“Manufacturers must align themselves to their focused goals and invest in areas and strategies that would lead to accomplish their set goals.”
Excerpts of the interview with Mr. Vinod Nargunam, Director and Mr. Christy Selvan, Director, Scan Machineries Private Limited
Paper Mart: “Atmanirbhar Bharat is not about being self-contained or closed to the world; it is about being self-sustaining, self-generating,” PM said with the message that India is walking the path of self-reliance. How do you relate the relevance of this viewpoint for your industry in relevance to the Indian pulp and paper industry?
Vinod Nargunam: The Indian pulp and paper industry is developing at a fast pace and increasingly aiming to achieve the European standards of manufacturing, designing and supply of products to compete at a global level. The whole concept of Make in India initiative (Aatmanirbhar Bharat) means Indian manufacturers can now compete with their products and offerings by adopting self-sustainable practices such as designing and manufacturing the product in-house with just a few critical components that can be acquired from abroad; and as a whole single-handedly supplying a product that is fully designed and assembled within Indian manufacturers’ premises.
PM: What do you think are the different strategies and the kind of investment which is required to develop a globally competitive domestic supply chain in the Indian paper industry?
VN: The strategies and kinds of investments may vary from one manufacturer to another. It depends on their plans in the short term and in the long term as well. Manufacturers must align themselves to their focused goals and invest in areas and strategies that would lead to accomplish their set goals. That being said, it is always important to make sure to not place all your eggs in one basket.
“Our go-to motto has always been ‘Passion for Paper’ and we stand true to it by expanding our product line and conducting research & development in accordance with European standards for all of our products.”
PM: Please outline the recent product developments at your end and the upgradations you have introduced in the recent past at your production unit?
VN: Scan Machineries has recently developed new products and upgraded its existing line of product portfolio that can impact the pulp and paper industry both in India and overseas. Our go-to motto has always been ‘Passion for Paper’ and we stand true to it by expanding our product line and conducting research & development in accordance with European standards for all of our products. Paper mills can now join hands and partner with Scan Machineries in providing full turnkey paper mill solutions, complete paper machine lines, all sections of paper machine, headboxes and winders. Lately, Scan Machineries has been providing consultancy services for various pulp and paper mills.
PM: Smart manufacturing together with Industry 4.0 is emerging as the next step towards calibrating manufacturing for the future. What are your strategies and outlook on this technology-driven approach to monitoring and improve manufacturing performance in the paper industry?
Christy Selvan: Smart manufacturing and Industry 4.0 is indeed the future of manufacturing. Technologies as such have been evolving and changing, and will keep improving in the days to come. Manufacturers need to integrate these technologies into their manufacturing and production processes. Product performance optimization and monitoring the health of components of products in real time and suggesting suitable actions for the same will also play key roles in the future.
“Smart manufacturing and Industry 4.0 is indeed the future of manufacturing.”
PM: Modernization of the entire industry will require a huge investment to bring improvement in core competencies such as including a quantifiable increase in productivity, and quality improvement. What kind of trends do you foresee with respect to capacity expansions, quality enhancement, productivity improvements in the sector?
CS: The pulp and paper industry continues to modernize in different sectors that are critical by embracing the latest technologies and enhancements in different segments to compete both in the Local and global market. On one hand, production capacities above 400 TPD and scaling to reach international production capacities are being sought after; on the other hand, manufacturing of all types of paper grades while empowering international standards and practices in the production lines especially in packaging grades can also be witnessed in recent times.
