How to get Pollution Board Certificate for Aluminum casting, rolling & annealing?

Introduction 

The process of pouring liquid aluminium metal into a mould or form is defined as Aluminium Casting. Aluminium is suitable for casting as it requires less energy to melt as well as to maintain at casting temperatures. The aluminium casting industry consists of various activities. Also, there are various other industries like agriculture, construction, automotive, culinary, health care, mining, etc. which include require products from this process.  For example, the construction industry depends on aluminium casting in roofing, making windows and door handles, curtain walling, shop partitions etc. 

Other than casting, Aluminium rolling and annealing are also the major processes. Rolling of Aluminium involves transforming slabs of cast aluminium into a usable form for additional handling. A common example of this could be the manufacturing of cans and containers that are hugely used in the food industry for take-out orders. A final product like aluminium foil for food wrapping can also be produced with it. Industries like architecture also use the process of aluminium in manufacturing aluminium roofing, rain gutters, anti-skid flooring, siding panels, etc.
Annealing of aluminium is done to improve its malleability as it reduces the problem of cracking or fatiguing of the material. This decreases the stiffness of the material to make it usable and workable. In this process heat is the key element. The raw hard metal or aluminium is heated at such a high degree that the metal loses its character and converts into a flexible and usable shape of aluminium. Some of the industries which involve this process are the automobile, aerospace, and marine.

How to Start Aluminium Smelting, Casting, Annealing Business:

To start a business of aluminium casting need to be a very detailed and structured thoughtful process. There are various aspects that are important to take into account before starting the business. It is a kind of business that needs all your time, attention and a huge amount of money but the industry has scope for great profitability if there are proper as well as appropriate inputs in it. This business needs –
1.    A good amount of start-up capital is needed, as the machines and equipment used in the processes are capital equipment and tend to be very costly. You can use your personal savings or you can approach investors with your business plan or you may take business loans from the Banks and other financial institutions. 
2.    A large space to set up your business where you will establish your factory and also office space for handling the necessary paper works.
3.    Hiring a business expert will turn out to be a plus point for mapping your business plan. Their knowledge, experience, and expertise will help you in meeting your desired goals.
4.    Knowledge of the licenses and certifications you will need to establish your business and how to apply for those licenses.
5.    Getting the proper permissions and licenses first to establish and for smooth running of your business.
6.    Purchase of cold chamber machines and hot chamber machines or gooseneck machines for this business. Before buying the machines, you must do proper research about the models of the machines through various knowledge resources.

Import and export data on Aluminium Industry –

In 2020, India was the fifth-largest auto market. India’s electric vehicle (EV) market is estimated to be a Rs.50, 000 crore opportunity by 2025. In Financial Year 2021, nearly 40 lakh automobiles were exported. The defence manufacturing is an emerging industry. The Government has set the defence production target at USD 25.00 billion by 2025 (including USD 5 billion from exports by 2025). The government is pursuing innovative steps to boost domestic manufacturing. Among other industries, both the above-mentioned industries rely on aluminium casting, rolling, and annealing.

Initial cost of project –

The price of the machines of casting machines can be as low as 250 USD, or less but with this, the salary of the employees, the rental price of the land for establishing the industry, and the price for acquiring proper licences have to be added.The project of establishing an aluminium rolling mill might cost approximately 15 crore in total.

Feasibility analysis –

Despite recent technological advancements in the aluminium casting and rolling sector, the industry continues to face pressures to increase production at a low cost while delivering high-quality cast components for intricate designs. However, high-quality castings may be commercially produced by careful selection of casting technology and thorough controls. This industry has a lot of successful businessmen, therefore it's a profitable business. The right approach needs to be explored through extensive studies on the production process with the help of business experts.
 

The important registrations and certificates required to set up the factory for aluminium casting, rolling, and annealing

Determine the status of legal entity – 
The business owner is to first set up a business entity as per his resources, goals, and requirements. It can be any of the below mentioned:
A sole proprietorship firm wherein a single individual is the owner of the business but it is generally not recommended for as big a set up as an aluminium casting facility. 
A Private or a Public Limited Company would be an ideal business structure for this kind of business activity as it allows the expertise and experience of other individuals to add up the overall expertise required for aluminium business.  
A partnership firm where your business will be governed by the Partnership Act, 1932
A Limited Liability Partnership (LLP) where in the partnership is registered with the Registrar of Companies (ROC), Ministry of Company Affairs.

Pollution Control Board Certifications for Aluminium Business 

The process of smelting of aluminium in a cupola furnace or any smelter involves generates both air and water pollution and this Industrial waste contaminates the environment when toxic and heavy materials are not rightly processed and disposed off. When such waste is released into the oceans or landfills, hazardous materials intoxicate the environment causing harm to wildlife and humans. In addition to that our waste management infrastructure gets disturbed when materials eligible for recycling go in the garbage bin instead of being reused or repurposed. 
Industrial emissions contain various toxic gases and when such industrial emissions are released into the environment the air becomes toxic which causes the death of forests, acid rain, photochemical smog which directly affects human health especially the lungs of a human body. Such toxic air can kill humans and other creatures.

