Wire & Cable India 2012, 4th international exhibition for the wire & cable industry, in Mumbai had 291 exhibitors from 25 countries spread across a net area of 5,560 square meters. The event featured country group exhibits from Austria, China, France, Germany, Italy and the U.S.A total of 10,500 visitors came including the visitors for Tube India, Metallurgy India and India Essen Welding & Cutting trade fairs.
The majority of the visitors came from the wire and cable applications industries particularly from building and construction, transportation, electronics and machinery manufacturing. A considerable number of the visitors had decision making authority.
The show exhibitors reported positive business results:
“The trade fair clearly improved and we are pleased with the visitor participation. There is still a lot of potential in India and even if it is not comparable to China, the development in India is positive. Heinz Rockenhaeuser, President, International Wire & Cable Exhibitors Association (IWCEA) and President & CEO of Maschinenfabrik NIEHOFF GmbH & Co. KG
“Most of our talks were meaningful. We have active projects and hope to close one or two contracts quickly. Overall, we are pleased with the turnout. India is an emerging market and the climate is more hopeful.” Rahul Sachdev, President, Wire and Cable Industry Suppliers Association (WCISA) and Executive Vice President of Wire & Plastics Machinery Co.
“The organization of the show was good. I made promising contacts and despite the economic situation, we feel that the industry in Asia will again start to grow in the near future. Let us send an optimistic message to the industry.” Ferruccio Bellina, President, Italian Wire & Cable Manufacturers Association (ACIMAF)
The next staging of Wire & Cable India is scheduled for October 28 – 30, 2014 in Mumbai – again concurrently with the Tube India and Metallurgy India trade shows and the India Essen Welding & Cutting trade fair.
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We came across many young enthusiastic people from business families who were keen to enter in the wire business”
Assomac Machines Ltd., parent company of ASSOMAC Group, commenced production of quality wire drawing machinery in the year 1989. Since starting the company has never looked back. Assomac is seeking to revolutionize the wire industry by offering its customers the sophisticated state of art technology at utmost competitive price. The facilities available in the plant are an in house R&D workshop with facilities for testing of ferrous & non-ferrous wires & their alloys, complete metallurgical lab with chemical & physical testing facility. We also have design & development shop having 3D & 2D CAD Systems with state of the art software’s like solid works, Pro-E, Auto CAD – Inventor and E-Plan. An induction, cupla & crucible furnaces with shot blasting facilities for best quality, S.S., M. S., C.I. & non-ferrous castings. Further, an in house machine shop having state of the art, CNC, turner cutter, vertical machining centers lathe machines, boring machines, milling machines, cylindrical grinders, VTL etc. Assomac has also received awards for export excellence since last 8 years uninterrupted.
Feedback about the show: The show was very well organized & the inflow of quality visitors was quite good. We came across many young enthusiastic people from business families who were keen to enter in the wire business.
New Developments: Many serious enquiries were generated during the show but it takes time to mature them into deals, however few customers have already placed the order and many of them are in serious discussions.
Visitor Turnaround: Good
Suggestions for the next show in 2014: More publicity is required for the show in third world countries & in Middle East region.
Rating out of 5: 4
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Beta LaserMike announced the newly acquired line of DCM cable testing solutions
Beta LaserMike brands include datapro for process control, accuscan for diameter & ovality, centerscan for eccentricity, ultrascan for wall thickness and concentricity, benchmike for off-linesampling, laserspeed for non-contact length and speed, layscan for lay length, capscan for capacitance, lump & neckdown detectors and spark testers for flaw detection, wire preheaters, SRL pro for structural return loss, and DCM cable testing solutions.
Feedback about the show: Beta LaserMike had a positive experience at this year’s wire & cable India show. The show floor bustled with activity and there was much interaction between vendors and attendees. A large number of leading wire and cable manufacturers stopped by our booth to learn more about Beta LaserMike’s latest measurement and control solutions. It was nice seeing manufacturers place a high priority on measurement accuracy and quality control in production as a strategic move to increase productivity and reduce manufacturing costs.
New Developments: Beta LaserMike announced the newly acquired line of DCM cable testing solutions for Lan/data, telecom, and coaxial cables. We also introduced our new AS4012 single-axis diameter gauge. The AS4012 performs 1200 scans/second and measures product diameters from 0.1 to 12 mm (0.004 to 0.47 in) with accuracies to +/-0.0005 mm (+/- 0.000020 in). We also exhibited our new three-axis LN3015 detector. The LN3015 measures product diameters up to 15 mm (.59 in) and detects flaw height down to 0.02 mm (0.0008 in.) at line speeds up to 3000 m/min (9842 ft/min).
