Growing Together with Customers

It’s been over 70 years for Amada in the development of metal working machinery and the experience gained has only made the company increasingly confident of its originality. Its journey in India began in 1982 when sheet metal fabrication was done using traditional methods. It was then that companies like L&T, Voltas, and Godrej thought beyond conventional processes and got Amada to introduce its first NC Turret Punch Press at L&T.

Since then the company has been taking the sheet metal industry by storm and upgrading it by conducting technical seminars, KAIZEN and 5S events. “We take pride in being the market leader in India with the highest machine population,” notes Niraj Seth, President,
Amada India Pvt Ltd (AIPL).

Footprint in India

Established in April 2000, AIPL is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Amada Co Ltd, Japan, with its Technical Center in Bangalore which was set up in 2014 and presently serves as headquarter and parts warehouse. One just has to lay their eyes on the AIPL’s 32,000 sq mt, lush green Technical Center at Aerospace Park in Bangalore to have a sense of the befitting magnitude and scale of its operations. Its grandeur adds veracity to the tale of its ever ruling status in the industry. And there isn’t any room left for surprise when Seth reveals the company’s current turnover of ` 300 crore and its target of
` 370 crore.

Wide customer portfolio

The company currently enjoys catering to a myriad of business segments such as Machine Tool, Construction Machines and Aerospace. However, maximum volume of business is generated by Switch Gear, Silent Diesel Gensets, Construction Machines, Railways and so on.

AIPL’s latest products include
Fiber Laser Cutting Machine 3KW, 6KW, 9KW with automation on Laser Cutting, CNC Turret Punch Press and Press Brake with complete automation which can run unmanned. “Our unique concept of VPSS 3i (Virtual Prototype Simulation System) 3i creates digital factory environment which can help customers make their product with not so highly skilled man power without creating any scrap,” explains Seth.

According to him, AIPL sees no threat from domestic players in its main segment of Laser and Punch Press but there is some competition for the Press Brakes for the entry level product. “However, when it comes to cost performance ratio, we win. We have a strong technological product backed by best service support with quick parts delivery from our Bangalore Parts Warehouse,” he notes.

Customer engagement is the key

Amada’s impressive list of customers that includes leaders in the industry such as L&T, Kone Elevators, Johnson Lifts, Kirloskar Toyota Textile Machinery, Jyoti CNC, Kirloskar Oil Engines, Bluestar, Daikin, Panasonic, and Havells is a testimony to it being true to its philosophy of “growing together with customers”.

The company has been walking the talk of staying in touch with its customers and keeping tabs on the challenges they encounter to propose suitable solutions to them. In order to provide prompt services, it has stationed its sales and service engineers in Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Coimbatore, Hyderabad, Pune and Vadodara, and hence has become the first machine tool company to start direct sales and service in the sheet metal processing machinery.

1. Amada’s Fiber Laser Cutting Machine LCG 3015AJ.

2. Bending Machine HG 8025 is a solution with high speed and accuracy for all production environments.

Raising awareness

The company initially faced the challenge of finding skilled manpower in India to operate its high-tech machines. Educating the staff in safe machine operation to achieve optimum efficiency and safety aspects has now become its primary focus. To do that Amada has set up a vocational training center in Bangalore with dedicated machines and equipped training rooms that conducts training all year round.

“We make sure the operator gets skilled and then follow up to ensure his upgradation. Along with imparting technical training, we also educate operators to follow 5S and other best practices,” informs Seth.

Further it has also undertaken several other initiatives that prove its commitment towards the community. Donation of CNC Laser Machine and CNC Press Brake to IITM, Chennai and CNC Punch Press and CNC Press Brake to IIITDM, Jabalpur by Amada Headquarters are just a few examples. “The company is keen on students from these premium institutions to get exposed to and study these latest technologies and practices in the sheet metal fabrication process. Amada has been doing is in other countries as well,” concludes Seth with a contagious vibe of supporting worthy causes.