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Intermediate programme

Raw Material Preparation, Clinker Burning and Cement Grinding

The three core process sections covered in sequence, with the interactions between them made explicit.

Duration
5 days
Level
Intermediate
Next date
9 to 13 November 2026
Fee from
US$995live online

Read the programme brochure

ClassroomLive onlineIn house

Overview

Raw preparation, burning and grinding are usually taught separately and run as one plant. This week covers all three in sequence and spends its time on the joins: how raw mix variability reaches the burning zone, how burning conditions change clinker grindability, and how clinker quality determines what the cement mill can produce. It suits somebody who has worked in one section and now has to understand or manage the others.

It runs 5 times over the published calendar, in 3 cities and live online. Every date is the same programme with the same content and the same certificate.

What you will be able to do

  • Describe each of the three sections and its control targets.
  • Trace how raw mix variability propagates downstream.
  • Relate burning and cooling conditions to clinker grindability.
  • Relate clinker properties to cement mill performance.
  • Diagnose a problem across section boundaries.

Who should attend

Production and process engineers moving between sections, shift managers and superintendents, technical services staff, and maintenance engineers with cross plant responsibility.

Is the level right for you?

This is an intermediate level programme. It assumes you are working in or moving into the area it covers, and it is built around your own material rather than a case study. If you are unsure, ask an advisor before registering rather than after.

Ask an advisor

How it is taught

Short input, then work. Across 5 days of roughly 6 teaching hours each, the balance sits deliberately with the second: a programme where the trainer talks for six hours produces notes rather than capability.

  • Your own material

    Exercises run on situations delegates bring, not on a case study written for a different organisation in a different decade.

  • A capped cohort

    Small enough that everybody is asked something. Executive programmes are capped tighter still.

  • Practice under scrutiny

    The difficult conversation, the challenged assumption, the decision defended out loud. Judgement is not built by watching.

  • Something to take back

    Each day ends with a thing you can use on Monday rather than a slide deck you will not reopen.

The programme, day by day

Day 1Raw preparation

Raw preparation

  • Quarry to kiln feed
  • Mix design and control
  • Homogenisation performance
Day 2Burning

Burning

  • Preheater, calciner and kiln
  • Burning zone control and free lime
  • Cooling and its effect on the clinker
Day 3Grinding

Grinding

  • Clinker grindability
  • Circuit operation and product control
  • Additions and blended products
Day 4Interactions

Interactions

  • Variability propagation
  • Volatile cycles across sections
  • Energy trade offs between sections
Day 5Diagnosis

Diagnosis

  • Symptoms that present in the wrong section
  • Data needed to settle a cross section argument
  • Working a real case end to end

What you leave with

  • An interaction map across the three sections.
  • A cross section troubleshooting guide.
  • A control target set that is consistent plant wide.

The certificate

A GATI certificate recording what you attended, issued after the programme has run and attendance has been taken. Attending at least 80 per cent of the days earns a certificate of completion; attending less earns a certificate of attendance stating exactly what was attended.

Every certificate carries a code that anybody can check against GATI's own record, which is what makes it worth holding. It records participation. This site will not imply one it does not have.

Questions

Who is Raw Material Preparation, Clinker Burning and Cement Grinding for?
Production and process engineers moving between sections, shift managers and superintendents, technical services staff, and maintenance engineers with cross plant responsibility. It runs at intermediate level within Cement Manufacturing, so it assumes you are working in or moving into that area rather than meeting it for the first time. If you are unsure whether the level fits, ask an advisor before registering rather than after.
How long is it, and what does a day look like?
5 days, running to roughly 6 teaching hours a day. Sessions are built around your own material rather than a case study, so a day alternates between short input and working on something you brought. The full outline is on this page, day by day.
What does it cost, and what is included?
The next published date is Nairobi, Kenya at US$1,500 per delegate. The fee covers tuition, all programme materials and the certificate. Travel, accommodation and visas are arranged by the delegate. Fees vary by city, and every published date shows its own.
Can it be delivered for my organisation only?
Yes. Any published programme can run as a private cohort, on dates that suit you, in your city or online, built around your own material. That is a different conversation from registering an individual, and it starts with what capability you are trying to build rather than with a course title.
What certificate do I get?
A GATI certificate recording what you attended, issued after the programme has run and attendance has been taken. Attending at least 80 per cent of the days earns a certificate of completion; attending less earns a certificate of attendance stating exactly what was attended. Every certificate carries a code that anybody can check against GATI's own record.
Is the online version the same programme?
Yes. The same faculty, the same material, the same cohort cap and the same certificate. It is not a recording and it is not a reduced version. It exists because travel budgets and visa timelines rule people out of a room they should be in. The classroom version runs in Nairobi, Dubai, Lagos.

Want to take this further?

Register on a published date, or tell an advisor what you need and they will come back with something specific rather than a brochure.

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