Mr. Manish Ghorpade – Managing Director, Filter on india Pvt Ltd

Mr. Manish Ghorpade – Managing Director , Filter on india pvt Ltd. being featured in Manufacturing Heroes – An initiative by DIVYA MEDIA recognising the Enshrining untold stories of the heroes from the manufacturing sector

Crusade against Pollution – Effective pollution control is good for people, industry and environment.

From a typical family managed garage start-up in 1983 to one of the leading players in the field of pollution control and clean air systems & solutions, the journey of Filter On India has been quite exciting. It has been a journey of arduous efforts to indigenise the electrostatic technology, overcoming frustrations of failed attempts, winning back lost confidence of clients, relentless efforts to prove different applications, managing teams in tough times and being in the mission mode in all the conditions.

From a yearly turnover of just Rs. 6 lakhs in 1983, Filter On has today become a multi-crore entity. Starting with mere 3-4 products, the company’s basket now swells with 70 standard products and an unlimited range of customised systems. From catering to clients in and around Pune city, it now serves clients from all over India across all verticals of the industry. Its impressive customer list includes Bajaj Auto, Magna Automotive, Hero MotoCorp, Sharda Motors and Royal Enfield, just to mention a few. From the days when the clients insisted to show the trials first before giving orders because of inhibitions about its capabilities, Filter On has come a long way with 80 per cent of its turnover today coming from repeat clients.

Offerings galore

Filter On’s key offerings today are Welding Fumes Extraction Systems, Oil Mist Collector Systems, Plasma Cutting / Laser Cutting Fumes Extraction Systems, and Grinding Dust Collection Systems in industrial manufacturing & engineering industry, and Kitchen Fumes Filtration (Dry Scrubber) Systems in the commercial sector. The USP of Filter On India is strong systems engineering approach which ensures effectiveness, efficiency and value for money for the clients over a long term. The company works hard towards minimizing ‘Total Ownership Cost’ for Air Pollution Control Equipment for the clients. This has helped its clients to horizontally deploy the systems across proven applications with confidence and scale.

Manish Ghorpade, helming Filter On, is a crusader against pollution, “The awareness for Air Pollution has been steadily rising in the industry. However, it is yet to translate in to a meaningful change on shop floors across industries,” states Manish who laments that “Air pollution control equipment is broadly looked up on as a ‘cost’ in the industry as it is not a ‘production’ equipment. However, very few in the industry are aware about the huge hidden losses any organization has to bear on account of air pollution.“

Enlightening on the ill-effects of Air pollution, Manish underlines that “Air pollution causes discomfort, loss of concentration, illnesses and chronic diseases for those exposed to pollution. This indirectly results in quality issues, more defects, reworks, unplanned absenteeism and low productivity. Retaining talent and motivating people to achieve better results in such an atmosphere becomes almost impossible. Also, the overall image of the organization takes a beating if the environment inside the work area is polluted. It can also lead to compliance issues which could be costly.“

Abatement of air pollution

“We have been taking efforts to make the clients aware about these multi-dimensional losses of air pollution. Once the client becomes aware of all these otherwise hidden aspects, the perception about air pollution control equipment would change from being a ‘cost’ to being an ‘investment’ or ‘insurance’ to protect against these likely losses. Effective implementation of air pollution control systems in the industry would result in a win-win situation for all stakeholders. It’s good for people, good for industry and good for environment!” he elucidates.

A BE-Mechanical with PG diplomas in Small Industries Management, Air-conditioning & Refrigeration, and Natural Resources Management & Ecological Restoration, Manish is well informed on the dynamics of the manufacturing sector. “The Indian Manufacturing is getting integrated very fast with global supply chains. Also, the recent push by the government through ‘Make in India’ & ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ programs is likely to boost the manufacturing sector in India. Global best practices of world-class manufacturing are going to get replicated in Indian industry at an unprecedented scale. These practices include reliability, efficiency, scale as well as strict environmental policies. This is conducive to the growth of the air pollution control systems market,” he remarks.

Filter On has been in the forefront evolving technologies to wage a war against pollution. It has pioneered the use of Electrostatic Filtration technology in India for providing clean air solutions to various industries. Abatement of pollution will warrant an integrated approach to design solutions with a combination of technologies. Expertise of multiple organizations and experts will be needed to cater to industry demands of the future. The role of Filter On in building strong partnerships across the value chain to create a platform to provide technology solutions for air pollution control is indeed laudable.