Walter, Starrag team up to help small, medium units upgrade technology
Walter AG of Germany and Starrag Group of Switzerland have joined hands to tap business opportunities in the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) segment.
The two multinationals with significant India presence showcased their latest cutting-edge tooling solutions, technologies and machining centres to over 50 SMEs at an event in Hyderabad on Wednesday.
They said their solutions will help SMEs upgrade technology and products in the sectors of turbine blades, machining tools and energy.
Walter Tools India, a subsidiary of the German company with headquarters in Pune, is a leader in metal cutting and has a revenue of Rs 125 crore. Starrag India, with manufacturing facilities in Aerospace Park in Bangalore, has expertise in turbine blades.
Thomas Schaarschmidt, Manager Energy, Business & Application Development, Walter, said the global energy demand is expected to surge from the existing capacity of 3,500 GW to 7,000 GW by 2030. India will account for at least 25 per cent (1,700 GW) and therefore the demand for turbines will be substantial, he told reporters.
At present, the installed capacity in India is around 225 GW. There is an additional demand of 25,000 MW a year, while the addition is just about 12,000 MW.
With the Indian Government keen on pushing reforms, Starrag wants to emerge as a big player. “We have new technologies and efficient steam turbine blades that can minimise power generation losses. A new factory to produce machine tools has been commissioned recently,” said AN Chandramouli, Managing Director India.
Through the collaboration, the companies plan to provide latest technologies and products for turbines.
In the next 10 years, the target is to bring in 100 Starrag machines that can replace the nearly 500 old operating machines in the country. Every Starrag machine has 40 Walter tools inside, he added.
Source: The Hindu Business Line