Visitor Turnaround: Good
Plans for the Indian wire & cable industry: The wire & cable industry in India is thriving, and it’s one of Beta LaserMike’s target market for growth. We will continue to expand our sales, marketing, and technical support in this key region. This is part of a strategic development plan that allows us to further improve the scope and quality of our solutions delivery to our rapidly growing network of customers and partners in India. Beta LaserMike’s office in Gurgaon will play a key role in our expansion plans for India, strengthening our presence and increasing our market share in the region.
Rating out of 5: 5
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Candor Sweden AB – A unique partner for surface treatment of wire!
Candor was founded in 1946 and supply chemicals as well as cleaning & plating plants for wire and strip products. The combination of our know-how in chemicals and processes and our advanced equipment for plating and cleaning of wire makes us unique on the market. Candor supplies both single- and multi strand systems for ferrous and non-ferrous materials and all plants are tailor made after customer request. Typical surface treatment plant Candor supplies are:
• Cleaning: single and multi strand cleaning systems with ultrasonic cleaning or bipolar electrolytic process. These plants can for example be used for cleaning wires in line with drawing at high speed or as cleaning wire before annealing furnaces.
• Candojet HW: patented high speed hot water cleaning system for high wire speeds in line with drawing process.
• Plating: for plating of copper, nickel, silver, tin and zinc on ferrous and non- ferrous wire.
• Copperjet: high speed copper coating unit for CO2 welding wire using our own product the world famous Candor Inhibitor E1.
Feedback about the show: The show was well organized and gave us many new contacts and inquiries as well as the opportunity to meet existing customers. Since we are already well established in the Indian market it is a good venue to keep the contact with our customers.
New Developments: Candor has developed special versions of our CANDOJET for PV Ribbon as well as a steam cleaning unit combined with the CANDOJET spray cleaning unit. These plants are installed directly after rolling operation and are running at very high speeds. Also a high speed copper coating plant is recently developed for welding wires. At the moment Candor can see that the demand in more clean wire is continuously increased. Candor have several projects ongoing at the moment to clean stainless steel spring wires, stainless steel welding wires, CO2 welding wires and also wires before hot dip galvanizing.
Plans for the Indian wire & cable industry: Candor is already well established as a high quality supplier in Indian wire industry market and plan to expand in the next couple of years. Our representative Smit Wire Solutions is well known on the market and has an aggressive plan for expansion.
Importance of presence in the Indian market: It is very important to be present in India since it is a very rapidly expanding industry. India is a huge country with future plans for improved infrastructure and other improvements for the people.
Suggestions for the next show in 2014: If possible it may be suggested to shift the date for the wire show a little more away from the Diwali festival.
Visitor Turnaround: Good
Rating out of 5: 4
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DISA India Ltd and Wheelabrator together launch FL-I-3
DISA India Ltd., a world-leading foundry machinery manufacturer and Wheelabrator – world’s no.1 surface preparation technology manufacturer announced the launch of their first completely “made in India” wire and bar descaling machine FL-I-3 for the Indian manufacturers at the show. Having been synonymous with high quality, their combined manufacturing and service strengths to provide world-class technology at reasonable costs was the key reason to localize the manufacturing of the FL-I-3 wire and bar descaling machine in India. Blast machines of the FL series are universal and efficient. They not only meet different capacity requirements, but can be ideally adapted to changing product runs. They are easy to integrate into modern drawing lines operating at speeds of up to 240 m/min or can be used as stand-alone machines for autonomous finishing.
“Being committed towards serving the fast growing Indian industry, we are pleased to announce the launch of the FL-I-3, a new international standard product for the Indian manufacturing industry. The launch is aimed at alleviating the current need witnessed in the manufacturing industry and also provides easy access to world-class products manufactured locally with complete service and spare support back-up.” said Mr. Jagadish Kulkarni, Vice President – Sales & Marketing, (W&A). The FL-I-3 machine comes equipped with Wheelabrator blast wheels (ROTO-JET), which are renowned for high capacity and maximum energy efficiency. This blast wheels come in various power ratings, giving a high degree of flexibility. This ensures optimal utilisation of the power from the drive motors. Highly wear resistant material ensures maximum service life of the blast wheel. Unique design features allow for rapid and simple replacement of wear parts.
The product is manufactured and is now ready to be delivered from DISA India Limited’s Hoskote plant.
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FSP-one: “In 2010 we took the decision to re-enter in India”
Earlier we were here in India in 1995-96 but the market was not developed so we decided to hold back. In 2010 we took the decision to re-enter in this market. For the purpose of which we made AMPI Agencies as our representative agent and to support us as well in this market. Adding to the above chat Mr. Christian BLANC, President & CEO, FSP-one said “historically FSP-one is into high technology markets and this comes from the culture of the company started more than 200 years ago. Initially company produced precious wire metal used in decoration. But, over the years when market developed and various applications were introduced then, we moved from precious metal decoration wires to industrial wires. Continuing the culture of the company we decided to do something on specialized front so we produced plated wires with silver, gold, nickel etc instead of regular wires. Further, about 40% of our conductors are used in cable industry high-end application used for aircraft, aerospace, and satellite industry. Subsequently, we are present in 3 other markets, which are more or less similar by volumes i.e. electronic, telecom and high temperature cables. In addition to these products we are also into exotic applications like wires for music strings like guitar, sitar etc. We are still producing wires for decoration, which is around 15% of our business.
