For Eaton's electrical equipment division, a major win in recent times has been the contract for the Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport in Mumbai where its LED lighting solutions have helped boost energy efficiency, optical performance and also enhance aesthetics at the new Terminal 2. The company has also tied up with HCL to boost its sales and service network across the country. In this interview with IPF, Syed Sajjadh Ali, Managing Director - India, Electrical Sector, Eaton, sheds light on the company's products, plans and market presence

When was the electrical sector of Eaton set up in India?

Although Eaton entered India in the year 1999 through the global acquisition of Aeroquip Vickers, Eaton's presence in the Indian electrical sector primarily started off in 2004 when Eaton completed its acquisition of Powerware from Invensys and the New Delhi-based facilities of Powerware were integrated into Eaton's India operations. The acquisition of Cooper Industries, a leading electrical equipment manufacturer, in 2012 enhanced Eaton's portfolio of offerings for key segments in India. As part of this acquisition two manufacturing locations of Cooper in Pondicherry and Chennai were integrated into Eaton's India operations. Moving forward, Eaton has undertaken greenfield expansion at the Pondicherry plant and plans for brownfield expansion at the Chennai plant.

What are the products made by this division?

Both globally and in India, Eaton is focused on providing sustainable power management solutions that help customers manage electrical, hydraulic and mechanical power more safely, reliably and efficiently. Eaton's electrical business in India provides power distribution, power quality and back-up, control and automation, power monitoring, and management solutions and services to commercial, residential, utility, alternative energy, IT and data centres, public sector institutions and OEMs.

Moreover, with the integration of Cooper, we have further expanded our range to also offer high and low voltage electrical fuses, semiconductor fuses, expulsion links, fuse holders and combiner boxes that are manufactured in our facility at Pondicherry. In addition, our facility at Chennai manufactures electrical safety equipment such as intrinsic safety barriers and isolators for hazardous area applications and fieldbus barrier components.

Eaton is a leader in UPS systems - powering both small and large businesses including industrial facilities and data centres. Eaton's suite of power quality products boasts a wide spectrum of industry-leading features. Eaton's DC power system products in India are being used extensively in the telecom sector. Eaton's UPS and power quality systems are an integral part of many prestigious infrastructure projects in India such as the L&T Metro Rail in Hyderabad. They also relentlessly support IT applications and surveillance systems at the Delhi International Airport. In addition, Eaton's power distribution products provide comprehensive solutions helping customers generate, distribute and consume electrical power safely, reliably and efficiently. These solutions encompass low voltage and medium voltage distribution and control, and automation products and services to help customers manage electrical power across utility, industrial, renewable energy, buildings and infrastructure markets.

How big is the UPS market in India?

The UPS market across India is growing with positive prospects. According to a recent research report, the Indian UPS market is expected to grow at a rate of around 11 per cent during 2014-18. The growth of industrial and commercial infrastructure in India coupled with the rising energy costs has fuelled the need for more reliable and energy-efficient power back-up systems. In addition, there is an increase in demand from the Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, which adds to the opportunities for the UPS market in India. Newer technologies are also being adopted by players in the UPS market here - a notable one being the positive shift towards solar-powered UPS systems.

What are the advantages that Eaton's UPS' offer as compared to the many competitive products available in the market?

UPS technologies need to emphasize on two critical aspects of reliability and energy efficiency. Reliability highlights a higher battery life and the least downtime particularly in the case of mission critical applications where failure amounts to very high costs. This also minimises the total cost of ownership over time. Most UPS manufacturers offer constant trickle-charge on their batteries, which degrades them and reduces their service life by as much as 50 per cent. In contrast, Eaton's ABM technology uses sophisticated sensing circuitry and an innovative three-stage charging technique that extends the useful service life of UPS batteries while optimising battery recharge time. It also provides advance notice of the end of useful battery service life to allow ample time to hot-swap batteries without ever having to shut down connected equipment.

Energy efficiency is imperative in a world that has limited energy resources and increasing energy costs. By consuming less energy and delivering more productivity we can not only achieve cost efficiencies but also ensure that we are operating sustainably. A case in point is our 9395 UPS that has been awarded the Sustainable Materials Rating Technology (SMaRT?) Gold Certification for its capability to offer leading high efficiency, compact footprint and customisable design options.

Does Eaton have an R&D facility to focus on its electrical products?

Eaton is a leader in technology and product development resulting in innovative technologies for superior results. The company leverages India for engineering support, research, product development, information technology-enabled services and product sourcing through its professional services centre in Pune. We recently completed 10 years of the Eaton India Engineering Centre (EIEC) in Pune, which is the largest integrated, multidisciplinary research, development and engineering centre outside the USA. That's the kind of expertise we develop in India with crossing over 1,000 employees' mark in the engineering centre. EIEC is the 'One Eaton' engineering campus focused on building leadership and technical capabilities to leverage the local ecosystem 'in the region, for the region' for innovation and technology development.

The central purpose of EIEC is to drive growth for Eaton by providing engineering solutions using pertinent technologies to develop new products and support existing products at a global level. EIEC has developed centres of excellence in modelling and simulation, embedded systems, safety, reliability and sustainability, and intellectual property. This centre also hosts in-house testing capabilities within the facility.

Is the company planning to introduce any new products?

Eaton has introduced advanced 93E UPS in the range of 15-400 kVA. The 93E UPS delivers effective power protection for the ever-expanding loads in today's space-constrained data centres. With a transformer-free design and sophisticated sensing and control circuitry, it is capable of achieving up to 98.5 per cent efficiency rating, making it one of the most energy-efficient UPS in its class. 93E provides maximum load protection by providing surge suppression for the load. It detects the location of faults (utility or load) and takes appropriate action and switches to double-conversion operation in less than four minutes. 93E can be strategically deployed and scaled to meet the specific needs of small and medium-sized data centres and industrial automation equipment used in the telecommunications and healthcare industry.

This extended range of 93E UPS from 15 - 80 kVA will deliver superior power protection and support critical operations in various industries including heavy engineering and manufacturing. The extended range of 93E is incorporated with Eaton's patented 'Hot Sync' technology that enables load sharing without any communication line, thus eliminating a single point of failure. It is around 30 per cent smaller than competitive solutions and thus occupies minimal floor space. The 93E's high system efficiency reduces utility cost, extends battery run time and ensures cooler operating conditions.

What is the growth potential offered in the UPS segment and how will this trend in the future?

As mentioned previously, the outlook for UPS market in India looks positive. The increasing demand for power to meet the ever increasing needs in various industries will lead to investments in technologies that can manage power more efficiently and more reliably. There is a growing trend towards energy-efficient technologies that further help in conserving energy, optimising cost and reducing carbon footprints. The shift towards green energy sources will lead to more innovations in the power back-up industry.

How will the new distribution tie-up with HCL boost the business?

HCL has one of the largest sales and distribution networks in India that reaches more than 1,00,000 retail outlets, over 800 direct and micro distributors and over 12,400 channel partners across 15,000 towns and 664 districts in the country. Our association with HCL will help the company provide uninterrupted and efficient power supply across its network in India. It will further enable the customers in distant towns and cities to have access to Eaton's industry-leading UPS systems ranging from 600 VA up to 40 kVA that help manage power more efficiently, reliably, safely and sustainably.