectors, burgeoning construction activities in the developing regions, increasing construction of residential housing units coupled with rapid demand from remodelling activities is anticipated to propel growth of the engineered quartz market across the world. Achievements Johnson engineered marble and quartz products have recently received the prestigious GREENGUARD GOLD Certification from UL among the very few companies in this industry to receive this certification. GREENGUARD GOLD standard includes health based criteria for additional chemicals and also requires lower total VOC emission levels to ensure that products are acceptable for use in sensitive environments SUPERBRANDS 2018 superbrandsindia.com