Automation to enhance welding productivity
Ador Welding Ltd., formerly known as Advani-Oerlikon Ltd., is the undisputed leader in welding in India. The company that pioneered welding in the country, has been spearheading technological innovations in the field for the past six decades. All the major welded structures of modern India stand testimony to the quality and reliability of its innovative products, processes and techniques. Its contribution to the field of welding education in the country, having churned out over 1,00,000 welding professionals in the past 40 years, is something laudable. Mr. P.K. Balasubbramaniian speaks to Mr. Satish Bhat, Managing Director, Ador Welding Ltd., at the Ador Pavilion in the India Essen Fair’14 to get a glimpse of the recent achievements, innovations and future thrusts of this trendsetter in the welding world. Excerpts:
Q. The welding world is moving more towards automation. What are your capabilities and offerings for automation?
Automation is a major thrust area for us. We have a separate Automation Division headed by a Sr. Vice President. It is an SBU. We offer a comprehensive range of solutions for automation. This includes continuous welding consumables, equipment and systems – both standard and customized.
Q. Automation means a little more initial investment. How receptive is the customer to go in for automation?
We are seeing a change in the perception of the customer who now wants higher productivity and consistent quality. He knows this is possible only through automation. Automation means capital expenditure. But then it is a one time cost. Automation brings 15-20% saving on the overall production cost. Productivity goes up. The quality is consistent and there is no rework involved. These more than justify the investment in Capex. The investment can vary from Rs.5 lacs to Rs.10 crores depending on the job and the level of automation.
Q. How about expanding your equipment range to include robotics?
We have been offering robotic solutions for the past two years. For robotics, the power sources are different. We have customized our equipment to suit robotic welding. And consumables are already in place. Others are offering robotics for universal applications. But we are focusing only on welding.
Q. As the leader in welding, are you also making use of the advanced welding processes to complete the spectrum?
We are harnessing most of the advanced processes. We are using all variants of plasma. We offer Plasma-MIG equipment which can be used with advantage in automated welding. You mentioned about laser beam. It is a costly process and its applications are limited. Instead, we recommend plasma Mig welding. It gives the same results at a lower cost. For commercializing any advanced welding process, one needs volume. Otherwise we can develop any process, requisite equipment and consumables. We do not import and sell any equipment. Whatever equipment we offer are all manufactured by us.
Q. What happens when a customer comes to you for consumables or equipment you do not make?
We have to regret in the first instance. But then if the requirement is sizeable and repetitive, we specially develop them and supply. A recent example is the consumables for boiler panel welding. We developed metal-cored wires with flux for a specific customer. These are import substitutes. Though the batch size is small, we make them because the requirement is on-going.
Q. What are the various ways to enhance welding productivity at the customer’s end?
The parameter setting is very important. The right parameters give better performance. Switchover from MMA welding to continuous consumable welding is another way. Developing the skill of the welder also contributes to productivity. And of course by going in for mechanization and automation. We have seen that use of flux-cored wire or wire-flux combination and TIG wire is yielding greater penetration and very high productivity.
Q. The trend today is to depend less on the welder skill and make the machines more intelligent to yield welds of zero defect. Your comments?
As I said earlier, welding parameters have a direct bearing on the quality of the weld. For instance, more current than prescribed can affect the weld quality. Depending only on the welder skills can sometimes prove to be costly. Thanks to the digital systems available today, it is easier to control these parameters accurately. A remote control data unit can monitor the performance of 40-50 machines in a row, sense any changes in parameter settings done and switch to the right parameters.
Q. How successful are you in using inverter technology in your equipment?
We have equipment for all processes in inverter technology. By virtue of this, there is no spatter, there is power saving and less emission of smoke. They are very eco-friendly.
