Produce School Chalk and Earn good Money

CHALK is an essential commodity for imparting knowledge in schools. Teachers in kindergarten, primary and tertiary schools all use chalk to write out on the blackboard the lessons they want to communicate to the children. Population explosion and rising enrolment of pupils and students in schools have led to increasing demand for chalk and massive importation of the commodity. A wide supply gap (window of opportunity) is therefore awaiting local entrepreneurs willing to invest in the manufacturing of high quality chalk.

There are two types of chalk: plaster (or extruded) chalk and calcium chalk (or carbonic/ press chalk). Of the two, plaster or extruded chalk has been found to be better in terms of quality. Extruded chalk is dense and dustless whereas calcium chalk is solid and dusty. Even the production process is more efficient.

The major raw materials for chalk manufacturing, notably gypsum, are mined in sufficient quantities in Sokoto, Borno and Anambra, among many other states, and sold by major distributors in Nigeria. The other key raw input, limestone is equally abundant. Deposits of limestone amounting to 800 million tones exist in large reserves in many states of the federation. Calcined gypsum, that is gypsum mixed in desired proportion with limestone, is called plaster of Paris (POP). POP may be found in two varieties, the imported variety and the local variety. The discretion of which to use is left to the dictates of the market.

The core chalk-making machinery is the mould. Other components include: the heat blower, dry kiln, auxiliary heater, metal containers, water tank can, mixer, etc. A 500-cavity mould, recommendable for cottage industry purposes, has the capacity to produce 6, 000 sticks of chalk per 8-hour operational day.

To produce extruded chalk, the raw materials are stirred together into a flour-like substance before pigments are added to give colour. The plaster appears like a tooth paste in a tube. Thereafter, the mixture is transferred to another machine where a liquefied binder is poured in to hold the dry particles together. If you have ever added milk to dry ingredients in order to bind them together for butter or dough you will have a good idea of the process described here. When the powders and their binder have been swished around for a certain length of time, the chalk forms a kind of dough, which looks like many small balls about the size of marbles. These little dough balls are then machine-pressed into a large, long shape, just like a solid cylinder. The shape is called a cartridge. As a result of this pressing, air is forced out of the dough, and the moist particles in the dough are very closely bound to one another causing the chalk to be heavy and smooth textured. The process goes on and on up to the point when an automatic slicer cuts the wet chalk into measured sizes and cylindrical shapes. Thereafter, they are dried in large ovens called kilns or dryers. Packing then follows.

A step-by step process flow comprises: measurement of clean water with a measuring ladle; measurement of calcined plaster in appropriate proportions; stirring, injection of moulding agent; preparation of chalk by designated grams; (the addition of paint may be necessary if coloured chalk is desired); transfer from the mould to the casting dies for solidification and drying; separation of the chalk pieces from the wall of the casting dies; slicing, cutting and packing.

A carton cuboid with volume 16.5cm x 8.5cm x 7.5 cm is typically used to pack 100 pieces of chalk grossly weighing 500g.

The investment profile of a cottage chalk production plant that can generate an annual turnover of over 15 million, and can employ up to 10 persons, is presented below:

Details of the costs, standard product quality, raw material mix, accommodation and labour requirements, plant-layout, energy and capacity utilization, market structure, price mechanism, distribution network, profitability and viability analysis, and other essential details will be merged in a comprehensive feasibility report for interested investors. The writer is willing to assist those desiring to go into the business, and he can be reached via: chukwudiodili902@yahoo.com

Chukwudi Odili