In India, we are looking for different high technology applications but not sure if there is enough demand. We have identified certain companies producing high temperature cable, to connect with. Demand is there but it needs to be developed more which allow us to help them in their activities having the use of wires plated with silver, gold, nickel. About the saree market we are not sure that we’ll be competitive enough as many suppliers already exist. Our organization is efficient and in term of service the company has a legacy of giving the best possible care to its customer. We have just finished the extension of our factory where we are introducing the new range of products with our existing technology like bigger strands compared to earlier. With the investment of Euros 1.2 to 1.3 million, civil work has been finished and the machine is on arrival to our factory and in the beginning of 2013 we will be up and running.”
Feedback about the show: Poor number of visit, but high quality of the contacts
New Developments: Increase of capacities to follow with the support of Ampi Agencies, local representative for FSP-one
Visitor Turnaround: Low
Plans for the Indian wire & cable industry: Further development with the support of Ampi Agencies, local representative for FSP-one
Importance of presence in the Indian market: To follow the growth of the need in even more hi tech products
Suggestions for the next show in 2014: To reduce the length of the show
Rating out of 5: 3
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“Indian market has a great potential for us”
Fuhr company, was founded in 1946 by Karl Fuhr who developed the first rolling apparatus for ribbing and indenting of reinforcement wire on which a patent was granted. Today Fuhr develops and produces rolling mills for cold and warm transforming of rods and wires. For decades these have been utilized worldwide in the automotive, electrical, food, textile and construction industry. Our range of delivery covers from the complete production line for rolling of hot rolled rod, cast or drawn wire in both ferrous and non-ferrous metals down to single components such as rolling machines, pay-offs, spoolers etc.
Feedback about the show: We recognized that the show has grown with respect to the number of exhibitors. This shows that this exhibition has become a major event for the wire-related industries. Unfortunately the number of visitors on our booth was smaller than in 2010. This is obviously owed to India’s and the whole world’s actual economical situation.
New Developments: Fuhr made some new contacts. As most of Fuhr’s equipment is a major investment, we usually don’t make deals during the show.
Visitor Turnaround: Average to Low
Plans for the Indian wire & cable industry: Fuhr has started to work with a new agent – Smit Wire Solutions. We want to strengthen our market position in India and we strongly believe in their professional work.
Importance of presence in the Indian market: The Indian market has a great potential for us and therefore it is very important for Fuhr to be present in this market. The Indian wire exhibition is an important event as it allows us to meet many potential customers from all over India with a minimized effort.
Rating out of 5: 3
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“InnoVites wants to grow its current base in India”
InnoVites BV was founded in end of 2007. The company is in the ERP software industry and develops a vertical industry solution for the wire & cable manufacturing industry. The technical foundation of the product is the Microsoft dynamics AX platform. We work closely with our partners to ensure that our customer gets the best of two worlds: local presence of an end responsible partner, and the availability of the centralized industry expertise of InnoVites.
Feedback about the show: It has been a good show. Talked to many customers and met new prospects. The visitors generally were decision makers for the software solutions that we offer.
New Developments: Many new discussions have been started. Generally these take some time to arrive at the final conclusion. However, the outcome looks bright.
Visitor Turnaround: Good
Plans for the Indian wire & cable industry: InnoVites continues to be focused on India. We operate globally, and have offices in The Netherlands and in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India. We see a lot of potential for the Indian market to benefit from our business solutions.
Importance of presence in the Indian market: The Indian market has great potential. The growing need for energy and bandwidth drives the wire & cable industry in the future. InnoVites wants to grow its current base in India and serve the industry with our software solutions for cable design and cable ERP.
Rating out of 5: 4
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“It was a fantastic exhibition as a whole this year”
The international wire & machinery association (IWMA) is the world’s largest and most influential corporate membership association for the wire, cable and wire product industries. With a global membership of some 300 companies, the IWMA offers a unique platform to promote new technology and growth within the industry through a range of benefits, services and events. Membership benefits include: special exhibitor packages at global industry exhibitions, reduced fees to attend conferences and events, free publication of editorials in “WCN” newsletter and access to educational trust award scheme.
Feedback about the show: The IWMA, which works to promote business and awareness of member companies worldwide, was prominent among exhibitors – not only in its own right – but through 57 members, 20 of which used the IWMA’s exhibitor package, designed by the association’s experienced team to smooth the experience for exhibitors. Chairman Steve Rika said “It was a fantastic exhibition as a whole this year and great for IWMA members because we were here in force to show the sort of engineering capability we have to draw on. Not only that, members met some very useful people throughout the three days and the association had new sign-ups and inquiries – which we will be following up in the next few weeks.”
