Samir Gandhi spoke to Industrial Products Finder for the Annual 2016 edition. Excerpts…

It all began in 1995 with a single unit of the humble rolling shutter manufactured in a 300 sq.ft ‘gala’ (work space) in a Mumbai suburb. The budding young entrepreneur had a degree in chemical engineering and was not satisfied with being a mere process engineer at a leading chemicals manufacturing company. Twenty years and a roller coaster ride through the heady years of post liberalisation, and an emerging borderless world through the portals of the internet, the promise of the dotcom boom that ended in a bust; and the heady decade of double digit growth that only ended in the agonising phase of policy paralysis that further slowed the pace of the struggling economy in the midst of a global slowdown; and a new government headed by a pro-business Prime Minister that now promises a gradual revival – Samir Gandhi, the youthful Director of Gandhi Automations Pvt Ltd and a pioneer in Entrance Automation Systems and Loading Bay Equipment in India, has seen it all.

“I was fascinated by the internet and spent a lot of time researching the products and technologies available in this domain,” says Samir Gandhi. “The beauty of the internet is that it is a free media with vast repositories of knowledge and all you have to invest is time. It gave me a lot of insights into the various systems and options, the total concept of automation, and many ideas about identifying the right kind of products for an emerging economy,” he adds. The company has a state-of-the-art manufacturing and warehousing facility spread over 3,00,000 sq.ft near Bhiwandi, outside the municipal limits of Mumbai. A walk through the facilities is both impressive and informative. One can actually see and experience all the products of the company in a live demo and select the one that fits the exact requirement, opting for the desired level of automation and sophistication. The shopfloor is spick and span, the space neatly divided between storage and manufacturing activity.

Since 1996 Gandhi Automations Pvt Ltd has held a lead position in manufacturing as well as importing, distributing and installing entrance automation systems and loading bay equipment that are problem free and easy to operate. The company specialises in designing, manufacturing and installing customised products conforming to the highest safety standards complemented with reliability and energy efficiency.

All products are designed and manufactured with European collaboration using innovative and creative engineering technology. The product development team uses the latest software combined with technologically advanced machinery to offer customers an excellent engineered product.

Gandhi Automations lays great emphasis on exceptional customer service and provide regular programmed inspections and maintenance safeguards which increases product lifetime and reduces operational cost. The company has a huge team of committed and diligent engineers and technicians; many of them are trained at advance training centres in Europe for this purpose.

The company has more than 100,000 installations, is certified to ISO 9001: 2008 quality management system by TUV Nord and all products manufactured are CE marked.

What inspired you to enter the manufacturing business?

There is an indirect connection. My father had a trading business, supplying materials for the rolling shutter manufacturing industry. After completing formal education, I worked for some time but then caught the entrepreneurial bug and decided to take the logical step and entered manufacturing in a sector with which I had a nodding acquaintance – thanks to my father’s business – the rolling shutter. But it was obviously not the destination, just a beginning.

From a rolling shutter to entrance automation – that is a big leap?

This did not happen overnight. It had something to do with the times – the 1990s post liberalised era and the advent of the internet, which brought about a revolution of sorts. I spend a lot of time looking at the global trends and latest developments in the more advanced markets where even the smallest companies and commercial establishments had motorised shutters and automated entrance systems. The Indian industry too was experiencing these winds of change. The automotive and consumer goods segments were booming and a revolution in retail was underway, and there was also the scaling up of infrastructure to facilitate all this growth. This opened up several opportunities for the products I was planning to manufacture and thus began the quest for appropriate technology and components.

What is the range of products manufactured? What are the best selling systems?

We have a very wide range of products under major heads like doors/high speed doors, loading bay equipment, rolling shutters, gates and boom barriers, but there are numerous types under each of these, e.g., under doors, there are high speed doors, sectional overhead doors, hangar doors, rolling doors, fire rated shutters and doors, industrial sliding doors, commercial doors, garage doors, etc. Then there are specialised applications like clean rooms, freezers, etc., that need different materials and specifications. Similarly, loading bay equipment comprises dock levellers, sectional overhead doors, dock shelters and lift tables.

As for popular products, high speed doors, dock levellers and rolling shutters are the fast moving products.

These are high technology products. What is the nature of your foreign collaboration?

We started collaborating with European companies – leaders in the respective fields – for import of components – drives and actuators, sensors, etc., and the technology. But all our products are manufactured right here in India.

What are the manufacturing facilities the company has?

Gandhi Automations has invested in a modern, state-of-the-art manufacturing and warehousing facility near Bhiwandi, just outside Mumbai, equipped with modern machinery, and space for adequate inventory. Our raw materials basically comprise of sheet metal, special fabric, PVC sheets and components and accessories. The machinery comprises of slitting and shearing machines, welding machines, and a line of roll forming machines, high frequency plastic welding equipment, paint booths, etc. Continuous upgradation of machinery and equipment is the norm. In fact at the moment we are going for automated robotic welding equipment robots and Amada machines for metalworking.

The government is emphasising on Make in India and is very keen to boost the manufacturing activity in the country. How do you view these efforts?

While Make in India is a welcome initiative, in reality that will happen only if opportunities exist or are created. The slowdown that happened during 2011-14 affected the Indian economy severely. The new government has certainly given a boost to the infrastructure sector and got several stalled projects going again. But the big push will happen once GST is implemented. For manufacturing business, this is the single largest issue today.

Where do you see big growth in the near future for your products? What about further expansion?

Warehousing in our country is still in the nascent stage and is in need of revamping and rejuvenation. There is a huge potential and some of it is now seen in the retail revolution we are witnessing as also the growth of online shopping which calls for seamless delivery mechanism in a country as large as India.

Secondly there is large potential in the defence and aviation sectors, that are now opening up with large scale involvement of the private sector. We have already worked on a few projects in these areas, including docks and aircraft hangars, and expect more orders from these segments.

Gandhi Automations is the market leader in entrance automation and loading bay equipment with close to 70% of the share, which is more than that of the next three competitors combined together, and this also includes MNCs who are now eyeing this segment. We had an annual turnover of Rs 125 crore last fiscal. This year we expect a to see a growth of 20-25%. Over the next three years we will be looking for additional capacity as our existing plant will no longer be enough to cater to the demand.

What about exports?

Yes, we are already active on that front and have made inroads into the MENA (Middle East & North Africa) market, competing with global market leaders from Europe and USA. Apart from the Big 5 at Dubai, we also took our products to R+T at Stuttgart in Germany, taking on the European manufacturers on their ground. We are very upbeat on the export front.

In fact the biggest project in terms of size we have executed so far is in Brazil, for a shipyard – a door for a dry dock with dimensions 100 mtr width and 30 mtr height (equivalent the height of a 10-storey building)! We have distributors in over a dozen countries spanning the Far East, Asia, Middle East, Europe, Africa and America. In fact by 2018 we expect over 50% of the turnover to come from exports.

How effective sales and service network in the country? What is the USP of the company?

Gandhi Automations is headquartered in Mumbai and has direct presence in 23 cities across the country, with total staff strength of over 500 persons. We have 24-hour customer support service and all service calls are attended within 24 hours anywhere in the country. Though we have a pan India presence, our sales map spread reflects the industrial map of the country with bulk of the orders coming from Maharashtra, Gujarat, Delhi and NCR region and the Hyderabad-Bangalore-Chennai region.

As for the USP, the brand name Gandhi Automations today inspires confidence among the customers. The company is known for quality and workmanship, and the customers are assured of high quality products backed by very efficient service.