Diamond Cutting Industries

48

Project Report

On

“Diamond Cutting Industries”

Submitted to

International Academy of Management,

Bangalore

Submitted By Pawan.S.Sahni

Under the Guidance of

Sir. B.Srinivasan

International Academy of Management

Bangalore

2008-2010

Copyright © IAME 2008

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CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the Project entitled “Diamond

Cutting Industries” submitted by “Mr. Pawan Sahni”

is in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the

Award of the PGPM-0810 from International Academy of

Management & Entrepreneurship and is a bonafide record

of the work done by him/her/them at International

Academy of Management, Bangalore during the

academic year 2008-2010.

Place: Bangalore Project Guide

Date:

Sir.B.Srinivasan


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DECLARATION

To,

International Academy of Management,

Bangalore.

Respected Sir,

We the undersigned, hereby declare that the

work entitled “Diamond Cutting Industries”

developed and submitted by me/us is my/our original

work. The system presented herein is developed by

me/us independently and has not been duplicated

from any other source.

I/We understand that any such copying is

liable to be punished in any way the University deem

fit.

Place: Bangalore


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Date: Pawan.S. Sahni

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We wish to express my/our sincere thanks to the honorable Dean.Sir.B.Srinivasan, International Academy of

Management, Bangalore for providing me/us varieties of opportunities, infrastructural facilities and inspiration to gather professional knowledge and material without which it would have been impossible to complete this hard task.

I/We take this opportunity to express our deep gratitude and whole hearted thanks to my/our project guide Sir B.Srinivasan for his/her guidance throughout this work. I/We am/are very much thankful to him/her for his/her kindness, encouragement and the valuable time, which he/she has devoted to me/us.

I/We wish to thanks all those, who have helped me/us

in my/our way or the others in bringing out this project

successful.

Pawan.S. Sahni


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DIAMOND CUTTING

INDUSTRIES

By-

Pawan.S.Sahni


48

PGPM-0810-15

INDEX OVERVIEW

DIAMOND HISTORY

GOVERNMENT INITIATIVES

EXPORTS

ASSOCIATES

BENEFITS

4C’S OF DIAMOND

DOMESTIC MARKET

CHOICE OF CUT

DIAMOND ROUTES & CENTRES

GROWING DIAMONDS

SWOT ANALYSIS

ENTREPRENUAL INNOVATION IN SURAT


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DIAMOND FSCTS

CONCLUSION

BIBLOGRAPHY


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OVERVIEWDiamond is a precious stone and is regarded as a symbol of love. It is valued by its four major characteristics, which are its essential constituents and are often dubbed as‘four Cs’ of the diamond. These are cut, clarity, carat and colors

Indian jewelry was made scrupulously by hand and was traditionally crafted by family jewelers skilled in a particular style.

Large exports directed to the establishment of factories, prepared with the latest modern machinery. It is the newest methods in the manufacturing process that were employed.

India`s artisans along with their traditional skills dominated contemporary techniques to provide the world with jewelry that conformed to international standards. There is a new generation of young designers dominating the world market, apart from a host of established houses that design the fashion jewelry.

The Surat diamond industry is worth Rs 800,000 million and constitutes more than half of the total diamond exports from India. It employs more than 700,000 workers from across the country. Over 2,500,000 people are associated with the trade, indirectly.

The industry earns 90 per cent of its revenue through export of the finished products.

Today across India there are several jewelry design institutes, encouraging fresh ideas and talent.


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An introduction to the flourishing diamond industry in Surat

South Africa is precisely the country that majority people would associate with the diamond industry. But business centers in the other parts of the world are catching up fast and steady. Surat is one of them---this little known Indian industrial hub is fast emerging as a big player in the world diamond arena. Indian diamond companies of course took the advantage of the cheap labor; but it was not all. The other factor that contributed to this enormous success is the traditional expertise. Like the orthodox Jewish communities that helped earn Antwerp its name in the world diamond circuit, it is the close knit religious community called the Palanpuri Jains, who remain the main author of Surat's success story in the trade of diamond jewelries. But how did it all begin? Let's take a glimpse on its past, discuss the present business trends and analyze what are on the cards for this emerging diamond hub?

Surat diamond industry: The past

You can find the mention of the city of Surat even in the Indian epics and ancient scriptures. The British and Portuguese influence turned the city of Surat into an important port city and a vital business hub.In the turn of 20th century, the city started its journey to become the nerve center of the diamond industry in the country. According to the local lore the initial set up was based on the expertise of the East African diamond cutters who were brought to the Indian shores in the early years of the past century.However, the real twist in the success story of Surat actually came in the 1970's when the Indian diamond dealers started importing low-quality gemstones, and exporting them to the U.S.


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after turning them into dazzling pieces with their unmatched cutting and polishing skills. The past few years saw a steep decline in the diamond processing industry in Mumbai---the traditional diamond hub in India and this acted as the additional boon for the Surat diamond industry. Surge in the economic and infrastructural degradation over the past few years forced several Mumbai based small as well as big diamond Houses to shift their bases in the neighboring Surat. And all these have eventually contributed to the making of present Surat---the world's largest diamond processing centre.

Surat diamond industry: The presentSurat has left its mark of excellence in all the three

departments of the business--- manufacturing, importing and the export of processed diamonds.

So how big is it actually? Let's try to find the answer from the following statistics.* The city contributes to more than 80% of the Indian annual export amounting to Rs 70,000 crore.Every 9 out of 10 diamonds you get to see in the plush stores in the big cities all over the world is cut and polished in India and 75 % of all these diamonds owe their sheen to the Surat Diamond industry. * Over 1.5 million people are engaged in the diamond jewelry industry of Surat.

