Indo Asian: Wielding the energy conservation commitment
The Indian electrical industry has demonstrated its capacity in nation building. It is the catalyst to the growth of the core sectors of industry and to the development of infrastructural facilities. Power has always been the key to industrialisation, but the capital- intensive nature as well as the high gestation period has put constraints on its generation. ENGINEERING REVIEW is in interface with Mr.V. P. Mahendru, Chairman - Managing Director, Indo Asian Fusegear Ltd. for imbibing an overview of the electrical & electronics industry.
Mr.V. P. Mahendru, Chairman - Managing Director,
Indo Asian Fusegear Ltd.
Q.Indian electrical industry possess incredible power to improve the overall standard of living in the country, Please brief us about recent initiatives undertaken in electrical space? Which are your focus areas?
Increased growth in power generation and its consumption is key to the growth of any economy, be it developed or developing. Linked strongly to this is the growth of its electrical industry - its products and services. It is very true that this industry is instrumental in raising the living standards of people as its growth has a positive impact on all sectors of economy - industry, infrastructure, residential/commercial buildings, hotels, hospitals etc.
India had taken 100 years to reach power generation level of 100,000 MWs. While it is projected by the National Power Authorities that we will add another 100,000 MWs (only in 10 years) by 2012 and still another 100,000 by 2020. This is despite many hitches including scarce availability of adequate land, concern for environmental safety and heavy investment required for generation of power.
India is foreseeing a broader role it can play in power generation from renewable natural resources including solar energy, wind energy, “Jetropha” and so forth. With more cohesive efforts on the anvil, the Indian Electrical Industry will be one of the leading producers of power from renewable resources.The Leadership at Indo Asian is closely monitoring these developments, and one of our Directors is working very closely at the Association level. Indo Asian has been taking creative initiatives in promoting energy conservation through building high energy efficiency capabilities in all its products.
Q.What are the growth opportunities for electrical industry in India? Being the key player how do you plan to position your company in electrical sector?
There is huge opportunity for the growth of electrical industry, in power generation, transmission, distribution or its usage & control.
Demand for all kind of electrical products is poised to grow at a rapid rate on account of :-
1. Greater emphasis laid by the government on (a) generation of additional power (b) transmission of power safely to the end consumers and (c) minimizing T&D losses.
2. Massive growth in all sectors of economy, particularly, infrastructure and real estate, hospitality and medical services.
3. Continuous development of more power efficient products which may replace most of the existing installations in less than a decade .
It is estimated that the electrical industry would grow by 100% in next 4 years.
At Indo Asian, we invest a good amount of its revenue on R&D as we appreciate its importance and this was one of the key reasons for our initial pioneering success in the Industry. Both the retail and our institutional customers will soon see a new avatar of Indo Asian, with more aesthetic and technologically superior products.
Corporate Office Noida
Q. As per your opinion what is the role of research & development in product performance? How do you score R&D in your company against all other functional heads?
Research & Development is critical for the growth of any industry, more so for a highly sensitive and complex one like our electrical industry given the need to meet the high standards of safety and performance and energy efficiency. The T&D equipment produced have now to comply with much higher standards of safety and efficiency as presently power is transmitted at a much higher voltage of 220 KVs. R&D function has been taken to its extreme to conserve as much power in the transmission and usage of power, given the scarcity and importance laid by all concerned on waste reduction.
At Indo Asian, we have always put great importance on our Research and Development function. The Management lays immense value on improvement of existing products and the development of new products.
Q. Indian market is price sensitive, what is your marketing strategy for India to counter this situation?
Our Indian consumer has always been cautious but is quite intelligent in his purchase. With increasing awareness due to a borderless world, he has started to display greater understanding of the fact that a better quality and more energy efficient product will give him a better return on his investment as compared to a cheaper product which guzzles power - Implying a large growing market for good quality products in India.
Indo Asian has always looked to serve its customers with quality products at competitive prices. Indo Asian is aggressive in the development of not only cost effective products but also of high quality, high price products precisely suiting the Indian consumers and the Indian environment.
A core value of Indo Asian has been “caring”. And we believe a quality product at the right price is a display of our caring nature to society. We attribute a large part of our success to this.
Q. What is your quality policy for the business?
The industry has its quality standards set down by BIS and the Electrical Authorities. Indo Asian’s products comply with these Indian Standards which are now also well-established and well accepted in other adjoining countries including Middle East, Africa and SAARC etc. We have often been the pioneers in this industry, and in fact, many of our products are produced to standards much higher than the base levels laid down in the Indian standard Specifications.
Haridwar Switchgear Plant
Q.Please elucidate the export performance of Indian electrical products? What is the demand scenario of Indian products in global market?
