Does polishing take 40 to 45% or 40 to 50% of a vitrified tile unit's electricity in the Morbi reports, and what does that mean for each square metre?
The Morbi reports print 40 to 45% and 40 to 50% for polishing's share of a vitrified tile unit's electricity. Set the polishing line's 1.37 to 2.28 kilowatt hours a square metre against the manual's 3.71 to 5.01 for the whole unit, and the share is about 37% to 47%, depending on which of the report's two ranges is used.
What polishing is, in plain words
After firing, a vitrified tile is hard and rough on top. The polishing line grinds it flat, trims its edges and gives it a shine. It is run by many large electric motors, which is why it takes a big share of the unit's electricity. Electricity is counted in kilowatt hours (kWh), the units on your bill.
Where each figure sits
- Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) Morbi manual, process description: polishing uses 40% to 45% of total electricity in vitrified tile units.
- Same manual, polishing tips: polishing machines use about 40 to 50% of the total electricity of a vitrified tile plant.
- Polishing project report, introduction: about 40 to 50% of total electricity is used by the polishing section alone. The same report's process description says 40 to 45%.
- So each report prints both, a few pages apart, without comment.
What the per square metre figures say
The manual puts a whole vitrified unit at 3.71 to 5.01 kWh for each square metre. The project report puts the polishing section at 1.37 to 2.28 kWh for each square metre. Pairing the low ends and the high ends (my reading, since the two ranges may come from different units) gives 1.37 / 3.71 = 36.9% and 2.28 / 5.01 = 45.5%. The printed 40% to 45% fits inside that band, and 50% sits above it. The same report's table 1.7 prints 1.74 to 2.35 for the polishing line, so the share band depends on which table you trust. On 1.74 and 2.35 it is about 47% at both ends, which puts the printed 40% to 45% outside it. I would quote the share as about 40% and the per square metre range as printed.
How hard the line works
- The manual says polishing machines run 18 to 20 days a month.
- It says most units have 25 to 30% more polishing capacity than they use, so the line is not used continuously.
- Both facts mean the share moves with the month. Measure it over a full year, not a single busy month.
A rule of thumb against a measured plant
The manual says efficient motors on the polishing line save 4.5% to 6%, made of 1.5% to 2% from the motor design and 3% to 4% from lighter loading. The project report measured one plant instead: 502,908 kWh saved from 2,108,808, which is 23.8%, with motors running at an average operating efficiency of 70% and loaded below half. The two are not the same claim. The first is a general rule, the second one plant with its own readings. I cannot reconcile them from the text, so use the measured plant as the example. My advice: treat the rule as a floor for a better loaded line.
What to do
- Fit a sub-meter on the polishing line, or take a clamp reading on each machine for a full shift.
- Log the line's kWh each month with the square metres polished, only on polished tiles.
- Divide by the unit's total kWh from the bill to get your own share, and quote that instead of the manual's range.
Your own share, example numbers
- Month: total electricity from the bill 600,000 kWh; polishing sub-meter 255,000 kWh (examples)
- Share: 255,000 / 600,000 = 42.5%
- Square metres polished that month: 150,000 (example)
- Polishing: 255,000 / 150,000 = 1.70 kWh for each square metre, inside the report's 1.37 to 2.28
- Carbon dioxide from polishing at 0.675 kg for each kWh (financial year (FY) 2025-26): 255,000 x 0.675 = 172,125 kg, about 172 tonnes
All figures are examples. Report the polishing part only against polished tiles.
What Senseible does here
Senseible reads fuel invoices and electricity bills into monthly records, so a unit's own gas, oil and power lines are on file to set beside the report's figures. It does not measure a kiln or replace an audit.
- Vitrified tile polishing line saving
- Polishing and squaring in a vitrified tile footprint
- Morbi gas and power per square metre
Sources: BEE, Manual on Energy Conservation Measures in Ceramic Industry, Morbi cluster (SAMEEEKSHA), BEE, Detailed project report: energy conservation in polishing section, Morbi (SAMEEEKSHA), CEA, CO2 Baseline Database for the Indian Power Sector
Last reviewed 2026-11-07. Shares are from the April 2010 BEE manual (sections 2.3.1 and 3.3.1) and the polishing project report. The grid factor is from the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) for FY 2025-26.