“you can’t - kiswok
TRANSCRIPT
“You can’t
How we have proved pessimists wrong across five decades
KISWOK Industries Pvt. Ltd.Personality Document
KISWOK Industries Pvt. Ltd.
Head Office:11, Brabourne Road Kolkata 700 001 WB India
T: + 91 33 2242 7920 / 21 F: + 91 33 2242 5487
www.kiswok.com
Unit I62/1 Bhattanagar LiluahHowrah 711 203 West BengalT: + 91 33 2651 9107
Unit III1 Kundan Lane, LiluahHowrah 711 204 West BengalT: + 91 33 2645 6892
Unit II (Foundry & Machine Shop)Unit IVBiparana Para Via Begri(Both Units inside Jalan Complax Gate No.1)Domjur,Howrah 711 411West BengalT: + 91 33 2669 6658F: + 91 33 2669 6661
>> AT KISWOK, nOTHIng HAS PrOVOKEd OUr PrIdE MOrE THAn THESE FOUr WOrdS.
Manhole Frame and Cover with customised inscription
recessed Cover
Lock Type Frame and Cover
Channel grating
All Socket Tee
Flanged reducer
Sluice Valve Profile wheel
dismantling Joint
ringer Wheel
Cambridge roll
Press roll
MAnHOLE COVErS PIPE FITIIngS And VALVES AgrICULTUrE
STrEngTHEnIng OUr rESOLVE TO MAKE IMPOSSIbLE THIngS HAPPEn.
“You mean to say that a small Indian company like yours will be able to match our international standards?”
The story of Kiswok (earlier Kejriwal Iron & Steel Works) is the story of going from buyer to buyer marketing our capabilities.
Some in India, a number of them abroad. Going without references,
making cold calls. Well before liberalization and globalization.
On most occasions, we were not given time to present our case. On the
few occasions that we were, we were told that it would be a waste of
time trusting us even with a trial order. The usual pronouncement: “You
can’t do it.”
No four words have inspired us more.
Each time we heard this, we resolved to achieve an international
quality standard and professionalism that would be nationally and
internationally respected.
We are already there.
Kiswok fact sheet• Went into business in 1957 as Kejriwal Iron & Steel Works.
• Group commissioned by Mr. S. S. Kejriwal and Mr. P. R. Kejriwal
• Extended from one plant at Girish Ghosh Road, Howrah to four
manufacturing facilities (two at Liluah and two at Domjur, Howrah, all
around Kolkata
• Services the growing needs of the automotive, engineered casting,
agriculture casting, municipal infrastructure and other industries.
Vision To become one of the most respected and valuable brands in the
castings industry in India.
MissionAt KISWOK, our mission is to use innovation in engineering products
to address the complex and dynamic demands of customers without
creating an environmental payload. Manufacturing high quality products
at optimal price points is the result of an integrated long-term strategy.
“No company has evolved from the manufacture of rolling mill spares to high grade automotive castings.”
The story of
has been the opposite.
Most companies within the castings sector are born into one product and live with it till their time is done.
From a spares manufacturer for rolling mills. To the manufacture of heavy
rollers. To a fly wheel manufacturer for rolling mills. To a manufacturer of
cast iron pipe fittings. To manhole covers. To ductile iron pipe fittings. To
automotive castings.
Each time we intended to graduate into a higher product, there was always
someone at hand to motivate us. By simply saying “You can’t do it.”
At Kiswok, we made the impossible a reality. Today, our product mix
comprises offerings for the Automotive, Pipe fittings, Sanitary castings,
Industrial and Agricultural casting industries.
Kiswok fact sheet• Invested a very small amount in plant and machinery until 1991; invested
Rs 35 crores ($7 million) in the following decade & went on to invest Rs 50
crores ($10 million) between 2001 and 2011. We also have plan to invest
further 100 crores ($20 million) with in 2013.
• Specializes in automobile castings, machined cast iron and ductile iron
casting products
>> Manufacturing milestones • Heavy rollers in 1957
• Fly wheels in 1960
• Cast Iron Pipe Fittings in 1970
• Cast Iron Manhole covers in 1973
• Ductile Iron Pipe Fittings and Manhole Covers in 2000
• Automotive castings in 2003
“It would be unrealistic for a conventional casting company to develop a customized automotive product in a month.”
The significant evolution of Kiswok from
a general castings manufacturer into a
specialized automotive castings producer
was the result of a convergence of man,
material and mindset.
This is how: when we were approached
by India’s largest commercial vehicle
manufacturer to develop a brake drum in
only a month – most people would have
taken three to six months - the logical
voice inside us said ‘You can’t do it.’ But
the risk taker inside us said ‘You can pull
it off.’
Even though Kiswok had no prior
experience of having commercialized any
automotive casting product ever in its
existence, we accepted the challenge.
