The last session of the first edition of “ChemConnect 2022”, Logistics and Supply Chain Event, organized by Indian Chemical News (ICN) on September 21, 2022 at The Lalit, Mumbai, is going to witness prominent industry experts discuss the critical aspects of warehousing and safe storage of chemicals.

The discussion at the session titled "Warehousing & Safe Storage" will bring out the current gaps within the infrastructure for warehousing and the ways in which it can be improvised. One can register as a delegate by clicking on the link (https://www.indianchemicalnews.com/chem-connect/register ).

Topics to be covered at the session include: Existing infrastructure and missing link; World class warehousing and storage infrastructure; Future growth in warehousing and safe storage; Challenges in the segment; Role of technology; Sustainability & green warehousing; and Regulatory bottlenecks and policy support.

The prominent speakers from the industry at the session include Prakash Wagh, Country Transport Safety Advisor, Clariant India; Mrinal Das, Senior Vice President, Projects & Engineering Purchase, Dorf Ketal Chemicals; Pavithran M. Kallada, Managing Director - India, BDP International; and Marcus Fornell, Director – Contract Logistics, Rhenus Logistics. The session will be moderated by Pravin Prashant, Editor, Indian Chemical News.

The conference themed as ‘Creating a Robust Ecosystem’ has lined up the country's top industry captains for the most comprehensive dialogue on the various key topics. Cutting across a number of business sessions, the conference will help develop the most meaningful and business-enabling idea exchange that will seek to further government and industry's growth aspirations. The discussions will help curate a comprehensive review of the chemical logistics sector, understanding the challenges as well as the opportunity that the segment offers.

By 2025, India’s chemical industry is projected to be over the US $300 billion market. It could very well be in the trillion zone by the next decade. In Petrochemicals alone, the ‘planned and announced’ capacity addition, at 158 mtpa, nearly four times of the current capacity, will make India account for 20 per cent of the global and 33 percent of Asian capacity additions by 2030. By 2050, India is projected to account for 20 percent of the global chemical industry market.

As India emerges into a global powerhouse for the chemical industry in the coming years and decades, the changing landscape in the sector is bringing its own set of challenges and opportunities.

A fast growing industry, developing end-markets shifting towards new chemicals, a growing desire to adopt sustainable practices as well as to meet environmental legislation, technological advancements, concern of safekeeping and storage are all underpinning potential growth opportunities and advancements in Warehousing and storage of chemical products.

Future innovation in warehousing would see emerging technologies like drones, robotics or high-tech suits increasingly being put to use in warehousing and storage solutions.

Chemical industry is complex in nature. Products range from solids, liquid, gaseous and inert to hazardous and highly inflammable. The complexity of handling warehousing and safe storage is only compounded because of the fragmentation of the industry and lack of domestic standards. A complete discernment of hazard and risk associated with chemicals storage and distribution is essential in choosing processes that ensure compliance at each step.

MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet) not properly followed which results in various chemical disasters of warehouses resulting in huge losses in property and productivity. Besides, poor storage infrastructure is another challenge the industry has to deal with. Most of the warehouses are not leak proof, ill-equipped with security systems and without adequate warehousing facilities. Personnel training and practicing global operational techniques are some of the other challenges.

There are however steps aimed at bringing excellence and standards in Indian warehousing and safe storage of chemical products. There are some government initiatives too to ramp up warehousing and storage infrastructure in the country.

The event is supported by platinum partner Netradyne, gold partners - Carbanio, Moglix, and drivebuddy AI, regulatory knowledge partner - GPC, tech partner Ezbiz Technologies, and media partner Indian Pharma Post.