Deliberations, debates and decisions marked the Diamond Detection Expo in Surat in April. Taking the lead, GJEPC has proposed to offer a 50% discount on detection machines to producers in and around Surat. A report by Solitaire International.

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Diamond Detection Expo & Symposium 2017

Bonas & Co. Estimates Synthetic Production At 2.3 - 4.2 Mct

Tom Moses and Praveenshankar Pandya along with other dignitaries inaugurating DDES 2017.

he Gem & Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), held the second edition of the Diamond Detection Expo &

Symposium (DDES) on April 14th-15th 2017 in Surat. The one-of-a-kind expo in the world’s largest diamond manufacturing centre had the leading gemmological laboratories participating under one roof, showcasing different types of machinery, equipment and technologies available to identify synthetic diamonds. Exhibitors included Gemological Institute of America (GIA), Gemmological Institute of India (GII), Gemological Science International, Indian Diamond Institute, International Gemological Institute, DRC Techno, HRDAntwerp and IIDGR among others, who showcased AMS machines, Diamond Check, Diamond Serve, Spotter, PTIR Spectroscopy, etc.

The two-day event was jointly organised by GJEPC under the auspices of the Natural Diamond Monitoring Committee (NDMC).

The show was inaugurated by GJEPC chairman Praveenshankar Pandya along with GJEPC Gujarat regional chairman Dinesh Navadiya, NDMC convener Ashish Mehta, GIA India & Middle East managing director Nirupa Bhatt and Venus Jewel’s founder partner Sevantilal Premchand Shah in the presence of several

prominent personalities from the diamond, gems and jewellery business from Surat.

A number of key decisions were taken during the seminar with respect to identifying and detecting synthetic diamonds, improved technologies, and actions that the industry would take in the near future to keep the natural diamond pipeline free of any contamination.

In his inaugural speech, Pandya said, “DDES is one among the several strategic initiatives to preserve global trade and consumer confidence in diamonds from India. Surat, the world’s largest diamond manufacturing centre, is the ideal location for holding DDES 2017, since it is home to over 5,000 diamond manufacturing units, including some of the world’s largest and most advanced affordable diamond cutting factories. By leveraging digital initiatives, we intend to modernise key jewellery manufacturing hubs across India and empower them by sophisticated detection tools and techniques to safeguard ourselves against undisclosed mixing of synthetics. Mixing in any form is unacceptable.”

Elaborating on the various proactive measures that the Council has taken, Pandya noted, “The GJEPC has been spearheading awareness of detection, differentiation, disclosures and documentation of synthetic diamonds since 2013-14. We have been engaging all key stakeholders because we

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(From left) Ashish Mehta, Praveenshankar Pandya, Sevantibhai Shah and Dinesh Navadiya lighting the inaugural lamp.

By leveraging digital initiatives, we intend to modernise key jewellery manufacturing hubs across India and empower them by sophisticated detection tools and techniques to safeguard ourselves against undisclosed mixing of synthetics.Mixing in any form is unacceptable.”

Surat manufacturers vow to stand united in the fight against undisclosed mixing of synthetics.

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realised that any instances of mixing will destroy India’s reputation and credibility in the global gems and jewellery business.

“We have been able to restore trust with firm, assertive action and active participation of bodies such as NDMC. We have commissioned independent research firms such as A.T. Kearney and Bonas & Co. to conduct research on the synthetic market. The GJEPC urged the government for a separate HSC code in the Union Budget 2016, and thereafter, 7104 9010 (synthetic diamonds) and 7104 9090 (synthetic stones) were created. The Bharat Diamond Bourse has taken an aggressive stand and debarred the guilty.”

To stem the mixing in parcels, GII, a project of the GJEPC, developed the Q-Check machine to detect Type IIb HPHT synthetic diamonds to the -2 sieve sizes and in batches of 500 stones – both rough and polished.

Pandya noted that while this was clearly a huge step, more needs to be done to keep the natural and synthetic pipelines separate.

“It is our duty as a world leader to make the first move, and the Council has

therefore decided to start a campaign to spread awareness about synthetic detection technology in 21 cities across India,” Pandya said, adding that the Council would offer a special 50% discount for all associations in and around Surat, who wanted to install GII diamond detection machines.

In a move to stand united and express solidarity, Dinesh Navadiya and several members of the trade took a solemn pledge to preserve the reputation of Surat and refrain from indulging in any malpractices.

Navadiya commented, “Surat is the largest diamond hub in the entire world with over 90% of the world’s rough diamonds being polished here. We should be proactive and quick in taking steps against unscrupulous elements that tarnish the image of the industry and erode consumer confidence. Recently, there has been an increase in the production of gem-quality synthetic stones. There has been a rise in instances where buyers have purchased synthetic diamonds believing them to be natural diamonds. Events such as DDES make the industry aware

It is our duty as a world leader to make the first move, and the Council has therefore decided to start a campaign to spread awareness about synthetic detection technology in 21 cities across India.”

GJEPC chairman Praveenshankar Pandya visits booths displaying different detection machines and latest technologies.

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of updates on synthetic stones and the various detection facilities available.”

Synthetic market studyIn his address, Ashish Mehta stated that the NDMC has initiated a series of steps to facilitate fair trade and prevent any untoward instances and retain consumer confidence and guard the reputation of the cut and polished sector. The industry was seeking to create quick, effective and affordable detection. “Quick Check machines take just a few seconds to scan HPHT Type IIb diamonds and are good for testing -2 and -4 goods. We also want machines, which are easy and simple to use.”