Rating out of 5: 4
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Lämneå Bruk AB develops new futured flux core wire line
Lämneå Bruk AB specializes in the design and manufacture of machines for the ferrous and stainless steel wire industry and is a reliable supplier of pay-offs, mechanical de-scaling equipment, drawing machines and take-up units. Our journey in the wire drawing industry started more than 100 years ago, which has given us a tremendous amount of experience which we incorporate in the design of our machines and equipment.
Feedback about the show: This show went very well for us, many good meetings with the customers and we also met with many new customers. So we took many new business opportunities with us from the show.
New Developments: We have a newly futured flux core wire line, which we have developed together with FormTek and this line we believe is the future for flux core lines. Our no twist coiler, is one of the fastest, most reliable and price worthy. It can run up to 40 m/s with the best quality result. We also have our brushing machine which gives you a real good result for as low cost as, 3€ per ton and with a payback compared to pickling around 6 months.
Visitor Turnaround: We were busy, the whole show, sat in meetings every open minute so must say that the turnaround was very good.
Plans for the Indian wire & cable industry: We are working hard to establish in the Indian market at the moment. We have a very good agent and we are feeling that this market is picking up a lot.
Importance of presence in the Indian market: Yes, we believe it is important to have an agent for the Indian market.
Suggestions for the next show in 2014: Better quality of furniture and cleaning, need to have a better cleaning of the area. We we’re very pleased but there is always some things that can be better for next time.
Rating out of 5: 4
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Maillefer presented its latest advancements and technology
Maillefer offers first class products and turnkey solutions combining leading edge know-how and state of the art technology in close cooperation with its customers and product suppliers. Maillefer Extrusion India Pvt. Ltd. is committed to support its clientele with dedicated and timely customer service. Our extensive global experience together with strong local presence is the key success factor benefiting the Indian wire and cable industry. At Wire & Cable India 2012, Maillefer presented its latest advancements and technology highlights for the production of energy cables, building wires, communication cables and fiber optic applications.
Particular highlights were the continued improvements for the production of low to extra high voltage power cables with a special focus on CCV and VCV technology. The new integrated water tempering unit (IWT) for the CV line control system was unveiled. It has been developed to improve CV line stability, accuracy and extrusion reliability. In EHV manufacturing, the polymer discharge isolator (PDI) and the CSS2 concepts from Maillefer addressed the super cleanliness of XLPE for longer manufacturing runs.
For fiber optic cables, Maillefer presented high-end manufacturing solutions for every stage of the fiber optic cable process. Tight buffering, secondary coating, SZ stranding and jacketing lines for producing different cables including the FTTx cable with low fibre counts and short lengths. Technology like the compression caterpillar with tension feedback serves to keep accurate control of excess fiber length. Visitors also showed keen interest in our service offerings and line upgrade options showcased at the fair.
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Metalube launched a new stainless steel wire lubricant
Metalube is a leading UK-based manufacturer of industrial lubricants. Over 20% of its workforce is dedicated to science, ensuring technical excellence and innovation across its products and services. Wire and tube drawing lubricants, protective greases for overhead conductors and metal cutting fluids are its specialty. Through an experienced international sales team, agents and distributors, the company exports to over 80 countries worldwide. Its success is in its ability to be flexible, offering excellent technical and after-sales support. Outside of the UK, Metalube has offices in Mumbai, Shanghai and San Paolo.
Feedback about the show: The show was a big success
New Developments: From the show Metalube launched a new stainless steel wire lubricant – Inoxol™ 5108. This is an innovative semi-synthetic stainless steel wire lubricant that reduces wear by more than 20% of its nearest competitor. With the introduction Inoxol 5108, Metalube plans to enter into the stainless steel fine wire drawing market in India.
Visitor Turnaround: We would say there was a good visitor turnaround and the quality of visitors for our business was on the whole high.
Plans for the Indian wire & cable industry: We will continue to work with our partners Wirex Dies & Steel India Pvt. Ltd (northern and eastern regions), and Walson Industrial Supplies (western and southern regions). Metalube has made a significant investment into the Indian market with the opening of our Mumbai office last November. We see India as a key area for growth and it is very much part of our five-year plan. We will shortly be launching new products and hope to expand further our presence in the region. All our products are quality driven and can offer exceptional long-term cost savings for customers.
Suggestions for the next show in 2014: The next show should be planned after the end of festive season and subsequent holidays, the month of December would be ideal, this would attract even more customers to the show. Need to arrange the car parking and car exits more professionally and in an organized way. This should avoid traffic chaos at the end of every day of the show.