We understood our client’s demanding
needs. We pooled our engineering
capabilities. We created a prototype. We
submitted to the client.
After carefully studying the prototype,
the client pronounced: “Starting order
500 pieces a month.”
Kiswok now supplies India’s largest
commercial vehicle manufacturer 50,000
brake drums a month.
Kiswok fact sheet• automotive product mix: Brake
Drum, Hub, Differential Case and Cover,
Flywheel, Gear Box and Gear Housing,
Carrier Housing, Bracket, Spacer, Clutch
Housing, Bell Housing, Intermediate
Housing.
>> Customer testimonial “What sets KISWOK apart from most of others is its attentiveness and genuine concern to understand the needs of the customer. KISWOK has fulfilled all our requirements of Brake Drums for the last several years and now has successfully ventured into supplies of machined SG Iron Axle Components. The timely delivery of products and the response we receive from them in coping with our fluctuating schedules of existing components is one of the best in the casting industry.” - Sudhanshu Mohanty AGM (Materials & ADD) TML Drivelines, Tata Motors
valuable clientSTata Motors
“It would be almost impossible exporting cast products from India.”
When we began to visit potential
international customers of casting
products in the mid Seventies, the
concept of an export-driven business
model in our sector was largely unknown.
Most companies were local. At best, they
were regional. Even a national outlook
was rare. It was at that time that Kiswok
dared to go international.
The journey was challenging. India
was not on the map for most buyers.
Those who had worked with Indian
manufacturers had no intention of doing
so again.
The broad complaint: no commitment,
no quality, no timeliness, no
competitiveness. In one sentence: “You
can’t do it.”
Kiswok persisted. We took trial orders.
We delivered successfully. We bid
for larger contracts. We delivered yet
again. We invested in our capacity
and capability. We established a brand
around dependability.
This is the result: we have shipped
casting products regularly to USA, United
Kingdom, Germany, New Zealand,
France, Italy, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and
UAE.
Kiswok fact sheet• manhole product mix: Gully Grating,
Channel Grating, Single Seal and Double
Seal cover, Lock type cover, Surface Box,
Extra Heavy duty cover for airport, Covers
with customized inscription, Air tight
– Water tight cover & frame, Recessed
cover, Step Iron
• agricultural product mix: Press Roll
and Cambridge Roll, Spacer Ring, Ringer
wheel, Breaker Ring
• Kiswok is the only company to have
won the National Trophy for Best Export
performance twice from the President of
India
>> Customer testimonial“We received unflinching support even under most adverse conditions.” - Shk Nawaf Jabor Mohammed J.Al-Thani, member of the Qatar ruling family
“Our alliance with KISWOK Industries Pvt. Ltd has spanned more than 25 years and is still going strong. We have been involved with the sale of agricultural castings, produced by KISWOK, in the UK for decades. The products are sold all through the UK to farm machinery manufacturers and as spare parts directly to farmers. A large range of castings is carried in stock by our company to service the business. The success of our partnership lies in sound technical knowledge of the various applications.” - Mr. James Robinson, Big Bolt
valuable clientS• Aljabor Trading, Qatar • Ensor Building Products, UK • Big Bolt, UK • Kramp UK Limited, UK
“It would be next to impossible to replace cast iron pipe fittings.”
>> Customer testimonial“KISWOK has been providing quality products to L&T for its prestigious water pipeline projects. Our relationship, spanning several years, gets stronger with every subsequent transaction. The reason behind the success of every relationship is a strong foundation and such is the case with us. Superior quality and committed delivery are benchmarks imbibed in KISWOK. Commitment towards “engineering innovation” and product development keeps KISWOK way ahead of its competition, a company to be reckoned with.” - Mr. S. Jaganathan, G.M. and Cluster Head, L&T
valuable clientS
• Larsen & Toubro Limited, India • IVRCL, India • Degremont Limited,
India • Ramky Infrastructure, India
When everyone in India was making pipe
fittings of cast iron, Kiswok introduced
1,000 varieties of 80 mm - 1000 mm
push-on ductile iron pipe fittings for the
first time in the country. Although the
cost per kg of ductile iron pipe fittings
was relatively higher, on a total cost
basis it was significantly cheaper than
alternatives, helping the product establish
itself in the Indian market.
Over time, we became the largest
manufacturer of ductile iron pipe fittings
in India. Today, we manufacture an
entire range of ductile iron pipe fittings,
Sluice valves and cast iron pipe fittings
comprising socketed and Flanged pipe
fittings.
A new range of Fast Fix fittings were
developed by us keeping in view the
requirements for a faster laying of push-
on joints and overcome the cumbersome
handling of the fitting due to its odd
shape. The Fast Fix range of fittings helps
save time and manpower required to fit
conventional push-on type fittings.
