Confident to Mark a Strong Growth This Year

Customer service was upheld as our prime motto to excel and differentiate ourselves from the competitors, shares D Raju, Managing Director, Kirby Building Systems India in a conversation with Veena Kurup

What was the impact of the economic volatility which clouded the pace of construction industry last year? Did this scenario have an impact on your company?
We achieved our annual targets despite a slow pace in the economy and the hurdles in construction sector. The company adopted new aggressive sales and marketing strategies to counter the market, where very few projects were being finalized. Moreover, the competition to grab order even at very low prices became intense. All the enquiries were dealt with utmost importance and effective communication activities were implemented to deal with the customers. Customer service was upheld as our prime motto to excel and differentiate ourselves from the competitors, which assisted us in maintaining the dominance over Indian market.

Tell us more on the unique technologies equipped by Kirby India in ensuring efficiency during the set-up, installation and maintenance of your preengineered buildings (PEB)?
Kirby India has always been in the forefront of innovations by investing in new production technologies, and evaluating the performance through continuous product development.
The heightened emphasis on green building construction is also poised to push the market expansion. For instance, to increase energy-efficiency, Kirby has developed high efficiency windows and insulation for roofs, walls, ceilings and floors. The use of sky lights and solar panels on rooftops, while meeting the daylight and captive power requirements, also reduces emissions and helps in gaining carbon credits under the clean development mechanism (CDM). Effective usage of insulation materials, louvers etc also help in making Kirby Buildings into green structures. All the materials used in making of Kirby buildings are recyclable and are not harmful to the environment. Kirby always looks forward to be a part of the eco-friendly products and ongoing green revolution in the construction industry.

The heightened emphasis on green building construction is also poised to push the market expansion

How do you address demands for architectural and aesthetic values in the PEB segment?
In a B2B model, the major considerations are on-time supply, quality and price. All these aspects are very much valid for a B2C model as well, but aesthetics or architectural appeal and customization play a major role. In the developed markets, PEB is already being used for low rise structures (G+5) such as offices, hospitals, retail malls, housing and resorts etc. However in India, PEB is yet to venture into these areas. I am confident that the PEB industry would meet the required levels of aesthetics and customization in the near future. For instance, over the past five years, we have made technical improvements in product cost, construction time and aesthetic efficiency. The company has incorporated curved roof panels, wall claddings, flashings, aluco-bond panels or other such features to improve the aesthetics of the building. These improvements allow much more pleasing aesthetics to be added to the pre-engineered steel buildings.

Take us through your growth in the market share.
Kirby Building Systems India Ltd has a capacity of 200,000 million tonnes per annum. This makes the company a leading player in the Indian PEB market, with a market share of over 31 percent. The company has evolved from a mere PEB manufacturer to a total solution provider for customer needs. We are optimistic about the growth of PEB industry in 2014 and confident that Kirby India will also achieve a strong growth compared to last year.