Baba Kalyani Quotes
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Bofors was a steelmaker that became a forgings company and then went on to build guns. Companies like Krupp and Thyssen were in steel and forgings before entering defence. There are similar examples in the U.K.; it is a natural progression.
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Prior to 2001, hardly any company in North America or Europe would buy from India.
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In 2014, we have some new activities and new order wins in the non-automotive space.
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I am able to compete not because my labour is cheap, but because I can use technology better than others.
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We manufacture automotive components including critical engine and axle parts for passenger cars, diesel engines and medium & heavy commercial vehicles. Till 1997, our focus was almost entirely on the domestic market with a relatively insignificant portion of revenues from exports.
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It's the adventure, the adrenaline-flowing, risk-taking in outdoor activities that attracts me.
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We should have an inclusive growth model in India. Agro-interest is also as important as industrial interest.
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We passionately set up a programme that we call the Indian gun programme. I challenged Colonel Bhatia, who heads our defence business, that let's build an Indian gun. There's a belief that Indian companies aren't capable of this, and we want to prove them wrong, as we did in components.
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We have done a lot of work on cost reduction, getting ourselves lean, reducing our breakeven, reducing our fixed cost and increasing exports. All of these factors help because our export basket is not just automotive but also includes industrial products, railways and others.
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In business, you try to minimise risk.
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At the Bangalore air show, we got a contract from Boeing for supplying structural components, and we are already supplying jet engine components to Rolls Royce. Both these are titanium-based, not steel components.
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One of the criteria for a global company is that it should have a manufacturing presence in multiple countries and should not only be an exporter.
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Our strategy should be based on indigenisation and import substitution. The government must provide opportunities for domestic companies to participate in sectors in which the country continues to depend on imports.
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The period from 2002 to 2007 was probably our best period. We created a strategy to build global scale, footprints in each of the geographies and dramatically built our international business.
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The Indian business has largely grown on the back of exports. The domestic markets, as far as our Indian business is concerned, actually have contracted because of the contraction in the medium and heavy commercial vehicle space.
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Our company is very diversified, both in terms of geography and in terms of products.
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When I returned from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1972, my father was running a forging business with a turnover of Rs 3.5 crore. But I had no patience and wanted to grow the business via exports.
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There is a feeling within our system that defence equipment can't be made here and should be imported. I wanted to break this myth, so we spent our money and made a product to prove we have capability in this country, so don't just brush us aside.
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We've made two products; one is a 155 mm 52-calibre gun with self-propelling and towing capability. This is a field gun - the mainstay of the Indian army like the Bofors guns. Our gun is similar but of a longer range. That was 39 calibre; this is 52. The calibre denotes the length of the barrel and the range.
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India has the capability to create a fairly extensive defence manufacturing capability in many areas, and as a country and as an industry, we have matured in terms of technology and capability to make this happen.
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Import and substituting imports with domestic production are a big opportunity. With a devaluation of the rupee, imports get expensive, and for Indian manufacturers, this creates a huge opportunity.
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I give strong advice, but I don't expect it to be followed.
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We need to just study what other countries have done. There are examples of a strong partnership between the defence establishment and the private industry.
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You cannot make an aircraft without forged components.