Rating out of 5: 4
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“Very good show for meeting important cable producers in India”
MIXER specializes in the development and manufacture of elastomeric or polyolefin based compounds for the wire and cable industry. Peroxide crosslinkable (and electron beam crosslinkable) insulation and sheathing compounds for Low, Medium and High Voltage applications include automotive, industrial power, energy distribution, mining and appliances. HFFR bedding compounds with LOI of up to 90% are available for high flame retardant applications. Our color masterbatches are compatible with all polymers (PVC, PE, EPDM). Mixer’s on-site laboratory provides testing of material properties and behaviors. Technical assistance is available to optimize the operational parameters of extrusion lines.
Feedback about the show: Very good show for meeting important cable producers in India.
New Developments: Mixer medium voltage EPDM cable insulation compounds are now being tried at several Indian cable manufacturing plants.
Visitor Turnaround: Good
Plans for the Indian wire & cable industry: To continue our supply of mixer rubber cable insulation, jacketing and bedding compounds to Indian cable manufacturers.
Rating out of 5: 5
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“This is our forefront for a penetration in the East, with quality and know-how”
Paganoni (division of Mario Nava S.p.A.) is specialized in performing wear resistant coatings on mechanical parts for drawing machines since 1975. The exceptional wear-resistance of our materials allows drawing any kind of metal wire, ferrous and non-ferrous, with excellent results in terms of life and quality of the end product. Paganoni offers the following special solutions; KERBLACK® coating based on chrome oxide; WOLSIDE® coating based on special tungsten carbides; KERSINT® sintered ceramics based on zirconium oxide-based components and other special mineral compounds; NICKSINT® coating based on nickel. We also refurbish worn-out capstans and cones.
Feedback about the show: We have had a lot of contacts. Most were really interested in our solutions. We hope some of them will develop in real business.
New Developments: We are focused on India because we think, there is a potential in the market, especially now when we see that the Indian market is growing in quality products. We work on a sole agency basis with an Indian company based in Mumbai and very well introduced in the field.
Visitor Turnaround: Good
Plans for the Indian wire & cable industry: We are particularly keen to offer our services and not only our products, because despite the distance from Italy to India, we are well aware of the economic advantage provided by the use of our technology, able to consistently improve the life of capstans and cones as well as the quality of the wire.
Importance of presence in the Indian market: This is our forefront for a penetration in the East, with quality and know-how.
Suggestions for the next show in 2014: Some internationalization of the exhibition would be appreciated.
Rating out of 5: 3
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SAS: Made in Italy
SAS Engineering & Planning, is result of a vast experience of Mr. Cavalier Fermo Pietro Stefanoni, which he gathered by working in the factories engaged in the business of refurbishing of old machines. One fine morning his boss told him to make new machines for them as he was well versed with the technicalities of machines. From that day the company story began and he started making Italian machineries and the developed the market for the same. Now the 2nd generation is taking the legacy ahead. Team WCI interacted with Mr. Cavalier Fermo Pietro Stefanoni, (President & CEO), SAS Engineering & Planning about their presence in India and views on the same. Excerpts
Presence in India: SAS offers its products as support to the coil-to-bar and bar-to-bar processing lines and produces complete combined drawing lines. We are the market leader since the beginning. Initially, we developed the domestic and the nearby markets. In early 2000 we did some business in India but in 2006 we supplied the complete machine and till date we have more than 20 machines running here. We are growing therefore we have appointed an agent in India in order to give support to our installations here. We are also thinking of opening some training center in India to train our existing customers and the newer ones about our technology and how to handle it.
Views on Indian Market: India has become a very important market for us. Having 22 installations all across India this market has the potential to grow further. Our machines have very wide applications for different industries. SAS wants its customers to be the first to take advantage of the latest innovations. For all these reasons we reveal a reference point for innovations and the research of the best and the most efficient production ways.
Customization and Service Support: For all engineering companies customization is very important and for us also it’s a key priority. All our machines are customized and tailor made. SAS is the only company that manufactures its machines purely in Italy we don’t have any branches in China or other countries. We don’t outsource, everything is produced 100% in Italy in our native village. Even if it is the revamping of an old machine we customize it accordingly to the customer’s requirements this is one of the success factors of our company worldwide. SAS always finds new ways to solve problems and is always on top to provide up-to-date solutions as far as technology, safety and quality is concerned.
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“TRAXIT are able to offer special lubricants with the effect of “total use”
TRAXIT International GmbH produces wire drawing lubricants and pre-coatings and distributes goods all around the world. TRAXIT have manufacturing base in Germany, China and USA. This company has had a tradition of manufacturing lubricants for about 130 years. Their drawing lubricants are based on calcium and sodium without borax compounds. Their high-quality products are mainly used for manufacturing stainless steel wire and high carbon/tensile wire, but all the low-carbon departments do profit from the superior product quality as well.
