A year of progress for ZIA

December 2021

The Zircon Industry Association (ZIA) today published its annual ‘ZIA in brief’; a summary of the main activities and achievements of the association over the last year.

Speaking after the 8^th Annual General Meeting, Fidel García-Guzmán, ZIA’s Board Chairman, commented:

“I am proud that over the last year ZIA has continued to deliver results for our members despite the global pandemic. Our Technical Committee reported their study on the effect of metamictization on milling characteristics of zircon, which provided insights on the relationship between the metamictic state of zircon sand and its milling performance. While the Environmental Social and Governance Committee recently completed its first ESG data report for the zircon and zirconia industry. Over time, the ZIA aims to create a framework for helping members to develop their own strategies for tackling the wider ESG issues.

“Two new technical projects have started on the role of zircon and zirconia in a sustainable world, and the effect of impurities in zircon on its various applications. We look forward to reporting the results and conclusions exclusively to members next year.

“We were delighted to welcome four new members to the association over the last twelve months. ZIA now has a truly global footprint and balance of membership from across the entire zircon and zirconia value chain.”

Keven Harlow, ZIA’s Executive Director, said:

“We put our members at the heart of what we do, so I was delighted to see the positive results of our 2021 members’ survey. As well as valuing the work of ZIA, our members said that the association created value, met their expectations, and addressed common industry challenges.

“As the pandemic impacted us all, ZIA quickly looked to offer alternative opportunities for members to share best practice and their experiences of the industry. Our member-exclusive webinars were very well attended, particularly the CEO Panel Discussion event that gave members access to the views of seven industry leaders.

“While our webinar programme will continue to grow, we recognise members’ desire to return to an in-person conference next year. We are hopeful that we will be welcoming members and friends from across the industry to our ZIA Annual Conference, considered by most to be the heartbeat of the industry, at Kuala Lumpur in September 2022.”

Notes to editors

1. You can view a copy of ZIA in brief here.
2. As a non-profit organisation, ZIA works on behalf of its members to develop and promote zircon, zirconia, and derivative substances by advocating the benefits of their widespread application in today's world.
3. ZIA has a strict Code of Conduct and Antitrust policy which is announced before the start of all meetings and events, and which delegates are required to observe.

For further information, please contact:
Claire Caton / media@zircon-association.org