Harita-NTI Limited (HNTI) was founded in the year 2000 as a joint venture with Northern Technologies International Corporation (NTIC), USA, and Harita based in Chennai.

NTIC is in the business of converting unique beneficial materials science into value added products and services for industrial and consumer applications. Harita-NTI strives towards bringing to India the finest technologies in Corrosion Management Systems, Biodegradable Polymers and Recyclable technologies and operates under various global brand names like Zerust and Natur-Tec. Mr R Narayanan, President, Harita-NTI Limited, responded to the IPF Questionnaire. Excerpts:

What is the path that Harita travelled from inception till date?

Starting operations in the year 2000, Harita-NTI has evolved as corrosion prevention solutions provider to various industrial and automotive sectors. Over the period, we have developed and provided various value added products and services to our customers. The company is also engaged in Materials Sciences based environment friendly technologies in the field of bio-degradable and bio-based polymers.

What are the products and services provided by Harita-NTI?

Our corrosion management technology is branded as 'Zerust?' and our bio-degradable and bio-based polymers are branded as "Natur-TecTM".

What are the achievements of the company in India?

Starting with very few customers, Harita-NTI has at present spread its wings to reach around 300 customers. Also, the company has extended the product lines to meet specific customer requirements.

What are the after sales service that Harita offers to its clients?

Our Principal, M/s Northern Technologies International Corporation, has technical representation in over 50 countries, which ensures effective global technical support. With this advantage, we support our customers at their end locations in case of any complaint or specific requirements.

What is the role of Material Science in sustaining the environment? What are the recent developments of material science in this regard?

Materials Science is an interdisciplinary field involving the properties of matter and its applications to various areas of science and engineering. With industrialisation and the development of modern technologies, the human species has emerged as the dominant force on the planet. We have wrought massive changes that rival or exceed those caused by natural biological and geological processes: flow accounts for pollution, energy and materials, recording industry level use of energy and materials as inputs to production along with the generation of pollutants and solid waste. While human impacts were once local and reversible, they are increasingly becoming global and much less reversible. Environmental protection and resource management expenditure accounts identifying expenditures incurred by industry, government and households to protect the environment or to manage natural resources. Materials science imposes a level of control on the above.

Recent developments have been made in research related to catalytic materials as applied to catalytic processes for oil refining, chemicals synthesis, natural gas conversion and environmental technology.

Future development of catalytic materials will be required to enhance the performance of catalyst systems for application in catalytic combustion, synthesis gas manufacturing, lean burn auto emission control and paraffin alkylation and at the interface between homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis.

Using Zerust corrosion inhibiting VCI bags and VCI oils to protect metals and rust removers to restore parts saves 85-95 per cent of the energy that is required to produce new parts. Preventing rust also reduces CO2 emissions associated with reprocessing scrap into new parts and the environment waste stream from failed parts.

What technology does NTIC-USA share with Harita in terms of bio-degradable plastics and renewable resource engineering plastics? How is Natur-Tec faring in India in this regard?

The Natur Tec business unit at Harita NTI manufactures bio-based and compostable alternatives to conventional plastics targeted towards single use disposable products applications. The R&D and Applications Development team at Harita-NTI, Chennai works closely with NTIC-USA in developing new cost effective and performance oriented formulations that find applications in packaging. Over the past few years, the Natur Tec business in India has consolidated and has started to obtain success in segments such as garment packaging, carry bags for retail, etc.

What are the innovations that you have done in corrosion management, bio plastics and polymer recycling technologies?

Innovations in the bio plastics business have been primarily targeted towards churning out new cost effective formulations that can be processed on conventional downstream equipments such as conventional plastics. Natur-Tec products are presently being evaluated for applications in food and pharmaceutical packaging.

What are the environment friendly attributes of your company?

Not only do Zerust products prevent waste, they are also environmentally responsible. Zerust VCI poly bags and films, and kraft paper products are recyclable. Zerust products are approved by many commercial companies, various military organisations, several international health institutes and the EU's chemical organisation, to be non-toxic, and environmentally benign.

Natur-Tec bio based resins meet the US standard for bio based plastics ASTM 6866. Finished products made from these resins enable users to reduce their carbon footprint by 80% when compared to traditional plastics.

What are the technologies involved in Natur-Tec Bio plastics?

The primary technology involved in Natur-Tec is Reactive Extrusion Compounding. This technology deals with chemical blending of polymers, fillers and other materials through compatibility and reactive modification.