Q. How much do you care for welding and environment safety?
We exhort welding personnel to follow safety practices. We hold training & service camps at customers’ end and educate them on safety aspects of welding, use of safety products, containing smoke emission, etc. We also supply smoke extraction systems to be used in welding stations to suck and throw away welding smoke so that there is a healthy, productive work atmosphere in welding shops.
Q. What’s new that one could see at your pavilion at the recent India Essen Welding & Cutting Show?
In the Ador pavilion one could see our innovations in welding & cutting equipment and automation systems. We had displayed our latest CNC cutting machine, welding simulator to help improve the welder skills, all our inverter based machines like MMA / TIG /MIG, our 1200 Amps Inverter machine made for the first time in India, our robotic welding system, and a host of safety products.
Q. With the new Govt. in place, infrastructure is certainly going to get a new fillip. How are you geared to meet the demands of the industry?
Yes, we are fully geared to partake in the ‘Make in India’ campaign of the new Government. If the signals are clear, our GDP must bounce back to 7-8% growth. The result would be all-round growth in infrastructure. Steel consumption will go up in the country. That would dictate more demand for welding products. If the demand picks up, we shall further go in for capacity expansion. Already our three consumables plants (in Chennai, Raipur & Silvassa) and one equipment plant (in Chinchwad, Pune) are humming with activities. We are working on new technology products for joining higher grades of steel. We are continuously working on improving the welder skills so that we can ensure flawless welds and enhanced productivity in the fabricating industry. We have a basket full of products & solutions for cutting, welding, automation and skill development. At home we have taken lean manufacturing initiatives to reduce costs. Value engineering has helped us bring out quality products at the lowest costs. All this will help us serve the nation better and realize higher and better outputs in the country.
Q. What is your role in welding education in India?
Ador Welding Academy is an institution in itself with a standing of over 40 years. We have trained over 1,00,000 people on the art and science of welding and made them professionals. They are all absorbed in various sectors of the industry. We have a number of standard and tailor-made courses for training students. We have tied up with several engineering colleges, IITs and ITIs for training in welding. We also hold in-company programs on specific subjects for big customers. Besides we also work with NGOs for skill development at the village level as a part of our CSR.
Q. What are the challenges you face?
Welding products are used for critical applications based on third party approvals. For welding exotic materials for instance, consumables are available. But then there is no data approval or PTR with us. Such applications were rare in India in the past but common in developed world. If we have to do R & D at our end, one test has to be conducted for 10,000 hours at a stretch. One machine is to be dedicated for it. This is not feasible. There is no level playing field for R & D/ data /PTR as against MNC’s. This is one challenge. The other is non-availability of qualified and skilled welding engineers in the country. There is a huge demand / supply gap of qualified professionals in welding function. Welding is still not in the curriculum or being taught or a preferred branch in the engineering colleges. The third challenge is enhancing the status of the welding industry itself.
Q. What is your greatest contribution to the welding world?
If you see the total man power in India engaged in welding, 50% may have been trained at Ador at some point of time. This is our major contribution. When experimenting with new products, the end-user first checks with Ador. That signifies our standing and credibility. You take any major welded structures in India like the Worli Sea Link, Bhakra Nangal or the Statue of Unity, Ador products have been used or will be used for their construction. This speaks volumes for our product quality, reliability and partaking in the national endeavour. Our contribution towards import substitution of welding products is also remarkable.
Q. What are your growth plans?
In the last fiscal, our turnover was to a tune of Rs.400 crores. We have been growing at the rate of 10% year on year except last two years. This year we are targeting 5% increase due to unfavorable conditions in the manufacturing industry. Export is a major thrust area for us. As of now, 20% of our turnover comes from exports. This is to be stepped up. We are exploring newer markets like Egypt, Iran and Indonesia.
Q. Where will Ador be five years hence?
Five years hence we should be the biggest welding company in India maintaining our leadership position and offering far more compressive solutions to the industry. We hope to churn out a lot more welding talent in the country. Turnover-wise we should be touching Rs.1,000 crores.
