Lafarge Prestia solves many technical problems,     
such as...

• inconsistency:  inconsistency of plaster setting time (too short? : workers lack time to cast properly; too long? : lower molds output/shift) brings lower productivity and inconsistent quality of molds; therefore casting performance will be inconsistent
• fragile molds: low bending strength plasters will produce molds that do not resist tough handling by workers
• short mold life: low mechanical strength plasters yield too low mold surface hardness (therefore reduces mold life) and can't be used in machine casting (ex. battery casting)
• too fast setting: too fast setting time of plaster : means not enough time to release bubbles, which results in lower strength, so risks of breakage during the handling of molds
• long drying time: plaster with bad porosity will bring too long drying time of molds after usage
• surface problems: hard particles in plaster will destroy surface of your product
• black spots: high iron content in plaster will create black spots on clayware
• set plaster lumps: plaster badly protected from moisture will have lumps that will destroy surface of clayware

Those problems put the product quality of sanitary ware producers at risk and increase the costs a lot (bigger clayware waste, bigger plaster consumption because of shorter mold life, etc…). That's where Lafarge Prestia wants to help !

Benefits with Lafarge Prestia plasters

• Perfectly consistent setting time and demolding time, through formulation know-how, specific high tech process and on-line process parameters control, high frequency quality testing and ISO 9002 warranty
   
• We offer the best compromise of high strengths and  high absorption , through use of specific chemical agents (competitors' plasters often offer  only high strengths OR high absorption)
   
• Lafarge Prestia offers plasters with convenient setting time; our technical support team will help customers get the best casting performance, whichever their way of mixing plaster and water (hand mixing, conventional mixer, mason flow machine, etc…)
   
• Pore size distribution in molds made with our plasters is homogenous, giving equal absorption power to every part of the mold
   
• Our plasters have no harmful impurities (iron, hard particles) because they are made with the purest gypsum, perfectly cleaned and we have more than 60 magnetic separators on our production lines
   
• Our packaging is specially designed to prevent water to get in contact with plaster powder and form hard lumps in  bags

Lafarge Prestia Products range

Prestia Sanicast range

Prestia Sanicast NR, Sanicast 71 and Sanicast 10 offer different blends of alpha and beta plasters to yield optimum mechanical strength and absorption to the molds.

Prestia Sanicast 10 is designed especially for Mason Flow machine.

Prestia Sanicast 71 and Sanicast NR are designed for mechanical casting machines, Prestia Sanicast NR presenting the highest strength.
 

We will be glad to send you data sheets upon request. Please contact us now.

Prestia Ceracast range

Prestia Ceracast NR and Prestia Ceracast HS are beta-based plasters especially formulated to achieve high absorption.

Prestia Ceracast NR presents the highest absorption and is therefore advisable for processes with several casting per day.

Prestia Ceracast HS is suitable for one cast per day process (eg. casting of big pieces).

We will be glad to send you data sheets upon request. Please contact us now.

Prestia Case range

Please click here to go to the specific website page.

We will be glad to send you data sheets upon request. Please contact us now.

About real cost savings with plaster… A brain teaser...

What is the best for a company ? plaster X at 150 units of local currency /ton which gives a mold life of 65 cycles or plaster L at  200 local currency/ton which gives a mold life of 100 cycles ?

 Too simple answer : plaster L because the cost per mold is only 2 local currency where as "cheaper" plaster X gives a cost per mold of 2.3 local currency.

 More professional answer : there is not such a big difference on direct costs (2.3 local currency vs 2 local currency) but there is a bigger difference in total costs as Plaster L will yield higher productivity, lower labor cost per mold (in the mold shop), less clayware waste and less stock of plaster.

 So Plaster L brings much more benefits than simply the lower direct cost/mold.

Would you like to gain the benefits of Plaster L ?  Please contact us now.

Would you like to read a customer's story on real costs of plasters ? Scroll down this page.

Our standard payment terms are Telegraphic Transfer before delivery or irrevocable Letter of Credit. We are currently preparing the possibility for customers who find it more efficient to pay through internet with credit card.

 We will be glad to give you a price quotation. Please contact us now.

 Meet our team on our Customer Assistance page

Any other question ? Please contact us now.

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Some technical tips

• The most important and most simple : Use correct plaster/water mixing ratio !
• Sprinkle plaster into water slowly and allow it to soak for one minute.
• Mix the plaster-water slurry 2 to 4 minutes maximum.
• Blade type (size and shape) stirring time and speed, water purity and plaster/water ratio have an influence on working time, mechanical strength and porosity of hydrated plaster.

• Bags must be kept dry in a closed room and must be stored so as to avoid direct contact with the ground, protected from moisture and condensation.
• It is recommended that product be used within 4 months of manufacturing date.
• First In First Out (FIFO) stock management is highly advisable, of course.

Notes About Mould Casting

To obtain the best from Prestia plasters, rigorous and precise mixing conditions are essential.  Any variation can modify plaster setting mechanisms and affects the porosity and mechanical strength of the moulds.

Temperature
The mixing water temperature significantly impacts on setting time.  To maintain consistent performances, we recommend working at constant temperature

Contamination
It is preferable to use a water as clean as possible in order to limit the introduction of soluble salts which could be prejudicial to the moulds quality.  It is recommended to work with drinkable water.

