Thomson Joseph, CEO, Truetzschler India reveals in an exclusive interview with Ganesh Kalidas what makes the company a pioneer in many ways – be it that the company started blow room machines’ manufacturing to mark a major milestone in the entry of Indian textile industry or the fact that they are usually the ones at the forefront to bring the knowhow of technologically-advanced machines to India, thus setting a highly competitive trend in motion. The journey of Truetzschler India from its inception till date and its competent handling of the pandemic makes up this report
Celebrating ‘Indianness’ is a value that Truetzschler India strongly believes in. And this became more than evident when Truetzschler India was found to be one of the first companies in India to be in alignment with the ‘Make in India’ concept. When they set foot in India in 1977 as part of a joint venture, they decided to make the machines in India using the knowhow received from its parent company in Germany. This work tenet has stood them in good stead over the past 43 years. The man at the helm, Thomson Joseph, has been working for the last decade to put Truetzschler India on the forefront. Since his joining the company in 2010, Joseph has never failed to dig deep into his passion for machines and technology to pave the way for Truetzschler India to thrive successfully.
Today, as the CEO of the company, Joseph is steering Truetzschler India to becoming a role model, especially in the tough times of the pandemic. Elaborates Joseph: “Did you know that the oldest running machine at Truetzschler India is a scutcher and it is roughly 41 years old? We take pride in the fact and we hold our customers’ loyalty to our machines in high esteem. It has been an exciting journey to bring new product portfolios to India and integrate them into our manufacturing production lines. We have added multiple portfolios into Truetzschler India since then. We boast of nearly the whole range of products in India which include high production card TC 15, draw frame TD 9T and TD 10 and combing machine TCO 12.”
Growth Trajectory
Truetzschler India has grown aggressively in recent years but Joseph gives the credit to his incredible team and pertinent decisions that yielded positive results. “Our vision has always been to make machines locally,” he says. “As a result of our efforts, we set up a blow room in 1981 and began manufacturing the most modern card of that time, DK 740, in 1992. Over the years, our discerning customers have realised that the India-made cards and those made in Germany offer the same Truetzschler quality for which we are known worldwide,” he adds.
Joseph further shares: “They also realised that India-made cards were economically priced compared to the ones imported while quality held the same for both. That shows the confidence our customers have in us, in our manufacturing abilities, and in the quality that we offer. That is, undoubtedly, the key strength of Truetzschler. The company began investing more in this plant over the last 15-20 years. Today, we command a sizeable market share in certain segments. And the plant is utilised to more than 80% capacity levels. Some of our products are made here exclusively for the Truetzschler Group across the world.” Truetzschler India is one of the leading subsidiaries in the Truetzschler Group with more than 900 employees and supports group companies by supplying machines and key components.
Bouquet of Products
Truetzschler India today manufactures the whole range of high-tech spinning preparatory machines from blow room to combers, maintaining the same quality as is produced in Germany. Says Joseph: “We have the latest bale opener BO-P and comber TCO 12 which is being sold in the domestic market. We produce the widest range of blow room machines in our group companies. We have also invested in recent years to expand our card clothing manufacturing facilities to increase the product portfolio. Today we produce the entire range i.e., cylinder wires, flat tops and stationary flats for our domestic market. Over the recent years we have improved our market share in the card clothing market.”
The 2020 Challenge
While the pandemic shut down industries and economies around the world, today green shoots are becoming visible indicating the re-emergence of companies and their adaptation to the ‘new normal’. For Truetzschler India, keeping communication channels open and imparting confidence to the team was top priority. Joseph explains: “We are no exception to the chaos that the pandemic caused, especially in the domestic sector, though exports were almost at par with the numbers from 2019. And that is because we have manufacturing hubs in all the major geographies across the world. The first thing we did was to open a communication channel with the senior management to share information with their own divisions and teams.”
“That way we ensured that everyone in our organisation was safe. Despite the pandemic, we had to find a way to start operations. We shared the government norms and the legal aspects involved in maintaining immunity from the pandemic. We needed some of our employees to work on the shop floor initially for which we secured the passage and the necessary permissions from the government authorities and police stations en route so that our employees could travel without hassle. We also managed to get the requisite permissions, though limited, for exporting our machines and components to our parent company. It helped that our machines cater to the hygiene and the textile industries,” he adds.
Joseph continues: “We had to give our team much needed confidence to work under the new conditions and prepare them mentally for these new challenges. We rearranged the whole seating arrangement to maintain social distancing – be it the office floor or the canteen. We reoriented the entire shop floor too. We followed all the guidelines given in the standard pandemic-related SOPs to keep our employees safe.” He acknowledges the cooperation extended by their employees and attributes the credit to them for having been able to restart operations in merely a fortnight’s time frame. He confides: “The best part was that never did any employee feel panicky because of the circumstances.”
Nonwoven – Truetzschler India’s Readiness
When it comes to nonwovens, India may still be in its infancy unlike, say, the China market. And, Truetzschler India has the capability to supply almost the whole range. But the pandemic is changing the dynamics for the nonwovens in India too. Joseph elaborates: “The world over, the market for nonwovens is booming. The pre-emptive measures for the pandemic are creating a demand in India too by way of PPEs, masks and the hygiene sector. Beyond the pandemic situation, once the nonwovens become trendy, the demand will get further generated automatically. We believe that India will catch up in a big way in nonwovens in the coming years. When it comes to geotextiles, it is slowly attracting high demand for use in the construction industry in India. So, this will also create a big demand.”
While the machines for nonwovens are not made by Truetzschler India, its many components are produced here. Truetzschler boasts of a state-of-the-art nonwoven plant in Germany, while a new factory is coming up in China. And Truetzschler India is supplying many components to these locations. He says: “We have been preparing for nonwovens by way of creating competency, manufacturing capabilities, and creating vendor bases. We are merely waiting for the market for nonwovens in India to mature. We are ready to cater to it.”
Vision 2025
Truetzschler India has identified specific product segments to achieve better penetration within the market and ready to fire on all cylinders to increase the market share in combers and draw frames by 2025. Joseph is confident and says, “Though India is a cost-sensitive market, we will be aggressively protecting our market. We will be relentlessly working towards retaining our product competence, and technology advantage. We are aware that when technology keeps upgrading, the cost also goes up and that is a challenge. Truetzschler India will work towards balancing both without compromising on the quality and reliability that we offer because for us, it is imperative that our customers continue to feel comfortable in buying our machines.” Ultimately, it is Truetzschler India’s dedication towards the ‘Make in India’ concept and its single-minded focus on customer delight which is helping them put the Indian textile industry on the global map.