Surat diamond industry: What it holds for the future?Traditionally Surat diamond industry dealt only with lower-quality diamonds. But with the growth and expansion in the market, the character of the Surat diamond industry has changed dramatically:


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* Today, top quality, expensive stones are cut in Surat that can give a run for their money to those cut in Antwerp, New York and Tel Aviv.* As opposed to the traditional, family run small cutting and polishing units, today's workshops are larger and professionally managed, keeping to international industrial standards. * Most of the companies are smart enough to set up branches in the cities like Antwerp and Tel Aviv, so that the local workers can absorb the tricks of the trade. * With exposure to a highly lucrative diamond market, both abroad and back home, and with every support from the Government, Surat---as believed by the trade analysts-is soon to replace the Belgium's Hasidim as the global leader in diamond industry. * On a global scale, the Surat based companies are coming up with thousands of diamond retail stores that are expected to herald a worldwide cut in the diamond prices for years to come.

What you can get in Surat?

The Surat diamond industry is mainly based on imported rough uncut diamonds, which earn their distinguished sheen and shine in the hands of expert cutters. These brilliant diamonds are used along with gold and other precious and semi precious gemstones to craft out exquisite jewelries that can be the reason of envy for any gemstone collector. Be it an engagement ring or the bangle, a necklace or earrings, the jewelry wardrobe of any fashionable lady in the whole world is never complete without the Surat diamond jewelries. And as said earlier, because of the low production costs, you can get them really cheaper than those you will get in the countries like Israel or Belgium.


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Diamond History The Greek word "Adamas" meaning unconquerable and indestructible is the root word of diamond. Diamonds have been sought the world over, fought over, worshipped and used to cast love spells.

For the last 3000 to 4000 years, diamonds have held special magic for Kings, Queens and their subjects. Diamonds have stood for wealth, power, love, spirit and magical powers. Kings in olden days would wear into battle heavy leather breast plates studded with diamonds and other precious stones. It was believed that diamonds were fragments of stars and the teardrops of the Gods. The diamonds possessed magical qualities of the Gods and held powers far beyond the understanding of the common man. Because of these beliefs, the warriors stayed clear of the Kings and others who were fortunate to have the magical diamonds in their breast plates.

Until the 15thCentury only Kings wore diamonds as a symbol of strength, courage and invincibility. Over the centuries, the diamond acquired its unique status as the ultimate gift of love. It was said that cupids' arrows were tipped with diamonds that have a magic that nothing else can equal.

Since the creation of diamonds they have been associated with romance and legend. The Greeks believed the fire in the diamond reflected the constant flame of love.

For millions of people around the world, the mystery and magic, the beauty and romance shining out from a simple solitaire says all the heart feels but words can not express. It wasn't until 1477 when Archduke Maximilian of Austria gave a diamond ring to Mary of Burgundy, that the diamond engagement ring was introduced. Placing the ring on the third finger of the left hand


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dates back to the early Egyptian belief that the Vena Amors, vein of love, runs directly from the heart to the tip of the third finger.

The first river-bed (alluvial) diamonds were probably discovered in India, in around 800 B.C. The volcanic source of these diamonds was never discovered, but the alluvial deposits were rich enough to supply most of the world's diamonds until the eighteenth century, when dwindling Indian supplies probably spurred the exploration that led to the discovery of diamonds in Brazil, which became the next important diamond source. Beginning in l866, South Africa's massive diamond deposits were discovered, and a world-wide diamond rush was on. The South African diamond output was unraveled until major deposits were found in Siberian permafrost in l954. And currently Western Canada is the site of the world's newest diamond rush.

Throughout much of history, diamonds were mined from the sand and gravel surrounding rivers. But in South Africa in 1870 diamond was found in the earth far from a river source, and the practice of dry-digging for diamonds was born. More sophisticated mining techniques allowed deeper subterranean digging, as well as more efficient river (and, most recently, marine) mining, than ever before.

ExportsDiamonds from Surat are exported to a lot of countries all over the world. Exports are routed through exporters based in Mumbai. It is mandatory that exporters of diamonds should be registered with the Gem and Jewelry Export Promotion Council located in Mumbai.

Diamonds and stones of different sizes and shapes are exported to countries like the United States of America, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Thailand, Japan and Belgium. United States of America,


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Switzerland and Japan are the primary consumer markets for diamonds.

According to the figures released by the GJEPC, exports recorded a 22.27 per cent growth touching US$ 20.88 billion in 2007-08 as against US$ 17.08 billion last fiscal. Diamonds made a significant contribution to this.

Diamonds accounted for 70.59 per cent of the total exports

Gold jewellery accounted for 26.91 per cent

Colored gem stones and others accounted for 1.32 per cent and 1.16 per cent respectively.

The 2008-09 fiscal also started on a positive note, with the gems and jewellery exports rising by nearly 17 per cent to US$ 9.05 billion during April-August 2008, compared to US$ 7.74 billion in the corresponding period last year. Significantly, rough diamond exports stood at US$ 386 million while cut and polished diamond exports increased by 22 per cent to US$ 6.5 billion.

Government Initiatives

The Indian government also provided an impetus to the booming gems and jewellery industry with favorable foreign trade policies for this sector:

In 2004-05 the government lowered import duty on platinum from US$ 13.82 per 10 gm to US$ 5.03 and exempted rough colored precious gems stones from customs duty at the first stage itself, instead of claiming reimbursements later.


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Rough, semi-precious stones are already exempt, a move aimed at further promoting the exports of studded jewellery and platinum jewellery.

Duty-free import of consumables for metals other than gold and platinum up to 2 per cent of freight on board value of exports.

Duty-free import entitlement for rejected jewellery up to 2 per cent of freight on board (f.o.b) value of exports.

Import of gold of 18 carat and above under the replenishment scheme.

Setting up of SEZs and gems and jewellery parks to promote investment in the sector.

In May 2007, the government abolished import duty on polished diamonds.