Indo Asian has been perhaps first company from India to export heavy switchgear to Middle East and some African countries as far back as 1964. This was the time when these markets used only European or British products and any Indian products, much less electricals, were rarely accepted by them. We are proud of our early success in these countries as it raised image of Indian Electrical Industry in these countries.
Indo Asian got its products accepted in these markets through consistent improvement in quality and performance. This approach has been paying rich dividends in fixing higher standards not only within our own organization but also for laying down higher standards in the Indian specifications. Soon thereafter we also started exporting to Europe. Indo Asian’s exports have been popular despite some slowdown in the European markets.
Q. According to you what are the factors affecting the electrical business?
The major growth engines for the electrical business in India are growth of industry, infrastructure, road, rail, airports, sea ports, educational institutions etc, hospitality and medical industry.
The positive FDI policies of the government, overall stability of the nation, hard working nature of our countrymen and the recognition of this environment in India by rest of the world is enabling many businesses in creating an overall positive outlook for India and our electrical industry.
Q. What are the key technological trends that are driving electrical industry?
Major technological improvements taking place in the electrical industry are :-
1.Transmission of power: - The transmission voltage for power has been hiked to 400 Kilo Volts to reduce transmission losses and the cost of transmission. This has substantially reduced the size of conductors used in transmission lines.
2.Low Voltage consumer electricals :- There are tremendous improvements going on in the development of more power efficient electrical equipment in all segments. This is due to multiple driving forces such as (a) conservation of scarce power (b) reduction in unnecessary load on the Power distribution grid (c) reduction in energy bills for the consumers (d) environmental concerns and so forth. In fact, the cost of power saved is half the cost of power generated. It is well accepted that nearly 50% of the power generated is lost in Technical and “other” losses. We, at Indo Asian, are continuously improving our products to make them more power efficient and thus conserve power.
Q. According to you what are the measures taken by Indian manufacturers in order to compete with global players?
Indian manufacturers are well poised to compete effectively in the global market through :-
a) Development of more energy efficient equipment.
b) Development of intelligent (automated) equipment which can interact with other equipment for higher efficiency and better power conservation.
c) Establishment of massive marketing & distribution network within India (which acts as a captive market) and export at competitive prices taking advantage of the large volumes of production.
d) Forging of technology collaborations with some companies in developed countries which have advanced technology in electrical engineering and production so as to produce in India using such high technology products and export to them the same products more cost effectively.
Let us accept that the companies in developed countries, in the field of electrical engineering and manufacturing are ahead of the Indian companies in some ways. Over a period they have developed unique R&D facilities and it is this R&D capability that gives them edge in developing higher technology products over their Indian counterparts.
Indian companies are doing well in establishing ties with such companies thus sharing with them benefits of their high technology. Those companies in turn get benefit of sharing low cost bulk production facilities of their Indian counterparts, in India for much enlarged market base of their country and India.
Q. How do you compare the Indian electrical industry against the global industry?
The Indian Electrical industry, compared to the major global competitors, had rather a late and slow start. There were inadequate national resources for power generation and the industry was substantially fragmented. Also, let us not forget that a large part of the economy was not open to competition and didn’t benefit with the development in the rest of the world. True, individual success stories exist but growth in India has largely been due to unique entrepreneurship nature of a few. Our own beginning was along these lines. In the last few decades the Indian electrical industry has done well through adoption of better technologies. We are now amongst the top electrical industries of the world in terms of technology and volumes.
Q. How do your foresee the future of the Indian electrical industry?
The Indian electrical industry has massive growth potential and the industry is fully conscious of this. I can clearly foresee exceptional growth potential that the Indian electrical industry has in the future, to serve the domestic and the global markets.
Q. Please elucidate the product portfolio of your company & do have any plans to launch new products in the market in near future?
Indo Asian is one the leading manufacturers of electrical products in India. Its products include a variety of LT Switchgear Equipment including Electrical Circuit Protection Equipment, Distribution Boards, Switch Boards, Switch Panels, Fuse Switches, MCCBs, ACBs, RCCBs, energy efficient CFLs, Wires & Cables, Energy Meters and Home/Building Automation equipment etc .
After the recent economic slowdown the Indian Electrical industry has again started to pick up and, it is expected that, soon it will achieve the growth rate higher than most of the other electrical industries across the globe.
Q. What is your vision for your company?
Indo Asian started its operations over 50 years back and over the time it has established a great name in the electrical industry for its deep commitment to quality of products, customer service as also close relationship with its dealers, distributors and customers. We have some common values in being Caring, Forward Focused and Aesthetically superior, that will ensure our future is bright. Next five years are great and exciting years for electricals at Indo Asian.
We are introducing many new products which are power efficient and cost effective for the consumers. Across all our products, safety and energy efficiency is foremost. And every Indo Asian customer knows that when he buys an Indo Asian product, he is in good hands.