Citing the results of the Bonas & Co. report, Mehta revealed that the four-month study was conducted across four continents, adding, “Even at peak estimated installed production, synthetic diamonds account for merely 2-3% of the total natural diamond production volume.” However, he noted that the synthetic diamond production through HPHT has been growing faster than CVD synthetics. China leads in HPHT production with Russia producing larger pieces, while Singapore leads in CVD production.

Allaying fears, Mehta further noted, “The production of synthetic diamonds has grown fast but not as much as what recent unconfirmed reports have indicated. There is no market impact, but just a mentality impact. Today, the natural diamond business has grown phenomenally due to sustained marketing over the years. Synthetic diamond makers will take a long time to catch up.”

In her presentation, Parul Merchant from Bonas & Co. Diamond Brokers & Consultants shared key findings of the study and informed that synthetic diamonds account for 2.3 million carats to 4.2 million carats, or less than 2-3% of the total natural diamond production volume of 127.4 million carats.

She said that it is easy to identify rough synthetic diamonds – CVD process yields a unique tubular output, which mostly has a brownish tinge whereas synthetic diamonds through HPHT are cubo-octahedral and fancy yellow. The US is a significant market for retailing synthetic diamonds, while India, China and Singapore are some of the main production hubs. There is some commercial output from Russia, especially in bigger carat sizes. Europe has some producers, but the region is primarily into research and development of synthetics.

The seminar titled Impact of Synthetics on Diamond Industry had panellists Praveenshankar Pandya, Ashish Mehta, Dinesh Navadiya and Keval Virani of Karp

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Impex. The session was moderated by Samir Joshi, executive director, Indian Diamond Institute. The discussion led to a pertinent question: even if the growth in synthetic diamonds is up from 0.35 million carats in 2014 to 2.3 million carats in 2016, is there a consumer demand for it? Apparently not, felt the panellists because according to them the consumer was not keen on buying synthetic diamond-set jewellery, and the synthetic manufacturers would have to pump in a lot of money to advertise, like De Beers did for natural diamonds, to convince a customer to buy a synthetic stone.

Virani said that the customer has zero tolerance for lack of information about

synthetic diamonds at point of sale. However, a lot of work has to be done in terms of sample sizes and additional cost to be borne by the trade for detection, disclosures and documentation.

The bigger threat was posed by HPHT diamonds, since they are easy to produce and they can now be easily converted into good quality diamonds. There was an immediate need for machines that could quickly and efficiently scan HPHT melees and stars, they agreed.

In his presentation, Dr. Wuyi Wang, GIA’s director of research and development, said that there was a big improvement in HPHT in the last few years. He mentioned that the speed of

In an exclusive interview with Solitaire, Tom Moses, executive vice president and chief laboratory and research officer, GIA, opined, “The HPHT technology for gem diamond synthesis has made rapid progress in the last few years. The main manufacturer of HPHT stars and melees around

2–3 mm in diameter is China. The large factories in China have significant capacity and could increase the production of gem-quality synthetic diamonds. As an example, one of the larger factories produces 500 tonnes of diamond grit annually. (This is a much simpler process than growing gem-quality synthetic diamond, but it is an indication of the scale of the operation.)

The potential growth of synthetics through HPHT is large. But the question that the industry has to ask is ‘How many undetected synthetic diamonds would it take to hurt the industry? And does it really matter?’”

He added, “We need to reinforce the need for clear identification and separate the footprints of natural and synthetic diamonds. Earlier, we worried about synthetic rubies and emeralds, but once the identification markers were in place, it doesn’t pose any threat. There’s a large market for natural diamonds and their demand will continue to grow. We have to work very hard to ensure that the synthetic and natural diamonds continue as parallel markets. As the quantity of synthetic diamonds increases, its prices will decrease. It is something similar to the fate of cubic zirconia. When introduced in the 1970s, it cost $50 per carat, and today with increased production it has fallen to 25 cents per carat.

Tom Moses: Turn Synthetic Threat Into Opportunity“The industry cannot wish synthetics away. The question is how we allow these products to grow side by side with natural diamonds in a mature way. One obvious way is to create an organised and efficient segregation channel. It is also important that we should not be prejudiced against synthetics. Let the consumers decide what they desire – synthetics or natural diamonds. One could view synthetics as an opportunity and manufacturers could take to polishing them if its production increases. Maybe we could create new potential or category of jewellery set with synthetics for women who are self-purchasers.” Citing the example of how Swarovski has successfully integrated synthetic diamonds in a highly ethical manner, he said that they are selling it for what it is. “They are expanding and exploiting their brand recognition in a proper way,” he noted.

“At GIA, we are fortunate that we have set up machines to grow diamonds just to have a 360-degree understanding of the growth process, which then allows better identification methods. We have resources and technologies backed by R&D and are confident in tackling the detection issue.”

At the DDES show, GIA presented a prototype of the GIA Mounted Gem Testing Device which will be officially launched later in 2017. The compact and handy instrument combines advanced spectroscopic technology with GIA’s diamond and gemstone identification research to distinguish natural diamonds from synthetic diamonds, diamond simulants and some treated diamonds in a matter of two seconds or less. n

producing these goods has increased manifold, and one press could produce up to 25 carats of HPHT melee diamonds in just 20 hours. Reportedly, thousands of presses in China are used for synthetic gem diamonds, and more such gems are expected in the future, so challenges have to be met head on.

In conclusion, the main objectives are driving segregation technology innovation and adoption; driving innovation by ensuring coordination among research bodies; coordinating with device manufacturers to increase scale of production; and driving towards lower acquisition costs by enabling scale and ensuring wide participation of players.