Bamboo Mat Tray
Bamboo Mat Tray
The commercialization of the technique of making a small item like a tray out of bamboo mat in a cottage industry or SSI unit has many benefits. No doubt, the quality and craftsmanship of articles produced in India are praiseworthy but due to lack of handy tools and machines, mass production is very often hindered. A household thing like tray is not only a thing of beauty but also a thing of much use. Such a widely used article needs to be manufactured in mass scale so that the cost of the article remains within every one's reach.
Technology developed at IPIRTI is simple and does not require very high cost machineries. The process can be adopted after undergoing a short training or through IPIRTI technology transfer and the product can be manufactured in a cottage or small scale industry. Tray being a part of every household there is a wide market for this product.
MANUFACTURING PROCESS
After cross cutting and splitting the bamboo, the epidermal layer is removed. 0.6mm (-15%) thick slivers are made manually or mechanically. Slivers are woven into herringbone or rectangular pattern. Prophylactic treatment is given to enhance durability. The treated mats are dried in the sun or in oven or dryer. The mats are then soaked in resin and stacked for 2 hours. Resin treated mats are then dried to 8 per cent moisture content. The mats are then assembled and hot pressed in a moulded press under high pressure and temperature. Hot pressed trays are ready to use after minor hand finishing.
Bamboo mat trays are eco-friendly products that can be produced by small entrepreneurs unlike BMB which requires high capital investment. While a small scale industry with a capacity of 400 trays per day can be established with a capital investment of less than 20 lakhs, a cottage industry with a production capacity of 100 days per day can be set up with less than 10 lakhs investment. Profile for the manufacture of trays in SSI section has been prepared.