Innovative features of Kiswok’s range of Fast Fix pipe fittings
• Side lugs: Each socket fitting is
provided with two side lugs, which
enables the fastening of wire rope and
offers a firm grip for pulling machines
while laying and joining
• lifting loops: Lifting loops have been
provided on fittings from size DN 400
and above, which enables the easy lifting
of heavy fittings from trucks and lowering
into the trench while keeping the fittings
in a horizontal position
• thrust pad: Thrust pad has been
provided on bends of 90 and 45 degrees
for sizes 80 mm and 100 mm. Bends face
the maximum surge pressure in any pipe
line and tend to turn when pressure is
applied. The thrust pad provides more
surface area for the thrust block (made of
concrete) to grip the fitting.
“It would be foolish to invest in an international quality standard even before the local market requires it.”
General business wisdom indicates that
one should invest in a technology or
capacity after a corresponding market has
been established.
At Kiswok, we countered this convention.
We invested in superior casting
technology before a market had been
established.
Because we were convinced that India’s
large market would soon demand
superior product quality and chemistry.
Because an increasing number of
downstream buyers would soon
demand fully machined products from
fewer vendors (as opposed to sourcing
components from a large number).
In view of this, Kiswok did something
unprecedented: in 1997, Kiswok invested
significantly in an automated high
pressure moulding line, laempe core
shooters, automated sand plant, shot
blasting machine and supporting testing
equipment when nobody was doing it
and invested in a production capacity
significantly higher than the industry
average.
The result is a viable business model
through all industry cycles.
>> State-of-the-art foundry equipment
• hFm 70 high pressure moulding
line: Vacuum Squeeze flaskless
moulding line with horizontal parting;
automatic mould and flask handling
system with the speed of 90 mould per
hour (820x820x280/280 mm)
• Disa Flex 70 high pressure
moulding line: Automatic moulding
line with flask and auto core setter
along with the speed of 90 mould per
hour (900x700x300/300 mm)
• Jolt Squeeze: One set of ARPA 900
Jolt Squeeze Machine for making larger
castings (1000x1000x300/300 mm)
and 1 set of DEMAN 450 Jolt squeeze
machine to cater to the smaller
castings (650x650x200/300 mm)
• laempe cold box core System:
Three numbers of Automatic Core
Shooting Center with intensive sand
mixing plant of 40 litres, 10 litres and
5 litres capacity and a Laempe mixture
of capacity 4.2 MT
• Sand plant: Fully automated
sand plant with two muller and two
mixture with the capacity of 150 MT
per hour with online sand testing
• melting & press pour: Equipped
with Induction Furnaces which can
deliver 14 MT per hour of Cast and
Ductile Iron; ABP press pour system
for tight process control during
pouring
• Shot blasting: Two numbers of
automatic shot blasting machine to
cater to 7000 tonnes of castings a
month
“Investing in 100 per cent machined products would be unviable.”
For decades, India’s castings sector
prided on its low production cost derived
from a high manual content.
At Kiswok, we were among the first
casting producers in India to study
‘cost’ from a holistic perspective. And
this is what we found: that a one-time
investment in cutting-edge technology
would enhance production, productivity
and economy on the one hand and
provide consistent quality on the other.
Earlier, machining equipment revolved
around lathes; Kiswok invested in CNC
machines. When other companies used
pillar drilling machines, Kiswok went
ahead and used multi-head drilling
machines to increase productivity.
Soon the results began to show: Kiswok
went on to supply 50,000 brake drums
per month with a product mix of 35
brake drums which was made possible
due to its higher productivity and
flexibilty. What was once considered
impossible has now emerged as an
industry benchmark.
The result is that Kiswok is the lowest
cost producer with the highest quantity
of brake drums as a single manufacturing
unit in India today.
>> State-of-the-art machining equipment
• 70 heavy duty lathe machines.
• Nine CNC VTLs for machining
Components of upto 600 mm
diameter
• Three Multi Head Drilling Units
• Two sets of two plane Dynamic
Balancing machines
• Investing 20 crores ($4 million) in
additional CNC machines to supply
machined castings
• Investing Rs. 50 crores ($10 million)
for fully automatic machining lines
and all facilities for producing one
lakh pieces of finished brake drums
per month
“Investing in the tangible is convention. Who bothers about the intangible?”
At a time when most of the companies
concentrate on increasing their output
to make profits, we aim to invest
generously in quality control to ensure
that customers get the best quality for
the price they pay.