Feedback about the show: We have got many visits from our customers in India and from other countries. We have had many fruitful discussions on technical issues. Also we could strengthen the relationship with our existing customers in personal meetings. Additionally we could get in contact with representatives of the new wire drawing mills to start business with them.
New Developments: TRAXIT are able to offer special lubricants with the effect of “total use”. With their special chemistry and special grain size these drawing lubricants can be totally used from the die boxes without leaving any residues. Due to especially strong adhesion performance and a certain melting point flakes of pull-through and de-carbonization in the die boxes are being avoided.
Visitor Turnaround: Average
Plans for the Indian wire & cable industry: Further increase and special technical support to solve problems concerning the use of wire-drawing lubricants.
Importance of presence in the Indian market: A very important market for us.
Rating out of 5: 4
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“Cable is a commodity business wherein the margins are low and the companies with deep pockets can only survive”
Shakun Polymers, initially started as a plastic processing company, gradually moved on to specialized compounds and now serving wire and cable markets for more than two decades. Over this period, Shakun has churned out good technologies and big gamut of products catering to specialty sector of wire & cable business. From three facilities in India, they ship around the globe and continually look for new markets. In the past 2 years they have grown their business substantially in international market which can be seen in their turnover where 60% is contributed by the export markets and 40% is domestic. Team WCI did an interaction with Mr. Rakesh Bansal, Director, Shakun Polymers Ltd. to explore about their manufacturing facilities, product portfolio, market footprints, new product developments, future plans etc.
Manufacturing Facilities, Technological Capabilities and R&D Setup: The company has strong technology and know-how with strong emphasis on R&D and innovation. To fulfill the varied requirements of the customers their manufacturing facilities are based in Daman and Halol. In Halol they have 2 factories, one is dedicated to HFFR (halogen free flame retardant) compounds and other is for semi conductive compounds, and Daman facility is dedicated to polyethylene and PVC. The reason for setting up two factories is that they use different set of raw materials to work out different product mix. It has fully equipped laboratories to carry out test in-house as well as outside lab in case of any special requirement. The available infrastructure and technology allows the ideal platform to the company to expand further. It has also recruited dedicated and experienced set of people to develop products with quality, consistency, safety and service.
Product Portfolio and Market Served
Shakun has a unique product, technology and service portfolio that covers almost every area of polymers technology. For whatever the type of compounds is needed, for any cable application in various ranges starting from optical fibre, telecom jelly filled cables, instrumentation cables, power cables, EHV, control cables, high voltage cables etc., Shakun provides it all. Geographically, the company has an established presence in India, Middle East and North African Markets along with some parts of North & South America and Far East.
New Product Development: Shakun makes the sincere endeavors to go that extra mile to focus on minute needs of the customer and take steps to research, innovate and develop and offer products beyond customers’ expectations. The company has introduced different products like
• Cross-linkable compounds for automotive application
• Oil resistance cross-linkable HFFR compound for shipboard, railway and nuclear power application
• XHHW-2 types of compounds as per UL standards for building wires having excellent wet electrical properties
• HFFR cross-linkable compounds for photovoltaic cable application
• Irradiation cure HFFR compounds
Future Plans: Presently, their sales are generated in between India, Middle East and North Africa. Further they look forward to diversify that risk into the other markets. At the moment they do a very little amount of sales in Far East where they sense a big opportunity for future. But, they are not pushing it hard right now because due to the market shrink there is an over capacity and logistically, their competitors are stronger than them. The company is also expanding its capacity of HFFR from 6000 tons to 9000 tons which will be up and running in Feb-2013.
Views on Wire & Cable Industry: Mr. Rakesh Bansal stated “market in India is same as world over and we are a global market now, so we have to follow global norms. Cable is a commodity business wherein the margins are low and the companies with deep pockets can only survive. Presently, the cable industry is going through the rough patch due to crunch in liquidity, orders and being a low margin business many companies are suffering due to this. Further, I can see more consolidation happening in the industry. It is important to be a multi- product and multi-market company in order to survive. Moreover, unorganized sector will find it hard to comply with tax regime and other government regulation which will make it sluggish. Today, 80% of the cables sales are of branded products as lot of branding activities are taken by the companies which has also impacted the unorganized sector. Another important aspect is that cable companies make money in buying not in selling, as about 80-85% of the cost is formed by raw material so unless and until you have large volumes you cannot be profitable.”
Shakun’s Awareness Route: “One thing that we take strongly into our company’s activity is to make customer aware about the right product and right quality. This is the area where I think that industry is lacking behind. For this we have taken up this issue with BIS and we have suggested a specification note to the government of India which is already on our website. Today the consumption of HFFR compound and cables in India is project driven like for hospitals, high rise building, but when this specification will come in the BIS list then we can see the more of consumer driven consumption. We have also started an online blog where we have mentioned the history of fires that has occurred time and again on account of faulty cables worldwide” explained Mr. Bansal.
