India witnesses surge in fertiliser production during Oct 2011

India has witnessed an increase in the fertiliser production during the month of October this year.

The estimated production of Urea during the month under review was 19.01 lakh MT against the target of 17.42 lakh MT.

In October 2011, the estimated production of diammonium phosphate (DAP) fertiliser was 2.72 lakh MT as compared to the target of 4.24 lakh MT. The production of DAP had been less than the target by 1.52 lakh MT.

The government has dispatched approximately 20.69 lakh MT (both indigenous and imported) urea to various States during the month under consideration and about 24.92 lakh MT of urea was available.

Read more at: http://news.indiamart.com/story/india-witnesses-surge-fertiliser-production-during-oct-2011-150955.html

Indian electrical transformer industry may face trouble due to supply gap of CRGO steel

The Indian electrical transformer industry, which is worth Rs 16,000-crore, is expected to be affected due to the serious supply gap of important raw material known as CRGO steel, which is its sole domestic producer as SAIL is not ready to manufacture it.

Reports suggest that cold-rolled grain-oriented laminated silicon steel or CRGO steel, which is used by the electrical transformer industry used to be produced by Steel Authority of India (SAIL).

It is believed that Tatas-owned Corus, which is based in Britain, is the only other domestic firm that has the technology to produce CRGO steel.
SAIL is planing to ink collaboration with international company to produce CRGO steel.

Read more at: http://news.indiamart.com/story/indian-electrical-transformer-industry-may-face-trouble-due-supply-gap-crgo-stee-150694.html

Internet Helps Rajco Scientific & Engineering Products' Business Soar High

With Rs. 20,000 in hand to give a headstart to his entrepreneurial dream, Mr. P. Sethi was a man determined to make his dreams a reality. His adherence, devotion and strategy for industry brilliance helped him achieve this dream called Rajco Scientific & Engineering Products. “I started my business with a very small amount of Rs 20000 and was doing trading business with the help of newspapers for tender business.” says Mr. Sethi.

http://www.indiamart.com/corporate/success-stories/rajco.html


As Rajco kick-started its journey, it faced many challenges along the way. “When we started there were lot of challenges in trading and competition; in order to diversify we started with manufacturing facility. At present we have a factory unit and making all the equipments to supply abroad.” says Mr. Sethi. The company has got a team of specialist engineers and technologists who work on test methods and develop more convenient and industry specific instruments as per the appropriate international standards and works on client’s specific features like quality, reliability and industry specific instruments. Today, it has become one of the best in material and soil testing industry.

“I have received ISO certified from EUROTECH 9001:2008. We are manufacturing testing material for soil, cement testing, concrete, aggregate instrument and in production we have latest technology lathe machines, CNG machines and all that with the digital. We have good labour, good technicians doing a good job for the quality.” Mr. Sethi proudly adds.

Domain name goes Hindi...

There is good news for SMEs! The dot-Bharat domain name in Hindi is set to be launched in India by May next year, with the aim of bridging the digital divide in the country. This will enable organizations and individuals to register their website addresses in Hindi and later in more Indian local languages like Bengali, Punjabi, Urdu, Tamil, Telugu and Gujarati. This is a great opportunity for SMEs to draw a large proportion of Indians who use content on Internet but aren’t familiar with English.

Now days even if content are in local language still user need to type the URL in English. This is a large step towards developing a multi-lingual computing environment in India i.e. already proved to be a great use in countries like Japan and South Korea.

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN), which governs domain names internationally, has allowed India to register domain names in above mentioned Indian languages.

What's in it for SMEs?

Internet is a low cost medium for SMEs to reach out to new potential markets and engage their existing customer base. The advent of e-commerce has opened up a whole new set of opportunities for SMEs. Still there are few hurdles on the way. According to 2001 Census, about 11% of the India’s population understands English, while 40% are well-versed in some form of Hindi. Also there are close to 100 million Internet users in India, in which74% are literate, according to Census 2011. Clearly there is a huge opportunity for SMEs to engage customers in a language which they are more familiar with.

Although there are other aspects too to achieve complete multi-lingual computing environment in India, like operating system, language keyboards, script sets and browser in local language. Once in place, Internet in local language will available in India over the next 10-15 years. 

 

How it will affect your business?

The domain name helps users find their way around the Internet. Every computer on the Internet has a unique address, just like a telephone number, which is a rather complicated string of numbers. It is called “IP address” (IP stands for “Internet Protocol”). IP Addresses are hard to remember. Here the domain name comes for rescue and helps user to easily remember a familiar set of alphabet (i.e. “domain name”) to be used instead of the IP address. If this domain name is available in language like Hindi which is commonly understands by a large chunk of population then it will be much easier to target them. Now SMEs can innovate and offers specific product and services which are well customized as per the requirement of regional customers, and this will help them to move from common to niche approach.