Associations

There are various institutions associated with the diamond industry based in Surat which act as governing bodies in deciding policies and other matters related to this industry. The Surat Hira Bourse or SHB in Surat, which was instituted in the year 1994 helps in the promotion of international trade. The Indian Diamond Institute located in Surat provides quality training to artisans and workers in cutting and polishing diamonds. The Diamond Industrial Park in Surat is one of a kind, which houses around 1000 units in its premises out of which around 340 firms are operational as of now. The Surat Diamonds Cutters Association is an organization, which supports and


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negotiates with the government for the benefit of the diamond manufacturers.

Benefits

The diamond industry in Surat is not categorized under the small-scale industry in spite of this being a cottage industry comprising mainly skilled artisans. The Government of Gujarat though has been offering a lot of beneficial incentives to this industry from its inception. Incentives offered by the Government include promotion of trade by exemption

Domestic market With the boom in the Indian economy, there is a sharp increase in the demand for diamond-studded jewellery in the country. A lot of manufacturers of diamond stones across Surat are now planning on expanding into making of diamond studded gold jewellery. Artisans who have been cutting and polishing diamonds are now being trained in jewellery making thereby widening their employment prospects. With more and more diamond cutting and polishing units being set up in China and other African countries, Surat is no longer a monopoly in this field. This fact has furthered the cause of workers shifting over to the more lucrative field of jewellery making.

In spite of the threat – The quality of diamonds finished in China and other African


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countries has been improving tremendously of late. This has cast a dark cloud over the diamond-manufacturing units in Surat. Being tenacious, the diamond merchants of this state have yet again bounced back training their artisans in diamond studded jewellery making, captivating the local market. They sparkle through the clouds even as they invent means to stabilize their international presence. The diamond manufacturers and the artisans have thus advanced further in their field sustaining their profits even as they glitter in various stores in India

The 4Cs of Diamonds (plus one)

Cost

The most important "C" you have to think about is COST. You've probably heard the "salary guideline" of spending about two month’s salary on a diamond engagement ring. While it may be helpful to know what the industry is suggesting, that is probably not the best way to decide how much to spend on an engagement ring.

If you earn $30,000 a month, you can probably save 4 months salary easier than someone who is earning $1,000 a month can save 1 month's salary. And it's important to know what your fiancé thinks of the matter. Every person has their own preference and communication in this matter is important.


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How much does each "c" affect cost?Let's take a typical Diamond and change the various properties to see how it affects the price:

Carat

The size of a diamond has the biggest impact on its price. The metric carat, which equals 0.20 gram, is the standard unit of weight for diamonds and most other gems. If other factors are equal, the more a stone weighs, the more valuable it will be. Gemological laboratories measure carat weight when the diamond is loose (unmounted).

While it is possible to estimate the weight of a mounted diamond, the lab uses ultrasensitive scales to achieve an exact weight, measured 3 decimal places, although the third decimal place is not usually mentioned at the retail level.

Here are several ways to express 1 carat:

* 1 ct.* 200 milligrams* 1/5 gram* 100 points* 4 grainer (not often used in retail environment)

Prices of diamonds are expressed in the trade as a price per carat. When we say that the Carat Weight has the biggest impact on the price of a diamond, not only is that true for the overall price of the stone, it is also true for the unit price per carat. That's why a 2 carat diamond is more than double the price of a 1 carat diamond.


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Example:

Diamond "A" = 0.25 carats and costs $1,000 per carat.$1,000 x 0.25ct = $250/stone.Diamond "B" = 0.50 carats and costs $1,250 per carat.$1,250 x 0.50ct = $625/stone.

It is important to understand that when you compare two diamonds of the same shape, the one having a larger carat weight does not always translate to the larger looking stone. Dimensions play an important role in the diamond's appearance.

Large tables may reduce the brilliance of a Round Brilliant Cut, however they also do make a diamond appear larger than it is. Some people are more concerned with the "loss of beauty" while others are happy that their diamond seems "bigger".

Another aspect in how a diamond is cut can affect the size appearance. If the Diamond's "girdle" is too wide, this can make a stone with a higher carat weight look smaller with no benefit to its appearance. That is because the diameter of the diamond is widest at the girdle and "hiding" weight there does not significantly alter the behavior of the light entering the diamond.

Keep in mind that finger size is an important consideration as well. Small fingers will make a diamond appear larger.

It is very common for people to disregard the other C's in favor of getting the biggest possible stone they have budgeted for. Although SIZE DOES MATTER, we feel it is just as important for the quality of the stone to be great.

Some people may feel it is more impressive to wear a 2 carat diamond than a 1 carat diamond. But that's not necessarily true. A Ferrari may not be as big a car as an Oldsmobile, but most would consider it more impressive. What's most important if you


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are buying a Diamond for someone else is that you know what their preference is.

How "big" is a carat?Here's a simple trick to "understand" the meaning of a carat in realistic terms. Simply take a ruler and look at the table below. These are some approximate, sample carat-weight to diameter-widths for popular sizes.0.25ct. ~ 4.1 mm 0.50 ct. ~ 5.2 mm0.75 ct. ~ 5.9 mm 1.00 ct. ~ 6.5 mm

How much does "carat weight" affect cost?The effect of all the different properties of diamond on cost is discussed in more detail in the cost section. For carat weight, let's take a typical Diamond through different carat weights to see by how much it increases in price.

A diamond of G color and SI1 clarity will be in one category of prices when it is between 0.50 - 0.69 carats. When you take that same quality Diamond and increase the size to the next price category, which is the 0.70 - 0.89 carat range, the price increase will be approximately $1,100 per carat (as of the date this was written). Increase to the 0.90 - 0.99 carat range, and the price increase will be approximately another $800 per carat. Increase to 1.00 - 1.49 carat range and the increase will be approximately another $800 per carat. If you increase to the 1.50 - 1.99 carat range, the price increase will be approximately $1,200 per carat.


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Color

The color of a diamond has the second biggest impact on its price, after carat weight. Did you know that diamonds come in every color of the rainbow?

