The price band for tiles, ceramics, sanitaryware

01 Aug 2019 CW Team

The past few years have been challenging for the tile industry, with overcapacity, rise in input costs, pricing pressure from unorganised players, dumping from China, GST and demonetisation.

“We see that the worst is over in terms of pricing pressure and expect 10-12 per cent growth in 2019-2020,” predicts Kamlesh Patel, Chairman and Managing Director, Asian Granito India. He adds that, at present, input costs are increasing owing to multiple factors. “So, like other organised players, we are compelled to pass on the burden on end-users. However, customers can choose preferred products according to their budget.”

Atul Sanghvi, Executive Director & CEO, CERA Sanitaryware, sees pricing under pressure, owing to sluggish demand consequent to slowdown in housing construction.

Meanwhile, Dinesh Vyas, Marketing head, H&R Johnson, points to the ceramic tile industry as unique among building materials in the sense that the cost of basic products has consistently come down. “Pricing is a matter of acceptance of the product at a value customers perceive. In most cases, it is relative in nature. However, comparison parameters are not in place in the absence of required domain knowledge.”

For tiles, the price is generally referred to in terms of size and whether they are vitrified. Vyas sees this approach as factually inaccurate. “Overall, prices are under pressure in basic ceramic tiles as the competition is really fierce,” he insists.

SHRIYAL SETHUMADHAVAN

Real Estate

30 Jul 2026

AI: The New Recruit

From getting ideas to evaluating designs, presenting concepts to clients and tracking projects, artificial intelligence (AI) is helping architects work better and faster.“AI allows architects to spend more time doing what only they can do: think critically, synthesise complexity and design with intent,” says Dikshu C Kukreja, Managing Principal, CP Kukreja Architects. “Every minute reclaimed from repetitive processes can be invested in creativity, contextual understanding, interdisciplinary collaboration and innovation – the qualities that define meaningful architecture.”To read the ..

Redevelopment 2.0

In 2017, Mumbai identified 160,000 ageing buildings due for structural audit. Close to half of these were in the Western Suburbs. Redeveloping the oldest and structurally weakest of these would help unlock new housing, much needed given the city’s growing population density and constant developed area of 437.7 sq km. At 30,600 people per sq km in 2024, Mumbai’s density was almost thrice that of Gurugram, and 60 per cent higher than Bengaluru’s.Essentially, Mumbai’s realty market has demand. It has capital. It has realty development potential.Fast forward to 2026. Mumbai has 1,094 regis..

Cost intelligence will become a strategic contributor to project success

As India's construction industry accelerates its digital transformation, integrated platforms, AI and connected data are becoming essential to improving cost certainty, project efficiency and sustainability. Ravi Kumar, Sales Director – India, RIB Software India, shares how digital workflows are reshaping project planning, commercial management and decision-making across the construction value chain.India's construction sector is embracing digital technologies at an unprecedented pace. From your perspective, what are the biggest shifts driving this transformation and how is RIB Software enab..