Puzzolana's crushers, sand making and washing plants meet global standards
Developing Products indigenously makes Puzzolana 'Indian Genius'
Let us begin the discussion with your new slogan 'Indian Genius.'
We are the only Indian company that develops its own crushers indigenously which makes us 'Indian Genius'. We have no competition whatsoever in the design sense of it, which means that all the designs and technicalities are indigenous. In this exhibition, we have launched three cone crushers, one high frequency high speed screen, and one sand washer. These machines will revolutionize the industry as they are highly innovative and qualitative. No wonder our machines meet the global standards and are being sold in Europe and China.
Tell us about your latest innovations.
Well, the innovations are sand machines, and a one of its kind hybrid Cone Crusher with a floating shaft and a fixed shaft. This will set new trends in the industry.
When I say hybrid, there are two schools of thought associated with it; fixed and floating. What we have done is that we've combined the two schools of thought for the first time ever so that shaping can become better. We usually require a VSI or a tertiary stage cone for the plants. Now if the new one works out, it will eliminate the third stage and save on fuel and power thus providing a better product. It will provide economies of scale. Secondly, we have also developed the one high frequency high speed screen and the sand machine. All these products have been very well received during the exhibition.
As you are well aware South India has always been a major market for sanders unlike North but now North India is also catching up fast. You see, sand has a big premium vis-à-vis the normal aggregate which is normally wasted, and the customer wants to convert this into sand now.
Sander is an additional station to the existing plants, and it gives sand which is IS certified. As far as demand is concerned, it depends on the application because sand is a very precious product. At the moment, the demand is high in the 200 tonne plants.
What are company's financing options available to customers? How are you keeping the order book full in such a scenario?
The advantage with us is that we operate across a large spectrum which includes banks and finance companies. Our clientele comprises large developers and quarry owners who are financially sound and therefore rarely default in meeting the timely dues. Moreover, we share a very good relationship with the financiers and that enables our customers to get the equipment financed quite smoothly. That's the reason why Puzzolana is one of the most sought after brands and today we are sitting on a huge order book. Things will definitely get brighter after this Excon.
Through our strong and robust distribution network which is not only in India but abroad as well. We are about to appoint a distribution partners in all of Sub-Saharan Africa. Currently, we are present in four continents and very soon it will become six. No wonder we are the market leaders.
A word on operator training and tip and tube maintenance.
That's a big brand of our business. As contractors benefit a lot by employing trained and skilled operators, hence to impart training and develop skilled operators are on our priority. We render workshop training in assembly and classroom trainings at our factories and provide certification to trained operators. In fact, the operators trained by us are capable of churning out 60,000 mt of sand per annum as compared to the industry average of 35,000 mt.
Now, we are also working with the National Skill Development Council (NSDC) to further recognize talent and hone skills. We believe in owning the proposition rather than merely selling a machine.
How do you expect to close this year in terms of growth projection?
We are continuously on our targeted growth path and expecting some growth this year. The year began with a bang but the last two months have shown slow down. Nonetheless, we expect brighter times in the next four months. Excon will play a big role in our growth.
How has your experience been at Excon?
We had a good experience as we received more than 200 enquiries. For us it's been fantastic; definitely much better than expected. Our sand machine, launched three years received overwhelming response. In fact, we were the first ones to launch this machine and today we have a vast range of sanders and as a result of this, we are the most sought after brand in the market.
NBM&CW January 2014