When discussing the topic of color in diamonds, you need to differentiate between mostly "colorless" diamonds and "fancy color" diamonds.

Grading "colorless" diamonds involves deciding how closely a stone's body color approaches colorlessness. Most diamonds have at least a trace of yellow or brown body color. The reason colorlessness is most highly valued is that diamonds in these ranges act like prisms, separating white light passing through it into a wide spectrum of colors. The more transparent the diamond, the wider the spectrum of colors. Chemical "impurities" in the diamond will filter out some of the colors which in turn reduce the "fire" effect when light bounces back out of the diamond and into your eyes. Other than "fancy colors". Colorless diamonds tend to be more valuable. Rare colors such as blue, pink, purple, or red tend to be very expensive...and very beautiful.

If a diamond does not have enough color to be called fancy, then it is graded in a scale of colors ranging from Colorless to Light Yellow, "D" through "Z". A diamond with a "D" color is considered to be colorless. If the color is more intense than "Z", it is


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considered fancy. A fancy yellow diamond fetches a higher price than a light yellow diamond.

The Laboratories only grade diamonds which are unmounted, or "loose", and they do so under special light. Once a loose diamond is mounted on a ring, even the trained professional cannot always tell the difference between, say a "D" color and an "E" or "F" color diamond!

Color D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z FancyScale Colorless Near Colorless Faint Yellow Very Light Yellow <------Light Yellow------> Color

While it would be nice if technology brought about the ability to take the guesswork out of grading diamonds, we are not there yet. In terms of color, Sarin, one of the technology leaders in gemological equipment, has come out with a device called the "colorimeter".The concept of the colorimeter is to be able to reliably judge a color impartially. Over the years, the device has improved considerably, however it is not as reliable as the eye yet and sometimes comes out with unexpected results. The one good thing is that the results tend to be repeatable. The labs use them from time to time, but do not rely on them at all. Maybe one day color grading will be done by a machine, the same way measurements are.How much does "color" affect cost?Let's take a typical diamond through different color grades and see how it can affect cost. Let's start with a 1.00 carat diamond of K color and VS1 clarity. If you move up to an H color, you will pay approximately an extra $1,700 per carat. Move up to F color, the increase will be approximately $1,100 per carat. Improve the color to D and the increase will be approximately $900 per carat.


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Clarity

The clarity of a diamond refers to how clear, or "clean" the diamond is. The more "clean" the diamond, the higher the price. Most diamonds have "imperfections" in them. The clarity scale is a measure of the severity of those imperfections or "inclusions" as it is known in the trade.

For example, a deep break in a diamond which is not that visible when you look at the stone face-up, could sometimes have a greater impact on the clarity of a stone, than a small black crystal which you can see very clearly face-up.

Cutting process

It is possible only because the hardness of diamond varies widely according to the direction in which one is trying to cut or grind.

A simplified round brilliant cut process includes the following stages:

Sawing the rough stone. Table setting where one facet is created. The table facet is

then used to attach the stone into a dope.

Bruiting the girdle.

Blocking 4 main pavilion facets.

Transferring to another dope. This is done to rotate the stone.

Blocking 4 main crown facets.

Cutting and polishing all pavilion facets.

Transferring to another dope.

Cutting and polishing all crown facets.


http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dop&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brilliant_(diamond_cut)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohs_scale_of_mineral_hardness

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This is just one, although fairly common way of creating a round brilliant cut. The actual process also includes many more stages depending on the size and quality of the rough. For example, bigger stones are first scanned to get the 3-dimensional shape, which is then used to find the optimal usage. The scanning may be repeated after each stage and bruiting may be done in several steps, each bringing the girdle closer to the final shape.

Choice of CutThe choice of diamond cut is often decided by the original shape of the rough stone, location of internal flaws or inclusions, the preservation of carat weight, and popularity of certain shapes amongst consumers. The cutter must consider each of these variables before proceeding.

Most gem-quality diamond crystals are octahedral in their rough state (see material properties of diamond). These crystals are usually cut into round brilliants because it is possible to cut two such stones out of one octahedron with minimal loss of weight. If the crystal is malformed or twinned, or if inclusions are present at inopportune locations, the diamond is more likely to receive a fancy cut (a cut other than a round brilliant). This is especially true in the case of macles, which are flattened twin octahedron crystals. Round brilliants have certain requisite proportions which would result in high weight loss, whereas fancy cuts are typically much more flexible in this regard. Sometimes the cutters compromise and accept lesser proportions and symmetry in order to avoid inclusions or to preserve carat weight, since the per-carat price of diamond is much higher when the stone is over one carat (200 mg).


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Milligram

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_cut#Proportions

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Macles&action=edit&redlink=1

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_cut#Fancy_cuts

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystal_twinning

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_cut#Round_brilliant

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Material_properties_of_diamond

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octahedra

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crystal

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_cutting

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carat_(mass)

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While the round brilliant cut is considered standard for diamond, with its shape and proportions nearly constant, the choice of fancy cut is influenced heavily by fashion. For example, the step cut baguette—which accentuates a diamond's luster, whiteness, and clarity but downplays its fire—was all the rage during the Art Deco period, whereas the mixed Princess cut—which accentuates a diamond's fire and brilliance rather than its luster—is currently gaining popularity. The princess cut is also popular amongst diamond cutters: of all the cuts, it wastes the least of the original crystal. Older diamonds cut before ca. 1900 were cut in "primitive" versions of the modern round brilliant, such as the rose cut and old mine cut (see History section). Although there is a market for antique stones, many are recut into modern brilliants to increase their marketability. There is also increasing demand for diamonds to be cut in older styles for the purpose of repairing or reproducing antique jewelry.