Anand Sharma declares relief package for Handloom Weavers

Mr Anand Sharma, Commerce and Industry and Textiles Minister, has declared measures like issuance of weaver credit card, interest subsidy, credit guarantee and freight reimbursement for the handloom weavers as part of the handloom package.

 

A statement from the Commerce and Industry Ministry, said, “A meeting of Expenditure Finance Committee (EFC) was held Friday and a decision of covering individual weavers also, a large number of whom are from UP (Uttar Pradesh), will be sent for consideration of the cabinet. While the loan waiver package cover the needs of loan defaulters, but the large number of individual weavers who are facing stress economic conditions also need support. A six-fold strategy has been prepared as part of the handloom package.”

Read more at: http://news.indiamart.com/story/anand-sharma-declares-relief-package-handloom-weavers-150278.html 

Saz Boilers Goes Global

Sunil Zalte, CEO of Saz Boilers established the company in Pune in 1992. The company that today manufactures steam boilers, hot water generators, thermal oil heaters, heating equipment like burners, heat exchangers, and more, was commenced with a small capital. Since the manufactured goods were intended for use in industries such as dairy, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, food and auto, and have several vast applications, the company thrived and saw gradual growth and success. From a turnover of Rs.3 lakh in its first year, Saz Boilers’ present turnover has reached about Rs.4–4.5 crore. In fact, this figure is expected to grow further to `5 crore this year. What started as a result of one man’s ambition is now driven forward by the combined efforts of 27 employees.

http://www.indiamart.com/corporate/success-stories/saz-boilers.html


One of the key reasons for the success of Saz Boilers was the commencement of exports. The company started exports about 5–6 years ago, and has traded with nations such as South Africa, Greece, Malaysia, Yemen, Muscat, Georgia, Kenya, Nepal, Mozambique, Sri Lanka, Botswana, Sudan, Uganda, Niger, Dubai and Thailand since then. In addition, Saz also exports to Central America and the Gulf states. In fact, exports have been so healthy for the company that they once accounted for almost half the turnover. Due to the recession, however, exports have been sluggish and have since reduced to about 30–40% of the turnover. The company’s expertise and high-quality, defect-free goods have provided this global advantage. An ISO 9001 2008 certificate for the products, as well as an IBR license for manufacturing IBR boilers in India verifies Saz Boilers’ forte in this niche space.

Since export markets are a priority in the company’s marketing endeavours, Saz Boilers depends heavily on internet marketing. Despite having few marketing people, Mr Zalte states that the company has perfected the process of attracting global inquiries without stepping out from the office.

Expert Speak: Mr. Mehul Kapadia, Tata Communications

InstaCompute: Building tomorrow’s IT business models today

In a rapidly expanding market like India, the rise of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) is clearly no surprise. However, SMEs often face the challenge of fast-changing IT business processes and seasonal spikes, coupled with tight budget constraints. In such a scenario, can there be a single solution for such a business challenge? The answer lies in solutions like InstaCompute, which are based on Cloud computing model.

All businesses undergo a transition at various points. Whether you run a full-fledged enterprise, a medium-sized business venture or even a smaller, relatively newer business, updating business IT processes is a critical step in your enterprise life cycle. In fact, some businesses even have to undergo multiple transformation phases. Large enterprises have the capability and the resources to execute such transformations smoothly, but SMEs face a significant challenge in doing so, given their limited resources and capital.

Overcoming the challenges of transitional change

The major transition that SMEs need to address right away is from a local, traditional setup to a more global and more economic solution such as Cloud Computing. These solutions help Small and Medium Enterprises convert a typical Capex-driven business IT model into an Opex-driven model.

Advantages of IaaS for SMEs

By choosing a IT model that provides Infrastructure as a Service, SMEs can significantly reduce Capex and enable greater network control, scalable processing and storage capabilities and faster product delivery over the Internet. Few more advantages of IaaS for SMEs, apart from ones already listed, include:

• On-demand deployment for whenever a solution is needed
• Instant scalability to match business’ growth potential
• Pay-per-use pricing so that you spend for just as much as you use

Every bit of capital investment is crucial for an SME. Seasonal peaks are one of the greatest reasons for companies under-provisioning or over-provisioning. This can later result in a heavy loss and idle resources. With IaaS, your business can gain immediate computing resources, on-demand, when you need them.

