Vollert India, based in Sikandrabad (near Greater Noida) since 2017, has expanded its production capacity of precast machinery and components to meet the increasing demand from India’s fast growing infrastructure sector. The inauguration of the expanded factory took place recently in the presence of Group CEO Hans-Jörg Vollert, and Head of India Operations Krishan Mohan Sharma. Present at the event were the company’s customers, channel partners, suppliers, VDMA, representatives from the media, and the Vollert staff.
While addressing the large gathering, Hans-Jörg Vollert highlighted the importance of the expansion project and thanked everyone for contributing to the company’s success. He said, “It is a great honour for me to open our extended facility in Sikandrabad. We started our India operations through sales in 2011 and when our products began to see a lot of demand, we set up this factory in 2017, which has now become a manufacturing hub for our locally produced products. From here, we will not only serve the Indian market but also countries in the South Asian and South-East Asian regions. This shows how important this manufacturing hub is for the Vollert Group.”
From catering largely to the residential segment of users in India, Vollert is now eyeing the country’s infrastructure segment like roads and high-speed rails, given the Indian Government’s focus on infra development and its acceptance of precast construction. The Indian construction industry is also evolving and imbibing new construction technologies like the well-proven precast, for speedier and better-quality construction.
“Since business is picking up again post the Covid pandemic, we decided to expand our workshop to serve the needs of our increasing base of customers. We have enabled state-of- the-art and cost-effective production with optimized workflows. The new installation is already operating full steam - producing high quality precast moulds, and soon this unit will also start catering to our customers in other parts of Asia. However, our journey does not end here; we will continue to make more investments during this financial year. We have also planned to set up a blasting and a paint booth at our Sikandrabad facility,” informed Hans-Jörg Vollert.
The new plant is equipped with state- of-the-art machinery and technology, which will improve efficiency and reduce production time and carbon emission. It will also create employment opportunities for the local community, as the company plans to hire additional staff to operate the facility.
The facility produces stationary moulds, tilting tables, beam and column moulds, and special formwork. Local production allows Vollert to offer a competitive price/ performance ratio compared to imported goods since there are no high custom duties to pay, plus the products are produced and delivered to project sites without any delays.
“India is now our focus hub from where we are not just serving the country’s growing demand but also the markets of South Asia and Southeast Asia. We have an ambitious target of growing 10 to 20% in the next two years here,” he informed.
He opined that construction processes in India are still conservative and to change them could take ages. “No doubt, there is some reluctance in India, but there are also customers who understand the benefits of precast construction,” he said.
No doubt, with precast, there are issues of logistics and need for skilled manpower, but the benefits that accrue are far more.”
The company is spreading awareness on precast technology through social media channels, seminars and conferences with architects, real estate developers, consultants, and civil engineers, to demonstrate its benefits of reduced carbon footprint, better-quality construction, and time and cost savings through speedy construction.
However, despite the promising outlook of precast in India, Vollert is faced with the challenge of finding manpower skilled in precast construction. The company is therefore placing a lot of emphasis on training and upskilling its employees to ensure they have the necessary skills and knowledge to meet the demands of the job.
“Our HR undertakes a quarterly training program with a proper TNI (Training Need Identification) in place. The initial training and induction of key members takes place in Germany. We also train our vendors and employees through different modes including video conferencing on regular basis,” informed Sharma.
He added, “Another challenge is the lack of infrastructure; for instance, we procured 4-meter-wide plate for a project of Thailand based customer but there were no proper approach roads with wide enough toll gate for transporting the material. Our requirement is for roads that can cater to even 6-meter-wide products and on which we can transport entire structures from factory to site. If the road infrastructure is good, our transportation costs will also come down.”
Handling of precast elements is another challenge. PPVC’s (prefabricated precast volumetric concrete) are three- dimensional modular units produced in controlled factory conditions prior to their transportation to project sites. Modules can be brought to sites either as a basic structure or with all the internal and external finishes and services installed
- ready for assembling. “The challenge here is that due to the heavy weight of the components, we require huge cranes for lifting and installing them. In fact, logistics, and the right tools and lifting equipment are a must in the precast industry. This may increase the initial cost of construction, but the pay back is fast and good.”
According to Hans-Jörg Vollert, “Precast is the most effective and quality-oriented way of offsite construction. However, getting and retaining labor on site is a hassle as one has to provide them accommodation, food, and basic facilities. Precast, in general, came to India 10 years ago but there was no awareness about this technology. In developed countries like Singapore, Turkey, and America, 40% of the buildings are precast built, whereas in India it is only 3%. But there is now a growing acceptance and inclination towards precast construction here as India is one of the fastest growing markets due to the impetus being given to infra development by the Government. We have clear cut approvals from the Government that precast technology is authorized and has passed quality tests. This has boosted our confidence and that of the developers too.”