The size of a diamond may also be a factor. Very small (< 0.02 carats (4 mg)) diamonds—known as stars—are usually given simplified cuts (i.e., with fewer facets), but as cutting and polishing technology has improved this is not necessarily always the case. This is because a full-cut brilliant of such small size would appear milky to the human eye, owing to its inability to resolve the stone's dispersive fire. Conversely, very large diamonds are usually given fancy cuts with many extra facets. Conventional round brilliant or fancy cuts do not scale up satisfactorily, so the extra facets are needed to ensure there are no "dead spots". Because large diamonds are less likely to be set in jewelry, their cuts are considered for how well they display the diamonds' properties from a wide range of viewing directions; in the case of more moderate-sized diamonds, the cuts are considered primarily for their face-up appeal.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Facet

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jewelry

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antique

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_cut#History

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_cut

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_cut#Mixed_cuts

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Deco

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Art_Deco

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_clarity

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lustre_(mineralogy)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_cut#Step_cuts

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_cut#Step_cuts

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Fancy cutsEven with modern techniques, the cutting and polishing of a diamond crystal always results in a dramatic loss of weight; rarely is it less than 50%. The round brilliant cut is preferred when the crystal is an octahedron, as often two stones may be cut from one such crystal. Oddly shaped crystals such as macles are more likely to be cut in a fancy cut—that is, a cut other than the round brilliant—which the particular crystal shape lends itself to. The prevalence and choice of a particular fancy cut is also influenced by fashion; generally speaking, these cuts are not held to the same strict standards as Tolko sky-derived round brilliants. Most fancy cuts can be grouped into four categories: modified brilliants, step cuts, mixed cuts, and rose cuts.

India has a long history of diamond mining and several diamonds, including the Kohinoor, were produced here. In fact, till 1725, India was the only producer of diamonds in the world. The


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Golconda mines were world-famous and even today; a Golconda diamond fetches a very high price in the international market.

Diamond Routes and Centers

Indian diamonds reached Venice by two Mediterranean routes: the southern route was by way of Aden, Ethiopia, and Egypt, and the northern route was through Arabia, Persia, Armenia, and Turkey. Then, thanks to the Portuguese discovery of the direct sea route to India, Antwerp flourished as a diamond center, as the city was well-situated to receive vast supplies of rough from Lisbon as well as from Venice.

After Spanish attacks on Antwerp in1585, many diamond cutters relocated to Amsterdam. And the Netherlands, with its liberal civil policies, attracted diamond craftsmen (including many Jews) who were fleeing religious persecution in Spain, Portugal, Germany and Poland.

In the late1600's, as the English fortified their interest in India, which was still the world's central diamond source, London became an important cutting center. Later, London became the primary world market of diamond rough.

Today, there are cutting centers all over the world, most notably in Belgium, India, Israel, South Africa, and the USA.

Eighty percent of the diamonds mined annually are used in industry; 4 times that production is grown synthetically for industry - that's a total of over 500 million carats or 100 metric tons. Diamond is a fundamental industrial material that affects our daily lives. Because diamond is the hardest substance, it is used to cut, grind, and polish most hard substances. It fashions stones, ceramics, metals, and concrete, as well as eyeglasses,


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gems, and computer chips. Its growing specialty-uses include blades, some used in critical surgery; specialty windows; and heat spreaders. And of course diamond phonograph needles reproduced music for 50 years.

A diamond cutting tool shapes the armature of a generator.

Diamond has three primary roles in industry: it is used as a cutting tool, it is imbedded in another material and used as a tool or abrasive, and it is turned to powder or paste for grinding and polishing. Diamond is selected for such use where its hardness and resistance to abrasion - its long working life and fast cutting action - outweigh its costs. Moreover, diamond's resistance to wear enables it to cut reproducibly time after time, a requirement of automated production. Diamond machining tools for turning, milling, and boring are preferred where finely finished surfaces of high precision are needed. Diamond is used for machining a wide variety of plastics, glasses, and metals, shaping products such as the drums for copying machines, polygon mirrors in laser printers, and aluminum-alloy pistons in automobile engines. However, diamond cannot be used for machining alloys of iron. Under intense machining conditions the diamond abrades very quickly against some materials, apparently because of a high-temperature reaction between iron and carbon.

The device used by GE to synthesize diamond was termed a belt device because tungsten carbide rams were driven into a cavity contained by a doubly-tapered carbide cylinder, contained in turn by a steel jacket - termed a belt. Between the rams is a cylinder of graphite - a furnace - containing the material to be raised to high temperature and pressure. Around the furnace assembly and between the anvils and belt is a compressible material to contain the pressure and accept the deformation; it has traditionally been a natural clay called "pipestone clay" for its alternative use in tobacco pipes. A hydraulic press, capable of perhaps 50 tons, drives the rams into the belt cavity, amplifying the force at the


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interior to high pressure. An electrical current is passed between the rams and through the conductive graphite, which heats in response; the clay acts as a thermal insulator as well as a container for pressure.

Research Using DiamondsBecause of their transparency, thermal conductivity, or surface properties, diamonds are used in many research instruments as windows. An application of exceptional value in mineral and material science is a small device that generates extremely great pressures in the space between two diamonds - the diamond anvil cell. These devices are used in experiments on the nature of planetary interiors and dense matter, from mimicking Earth's core to producing solid hydrogen.

Alvin Van Valkenburg, pictured here in 1963, was a pioneer in using the diamond anvil cell to study materials at high pressure at the National Bureau of Standards, Washington DC.

The mechanics of creating high pressure are simple, involving just an application of force onto a small area, but extreme pressure will not be achieved without a material of supreme hardness, incompressibility, and strength - such as diamond. Most materials, steel for example, will deform or break before reaching pressures that exist deep within Earth. Tungsten carbide is better, but diamond is best. By polishing the ends off two fine round brilliant diamonds to a width of a millimeter or so, and carefully and accurately squeezing them together, pressures comparable to the center of Earth - 4,500,000 atmospheres - can be achieved. At these pressures hydrogen transforms into a metal - a state that might exist deep within Jupiter. Research on planetary interiors and dense matter has been advanced greatly by the use of diamond anvil cells, using lasers, optics, and x-rays to probe these small samples to reveal their mysteries.

