Ananth Kumar unveils world's largest glass fibre reinforced gypsum panel

Ananth Kumar, Union Minister for Chemicals & Fertilisers, unveiled the world’s glass fibre reinforced gypsum (GFRG) panel ‘Gypwall’, manufactured by FACT-RCF Building Products Limited (FRBPL), at the India International Trade Fair 2014. FRBPL is a joint venture of Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore Limited (FACT), Kochi, and Rashtriya Chemicals and Fertilisers Limited (RCF), Mumbai.
 
FRBPL is now manufacturing the world’s largest load bearing wall panels (12 X 3 mts and 124 mm thick), which are light weight with high quality finish and water proof. Ananth Kumar said all labs including those from the US have tested and approved these panels, which could revolutionise the infrastructure sector of the country.
 
This environment friendly prefab Gypwall, which is approved by Building Material and Technology Promotion Council (BMTPC) as an alternative building material, envisages new construction methodology for affordable housing. Considering the potential of the panels in mass housing projects, IIT Madras has come out with a design manual for GFRG panels published by BMTPC. IIT Madras has been testing and conducting various studies on GFRG wall panels for the past 10 years. Considering the advantages of GFRG panels to the environment, IIT has Constructed a two storied apartment buildings at their campus, which took only 32 days for completion.