Tata Communications’ InstaCompute

InstaCompute is a flexible, cost-effective and on-demand IaaS solution that with strong Service Level Agreement (SLA). Signing up online is quick and easy; hence you save time and do not require dedicated resources to utilize the service.

With their best-in-class technology partnerships, your business also gets the best infrastructure solutions. 

Gain the InstaCompute advantage

• Quick time to market with best in class Infrastructure assuring High Reliability and scalability
• Anticipate customer demands by preventing under-provisioning and over-provisioning
• Limited IT personnel and infrastructure required, thus saving costs
• Pay-per-use pricing structure
• Real time addition and removal of virtual servers, storage capacity and metered Internet connectivity
• Best-in-class security features such as business grade firewalls, secure MPLS on-ramp, data centers with highest security standards and Master User controls for overseeing and permission granting
  

For more information on InstaCompute, visit: http://goo.gl/xREBW 

The contributor for this blog is Mr Mehul Kapadia, VP Marketing and Strategy, Tata Communications-SME (http://www.tatacommunications.com/sme/)

Expert Speak: Mr. Ajay Wahi

DON’T ALWAYS HIRE THE BEST!!


Don’t get shocked by this! We have been told that we should try to hire the best. And here I am asking you not to do that!

Why am I saying this? Simply because in a SME, it is difficult to retain talent; if you have only the BEST, you are essentially issuing an open invitation to the world to poach on your staff. Why hire the best and lose them to the competition just as they began to contribute meaningfully to the organization?

Solution

How do we solve this Catch-22? I believe the optimal solution would be to divide your talent requirements into 2 parts: one consists of key functional and critical roles where you need to go all out to hire and retain the BEST. This is because without the best you cannot make the best product, best process, best technology, best delivery etc. Once these key roles are staffed with the best, the rest should actually be somewhat below the best, since they do not fulfill critical functions in the company.

This differentiation in viewpoint and strategy is worth the attempt, because the ones who are somewhat below the best may take a little longer to do so, but could end up delivering nearly the same quality as the best would have in those positions.

This staffing strategy ensures everyone wins. The few BEST win as you can pay them higher salaries which you could not have if the entire company had been staffed with BESTs. The BESTs feel valued and develop loyalty for the organization. The less-than-best win because they are able to learn from the BESTs. You as CEO win because the less-than-best are less likely to leave you for another company, and you save monies on salaries you pay across the organization.

Application

I applied this strategy with success: in one company where I worked, there was a product development role and another role where these products were customized for each client. For the critical development role, we hired the BEST. However, for customization, rather than taking the best (such as B.Tech. graduates whom we were inducting earlier), we started to recruit MCAs who were happy to deliver the same results with lower pay packages than the B.Techs would have been willing to work for.

This approach paid such rich dividends that we are now planning to stop taking even MCAs, instead hiring B.Sc. graduates and training them to deliver the required results!!

Investment in technology can help save money

However, to make this concept a success, first make your processes and business models so automated, and make your training and skill enhancement programs so structured that you can do with less qualified and less experienced people. Appropriate investment in tools, technology, and processes will help you achieve relatively more with relatively less talented people. We have all heard so much about how automation in production and processes help in either replacing people, and/or getting the same quality of output with less experienced staff. That’s money saved and people retained!

If you think about it, the entire Indian IT and ITES industry is all about American and European companies outsourcing work to Indians with lower qualifications and experience vis-a-vis their counterparts in the home country. All they are doing is adhering to the policy of NOT ALWAYS USING THE BEST and they save time and money to distribute among the limited best they do have!
 
Caution

You need to correctly identify and differentiate between critical and less critical roles before you can apply this learning.

You will need to automate processes and train the less-than-best so that they can perform adequately. Then only you could manage to not always hire the best.
 
Summary

The BEST get higher salaries than they would at other organizations because they can take a larger slice of the wage bill.
The less-than-best are excited about learning opportunities from training and working with the BEST, and are motivated to stay longer with the organization.

The contributor of this article is Mr. Ajay Wahi, author of management books like and the award for the BEST SME of the year goes to... and Get Noticed Get Promoted.

