The textile industry in South India is generally believed to be quite conservative. However, in recent years these industries have undergone several changes with their upgrading of machineries and installing and replacing manual methods with electronics.
The Naren Group of Coimbatore deals in all electronic and mechanical accessories. In the textile vertical, it mostly deals in retrofits for older machines and in items for electronic upgradation of imported machines.
Interacting with The Textile Magazine, Mr. R. Sundarraj, Managing Director of the Naren Group, refers to the bright prospects for the company as well as the industry. Markets throughout the country remain dull at the moment, barring the northern region which is getting into an expansion mode.
Asked for his views on this emerging trend, he says that most of the northern units have raw materials of their own, and they have full backing of the Government for expansion or starting of fresh units. Recently, around 75 new units have come up in Gujarat.
Mr. Sundarraj says that though the textile industry is not doing well at the moment, the Naren Group is indeed moving ahead. The group is very particular that the products marketed and agencies appointed by it are done with utmost care. It expects to achieve a monthly production target of about Rs. 250 million. However, the export performance of the company is not that good. Operating from Coimbatore, it does well in catering to the domestic markets.
The Naren Group has countrywide operations, with agents appointed at all important centres. Since Sundarraj’s take-over, there has been a total vertical growth of about 30-40 per cent.
Mr. Sundarraj further says that the huge challenge of belting from Chiorino of Italy was readily accepted by the company which strove hard to succeed in the project. These products are quite huge in size, and a lot of hard work goes into making them effective and reliable. At the moment, the prime focus is on belting.
The electronic segment of the company was started in 2004. In 2008 the company got itself associated with Autonics of Korea. Recently, it also tied up with Delta of Taiwan and Baumer of Germany. By using these world class products the company is able to do a lot of automation and system integration work so as to meet growing customer requirements. It is also jointly working with a few of top OEMs in the city.
Talking about the future of Coimbatore industries, he says: “Upgradation and innovation will keep their general operations alive. We want to focus on automation, mostly electronics and belting, and look forward to moving ahead with changing times. Very soon, we will see the company coming up with new customized and eco-friendly products, which will give the customers a greater range of choice.”
The optimism expressed by Mr. Sundarraj will definitely reflect on the expected growth of the company in the days ahead.