Inaugurated in 2008, DPL Star is the brand name of DPL Global Private Limited which became functional in 2019, with the start of its own tube mill in Sikandrabad, Uttar Pradesh, to manufacture square, rectangle pipes and round pipes. The company gradually evolved and today, DPL Global’s factory consists of two tube mills and a fully in-house state of the art facility for quality testing. As of their recent development, the company is preparing to establish a third tube mill, with a goal to double its production capacity from 5000 – 6000 metric tons per month to 12,000 – 14,000 metric tons per month. In a recent interview with Tube & Pipe India, Mr. Shivam Agarwal, Director, DPL Global Private Limited shared his company’s business journey, recent and upcoming developments, clientele and segments catered, and future plans.

Tube & Pipe India: Kindly share the business journey of DPL Star, along with the product portfolio and USP.

Shivam Agarwal: DPL Star is the brand name of DPL Global Private Limited which was inaugurated in the year 2008, and became functional in 2019 with the establishment of a tube mill which manufactures square, rectangle and round pipes ranging from 65mm to 175mm, in thickness ranging from 1.6mm to 12mm. As we gradually progressed, we installed another tube mill, for production of tubes with diameter ranging from 15mm to 65 mm to enhance our product range. Currently, we are manufacturing sizes ranging from 25x25mm to 150x150mm in square pipes and 25mmx50mm to 200mmx150mm in rectangular pipes. In today’s gray market of steel tubes and steel pipes, specifically for square and rectangle, many businesses choose to manufacture their pipes from Patra, which reduces the production and product cost. However, our USP at DPL Global is that we do not compromise with quality while manufacturing our products, as we believe in quality over cost.

TPI: Could you walk us through the company’s manufacturing facilities, infrastructure and machinery setup along with production capacity?

SA: Our plant is situated in Sikandrabad, Bulandshahar district, Uttar Pradesh, spread over an area of around 35,000 square meters. Including the upcoming mill, the plant now consists of three tube mills and a full in-house state of the art facility for quality testing, with all the machines in compliance with BIS standards. Additionally, we have a separate area for raw material stacking, where we hold the capacity to stock raw material of around 3000 metric tons at one time, and stock the finished pipes, in both customized length or in standard lengths, of around 10,000 to 12,000 metric tons.

TPI: Please tell us about DPL Global’s clientele and the segments that the company caters to.

SA: We majorly sell our products into the trade, along with some OEM projects. Major companies like GA Infra, PNC Infratech Limited, L&T, Ion Exchange, NKG Infrastructure, Vasu Infratech, and JMC are utilizing our products. In order to cater to our clients, we procure raw material from Tata Steel, JSW Steel, and through an annual MoU with the Steel Authority of India (SAIL). We are supplying our steel square pipes as well as round pipes to the EV sector, majorly in two wheeler or three wheeler chassis manufacturing companies. Moreover, we are supplying products in various government projects like NTPC, BHEL, Airport Authority Of India, DMRC and many more.

TPI: Can you shed some light on the recent or upcoming developments at your company?

SA: To increase our turnover and cater to the larger sizes of square sectional pipes, we are installing a new tube mill manufacturing sizes ranging from 300mm to 400mm of round and square pipes. The sizes will range from 180mmx180mm to 250mmx250mm in the square section and 200mmx150mm to 250mmx150mm in the rectangular pipes. Currently, with the two functional mills we are at a manufacturing capacity of around 5000 to 6000 metric tons per month. After the installation of the new mill, our capacity would double and reach around 12,000 to 14,000 metric tons per month. In order to achieve this, we are signing MoUs with multiple companies for the procurement of raw materials from high quality sources. The trade segment is very competitive in today’s situation, with a lot of competition in price, procurement of raw materials and availability of sizes. Our company is trying to increase production, to achieve economies of scale, as well as to boost our sales of major sizes in the market. The larger diameter pipes being manufactured on the new tube mill would be ready by August 2023, while the 406mm pipes would take another 5 to 6 months more. Therefore, all production in the new mill is expected to start by the end of 2023.

Also Read: Superiority of HDPE Pipes in Hilly Areas of Himachal Pradesh

TPI: Kindly provide your insights on the current scenario and trends in the Indian tubes and pipes market.

SA: In India, steel requirement is increasing day by day, creating further scope in our country for the consumption of steel. Around 150 million tons of steel is consumed on a monthly basis in India, and this number is increasing day by day as the country’s development is only proportional to the infrastructure, that is proportional to the consumption of steel.

For constructions of bridges or other heavy structures, heavy sizes of square and rectangle pipes are used, major sizes used being 250mm x 250mm, 250mm x 150mm. Another new trend is of prefab structures, where instead of going for wooden structures or concrete cemented structures, people are now moving to prefab designs that are manufactured off-site and shipped later to assemble at the final location. A major segment where this is being used is in tourist attractions, like Uttarakhand and Shimla, where hotels and resorts are made from prefab structures. Since they are on a hilly area, we need to utilize a more strengthened material than just concrete or cement. Thus, heavy structures like 250mmx250mm square sectional pipe or 200mmx150mm rectangular sectional pipes are used for the installation of those resorts or hotels.

TPI: What are the company’s long term and short term plans for growth in the future?

SA: We have been manufacturing from 2019, with a closing turnover of INR 225 crore last year.This year, we are aiming to close around INR 400 crore. As the name “DPL Global” suggests, we aim to make the company go global and cater the global market. Therefore, in the coming days, we aim to take our company overseas and cater to international markets because there is also huge potential in Middle East areas. We are planning to begin our overseas expansion post the establishment of the third mill, because the pipes set to be produced in the third mill are in large demand in our target regions for export.