- Santhosh Prakash, Vice President (Product Management), Mapei Construction Products IndiaThe construction chemicals market in India can be considered a “sunrise industry”, believes Santhosh Prakash, Vice President (Product Management), Mapei Construction Products India, as its acceptance in the construction market is growing at a steady pace. Infrastructure projects like ports, roads and bridges, airports and metros are expected to be the key growth drivers for construction chemicals, says Prakash, as he shares more on the market and the company’s offerings…Considering the market demand, tell us about your offerings?  Internationally, Mapei is an 82-years-old company, although Mapei India is just eight years old. Mapei SpA has 15 product lines, which encompass the entire spectrum of chemicals used in the construction industry. Mapei India products fundamentally cover admixtures, waterproofing, grouts, repair products, chemical flooring (resin and cementitious); and special products for tunnelling, including products required by tunnel-boring machines; as well as products related to fixing ceramic tile, stone, and other materials such as PVC, carpets, etc. Mapei India recently added new products to the waterproofing, repair and rehabilitation, tile adhesives, flooring, and resilient segments. With these offerings, Mapei India expects to cover all its selected project groups, with high-quality products of international standards supported by effective technical services.Any solutions that you specifically offer for corrosion?We have a wide range of products to address the issue of corrosion. In the admixture range, Mapeplast CNI is a chloride-free aqueous solution that performs at its best without affecting the setting time of concrete. Calcium Nitrite inhibits corrosion with ferrous ions at rebar level to form a stable passive film of ferric oxide on the reinforcement steel around the anode.Also, Mapelastic coating protects the surface of concrete from CO2 penetration (carbonation) for over 50 years – 2 mm of Mapelastic represents the equivalent thickness of 30 mm of concrete against the aggressive action of chlorides (w/c ratio 0.45).Other products in Mapei India’s range are: Idrocrete XT: Crystallising admixture for waterproof concrete; reduces the permeability of concrete and micro cracks.Mapefer 1K: Single-component, anti-corrosion cementitious mortar for protecting steel reinforcement rods.Mapeshield I: Pure zinc anodes coated with a special conductive paste, for galvanic cathodic protection against corrosion of reinforcement rods in new structures and in structures requiring repair.Elastocolor paint: Single-component, acrylic resin-based paint in water dispersion, which forms a film on the surface owing to the action of natural light. Once completely dry, Elastocolor Paint forms a flexible finishing coat that is impermeable to water and aggressive agents in the atmosphere (CO2-SO2), while remaining permeable to vapour.What are the challenges faced in the current scenario?  The construction chemicals market in India is growing fast. Mapei India’s objective is simply to grow faster than the market growth rate to ensure that our market share increases steadily, thus ensuring sustainable and profitable growth.