Manufacturing

Raw materials

Everything is monitored from the very beginning and only the world’s best raw materials are used. Materials such as Ball Clay and Kaolin are imported from Sibelco of the United Kingdom. The entire process is carried out under strict supervision and environmentally friendly conditions.

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Product Design and Modelling

Our products are designed after extensive research and development and prototype testing. The models are developed 12.5% bigger than the finished piece to allow for shrinkage during firing. A negative master mould (block) and a positive case mould is made of epoxy resins and specialised rubber.

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Milling and Blunging

Ball mills are used to mill hard raw materials such as feldspar and silica sand. These are then mixed with ball clay and kaolin using large blungers. Deflocculant agents are added to keep the material in suspension, to disperse the clay particles and to adjust the viscosity and thixotropy of the blended raw materials referred to as the slip.

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Refining and Slip Storage

Raw slip passed through vibrating sieves, electro and permanent magnets to remove oversized materials and iron from the slip. This is done to prevent contamination of the final product. The slip is then allowed to age in large tanks, while it is continuously agitated to avoid hardening.

Casting – Vitreous China & Fire Clay

The slip is filled into moulds of semi-pressure casting machines. Excess slip is drained from the mould after initial filling, and the pieces are kept in moulds for another 50 minutes to form and harden. This entire process is automated and controlled by programming logic controllers. The casted pieces are de-moulded using automated de-moulding machines.

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Green Ware Finishing and Drying

Casted pieces are meticulously hand-finished to remove clay blemishes and fixing holes are created. Finished pieces are then dried using automated dryers, so that no moisture is left in the pieces before glazing.

Glazing

A robotic glazing line sprays an even coat of glaze, which is powdered glass in water, to the exposed clay surface of pieces. Specialised siphon-glazing machinery is used to glaze the WC trap and siphon area to ensure every part is uniformly glazed and there’s no accumulation of dirt.

Firing

The finished pieces are loaded into kiln cars and fired at a very high temperature (1215⁰C) in a 90m³ shuttle kiln. The clay body matures and the glaze melts, changing its surface to become hard and glossy.

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Sorting and Final Inspection

Every single piece goes through a thorough inspection. Tests are carried out in relation to size, dimension, surface quality, stability and deformation. Products are sorted to different grades, such as Commercial grade and Second choice.

Quality Assurance

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Thermal Shock Resistance Test

This test is done to determine the resistance of the product to sudden changes in temperature. The product is put through a number of specified cycles starting at ambient temperature and soon exposed to an extremely high/low temperature, before going back to ambient temperature.

Flush Efficiency Test

In accordance with EN 997 standards, water closets are tested randomly for flushing efficiency. These tests include successful waste disposal, rinse volume after discharge (refilling of fresh water into the bowl after waste disposal) and determining the efficiency of washing the entire bowl surface area with fresh water.

Leak/Vacuum Seal Test

This test checks for leaks in the internal drainage system of the WC, preventing gas leaks and bad odours. Vacuum tests are carried out for all our water closets to prevent internal leakages. The water closet bowl and trap way are sealed and a vacuum is applied at a consistent -6 bar pressure and kept for 60 seconds to check for leakages in the bowl.

Load Bearing Strength Test

Load bearing tests are carried out on randomly selected pieces from each batch. A constant weight of 150kg is applied on washbasins and 400kg on water closets, applied consistently for 60 minutes to ensure that the strength of the product is in line with international standards.

Crazing Sensitivity Test

Hairline cracks, dents and breakages are detected using sophisticated test apparatus such as Autoclave for determination of crazing resistance and Dilatometer, to determine the co-efficiency of the expansion of sanitaryware body and the glaze.

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Our Certifications

At Rocell Bathware, each product undergoes the strictest guidelines and standardisation procedures, without compromise. This process is acknowledged and endorsed by a series of certifications including ISO 9001:2008 Quality Management System certification by SGS and ISO 14001 : 2004 for Environmental Standards for its continuous Green Initiative.

The brand stringently maintains the highest level of quality and design novelty, conforming to British Standard Specification BS EN 3402:1969. Whist carrying the CE certification for European Union consumer safety, health and environmental benchmarks, all flushing systems carry the water mark certification for water consumption and flush efficiencies.