We at Grundfos make the most energy efficient pumps and though people try copying our pumps, they mostly manage only to make it look like ours. In India, this is prevalent and has meant that the replicas are highly inefficient, says Group Senior Vice President & Regional Managing Director, Grundfos Asia Pacific Region, Kim Jensen and Managing Director, Grundfos Pumps India, Ranganath N K to The Pioneer’s Vikas Kumar.
Excerpts of the conversation:
What are the challenges that the pump industry faces these days? The three major challenges?
Protectionism; I think this is everywhere. Governments around the world are promoting their domestic manufacturers. On the other hand, they expect huge investment from global players like us. The trend is on the upswing in US, Saudi Arabia and Indonesia. So, there is a lot of protectionism in large countries.
What about India?
India also has rules about the local content in some sectors, but I don’t think India is any different - as in they are similar to many large economies whether it’s Russia, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Indonesia or the US. So there are specific local approvals and content rules in each country. That’s probably the a challenge for the pump industry. However most challenges are positive to be honest – for example the world wants to consume less energy and be more sustainable. That’s a great opportunity for us, as companies can make better products. Climate change is again a great opportunity for us because places with too much water and places that have no water, both need pumps.
The second biggest challenge?
Besides protectionism, I would say is the fact that a lot of energy is consumed by pumps. Around 10% of the world’s electrical production is consumed by pumps and that’s not something that puts the pump industry in a very positive light. So, saving energy is not only a question of looking good in the media it’s about what the industry, community or individual can do to save energy that is being consumed irresponsibly. Basically help conserve energy by using solutions like efficient pumps to help save the environment.
We at Grundfos make the most energy efficient pumps and though people try copying our pumps, they mostly manage only to make it look like ours. They sell it at a cost lower than our material cost. That’s a huge challenge everywhere in the world. We are facing this problem in India as well.
Plastic reacts with heat and produces BPA an organic synthetic component which can lead to reproductive organ disorder. What are your offerings for potable water?
That is a good question. We see that in cities potable water is available through municipalities or in plastic bottles or even in pouches. But in rural parts of the world, the picture is totally different. People residing in these areas have no access to clean drinking water or even electricity. We therefore worked closely with rural communities to develop a sustainable drinking water solution called Grundfos Lifelink. It purifies surface water into drinking water and then can dispense it through a Water ATM. These solutions run on solar and therefore are sustainable as well. These systems are made in India and have been installed in the Sundarbans, Africa and Bangladesh.