Diamond Handling Heat, Friction and LightHardness is not the only superlative property of diamond that


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makes it important in industry and technology--its extraordinary thermal conductivity, low-friction surface, and optical transparency put diamond into cutting-edge applications. Many new products, like compact electronic devices, windows for optical devices in demanding environments, and "no-wear" bearings, such as in the space shuttle, utilize diamond. For these applications, a synthetic form leads the way. This is CVD, so-named for the growth technique chemical vapor deposition.

Various products are composed of or coated with CVD diamond. They include heat spreaders, cutting tools, windows, and bearings used in the space shuttle.

At present the major commercial application for CVD diamond is in thermal management, where diamond heat-spreaders conduct byproduct heat away from a device. The material can be grown with a thermal conductivity close to that of the best natural and high-pressure synthetic diamonds used until now as heat spreaders. Thousands of suitable heat spreaders can be cut from a single wafer of CVD diamond, making for efficient use. A CVD diamond coating on an object can be polished to yield an extremely smooth diamond surface, ideal for high precision and low friction, such as is needed for precision bearings. CVD diamond wafers with high optical transparency are excellent for viewing a wide portion of the electromagnetic spectrum in environments with extreme temperature, corrosiveness, or radiation.

Growing Diamonds


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Diamond was discovered to be carbon in 1796, and it took more than 150 years from that time until a method of diamond synthesis was invented. The secret was pursued by many scientists but not unlocked until the s1950s, when diamond was synthesized almost simultaneously by Swedish and American researchers. Pressures of over 55,000 atmospheres and 1400C, plus molten iron to facilitate the change from graphite to diamond, were necessary. Now some 80 tons of synthetic diamonds are produced annually by General Electric, De Beers, and many others for industrial firms.

Herbert Strong and J. E. Cheney worked on GE's then new 1,000-ton press, capable of achieving experimental pressures of 100,000 atmospheres, in 1955. The GE team used the press to grow diamonds prior to the announcement of diamond synthesis on February 15, 1955.

From the time Smithson Tennant showed that diamond was carbon, experimenters tried to synthesize diamond from graphite or lamp black. Attempts over the next 150 years were all fruitless, although the trend toward experiments at high pressure and temperature were in the right direction. The invention of tungsten carbide in the 1930s provided a material that could achieve the pressure containment necessary for growing diamond. Experiments in the 1940s by Harvard professor Percy Bridgman were unsuccessful, but finally in the early 1950s two teams succeeded. The first was led by Balthazar von Platen, at the Allmanna Svenska Elektriska Aktiebolaget (ASEA) Laboratory in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1953, but this initial success was not publicized or published. Thus, on February 15, 1955, the General Electric team of Francis Bundy, Tracy Hall, Herbert Strong, and Robert Wentorf claimed credit for the first reproducible transformation of graphite to diamond. GE went on to become the largest producer of synthetic diamond; De Beers follows, with


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many other manufacturers also contributing to the annual output of synthesized diamonds.

Into the Future of Diamonds and GemsAs methods for growing diamond, both at high pressure and by chemical vapor deposition, improve, and as science finds ways to take advantage of diamond's properties, the potential applications of diamond's superlative properties appear boundless. From super electronics, to indomitable optical windows, to unscratchable surfaces - maybe the next watch bezel - diamond is an obvious choice.

Managing heat, particularly in electronics, with large layers of CVD diamond is a rapidly expanding field. One of the most imaginative of these is the three-dimensional multi-chip module, which holds out the promise of an extremely powerful supercomputer. To gain speed, electronics need to be as compact as possible, concentrating waste heat as well. By stacking sandwiches of electronics and CVD diamond, a supercomputer could be made small and cool enough to function. Diamond windows for infrared devices are under development and should find their way into the tough environment of laser-guided smart bombs and more constructive uses in industry as well. The use of diamonds as radiation detectors, light emitters in electronic displays, and coatings to make surfaces indomitable or unwettable are being researched now. Beyond their imprint as a tool, diamonds will be showing up in more and more products in the future, probably in your home electronics, appliances, and automobiles.

However, today diamonds are mined only at Panna in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh by the National Mining Development Corporation. The Panna mines too were shut for the last two years at the behest of the Supreme Court which issued an order to ban mining activities in forest land. In August this year, the Supreme Court lifted its ban and mining will now restart at Panna.


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Even though India does not contribute much to the world market in terms of rough diamonds -- India exported rough diamonds worth only US$ 566 million in 2007-08 -- it is the world leader in cutting and polishing of diamonds, with exports worth US$ 14.18 billion in 2007-08.

Most of the processing of diamonds takes place in Surat in Gujarat and in Jaipur, Rajasthan, where over a million artisans cut and polish rough diamonds into beautiful stones.

STRENGTHS


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Diamond has three primary roles in industry: it is used as a cutting tool, it is imbedded in another material and used as a tool or abrasive, and it is turned to powder or paste for grinding and polishing. Diamond is selected for such use where its hardness and resistance to abrasion - it’s long working life and fast cutting action - outweigh its costs. Moreover, diamond's resistance to wear enables it to cut reproducibly time after time, a requirement of automated production. Diamond machining tools for turning, milling, and boring are preferred where finely finished surfaces of high precision are needed.

Diamond is used for machining a wide variety of plastics, glasses, and metals, shaping products such as the drums for copying machines, polygon mirrors in laser printers, and aluminum-alloy pistons in automobile engines.

The Diamond industry in Surat is the largest user of laser machines in India. Apart from this, the diamond factories in Surat also extensively use modern equipments like polishing machines, which are semi automatic and automatic and diamond planners, which are computerized.

Diamonds from Surat are exported to a lot of countries all over the world. Exports are routed through exporters based in Mumbai.

