Riding high on innovation and out-of-the-box ideas, Parth Equipment Limited plans to enhance its annual manufacturing capacity from current 80-100 machines to 125-135 machines in 2024. Mr. Parth Shah, Technical Director of Parth Equipment Limited, revealed during an exclusive interview with Tube & Pipe India that they have carved a niche for themselves in the tube industry by catering to both industrial and ornamental sectors.

Tube & Pipe India: Kindly walk us through the illustrious business journey of Parth Equipment Limited, highlighting major milestones and crucial achievements.

Parth Shah: Parth Equipment Limited was started by my father, Mr. N.T. Shah, in 1987. After completing his M.Tech degree in Mechanical System Design from IIT Bombay in 1979, he joined Gujarat Steel Tubes Limited to get technical know-how about the tubes industry, before starting his own venture. He has so far designed and produced many components for various industries, including the plastic industry. In around 1990, we got our first requirement for a tube mill. From then onwards, we have made machinery exclusively for the tube industry. We faced a tough time during the Covid-19 pandemic, but the market has been very good after 2021. Parth Equipment has grown extensively in the past 37 years. We started with one running plant and today we have five running plants. We keep on adding 2-3 machines to our product range every year.

TPI: Please give information about your product portfolio. What is your annual production capacity?

PS: We are a leading manufacturer of machines, mainly for the tube industry. There are two types of tube machinery markets in India – carbon steel and stainless steel. The difference lies in steel grade and manufacturing-welding process. While carbon steel (ERW pipes) are manufactured using HF welding, the production of stainless steel tubes involves arc welding. We have been in the stainless steel industry since 1990-91. We are well-known and respected for supplying high-quality machines to almost all tube manufacturing companies established after 1986. Our major clients include Ratnamani Metals & Tubes Limited, Prakash Steelage Limited, Suraj Limited etc. We entered the carbon steel machinery branch in 2000, and have carved a niche for ourselves in that segment too.

Stainless steel tubes were earlier used for industrial purposes only, such as in reactors, heat exchangers etc. Nowadays, there is a huge market for ornamental tubes. These are used in railings and furniture. In ornamental tubes, finishing is more important than welding. The outer look matters more than the inside of the tube. We face competition from China in this segment. Our mills were initially designed for industrial purposes. Around 10 years back, we developed mills for the exclusive production of ornamental tubes. Now we have a separate product range of ornamental tubes. We are doing well in that sector as well. Sometimes, the mills we supply are cheaper than Chinese mills. Our current annual manufacturing capacity is 80-100 machines. We are planning to make 125-135 machines this year. We keep some of the components of our fast-moving machines ready, so that we can supply these market-driven machines on a priority basis.

TPI: Please tell us the process and requirement to develop a highly innovative and state-of-the-art machine.

PS: Development of a new machine requires time and investment. First of all, you need a client, who is willing to be part of the process and respects the timeline. It takes 10-12 months to develop a new machine. The design process alone takes around 4-5 months. We have to study the end requirement, input and the different methods, which can be used to go from point A to B. Then we select an optimum method. My design team plays the most important part of the development. We have a wonderful team of design engineers, which comprises my father, me, my brother, and people with a similar mindset. Both me and my brother are second-generation IITians. I completed my M. Tech in Machine Design from IIT Madras in 2007. My brother, Mr. Arth Shah, completed his M.Tech (Honors) in Mechanical System Design from IIT Kharagpur in 2014. Our research team keeps conducting brainstorming sessions and comes up with excellent ideas.

The Indian tube and pipe products are sold more in the European and American market today than 10 years back.

TPI: Kindly tell us more about your market footprint and major clientele.

PS: We have been exporting our products since 1993. We supply machines to our clients in the Middle East, Indonesia, South East Asia, East Africa, South Africa, South America, North America, and East Europe.

TPI: What is your USP that gives you an edge over others?

PS: Our advantage is our capability to design, adopt, and come up with a solution to develop a machine, which is most suitable to the requirements of our client. Over the years, we have marked our presence in both industrial and ornamental sectors. We have diversified and positioned ourselves as a strong competitor to Chinese machine manufacturers/suppliers. We have a well-thought strategy and a perfect roadmap to continue our steady growth and expand our business.

TPI: Please share your views on the Indian tube and pipe industry. Also give information about the challenges you face in smooth running of your business.

PS: I’ve been in the tube and pipe Industry for almost 20 years. The industry has completely changed in the past two decades. The quality which was acceptable some 10-15 years ago, is not acceptable now. People are now looking for high-quality products, which is a good thing. This has resulted in better recognition of our products, especially in foreign markets. The Indian tube and pipe products are sold more in the European and American market today than 10 years back. The industrial players have understood the need to supply quality goods. Quality has always been our advantage. We fall in that category, where customers come up with specific requirements related to quality and tolerance. However, there is a certain segment in India, wherein people are not ready to pay more for high quality. To manufacture better quality products in the same price range as low-quality products is indeed challenging, but we have managed to satisfy all our customers. When I joined the industry, there were 10-15 machine manufacturers. The number has now increased to 25-30 companies. There is healthy competition in the industry now. We look forward to growing with the industry in future.

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TPI: Kindly share your experience at the second edition of Tube & Pipe Fair 2024 in Hyderabad.

PS: Parth Equipment Limited is extremely happy to be part of TPF 2024. We have been associated with Tube & Pipe India for almost two years now. The depth in your publications, I have not seen in other publications. We participated in the debut edition of Tube and Pipe Fair in Delhi last year. This has always been a wonderful experience. Though I don’t know the statistics, the stalls are really good and I’m sure they are attracting a good number of visitors as well. Overall, a fantastic show.