Established in 1992, Viraj Profiles Private Limited has emerged as the leading manufacturer of stainless-steel long products globally with its integrated manufacturing facilities and premium quality for three decades. With a production capacity of 528,000 tons per annum, Viraj manufactures stainless steel products like wire rods, wires, fasteners, bright bars, profiles and flanges in various grades and sizes. Moving forward, the company aims to increase its turnover from USD 1.2 billion to USD 3 billion within the next 4 years.
In a recent interview with Wire & Cable India, Mr. Rakesh Chauhan, CEO, Viraj Profiles Private Limited, shared insights about the company’s journey, manufacturing capabilities, product portfolio, market footprint, USPs, CSR initiatives and future plans.
Wire & Cable India: Could you give us a brief overview of the business journey of your company.
Rakesh Chauhan: Viraj is a 30-year-old company that started with a melting shop in 1992. Within 3 years, stainless-steel production commenced. Equipped with integrated manufacturing facilities and trust in delivering premium quality, Viraj Profiles has emerged as the leading manufacturer of stainless-steel long products globally. We have been serving the industry for 3 decades and have excelled with the support of our customers. They are the most important pivot for us, and all our efforts are only to sustain and build relations with them. Viraj Profiles’ traditions, business principles and ethical practices have propelled it to the forefront of the industry.
“ Viraj focuses on automation, with all its machinery being equipped with level 2 or level 3 automation. ”
WCI: Kindly tell us about your company’s manufacturing capabilities, infrastructural setup and product portfolio.
RC: Our integrated manufacturing process starts from scrap processing within our own scrap yard. We sort scrap in our Zurik sorting plant based on the requirement of the melting shop. This is the first step in the value chain. Next, we have the melt shop which has “Computerized Intelligent Refining System”, induction furnaces, AOD’s and continuous billet casters. Our rolling mills include a wire rod mill, section rolling mill and round rolling mills. Both our wire rod and section rolling mills have level 3 automation. These mills work depending on the product size and form. These rolling mills feed our wire, bright bar, profiles and fastener mills. Additionally, we have a forging shop which feeds our flange and forge bar mills. Also, we are set to start production of seamless pipes by the middle of next year.
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WCI: Please shed some light on Viraj’s clientele and market footprint.
RC: Our presence is all around the world. We export our products to over 1300 customers based in 96 countries across 6 continents. We have over 90 certifications and approvals for our products, which are used in a rich and diverse list of industries such as oil & gas, petrochemicals, food & beverages, construction, shipbuilding, pharmaceuticals, aerospace, defense, and marine industries.
WCI: What according to you are the USPs of your company, setting it apart from the competition in the market?
RC: Our USP is our relationship with our customers, which is never just a buyer-seller relationship. Though business is done on the basis of proper fundamentals, we have a familial connection with all our customers. We have built detailed systems to ensure quality, delivery, and after-sales services so that customers are completely assured and satisfied. Another big USP we have is our team of extremely talented and dedicated professionals backed by a corporate culture of openness and collaboration. We focus on automation, with all our machinery being equipped with level 2 or level 3 automation. We also have regular reviews to ensure that we keep up with the demands and requirements of our customers.
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WCI: What are the ongoing or upcoming developments at Viraj?
RC: In the recent past, instead of making heavy investments in our capacity, we have been investing in removing bottlenecks in the value chain. For example, earlier we had a mismatch in the capacities of our rolling mills vis-à-vis melting capacity and then a mismatch between our finishing capacity and rolling capacity. This was worked upon, and today we carry out full-capacity melting and finish it completely. Moving forward, our next step is to diversify into new products and increase our capacity in our existing product range.
“ Our integrated manufacturing facilities, based in India, have a production capacity of 528,000 tons per annum. ”
WCI: Moving forward, what are the future plans for growth at your company?
RC: We have multiple projects in the pipeline. For this year, green manufacturing and green steel are our key focus areas. A major project we have undertaken is getting our facilities audited. The Europe branch has scope 1, scope 2 and scope 3 regulations and we are currently required to report and cover scope 1 and scope 2. Our carbon footprint is around 0.7, which is much better than any global player. Moreover, we have started the process of auditing scope 3, which is expected to be done by the end of this year and will come into force within the next 2 years.
We’re aiming for green steel certifications and have also invested in a 100-megawatt solar power project, which covers almost 40% of our electricity requirements. Following this huge step towards carbon footprint reduction, we are now working on our next project to utilize another 100 megawatts of solar power. So, almost 80% of our energy needs would be fulfilled via greener alternatives. Our current turnover is around USD 1.2 billion, and our vision is to make it a USD 3 billion turnover company within the next 4 years. That’s a big target and we are confident that we will achieve this.
“ Our presence is all around the world, we export our products to more than 1300 customers based across 96 countries spread across 6 continents. ”
WCI: How does Viraj invest towards CSR initiatives?
RC: We have a lot of CSR initiatives running near our manufacturing facilities in Tarapur. To help schools impart education, we have taken the responsibility to provide hardware and books for underprivileged children. We also run a school called Viraj Shri Ram Centennial School, which is one of the best schools in the Palghar region. It admits students from places as far away as Vapi and Gujarat and imparts quality education to them. In addition to this, we have vocational training centers where women from nearby villages get trained in various skills like candle making, stitching, etc. We also provide medical help for many villages around our factories.
Additionally, we offer CSR support on a global scale. For instance, a few months back, when Turkey experienced a significant earthquake, we contacted the Turkish embassy and requested for a list of urgent supplies they needed for aid and provided the same to them.