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Unitek appoints new agent for Indian Market
Unitek offers a big variety of extrusion crossheads and peripheral equipment for numerous applications. Our crossheads combine best-quality steel & alloys with unique curing technologies and cutting-edge high precision manufacturing. Our technical experts are at your disposal for a detailed technical analysis of your application in order to offer you the best and most economic solution for your extrusion needs. Unitek was established in 1979 and we have 3500 customers worldwide. We are present in 60-70 countries worldwide and in India. We have appointed Ajex & Turner as our agent in India from this year. Indian market is a very important market for us and we are working hard on it. Our crossheads are so precise that it does not need any adjustment they are fixed centers. Our cross heads are anti corrosive and abrasive and provides long span of use.
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“It is our intention to grow in the Indian market”
WWM is a leader in the manufacturing of equipment for the production ferrous and non-ferrous wires. Its dry drawing lines, the wet drawing lines with rotative dies, its semi-automatic and fully automatic respooling lines together with its high speed drum packers are well known and appreciated all around the world. In addition to complete lines and turnkey plants, WWM offers customized machines for the treatment of the wire surface such as galvanizing lines, nickel plating lines, coppering and cleaning lines, take-ups and pay-offs of different sizes and for different uses, drawing and shaving machines for different alloys and aluminum wire.
Feedback about the show: In my opinion it was a good show and in comparison with the previous shows the quality was much better.
New Developments: Nothing new but it is important to remember that this was the year of Düsseldorf exhibition, a very important year for wire & cable industry.
Visitor Turnaround: Average
Plans for the Indian wire & cable industry: It is our intention to grow in the Indian market because we think it is a very important market for the future.
Importance of presence in the Indian market: The presence in the Indian market is fundamental because India is very important for the new productions.
Suggestions for the next show in 2014: We would prefer it to be at the end of November.
Rating out of 5: 3
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World’s largest buyer and reseller of second-hand wire, cable and optical fiber equipment
Wire & Plastic Machinery Corp. is a global equipment supplier offering high quality solutions for wire, cable, and optical fiber manufacturing. They have a comprehensive selection of second-hand and reconditioned machines from the industry’s most respected manufacturers. Their equipment selection is wide and varied with over 20,000 machines available from 8 North American locations. With their extensive industry knowledge and vast inventory, they are able to satisfy all wire and cable equipment needs, affordably and efficiently. In a candid chat with Mr. Rahul Sachdev, Executive Vice-President, Wire & Plastic Machinery Corp. team WCI explored more about the company, and importance of refurbished machines and views on wire & cable industry in India. Excerpts
About Wire & Plastic Corp.: We are a one-stop destination to sell your idle wire and cable equipment and are always looking to expand our inventory. We offer a complete array of purchasing options for single machines, complete lines, and entire manufacturing facilities. We are based in US, have 8 warehouses along with 2 re-conditioning centers at Texas and Connecticut respectively. Our business is worldwide and we attend all the exhibitions across the world and 40% of our business is outside US, so presence in market like India, China, Brazil are important for us.
Refurbished machines: a good way to access the technology at lower cost
All the major cable companies like Prysmian, Draka, General Cable etc. are all our customers. For high quality, good second hand machines there, is certainly a place for them, in the industry. And, for the people like us if we are able to deliver good after sale services, then we get the repeat business. It is a truly a time tested business model so there is no reason why it should not succeed in India.
Views on the Indian wire and cable industry: Presently, there is a little bit of global slowdown in our industry but that’s for short term. There might be a possibility of overcapacity in some areas but it has to make its way through the system. In spite these, it is certainly a growing market.
Unorganized sector in India: The unorganized sector needs to get organized to some extent but now things are changing. Earlier in exhibitions 70-80% of the visitor is from the unorganized sector. But now we don’t see them here. Over the years there have been some industry consolidations or people have decided to quit the business, this same drill will be repeated in future.
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Bihani Group: The Solution Provider
Bihani Group was founded by Mr. Sushil Bihani in 1974 with its first plant dedicated to developing and sourcing products for users of PVC compounds & master batches for application in wires & cables. The group has, since then, diversified its portfolio from offering the standard PVC Compounds to various value added compounds. The flagship company, Bihani Manufacturing Co. Ltd., was established in 1994 which deals with leading wire & cables, automotives & packaging companies in India and overseas.
The company has always aligned with the market movements and demands; which has helped them to offer versatile solutions as per the requirements of the market both in India and abroad. With the formation of the new company AEI India Pvt. Ltd. and the expansion taking place at Bihani manufacturing facility, Team WCI caught up with, Mr. Jaideep Bihani, MD, Bihani Group, to get his outlook for the industry and above all the strategy ahead for serving the market. Excerpt
Explaining about the new venture and plans ahead he said, “Initially we were focused on PVC compounds but now as the cable companies themselves have become so competitive, continuous innovation has taken the front seat which can only be addressed by multi-product portfolio companies. We realized this in early stages of our working therefore we tied up with AEI Compounds Ltd. UK, for their distribution in India and subsequently extending it to nearby countries.
