Mechelonic Engineers – The leader in resistance welding

“Our aim is to provide more and more customized solutions to the customer.” – Mr. Gabin Kattukaran, Director, Mechelonic Engineers Pvt. Ltd.

When we talk of Mechelonic Engineers (MEPL for short), the first thing that conjures up in mind is the image of a Rail Welding Line it developed for the manufacture of continuous welded railway tracks for the Indian Railways.

After long and rigorous R & D, Mechelonic Engineers developed the expertise to design and manufacture Rail Flash Butt Welders along with allied equipment like weld flash strippers, weld data recorders, rail straightening presses and rail grinding machines. It’s decades since the Railways have been using these robust equipment to make quality welds on which hinges the lives of millions who travel by rail. Flash Butt Welders is just one example of the early success of MEPL, the company founded by Mr. K.P. Antony who even today feels proud that he built not only machines but also relations with the giants in the industry.

According to Mr. Gabin Kattukaran, the Director, the indomitable urge to provide dependable and cost effective solutions to the customer has culminated into the development of a number of special machines for the industry. The container line developed for the metal can making industry in India is a classic example. This machine designed for side seam welding can make 360 containers per minute. Productivity is paramount here. These cans are used for packaging processed mango pulps. No downtime is acceptable. During season, the machines have to work for 24 hours a day, non-stop!

MEPL’s state-of-the-art manufacturing facility

Engineering marvels
The special purpose flash butt welding machine it has developed for BHEL for welding tubes end-to-end for heat exchangers is truly an engineering marvel. MEPL was pitted against several others for developing this machine. The company worked for over three years to develop this SPM. The challenges involved were manifold. The testing criteria of the tube joint are critical. The tube is to be bent without cracking.

The material build-up should be minimal. After the coils get assembled, a metal ball of 80-85% ID of the tube is passed from one end to the other to check free passage. MEPL met all these requirements and bagged the order against stiff competition. Subsequently it supplied three more machines to this power equipment giant. The machine is hydraulically operated, fully tropicalised and specially designed for heavy duty application where repeatability in performance is important.

It is provided with a powered manual adjustment facility for proper alignment of the fixed and moving tubes before welding. For accurate and consistent weld results, fully solid state electronic controls are provided. All electrical controls are housed in a separate cubicle with required protection. The machine operation does not require any skilled labour. The welding parameters are easily settable through a user-friendly interface to the control system. Quality is assured with a PC based welding monitor.

MEPL has also come up with a Steel Grating Welding Machine with a rating of 1800 KVA for manufacturing steel gratings by electrical resistance welding. The application of high current and high forging pressure under precise control of a special welding controller and a PLC based sequence controller results in high quality electro-forged weld joints. The machine is used for manufacture of world-class gratings using round, square or twisted cross bars. The company also offers special machines for mesh welding. Its seam welding machine with 2-axis CNC controlled sheet handling is designed for continuous and roll spot seam welding of plate type and econocoil type heat exchangers. MEPL has exported such seam welding machines to handle sheets of 9 m length to China as well. Indeed, MEPL is a leader in resistance welding. Though there are ‘n’ number of manufacturers in this category, no one has a comprehensive range that MEPL has. Its customers also represent wide ranging industry segments like automobiles, railways, aerospace, defence, power, steel mills, white goods, metal can making, electronics, switchgear and so on.

“We specialize in handling difficult jobs which others cannot touch. We cater to specialized markets where customized design plays a pivotal role. That’s our niche”, elucidates Mr. Gabin. “And we do not depend on any one industry for our bread & butter. For instance, the automobile industry has not been doing well for quite some time now.

So we had to change our gear and concentrate on other industries where our contribution was valued and realization was faster. We sell our equipment for a premium. And our customers do not mind paying a little extra for our quality, expertise and involvement in providing solutions based on our vast experience. They know once we take up a job, we shall accomplish it – no matter what amount of efforts go into it and how much time it takes. For instance, the equipment for tube welding for heat exchangers supplied to BHEL took over three years for us to develop.”

Mr. Gabin is quite clear that MEPL is not in the commodity market. “We are in the niche market where our domain knowledge and vast experience are constantly put to test. Most of our products are import substitutes. We believe in indigenous technology and are proud of the made in India tag.”

Mr. Gabin relates that in some cases the welding per se is hardly 10%. The rest is job handling, testing, assembly and allied operations. The customers prefer one company that is capable of handling everything. That is where MEPL scores over.

Core strengths
“Our people are our core strength”, confides Mr. Gabin. There is a strong sense of belonging amongst them. Each employee has put in an average of 10-15 years of service in the company. This stability, commitment, accumulated experience and process knowledge of our people is what is giving us the confidence to take up complex jobs.”

The company has spearheaded several innovations in the field of resistance welding. It was one of the first to introduce microprocessor-based controls in its machines some two decades ago. It used solid state electronics in the controls and powerpacks. It introduced servo-based systems in the machines depending on the dimensional accuracies and tolerances demanded. In keeping with the trend, it also automates its machines using CNC and other controls, linear guides, etc. “Today all components are available off-the-shelf. Hence, integration is easy provided you know the welding process, have the domain knowledge and know the components,” he adds.

End plate welding using robotics, signifying automation and precision

Pursuit of excellence
“Our aim is to provide more and more customized solutions to the customer. We introduce technologies relevant to the region in an energy starved country – machines yielding high productivity at low power consumption. There are some states where ample clean power is available. In some others there is acute shortage. So we have to make the necessary changes in our machine design to suit the power availability. It is universally known that with DG power the weld quality takes a beating. But we have now come up with machines which can make perfect welds even with DG sets,” reflects Mr. Gabin.

“Resistance welding is a niche area. We cannot dictate changes. We have to follow change. We should be flexible. No matter what happens, we have to continue to be there,” declares the leader. MEPL has two manufacturing units now. One is in Mumbai and other in Vapi. These plants chisel out 120 machines a year on an average. The company has a highly motivated and dedicated workforce of 125 people. It has regional offices in Delhi, Kolkata, Bangalore, and Pune and resident engineers in Jamshedpur, Ahmedabad and Chennai to attend to service calls and stay closer to the customer. “Mechelonic machines hardly require any trouble-shooting – so much so that a seam welder supplied to a customer in Mumbai some 34 years ago is still going stronger. If at all there is any wear & tear, it would be in the cooling system, pipes or cylinders.” Nevertheless, the company maintains a team of engineers and technicians specifically to service and maintain large welding plants. It currently provides such services to several Railway Flash Butt Welding Plants of the Indian Railways. Good spare parts inventory and management help in minimizing uptime of its machines at customers’ places.

A special purpose boiler tube welding machine developed by Mechelonic Engineers

The pursuit of excellence has been a constant endeavour at MEPL. Its success is attributed to constant updating of technology, a firm commitment to continuous research and development, and a strong team that believes in itself and the company it belongs to.

MEPL has every reason to boast of the widest range of products, systems & solutions in the Indian resistance welding market. Or as they would like to say: “Bigger, Better, Faster and More” welding solutions than anyone else in this part of the world.

– P.K. Balasubbramaniian
[email protected]