Consent to Establish (CTE) –

The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) was set up as a Statutory Organisation in September 1974 as per Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974 and later, for the powers and functions under the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981. In the ensuing decades, the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has slowly been passing the functions and responsibilities under the Water Act and Air Act to the State Pollution Control Boards in States and Pollution Control Committees in Union Territories. These State Pollution Control Boards (SPCBs) and Pollution Control Committees (PCCs) in Union Territories are responsible to monitor, control and reduce the level of Air and Water Pollution in their respective jurisdictions. 
The business owner is required to apply to the State Pollution Control Board to get the Consent to Establish (CTE) Certificate. After the CTE Certificate is secured, the building, machinery etc could be set up and installed. After this, the applicant is again required to apply online to State Pollution Control Board for the Consent to Operate (CTO). Once the CTO certificate is issued, the business is formally allowed to commence its operations. Also, as the process of Aluminium smelting is, one of the 17 highly polluting business activities, the business entity is also required to apply online for Hazardous Waste Management Authorization from State Pollution Control Board. This authorization certificate guarantees that the hazardous waste being generated in the aluminium smelting, casting or annealing process is suitably being disposed by an authorized hazardous waste handling facility. 

The procedure of determination of the category of subject matters of the businesses – 

The determination process is typically based on scores. For measuring air pollution marks will be obtained by recognizing various air pollutants and scoring accordingly out of total marks of 40 and for water pollution such scoring will be similarly out of total marks of 40 and the remaining 20 marks out of 100 is allotted for measuring hazardous waste. 
If this score of a business activity is higher than 60 then it is called as Red category of business activity and so on.
How to apply for Pollution Control Certificate
The simple steps can be followed to understand the procedure of applying for a Pollution Control Certificate:
i.    The initial application is available on the online portal of any Pollution Control Board or Pollution Control Committee. 
ii.    The applicant is required to submit the documents and submit Government fees for such applications. The fees for Consent to Establish (CTE) and Consent to Operate (CTO) under Air and Water Act largely depends on certain factors such as the type of business activity, commencement of such business, capital investment of the business and the duration of Consent to Operate (CTO) validity.
iii.    The required documents relating to the details of the industry has to be scanned and uploaded while filling the online application and in some cases, the physical copy of such application along with those scanned documents and receipt of the fees paid has to be sent by post to the Pollution Board Office or Pollution Committee office. 
The status of a pending applications for Consent to Establish (CTE) or Consent to Operate (CTO) can be checked on the same online portal of SPCB or PCC. 

Consent to Operate –

The industries categorized under red, orange and green categories need to apply for consent to establish and consent to operate under the Air and Water Acts. The consent to operate/renewal shall be granted for 5 years for the aluminium casting, rolling and annealing industry as it comes under the orange category. The CTO validity for aluminium smelter could be for one year per renewal application as this is a red category business activity. 

Hazardous Waste Management Authorization 

Aluminium Casting (except cupola furnace only), Rolling (with a capacity less than 25 MT/day) and Annealing falls under Orange category and does not fall under the category of Hazardous article but it does require some kind of emission control equipment. But the smelting of aluminium is considered as hazardous activity and requires HWM Authorization. 

Plastic Waste Management (PWM) Registration

The process of smelting of aluminium does not use any type of plastics but in case a business entity engaged in aluminium casting or forging and wrapping or packaging the finished products in plastic sheets or packages may require Plastic Waste Management Authorization as a bulk consumer. Registration for Plastic waste can be through CPCB under the Plastic Waste Management (PWM) Rules 2016 and an online portal has been launched in this regard. Producers, importers & Brand-owners are required to fulfil Extended Producers Responsibility (EPR) for the plastic waste generated due to the products introduced by them in the market.

Ground Water Boring Permission 

The process of aluminium smelting, casting, forging or annealing may require the usage of large quantities of water and hence large amount of waste water. If the business owner is using bore well for water extraction and using this ground water in the industrial process or for domestic usage for workers, it is required to take permission for the ground water boring being used. The permission to abstract and use ground water for commercial or industrial purposes is granted by the Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA) in various Indian States or by the specific State Ground Water Management Authorities. For example, we have Haryana Water Resources Authority (HWRA) in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh Ground Water Department (UPGWD) in Uttar Pradesh, which grants permissions for ground water abstraction in their respective States. 

Trademark Registration

The Trademark certificate can to be acquired for which an application has to be made through the online portal of the Trademarks & Patents Office and such trademark has to be distinct and innovative. Depending on the distinctiveness, the Registrar might approve and provide the certificate of registration of a trademark. Every 10 years you will have to renew the trademark of your firm.

Factory license 

The Factory License is a certification that a particular factory is in compliance with the Municipal Laws and Labour Laws of a particular Municipal Area or of a Gram Panchayat.  For acquiring the factory license, one has to make an application to the Office of the Directorate of Factories. The Factory License is issued for one year and it generally requires renewal after every 31st March of the Financial Year.