Setting time and viscosity (fluidity)
As well as consistency, the Prestia range of plasters offers a wide choice of setting times and fluidities.  The control of the setting time (short or long) is essential to meet the needs and requirements of the mold shop.

Absorption
Prestia industrial plasters cover a wide absorption range, the most absorbent being able to increase the number of casts per day by delaying the saturation point of the moulds .
The control of the hemihydrates and the knowledge of formulation allow us to provide at the advised water / plaster ratio, a fine and homogeneous capillary structure with a high absorbent effect, combined with a high water storage capacity .
These performances will be optimized through a controlled drying atmosphere.

Strength
The homogeneous and compact structures of Prestia plasters allow a high mechanical strength development and will commonly give 50% superior shelf life, as compared to that of ordinary plasters.  Moreover, the use of Alpha plaster gives the possibility to increase the mixing ratio and to contribute to a better mould strength.

Mixing equipment

• Mixing equipments should be in stainless-steel, in good shape and clean before use.
• Use preferable a propeller with axial flow (boat propeller type) or with 4 blades at 45 to pull down the mixed plaster slurry without turbulence.
• The motor power should be strong enough to provide a constant rotation speed.  
• Ideally, the motor should be equipped with a speed variator in order to adjust the propeller speed to the slurry viscosity and completely mix it (no stagnant area on the surface).  Specific advice for Mason Flow Machine will be given by our Technical Service Team upon request.

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Sprinkling and soaking
This step is important, as it allows the powder to wet slowly and releases entrapped air.  This improves the final mixing.

Mixing
Mixing conditions must be controlled in order to avoid any variations in the mould quality.  They are adjusted (speed and duration) to obtain a good and complete circulation of the slurry.  The uniform dispersion of the plaster grains will give a homogeneous mix with no lumps.
With appropriate mixing equipment, speed should be between 300 and 500 rpm (and never exceed 800 rpm except for small mixers).

Casting
The case mould should first be soaped on all working surfaces with an appropriate demoulding agent.
To avoid any air entrapment, the mixed slurry should be cast slowly at constant speed.  The pouring lip should be close to the case mould and the slurry should be poured on one side of the case mould.

Drying
Drying is an important step in mould making.  It allows the extraction of surplus water and helps the moulds to achieve optimum porosity and mechanical strength.  The drier must combine:

- a fixed and homogenous temperature at all points,
- a rapid and uniform air circulation (space out moulds),
- a controlled humidity (permanent renewing of the air) .

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A customer's story… on how Lafarge Prestia plaster saves cost

We recently asked Mr. S., Production Manager in a big sanitaryware plant located in South-East Asia why he had switched back from a competitor's plaster to Lafarge Prestia plaster. Here is his answer :

(…) We had been using Lafarge Prestia plaster for some time in this plant and we were very happy with it. Always same flow and setting time, long mold life, no problem. Good service also.

After the Asian crisis  started in July 1997, our management decided to launch a vast cost-cutting program, and we had to decrease our purchase budget by 15%. And we were asked to switch to a cheaper plaster. The one we chose was around 10 % cheaper than Lafarge Prestia.

We could immediately see that its mold life was shorter and that some molds were not properly cast, due to inconsistent setting time. Then the surface of some molds deteriorated very quickly and caused more waste on the production line. We had more semi-finished products defect and longer drying time, which made our productivity decrease. But our management did not have time to really listen about those problems.

So we continued and could see that we ordered about 15% more plaster than before whereas our production volume was decreasing…

At the end of 1998, consultants were invited to cut costs further in our company and they asked us about the role of plaster in our process. We told them this and they somehow calculated that our decision to use a 10% cheaper plaster had in fact… increased our cost per piece by 3.7% for watercloset. That's A LOT OF MONEY at the end of the year !

So instead of saving money, we spent more to produce one watercloset ! And it gave us so many troubles !!!

So, it's GOOD to be back with Lafarge Prestia.

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Our logistic know-how, our flexibility in production and our location very close to Bangkok harbor (Laem Chabang) enable us to offer short delivery time to Asian countries. Examples of shipping time between Laem Chabang and…

Weight and volume in relation with the mixing ratio

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Purchasing conditions

• Standard packaging is 35kg bags, except for Case plasters (25kg bags), specially designed to preserve the plaster the longest and resist even tough handling.
• We supply the bags on strong pallets.

For export markets, we prefer to ship 21 tons per containers (except in Korea where maximum container load is 17 tons and Tokyo harbor where maximum load is 20 tons).

Purchasing conditions

Technical tips

Weight and volume in relation with the mixing ratio and more tips

Influence of the different parameters on the final performances
Thanks to their formulation, Prestia plasters are less sensitive to working conditions than ordinary plasters.  However, it is recommended to follow rigorous working procedures in order to maintain a constant level of performance. Here is a summary of the influence of the main parameters on setting time, fluidity, absorption and mechanical strength:

Influence of the different parameters on the final performances
 

A customer's story… on how Lafarge Prestia plaster saves cost

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The data presented in this document are in accordance with the present state of our knowledge, but do not absolve the user from carefully checking all supplies immediately on receipt. We reserve the right to alter product constants within the scope of technical progress or new developments.

The recommendations made here should be checked by preliminary trials, because of conditions during processing over which we have no control, especially where other companies' raw materials are also being used.

Prestia is a registered trademark of Lafarge Prestia

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