Indo Asian: Charting the legendary pathway
Mr. Vimal Mahendru, President
Legrand Group – India
Q. Indo Asian has gained credible market share in an electrical industry. Brief us about overall outlook for Indo Asian? (Domestic & global presence)
We are in a unique situation since we are based in India and enjoy many benefits such as highly skilled labor and the huge domestic demand for our products. A major chunk of our sales volumes comes from the low voltage segment which is poised to grow as majority of housing and other real estate projects fall under this segment. On the whole we are very positive of the overall outlook for the group.
Q. Is the recent economic turbulence in EUROPE has created any impact one electrical industry?
Yes, the crisis is a bit of a concern. However, it has not affected our operations since they are largely India centric, with a major volume of our production going into the local markets. On the other hand our international operations are targeting developing countries across the world. Moving ahead we will continue to review the situation and will take necessary steps if required. In the coming years the crisis may affect the infrastructure segment in the electric sector but not the low voltage segment in which we operate.
Q. How has Indo Asian equipped itself to counter the recent situation in the industry?
Of course given the situation any company needs to constantly take corrective measures to counter any negative changes taking place in the industry. At Indo Asian we have taken necessary steps to counter this threat by accelerating our new product development and investing heavily in human resource development to adapt to the constant changes and challenges.
Q. How about Indo Asian’s initiatives in electrical space? Which were your focus areas?
The low voltage sector has been our key focus area where we get our major sales volumes from. It is in this sector that innovation is an imperative part of business operations and we will continue to position ourselves as a buildings electrical company. Some of the other initiatives include enhancing our product range to offer a more comprehensive range of electrical products under the Indo Asian brand name. At the same time we are also looking at expanding our product availability across various other cities in urban, semi-urban and rural towns of India.
Armour ACB
Q. How do you encounter the needs of these products in domestic and industrial market?
Our plant capacity is sufficient enough to meet the demand of all our products in the domestic and industrial markets
Q. What are the market opportunities for Indo Asian products in India? How do you plan to position these products?
Our operations are mainly into building electrical components and in this segment consumers are looking for good quality products at affordable prices, whether its consumers in large residential buildings, offices or commercial villas.
Q. Which are some of your pioneering products you introduced in the market to face the competition? Are there any plans to launch new products?
We offer our consumers a complete range of electrical products in the low voltage segment and if one visits our stand at the upcoming Elecrama exhibition he or she can see the complete range of products that we are into. In the future we plan to launch a new range of protection devices and switching products
Q. What are the factors that have enabled you to consistently satisfy your entire supply chain?
At Indo Asian we have always prided ourselves as an organization which has developed high quality, long term relationships and this is a unique value which we bring to our clients. We don’t look at business from a transaction perspective but from a relationship point of view. As a result, our focus is always long term. Our key focus here is to provide value to our clients in a long term sustained manner rather than looking at short term gains. This has helped foster better, longer and stronger relationships with all stakeholders.
Q. As a manufacturing company, how do you rate India vis-à-vis competition from low cost manufacturers like China and other countries, especially for the electrical products? How do you balance cost competitiveness and quality?
Firstly if you see, India is importing more electronic products rather than pure electrical products into our country. Having said, I see India has a distinct edge over other international players when it comes to products needing more than just visible technological enhancement because Indians are far better in understanding and assembling high tech products. On the other hand we are concerned about the subsidized products which are dumped into our country. On behalf of the industry, IEEMA has taken up this matter with the government of India. Lastly India has some of the best brains in the power sector and a lot of Indian companies are striving hard to develop innovative and cost effect technologies to counter the import threat.
Haridwar Switchgear Plant
Q. According to you, what are the measures taken by IEEMA for the electrical industry in order to help local companies compete with global players?
There are several initiatives which IEEMA takes on a regular basis, however, let me highlight the top three initiatives which we have taken, First, we are actively engaged with the Ministry of Heavy Industries to develop the Indian electrical equipment manufacturing industry Mission Plan for the next 10 years. The mission plan is a critical document which has all the policy framework and initiatives which will be followed by all the relevant governmental institutions such as Ministry of Heavy Industries, Ministry of Commerce and Ministry of Power. Second, IEEMA is highlighting the importance of talent and skill development and for this we are engaging with a lot of universities and colleges to ensure that the syllabus is relevant to the changing industrial scenario. Third, we are actively engaging with our members to understand the challenges which they are facing and bringing out regular training sessions for our own industry members.
Q. How do you compare the Indian electrical and the electronics industry against the global industry?
Indian companies are at par with many of the global entities and have successfully developed innovative and value engineered products and solutions. Our country’s main USP is supplying value for money products. Moreover we have a robust legal system in place to protect patents, copyrights and designs. This is far more advanced than many foreign countries
Q.Please elucidate the export performance of Indian electrical products? What is the demand scenario of Indian products in global market?
Local manufactures have been striving hard to gain a larger pie of the international electrical sector and we have more than doubled our exports volume over the last 10 years. However this is miniscule as compared to the growth potential and as compared to what major players in others international markets are doing. There is a huge growth potential and local manufactures still need to go a long way in gaining a larger pie of the international market.
Gold Plus MCB / RCCB
Q. What are the key technological trends that are driving electrical industry?
One key trend is that consumers today are looking at combined electrical and digital network solutions based on the communications technology where electronics will be embedded in the electrical network instead of the traditional isolated networks. Another interesting trend is that there is a change in demand from purely discreet products to comprehensive electrical solutions and eventually services. Gone are the days when you will go and buy circuit breakers and other products separately, consumers are now wanting a complete solutions for their homes. These solutions can communicate with other devices and electronically control key house hold components.
Q. According to you what are the factors affecting the electrical and the electronics business?
One of the major factors affecting the electrical business is government policies and its overall framework for the coming years. The government has been coming out with increasingly progressive policies and ideas to push the electrification project across major town and cities in India. One of the most important steps which the government has taken is inviting the participation of the private sector in the planning process of various projects in the country. In fact for the first time in the history of our country IEEMA is actively engaged with the Planning Commission in providing sector specific inputs for the 12th Five Year Plan
Q. How do your foresee the future of the Indian electrical industry?
I am very optimistic about the positive growth as Indian companies are well poised to face the growing demand as well as the challenges which lie ahead. I don’t see any slowdown for the industry as the local domestic growth by itself will help companies grow their sales volumes. However there may be occasional hiccups for one or two quarters, which is purely cyclical. The overall future seems very positive.
