Institute for Steel Development and Growth (INSDAG)

With a motive to work in unison with all the stakeholders in the steel industry so as to evolve ways and means for more efficient usage of steel and provide optimum value to the customer, Institute for Steel Development and Growth (INSDAG) was set up in 1996 at Kolkata.  However, it was fully functional since 1998. It was established by Government of India and other steel majors such as SAIL, Tata Steel, RINL, JSW, Usha Ispat & Essar Steel.

Built Expressions catches up with Sushim Banerjee, Director General, INSDAG to know more about INSDAG. Details below;

INSDAG primarily works towards the development of technology in steel usage and the market for the steel fraternity. It aims to create awareness amongst potential users about affordability and benefits of steel and provides prompt advisory service on materials, construction practices and interpretation of codes. An environment is created through INSDAG for better usage of steel by acquiring and disseminating knowledge about the best practices. It shoulders the responsibility of upgrading the skills of the work force by organizing courses or training programmers and offering better technical know-how, design and teaching aids. Communicating the benefits of steel vis-à-vis other competitive materials, through life cycle cost studies and providing requisite thrust to increase steel consumption in rural areas are also achieved on INSDAG platform.

Main Activities of INSDAG would include:

• Designing Steel intensive innovative Structures and Rural Housing
• Preparing guidebooks, directories, design aids and manuals
• Studying Life cycle cost & Revising steel related Codes and Standards
• Providing guidance on Corrosion and Fire issues & Helping in selecting and sourcing steel
• Providing education and training to professionals, faculties and students
• Conducting national level award competitions for professionals and students
• Providing consultancy in Steel based design & Instituting various Award schemes

Aim to Increase Steel Consumption

Presently, INSDAG is headed by Sushim Banerjee as the Director General. Under his stewardship, the institution is promoting steel consumption in the country by making innovative and cost-effective steel based structural designs.  Incidentally, Indian Steel Industry is currently facing various challenges. Steel consumption in the world is progressing at a tardy growth of around 2.3%. In its latest assessment on steel market, the World Steel Association has projected a demand growth of only 3.2% for the global Steel

In such a scenario, INSDAG strives to promote steel consumption in a major way. “Our institution is contributing to the promotional aspect of steel consumption in the country. First, it tries to create awareness for use of steel by spreading the advantages of using steel primarily in construction. This is done through conducting a series of training programmes for the students and faculties of engineering colleges as well as various professionals, who recommend steel in design of steel structures. Secondly, INSDAG is regularly undertaking various research projects and bringing out publications on innovative use of steel and its impact on design of steel structures. Currently INSDAG is trying to promote steel consumption in the rural areas by imparting training to village entrepreneurs as steel fabricators,” he adds.

INSDAG - Initiatives

INSDAG is a member based organization, registered under Society Act and Ministry of Steel and major Steel Producers along with a number of consultants and other professionals, students and faculties are members of INSDAG. By dividing membership into seven categories, INSDAG covers entire stakeholders of steel sector--founding members, primary members, associate members, institutional members, individual members, honorary members and student members. Members can avail on-demand advisory services from INSDAG on: interpretation of standards; construction techniques; cost-benefit analysis; best practices; benchmarks; sources of supply; welding and corrosion protection among others through its technical advisory board.

INSDAG has created advisory desk for prompt response and introduced e-advisory module on its website www.steel-insdag.org for hosting steel related queries and obtaining replies from national experts in the fields. INSDAG has published a library of books, design-aids and teaching-aids for easy access to information. INSDAG is publishing and circulating the latest developments in the construction and other steel consuming sectors through its technical journal-Steel in Construction and the in-house news bulletin-INSDAG NEWS. The Institute is also providing state of the art literature published by The Steel Construction Institute, UK through a copyright agreement for a selected list of documents.

INSDAG Taps Rural Potential

To increase the awareness crease steel consumption in the country is created by holding workshops and training programmes all over the country. These training programmes primarily focus on use of latest design methods i.e. IS 800 (Limit State Method), which is a better methodology and is being followed by other developed countries. INSDAG has so far, trained more than 5,100 students, faculties of engineering colleges with structural design courses and also a large number of professionals in the field.

INSDAG in association with IIT Madras and SERC Madras evolved the Codes like IS 800, IRC 22 and IRC 24 and is conducting training courses to popularize these latest Codes & Standards. Apart from this, INSDAG is also associated with BIS in framing the Codes & Standards for TMT bars and structural steel.

The latest effort by INSDAG is to create awareness of steel use in the rural areas by designing a 21-days’ training programme for the selected group of village entrepreneurs and make them steel fabricators. It would not only spread the message of steel but would also enhance the steel consumption by the rural households in need of steel-made chairs, tables, grills and window frames, furniture and roof tops. INSDAG also organizes three all India competitions annually. Two of these, are earmarked for students of engineering colleges in Civil Engineering and Architecture. The third competition is for the professionals for best of their works concluded in the last one year. These three competitions have evinced maximum enthusiasm and positive response amongst students and professionals for the innovative use of steel for structural purposes.

Future plans

INSDAG in the coming years would try to consolidate its efforts on promotion of steel consumption in the country. The training programmes would be further extended in terms of its duration and coverage so that more and more students and faculties of engineering colleges are exposed to the advantages of use of steel in construction. INSDAG would also strengthen its analysis and research studies in use of flat steel in various application areas. The skill development programme in steel fabrication would be further elaborated and extended to cover all the District Headquarters in each State of the country.

Mr. Sushim Banerjee is a director general of Institute for Steel Development & Growth (INSDAG). He is a post graduate in Economics with a gold medal from Presidency College and Kolkata University. He had obtained Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management from All India Management Association, New Delhi. Has also undergone training for Industrial Research at Fordham University, New York - May-July, 1988.

Earlier, he served as an executive director of SAIL, New Delhi, where he was associated with working out strategies and policies of the marketing organisation of the company. He was also the chief risk officer of instituted the Enterprise Risk Management in plants and other units in SAIL. When he worked executive director (Human Resource Development) of Management Training Institute, SAIL at Ranchi, he presented case studies at ninth Corporate University Week at Orlando, Florida in November, 2007. He was awarded First Runner Up Prize in the competition contested by 25 Corporate Universities.

For Long Products, he worked as regional manager in Northern Region, New Delhi where he was involved in marketing of Long Products and formulating of marketing strategies in Northern Region comprising of 6 States. Mr. Banerjee also worked on Demand Forecasting, sector wise analysis, international price comparison and industrial growth with special reference to Steel Industry as Deputy General Manager (Market Research) in Steel Authority of India Limited.

He has published reports and presented papers on steel demand, linkages of economic growth with various industrial segments, globalisation, international trade, Anti-Dumping, WTO issues relating to steel in national and international seminars.