WEAKNESSES


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Diamond cannot be used for machining alloys of iron. Under intense machining conditions the diamond abrades very quickly against some materials, apparently because of a high-temperature reaction between iron and carbon.

High domestic interest rates compared to elsewhere

Small firms lacking technological/ export information expertise.

Low productivity compared to labor in china, Thailand and Sri Lanka.

As the major raw material requirements need to be imported, companies normally stock huge quantities of inventory resulting high inventory carrying costs.

OPPORTUNITIESIt is believed that almost 90 per cent of the small diamonds obtained in different mines in Africa and purchased by many


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traders in the European nations, is being sent to Surat for cutting and polishing.

Workers One third of the population of Surat is a part of the flourishing diamond industry. Population of Surat thrives on diamond and textile related job opportunities. Apart from this, a lot of people from all over India have found employment in the diamond field here. There are a total of 10000 diamond processing units in the city of Surat employing around fifteen lakh people. New initiatives by the government of Gujarat aim at training diamond cutters in jewellery making thereby providing them with a wider scope in this industry.

New markets in Europe & Latin America Growing demand in south Asian & Far East countries.

Removal gold control act

THREATSDiamond exporters are feeling the heat of the US meltdown. With the demand gone down not only in the international market, but in the domestic market as well, more orders are being cancelled every day.


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The diamond industry in Canada's Far North is vulnerable to smugglers looking to import "blood diamonds" or launder the proceeds of organized crime syndicates and terrorist organizations, newly released federal documents say.

A boom in diamond mining during the past decade has rapidly turned Canada into the third-biggest producer in the world and created jobs in the North, especially in the Northwest Territories, home to the country's biggest mines. However, Canadian authorities warn the fledgling industry could become a vehicle for money laundering.

"Diamonds have been, and continue to be, a main source of currency for both terrorist organizations and organized crime," states a briefing note prepared by Citizenship and Immigration Canada in April.

"Conflict/blood diamonds are used to fund rebel operations, purchase arms, and other illicit activities (drugs). They are portable, high value and cannot be detected by any type of screening method,”

Blood diamonds, sometimes known as "conflict" diamonds, are typically mined in African countries racked by civil war and used to finance rebel or government forces.

China posing threat to the Indian diamond industry. Cheap labour, better infrastructure, usage of advanced technology and business friendly policies adopted over years by the Chinese government, have made it a super economic force in governing the world trade, causing great threat for Indian market.

China, Sri Lanka and Thailand's entry in small diamond segment


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Infrastructural bottlenecks, frequent changes in exim policies, irregular supply of gold.

Over dependence on single-channel supply chain. Decisions of De Beers and Argyle's terms for renewing their supply contract

So what’s going to happen to the global industry in the next couple of years?

It’s going to be interesting to hear the views of many of the speakers at the two-day International Mines to Market conference organized by India’s Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) that is slated to take place in Mumbai on April 26th and 27th.


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Setting the ball rolling will be GJEPC chairman Sanjay Kothari and Hemant Shah, the convener of the GJEPC’s promotion, marketing and business development panel. Then there’s Gareth Penny, managing director of the De Beers group and Steve Hodgson, managing director of Rio Tinto diamonds, who are going to speak on ‘Rough Producers’ Strategies for the Immediate Future’. Along with them are Ponatshego Kedikilwe and Buyelwa Sonjica, the ministers of minerals and energy of Botswana and South Africa respectively, speaking on the whole issue of beneficiation and what it means for the diamond industry.

Looking at the issue of development and what the diamond industry can do to improve the lot of the many impoverished artisanal diggers, predominantly in West Africa, as well as the prevention of horrific conflicts and human rights abuse, are the Botswana government’s deputy secretary for minerals, energy and water, Kago Moshashane and Martin Rapaport of the eponymous firm.

The dilemmas before diamond manufacturing centre’s are going to be expounded on by Kaushik Mehta of Eurostar, Samuel Schnitzler of M. Schnitzler, Ketan Parikh of Mahendra Brothers and R. Gopalan from the Indian government’s National Manufacturing Competitive Council.

And talking about synthetic diamonds, discussing the basic issue of whether they are a threat or opportunity for the diamond industry are Ronnie Vander linden of Diamex and Stephan Fischer of the World Diamond Council.

ABN Amro’s global head of the diamond and jewellery division Loet Kniphorst and the State Bank of India’s chairman O.P. Bhatt, both powerhouses of diamond finance, are going to air their views on the future while Ahmed bin Sulayem, COO of the Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) will join Anoop Mehta of the Bharat Diamond Bourse


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to discuss ‘Emerging Trading Hubs: The Future Map of the Diamond Industry’.

And finally, to discuss the issues at the very end of the pipeline, speaking on ‘Retail Markets: Revitalizing the Established; Introducing the New’ are J.C. Penny executive vice president of fine jewellery Beryl Raff, Sunil Mittal, chairman of the Bharti group that has entered into a joint venture with Wal-Mart and Bhaskar Bhatt of Titan, India’s leading watch and jewellery brand.

Entrepreneurial Innovation at Surat

Innovation as a part of entrepreneurship was proposed by Schumpeter more than six decades ago. He pointed out that the essence of entrepreneurship is innovation. Schumpeter specified five areas of innovation by entrepreneurs: (i) product, (ii) process, (iii) market (iv) supply source, and (v) industry organization. Entrepreneurial innovation, however, in an industry of cottage & small scale type can be grouped under four broad areas and revolve around major functions (marketing, operations, finance &


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personnel) of an enterprise. The study attempted to identify innovations by diamond processing industry in Gujarat in these four major types of innovation and the industry organization innovation as suggested by Schumpeter.

Thus the theoretical framework to study innovation in Diamond processing industry in Gujarat was developed on following five broad areas:

Operations Innovation : This include the product, the process, the raw material (supply source) and R&D innovation.

