Krishna Industries rises up to the PM's call for 'Make in India'
After months of R&D and support from the DRDO, the company manufactured very typical sections called DMR 249A Bulb Bars known for their high tensile strength and extreme toughness.
Sep 17, 2014 03:09 IST India Infoline News Service
It started with the vision to make India a part of the small group of countries that produce their own steel for ships. The Indian Navy was looking to substitute their imports of Steel Sections from Russia by developing and manufacturing the same within India.Krishna Industries, headed by its Chairman Ashwin Shah rose to the occasion and accepted the challenge. After months of R&D and support from the DRDO, the company manufactured very typical sections called DMR 249A Bulb Bars known for their high tensile strength and extreme toughness. The key feature of these DMR 249A Bulb bars is that they have a unique shape giving it a very high strength to weight ratio, thus reducing the overall weight of the Ship which in turn would aid in carrying more ammunition and manpower without comprising the ship’s strength. Bulb Bars (steel) are used for construction of warships by Indian Navy. India would now become only the 5th country in the world to design and build a Ship from its own steel. Even a country like China with the manpower and manufacturing capabilities, has yet to achieve this great feat.
Speaking on the occasion, Shah beams with pride. “It was never an easy task. This steel section was being developed for the first time in the country. But impossible isn’t a word in our dictionary. The initial attempts weren’t very encouraging but we did not give up. We kept pushing for further trials and that was the game changer. The biggest challenge during manufacturing was to Heat Treat these sections, as these are tested at sub-zero temperatures”. Krishna Industries developed a unique facility at Halol, Gujarat dedicated only for producing these sections. The facility is state of art technology with complete automation. The fuel used by the facility is completely green with Zero Emissions to the environment. He adds, “Infact, the day is not far when the Halol plant will be solar powered as we believe in sustainable technological advancement”.
It was a proud feat for India when the Navy no longer has to depend on imports for these bulb bars. It also meant not sharing the naval ship details with a non Indian entity. The award was handed over to Ashwin Shah, Chairman of Krishna Industries by Hon’ble Prime Minister, Narendra Modi in the august presence of Arun Jaitley, Hon’ble Union Minister for Finance, Defense and Corporate Affairs and a galaxy of dignitaries in a brief ceremony held at DRDO Bhawan in New Delhi.
At the award ceremony, Mr Ashwin Shah seized the opportunity and said to the PM, “Sir, you had said Come, make in India and I am proud to say yes we made it in India!”
Speaking on the occasion, Shah beams with pride. “It was never an easy task. This steel section was being developed for the first time in the country. But impossible isn’t a word in our dictionary. The initial attempts weren’t very encouraging but we did not give up. We kept pushing for further trials and that was the game changer. The biggest challenge during manufacturing was to Heat Treat these sections, as these are tested at sub-zero temperatures”. Krishna Industries developed a unique facility at Halol, Gujarat dedicated only for producing these sections. The facility is state of art technology with complete automation. The fuel used by the facility is completely green with Zero Emissions to the environment. He adds, “Infact, the day is not far when the Halol plant will be solar powered as we believe in sustainable technological advancement”.
It was a proud feat for India when the Navy no longer has to depend on imports for these bulb bars. It also meant not sharing the naval ship details with a non Indian entity. The award was handed over to Ashwin Shah, Chairman of Krishna Industries by Hon’ble Prime Minister, Narendra Modi in the august presence of Arun Jaitley, Hon’ble Union Minister for Finance, Defense and Corporate Affairs and a galaxy of dignitaries in a brief ceremony held at DRDO Bhawan in New Delhi.
At the award ceremony, Mr Ashwin Shah seized the opportunity and said to the PM, “Sir, you had said Come, make in India and I am proud to say yes we made it in India!”