The company has been formed with a long term perspective wherein what we used to do in Bihani for them will be now done through AEI India Pvt. Ltd. AEI also appreciates the potential of India as its hub in the sub continent and an aggressive strategy is already in place to explore all possibilities including manufacturing. The vision given by Mr. Andrea Savonuzzi, Director, Saco Polymers Inc. USA, and with leadership of Mr. Mark Shaw, Managing Director, AEI Compounds Ltd., UK, we are hopeful of establishing world-class operations in the country.
AEI has a diverse exposure in terms of compounding and is value driven company basing its fundamentals on innovation & sustainable technologies. The company has been a preferred supplier to various wire & cable majors for HFFR, XLPE & various other compounds. So being a value driven company, catering of niche market has been their forte. Today every company is looking for innovation that drives value maximization in the market and therefore AEI India will play its role i.e. of strategic development in the growth of the industry. Mr. Richard Day is directly involved in all developments and customer accounts for sales.
On the topic of added technical support he highlighted “AEI is here for the long haul. The commitment level of the company towards its customers is very high which makes it a trusted partner of choice. Our Indian customers have been frequently visited by AEI UK Executives for a range of activities covering sales to “on-site” support. The takeover of AEI by Saco Polymers, has further exemplified the product portfolio making it more diverse as well as strategic. Mr. Dean Jenne – Technical Manager, from Saco Polymers Inc., was with us during the recently concluded wire & cable Mumbai to identify areas of strategic fit for their products (UL, CSA Rated).
The technical support to all our customers for AEI, Saco & Bihani will be rendered through our technical team in Delhi/ Chopanki which comprises of doctorates and senior experts from wire & cable industry. AEI UK is directly involved in all new and customized developments and is constantly engaged with Indian customers.
Giving an overview of the Indian energy sector, “The only way forward for the Indian energy sector is upwards. The GOI has set some good targets for power generation & transmission in the country and still major chunk of the rural has to be provided the access to energy. So, that is the distance, which needs to be covered and that can only be, done by the industry.”
With over 400 million citizens who lack access to modern forms of energy in the country today, the government is actively contemplating enhancing the role of clean & renewable energy in the “energy mix” of the country. For example, The Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission, has a target of 20 GW of grid connected solar power by 2022. The generation from new & renewable sources is targeted at 55 GW by 2017. Nearly 14 GW expected from nuclear energy. Increased activities in sectors such as automotives, consumer electronics, etc., too drive the demand for wires.
The Capex has already been incurred by users of wires & cables and any slowdowns are temporary and parabolic. Similarly, the implementation of projects too may be delayed but concluding it to be the end will not be justified. Optimism and innovation will pave way for growth in any market scenario and the growth story of the country as well as the wire & cable segment is intact.
Further adding on the wire & cable segment, “the industry currently is going through the parabolic phenomena of highs and lows. We may also get so see some consolidation happening in the industry which will further raise quality and innovation benchmarks. The unorganized sector will continue to be there because India is quite a big and diverse market, and that it has historically allowed co-existence of different business models.
With international wire & cable companies now establishing their manufacturing India, we may see a push to elevate the current standards and their scope thereby making them more suited to the new demands posed by the market. This may come in the form of addition of materials such as HFFR, etc which are due to make their debut in the IS. The only challenge may hinder growth is the efficient up-gradation of the standard and product quality.”
Going further he added “We at Bihani have positioned ourselves as an innovator & reliable supplier for leading companies. We work very closely with R&D teams of various companies developing products for them in closed-loop and in close interaction.
We are adding new capacities in phased manner to touch 40 KTA by 2014 producing PVC compounds, master batches, TPO & TPE and variety of other specialty compounds. Our capacity addition for FY 2012-13 is already underway and will add up to 8 KTA to our existing capacity 20 KTA. Our imported materials such as HFFR, etc are in an addition to this.
These capacity additions are aimed to serve the automotive, packaging and wire & cable sector. The growth which we envisage is not only from the standard compounds but also from the value added & innovative compounds such as compounds for solar cables, nuclear installations, etc. These compounds are available through AEI Compounds Ltd., or SACO Polymers Inc., or produced locally through us.
We have brought into place long-term manufacturing agreements with certain established customers abroad that see us as their strategic partners. Our products are also being exported through our distribution network in which we have appointed leading companies in EU, MENA & Latin America.”
We are driven by the vision of our Chairman “To stay at the forefront of innovation and substitution in the segments that we are present in. We aim at incepting new and effective products & technologies and promoting them in a boundary-less market. The robustness of our activities will be reflected in the quality of the products and the comfort of the customer through better service, whilst meeting our social obligations.”