Marketing Innovation: This relates not only identifying & targeting the new markets or market segments, but also new marketing strategies employed in existing markets. Marketing innovations are so varied and situation specific, that their success apparently depends primarily on the entrepreneur's ability to perceive the total situation, rather than on any universal principles. Marketing innovations are so closely associated with entrepreneurship, that they do not consider these as innovations, but as a part of the 'routine' job.

Organizational Innovation : This comprise of innovations related to organizational structure, recruiting & developing people and making them fit in the structure of the enterprise as also innovativeness in the work culture developed. Thus, innovations related to structure, culture and human resources can be included under this area of entrepreneurial innovation.

Boundary Management Innovation: Considering the fact that finance innovations are related largely to the arrangement of financial resources from outside, the same along with innovations related to management and sometimes manipulation of external agencies including government is combined under this area.

Industry organization innovation: This pertains to managing co-existence of various operators in the same industry and innovativeness in making the whole industry growth remarkably.


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Diamond Facts

The largest Diamond ever found:-- Cullinan at 3,106 carats.

What is the hardest natural substance on Earth? -- The Diamond.

80% of the world's diamonds are not suitable for Jewelry.

Is a Diamond Indestructible? -- No. The fact that Diamonds are a hard substance refers to their ability to withstand scratching. But that is different than toughness,


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which refers to the ability to withstand breaking or cleavage.

How old are most diamonds which are found in nature?

-- 1 billion to 3 billion years, by most accounts.

How do diamonds reach us? -- They are formed deep within the Earth's crust, and come to the surface via Volcanoes. Most diamonds are found in Kimberlite, which is volcanic rock.

Key Characteristics of Diamond Processing Industry in Gujarat:

1. Most of units are in the cottage & small sector.

2. Labor intensive & not capital intensive - so more entrepreneurs, more employment

3. It is neither power-intensive nor polluting,

4. Traditional business approach

5. High level of product innovation

6. Family owned businesses


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7. Based on imported raw materials

8. Uses inherited skills of domestic workers

9. Wholly export6 oriented

10. High working capital as high inventories

11. The technology & skill required for cutting and polishing of diamonds have been largely developed within the country and at industry's own costs

12. Most of the diamond dealers are inter-connected with each other and have developed a collective interest in achieving higher & higher export targets.

13. 95% of active diamond exporters are based in Mumbai and Surat thus making it possible for the trade to serve the varied requirements of the numerous foreign buyers from different countries

14. Vast manufacturing base and marketing network

15. Large volumes, wide varieties & economical costs

16. Gradual switch over from contract processing to in-house processing, modern quality control and healthy working conditions.

17. The professional expertise and venture some spirit of youngsters resulting into diversification of export markets


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18. Varied product mix, consistent assortments, prompt deliveries and sales on credit, reputation for quality

19. Infrastructure facilities in terms of: 20. Cutting down on export duties on capital equipments, fully free import of gold and other metals, movement of imported goods free from sales tax & octroi, exemption of export profits from income tax and cutting down red tape procedural delays.

Intrinsic Orientation:Many heuristics, as many as ten, can be taken under this composite factor. Innovations in Gujarat are largely evolving around self-employment and entrepreneurship. Gujarati innovator prefers intrinsically viable projects to externally supported ones. It is noted that the risk reduction strategy focuses on testing the outcomes in advance, and taking calculated risks. In matters of external support and assistance, the Gujarati entrepreneur takes care to develop his strengths first i.e. he seeks assistance only for a unit which intrinsically viable and self supporting. Thus one of the fundamental orientations resulting in unique entrepreneurial behavior seems to be orientation for intrinsically satisfying activities.

Organic Growth:The Gujarat model of innovation emphasis organic growth. About 7 of the identified heuristics can be grouped to arrive at this orientation. It is hardly found in the particular cluster, the mergers or takeovers of units. This is largely due to culture clashes envisaged by the entrepreneurs. Values such as family


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orientation and community orientations result in this sort of orientation. The unit holders in Gujarat that are studied here want to keep a tight family control over their business.

Growth driven by a vision of sharing and community building Environmental stimuli such as childhood family environment, easy availability of resources and negative stimulus such as lack of government support coupled with strong values of family and community orientations lead to this sort of orientation. The industry innovation such as harmonious coexistence can be a result of such orientation. Heuristics pertaining to competition are grouped to arrive at this particular orientation. 2 strong heuristics support presence of such orientation. Perseverance, learning by doing

Diamond processing is a very traditional and one of the oldest industries in India. Entrepreneurs have tested feasibility of new ideas before investing into them through their informal networks. This strategy to reduce their risks seems to have worked well. It was observed that many decisions in the enterprise are based on one’s own experience and poor formal education of the entrepreneurs support that. It was observed further that since child hood their family members who are in this particular business train them and skills are passed on from generation to generation. Unfortunately not many heuristics were identified in the cases studied.

However persistence in getting from external sources shows strength of 0.79 in the decisions made by these entrepreneurs.

Conclusion:Gujarat, better known as entrepreneurial hub of India has enterprise as base of Innovation. The Enterprising behavior in Gujarat is largely attributed to typical culture of the state.

In the study conducted, Heuristics of the entrepreneurs of Gujarat especially in Industrial cluster of Surat (South


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Gujarat) Diamond processing Industry were identified as above and can be grouped to arrive at certain entrepreneurial orientations of Gujarati entrepreneur.

Key entrepreneurial orientations observed are as explained below with the influence of internal stimuli viz. beliefs, values, attitudes, learning (Psychological make-up) and external stimuli mainly environmental factors.

Bibliography www.indianmba.com

www.peerpapers.com

www.oppapers.com

www .suratmuncipal.org

www . highbeam.com

www . atimes.com

www .c ommodityonline.com

www . iamond world.net

www .i ndianetzone.com


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FAMOUS BRANDS


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Diamond Cutting Industries

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