We listen to our customers and work for them.

What are you doing to integrate heat dissipation your bearings?

Not only heat dissipation but achieving better mileage is our objective. We have developed low torque bearing to ensure proper lubrication through grease, which we are supplying to many OEMs for their motor and wheel applications. We have developed both ball and taper roller bearings for lower torque and better heat dissipation.

What is your market vision?

Approximately 60 per cent of our sales is in automotive; 30 per cent in Railways and balance 10 per cent in industrial sector. Since automotive is the biggest contributor to our business, the requirement has become more stringent in terms of environment concerns, higher fuel efficiency and end users being vibration sensitive. We have already bearings compliant to these norms and others are under development and we are restudying our designs for optimisation. In future we expect newer bearing materials, which might not require any grease for lubrication such as one being made for space applications. Currently, these bearings are very expensive as they are gold plated but in automotives we are experimenting with ceramics.

Current concern of Railways is the “hot box” i.e. the bearing should not fail on the track. As such it should have the capability to be detected before failure. We have developed high technology bearings for these applications and the bearing failures have reduced by nearly 90 per cent! Nearly one-tenth from before.

Over the past five years we have invested a colossal Rs 1,000 crore towards improving our manufacturing systems and capabilities to deliver still better bearings to our customers.

Do you have any plans of manufacturing non rolling friction bearings?

No. We do not have any plans for such bearings which are used in engines because the technology is very different.

How do you visualise FY 2016?

For the past five years we have been the fastest growing bearing company in India and we will continue to be. However, in 2016 our growth rate will be lower because the commodity prices are volatile, industry scenario is low and even the poor monsoon last year has resulted in a low rural demand for Motorcycles, Tractors and small cars.