>> State-of-the-art testing equipment
• Equipped with two ARL Optical
emission Spectrometer having 25
channels
• Fully equipped chemical and
physical lab
• Leica Microscope with Image
analyser for accurate micro structure
reporting
• Fully equipped green sand testing
lab and a DISA sand multi controller
for online sand testing
• Three hydraulic (hydro) testing
machines for testing pipefittings of
upto 1000 mm diameter
• Two load testing machines for static
load checking on Manhole Frame/
Cover
>> Quality certification• ISO /TS 16949:2009 Certified by British Standard Institution, UK
• ISO 9001:2008 Certified by British Standard Institute, UK
>> Product certification• Kite Mark by British Standard Institution for Manhole Frame and Cover.as
per EN 124
• ISI mark for ductile iron pipe fittings as per IS 9523
• ISI mark for duct iron and cast iron sluice valves as per IS 14846
certification
“It would be dangerous running a challenging business with only net worth.”
In a capital-intensive business, a number
of players derive security from bank
borrowings that are serviced or repaid
over time.
When Kiswok first suggested that it
might be a better idea to do business
with its own capital instead, the reaction
was surprising.
For some well-meaning reasons. One,
a growing business would always
need more capital, which would be
immediately available from banks. Two,
it would be impossible to concurrently
repay debt and invest in capacity
creation.
When someone suggested “You can’t
do it”, Kiswok set about proving them
wrong.
Inspired by a conviction that every
rupee saved in interest would inevitably
strengthen cash flow. That every rupee
added to the cash flow would inevitably
strengthen terms of trade. That any
improvement in terms of trade would
reinforce competitive advantage.
The result is a zero-debt company and a
credible financial foundation leading to
business sustainability.
>> OutlookGoing ahead, Kiswok expects to clock a turnover of Rs 240 crores ($48 million)
in 2012 and emerge as a Rs. 1000 crore ($200 million) company by 2015.
2008
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982
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.86
175
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240.
00
2009
– 1
0
2010
– 1
1
2011
– 1
2(E)
Inspite of the global slowdown,
Kiswok managed to enhance its
gross turnover each year, owing
to its dependence on networth.
>> Gross turnover
(Rs.
cro
re)
When the global business environment
began to change a couple of decades
ago, one of the whispers passing around
was that our days were numbered.
Kiswok responded flexibly: the rate
of change within exceeded the rate
of change outside as the company
reinvented itself in the following ways:
• Sent promoter family members abroad
for advanced technology education
• Enlisted in ACMA’s cluster programme
to absorb industry best practices
• Evolved working in line with the
demanding 5S discipline
• Enhanced organizationwide – shopfloor
to administrative staff – transparency on
monthly production and sales
• Embarked on the exercise to graduate
promoter-centric working to a process-
driven one.
The result is that a number of industry
peers now refer to this business approach
as ‘tomorrow’s style of working.’
kiSwok haS been a promoter-Driven buSineSS organization For more than Five DecaDeS.
“It would be difficult surviving in a fast changing world.”
kiSwok’S inDuStry memberShipS
• EEPC India • Indian Foundry Association • The Institute of Indian
Foundermen • ACMA • Merchant Chamber of Commerce
“Business growth is on the top-most priority. Who thinks beyond the boundary walls?”
In a knowledge-driven castings industry,
it is often easy to forget that we are
actually engaged in a people business.
Our primary bottom line is entirely
social: taking care of our people within
the factory and those outside of it.
When we first expressed the intention to
invest in our region’s social infrastructure,
a number of industry observers expressed
the futility behind such an exercise. It
will all be wasted, they said. There is no
financial payback in this, commented
others.
At Kiswok, we went ahead regardless
because it was the right thing to do.
• We created Mirzamal Chhaganlal
Charity Trust in 1970 to fund initiatives in
the areas of education and health-care.
• We invested in educational institutions
(MCKV School and MCKV Institute of
Engineering in Howrah and Madhusthali
Vidyapeeth in Jharkhand); the institutions
now have approximately 3000 students
• We assisted primary schools in
underprivileged West Midnapore (West
Bengal) with study material, clothes and
food for 400 students and expect to
reach out to more needy students.
• We commissioned a homeopathy
outdoor unit in Ramgarh (Rajasthan)
to treat around 400 patients a day
supported by a mobile van facility.
• We established a diagnostic centre in
Howrah to cater to the health needs of
the population.
• We intend to create a vocational centre
that will teach relevant skills and enhance
employability.
• We celebrate festivals with people
• We organize an annual event for our
staff, workers and their families where we
felicitate the best performers.
The result is that Kiswok employees feel
they emotionally own the company.
Product range
brake drum manhole Frame and cover with customised inscription
recessed cover
lock type Frame and cover
channel grating
Differential case
pinion housing
bracket
castillated brake drum all Socket tee
Flanged reducer
Sluice valve profile wheel
Dismantling Joint
Differential cover
chamber bracket
Shock absorber bracket
Front hub ringer wheel
cambridge roll
press roll
gear box housing
Dummy hub
plummer block
automotive manhole coverS pipe FitiingS anD valveS agriculture