He can be contacted at 9810027979 or awahi2010@gmail.com

RICO’s Journey to Success

Shobha Kolte started RICO in 1973 from a single garage. It is a manufacturer of electrical, mechanical, electronic and electro-mechanical goods such as switches, valves, heaters and level gauges. The company’s present success can be estimated by its enviable client list which includes industry behemoths like Mahindra and Mahindra, Manforce, Siemens, Ashok Leyland, Eicher Tractors, Kirloskar and L&T. This success is possible since CEO Ritesh Kolte, who now heads the company with new flair and innovation, is armed with similar will-power and determination as his mother. The company that first drew an income of`1500, now earns a yearly turnover of `13 crore. Driven by a workforce of 70–80 people and supported by the productivity of three factories in Pune, RICO’s total turnover is expected to further double in the next three years.

http://www.indiamart.com/corporate/success-stories/ricocontrol.html


However, RICO’s journey to success has not been easy. According to Rucha Kolte, Product Development Engineer, there was a time when the company faced acute problems of design validation. Consultants were appointed as a remedy to this situation. With their help, the company was able to achieve one patent. Presently, RICO awaits the registration of three more patents. The company has formidable design capabilities now, and can easily adapt to comply with specific client requirements to develop technologically-advanced and customised products. Goods designed in the company’s units are tested for maximum durability, such that they are capable of withstanding severe applications and environment. This assurance of quality is evinced in the certifications received by the company, namely QS 9000—ISO/TS16949:2002 in December 1999–2002 and ISO/TS 16949:2002 in December 2003.

Ms Kolte pointed out that further impetus to RICO’s business came in the form of internet marketing.

Ace Heat Tech Realises its Export Potential with Online Marketing

Ace Heat Tech, an industrial heating elements company was started in the year 1999 by two partners, Mr. Moti Hassanandani and Mr. Dinesh Kotian. The company specialises in industrial infrared heaters and industrial temperature controllers. The owners pride themselves on their global presence in the form of their association with Elsetine Work, located in Germany. Their associate specialises in ceramic infrared heater manufacturing. This affiliation has thrived since 2000 and is helping Ace Heat Tech carry out highly voluminous business. What commenced with a capital of around Rs. 10,000 and three people—the two partners and an executive—conducting door-to-door marketing, has grown to a Rs. 8 crore plus company with a workforce of more than 25 people.

        
http://www.indiamart.com/corporate/success-stories/ace-heat-tech.html


The Road to Success
The company with a 9,000 sq ft-production facility offers 90% of its products to the plastic industry. Medical and the chemical industry are the next prominent markets for the company for its ceramic infrared heaters and other conventional heaters. But the road to success wasn’t always clear of obstacles. There was much competition in the niche area. “We faced a stiff challenge of pricing. There were a few quality heaters available in the market, but the association with our German counterpart cleared this obstacle. I got an advice from one of my old customers-do a good job so that people can remember you; this has helped us in the long run,” asserted Mr. Dinesh Kotian, Partner, Ace Heat Tech. The company is now known for its timely delivery schedules.

Wide Presence
When the company first started operating, the partners would go door-to-door to promote their products. “We used to meet customers individually. We started advertisements in leading industrial product journals later. But we felt that our presence on the internet is very important,” said Mr. Kotian. That’s where IndiaMART.com came in. Mr. Kotian opines that an enthused sales executive visited the company in 2004 and informed them regarding the type of work IndiaMART.com had been doing in promoting similar products. They started with a small contract which grew more comprehensive with resulting success. Mr. Kotian added, “Parallel to IndiaMART.com, I started business with other leading portals also. But their quality of enquiries, speed and genuineness are better compared to the others. We participated in lots of exhibitions in Nairobi, Dubai and Sri Lanka and found them involved in most. That’s a good thing.”

Ace Heat Tech has been successfully exporting to countries like South America, Africa, the Gulf, as well as Asian nations such as Bangladesh and Thailand since 2003.

Cabinet gives green signal to Public Procurement Policy for micro and small enterprises

The Cabinet has given its nod to the Public Procurement Policy for goods produced and services rendered by Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) by the Central Ministries/Departments/PSUs. This will be notified under Section 11 of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development (MSMED) Act, 2006.

The policy has been approved just ahead of the assembly elections in five Indian states consisting of Uttar Pradesh. This policy fixes an annual target of 20% procurement for the Central Government departments and also the public sector undertakings (PSUs) from MSEs.

Within this limit, 4% of the orders needs to be placed to the SC/ST entrepreneurs and 16% for the others.

While speaking the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) Minister Mr Virbhadra Singh has stated with the declaration of the new policy, PSUs are likely to purchase goods worth Rs 35,000 crore from the MSEs, out of which Rs 7,000-crore business would go to the SCs/STs.

Read more at http://news.indiamart.com/story/cabinet-gives-green-signal-public-procurement-policy-micro-and-small-enterprises-149117.html