Cement Manufacturing
Pyroprocessing and Kiln
Tests Performed During Fabrication of Clinker and Cement
The test programme that runs alongside production, and what each result is actually for.
- Duration
- 5 days
- Contact hours
- 30
- Level
- Intermediate
- Fee from
- On enquiry
Overview
Production testing exists to make decisions, not to fill a logbook. This week goes through the tests performed at each stage, the decision each supports, the frequency that matches how fast the process can drift, and the precision of the method against the tolerance being controlled. It covers chemical and physical testing, online analysis, and the specialist methods such as microscopy and diffraction that resolve questions routine testing cannot.
Who should attend
Laboratory technicians and supervisors, quality and process engineers, production superintendents, and staff setting up a testing programme.
What you will be able to do
- Name the tests performed at each production stage and their purpose.
- Match test frequency to the rate the process can drift.
- Judge whether a method's precision suits the tolerance.
- Use online analysis correctly alongside laboratory testing.
- Apply specialist methods when routine testing cannot answer.
How it is taught
Short input, then work, across 5 days of roughly 6 teaching hours each. Exercises run on situations delegates bring rather than on a case study written for a different organisation. Cohorts are capped so that everybody is asked something.
Available as classroom, live online, in house.
Programme outline
Day 1
Raw side testing
- Quarry and crusher sampling
- Raw meal chemical control
- Moisture and fineness
Day 2
Kiln and clinker testing
- Free lime and its frequency
- Clinker chemistry and phase estimation
- Litre weight and nodule assessment
Day 3
Cement testing
- Fineness and particle size distribution
- Strength, setting and soundness
- Sulphate and loss on ignition
Day 4
Online and automated
- Cross belt and online analysers
- Automated sampling and laboratories
- Calibration and drift
Day 5
Specialist methods
- Optical microscopy of clinker
- X ray diffraction and quantitative phase analysis
- Calorimetry, and when it is worth running
What you leave with
- A testing schedule by stage, with the decision each test supports.
- A method precision review against control tolerances.
- A plan for when to escalate to specialist analysis.
Dates and fees
| Dates | Location | Format | Fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| 23 to 27 November 2026 | Durban, South Africa | Classroom | R15,000 |
| 30 November 2026 to 4 December 2026 | Cairo, Egypt | Classroom | US$1,500 |
| 7 to 11 December 2026 | Port Louis, Mauritius | Classroom | US$1,500 |
| 14 to 18 December 2026 | Gaborone, Botswana | Classroom | R15,000 |
Fees are per delegate and cover tuition, all programme materials and the certificate. Travel, accommodation and visas are arranged by the delegate. Registration closes two weeks before a programme starts.
Certificate
A GATI certificate recording what was 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.
It records participation. and GATI does not claim one it does not hold.