As lightweighting, emission regulations, and electrification reshape the automotive landscape, aluminium has emerged as a critical material for next-generation mobility. Craftsman Automation, a well-established name in Indian manufacturing, has been steadily expanding its aluminium capabilities to meet these evolving demands. From a modest sand-casting beginning to a large, integrated aluminium ecosystem, the company’s journey reflects both strategic foresight and manufacturing depth.
Speaking exclusively to MOTORINDIA, Srivardhan Krishnakumar, Chief Operating Officer – Auto Aluminium Division, outlined how the division was born, how it has scaled, and how it is preparing for a multi-powertrain future.
From Sand Casting to a Strategic Aluminium Vertical
Craftsman’s entry into aluminium manufacturing was driven as much by customer demand as by supply-chain realities.
“Craftsman today operates across three core business verticals—automotive powertrain, automotive aluminium, and industrial engineering,” Srivardhan said. “Our journey in aluminium began with a small sand-casting foundry established in 2000 to support our engineering customers.”
At that stage, the company’s role was largely limited to machining aluminium components that were imported, primarily from China. However, global supply-chain dependencies soon began to concern customers.
“As customers started seeking alternative and more resilient global supply chains, we saw an opportunity to integrate backwards and set up our first aluminium foundry,” he explained. “Volumes were modest initially, but this marked our entry into aluminium manufacturing.”
This early step laid the foundation for what would later become one of the company’s most important growth engines.
Scaling Up: The Aluminium Inflection Point
The real transformation of Craftsman’s aluminium business came more than a decade later.
“The aluminium business scaled up significantly from 2014–16, when we made parallel investments in high-pressure and low-pressure die casting at our Coimbatore facility,” Srivardhan said. “This phase was a major inflection point for us.”
From annual volumes of around 2,500 metric tonnes in its early years, the aluminium division has expanded dramatically.
“Today, our installed aluminium capacity has grown to approximately 1,40,000 tonnes per annum, which accounts for the bulk of our aluminium growth,” he noted. While the company itself is 40 years old, Srivardhan pointed out that the aluminium vertical has seen its most rapid growth in recent years. “The predominant expansion in aluminium has really accelerated in the last few years, as customer requirements and regulatory drivers have converged.”
An Integrated Supply Chain Advantage
One of Craftsman’s key differentiators in aluminium manufacturing is its fully integrated supply-chain model.
“Today, we are among a select group of suppliers offering an end-to-end aluminium solution,” Srivardhan said. “From in-house mould development to casting and machining, we can control the entire value chain.”
This integration provides significant agility in responding to customer needs. “We have a dedicated tool room and an engineering centre where we design and manufacture our own moulds, fixtures and special-purpose machines,” he explained. “That gives us the flexibility to respond quickly when customer requirements change.”
In an environment where OEMs demand shorter development cycles and rapid iteration, this capability has become increasingly critical. “The market today is extremely agile. We have to be quick to change direction when the customer does,” he added.
Mastery Across Casting Technologies
Craftsman’s aluminium operations span all major casting processes, a capability that remains rare in the Indian supplier ecosystem.
“We operate across high-pressure die casting, low-pressure die casting, gravity die casting, Counter pressure casting and sand casting,” Srivardhan said. “Very few suppliers are present across all these processes.”
This breadth allows the company to cross-leverage metallurgical expertise and manufacturing know-how.
“We can apply our metallurgy experience from sand and gravity casting into high-pressure die casting, and also use the scalability of high-pressure die casting where required,” he explained. “That gives us a distinct advantage in terms of both quality and supply reliability.”
Customer Segments and Market Presence
Craftsman’s aluminium components today serve a wide spectrum of applications.
“From a market perspective, our aluminium business caters to passenger vehicles, two-wheelers, commercial vehicles, and industrial engineering applications,” Srivardhan said.
While industrial engineering draws from multiple verticals within the company, automotive applications continue to be the primary growth driver for aluminium.
Aluminium and the Emissions Imperative
A major reason for Craftsman’s sustained investment in aluminium lies in its role in emission reduction.
“We believe aluminium in India is still in a sunrise phase,” Srivardhan said. “One of the biggest drivers is the push to reduce automotive emissions.”
With the implementation of Corporate Average Fuel Efficiency (CAFE) norms in India, OEMs are under increasing pressure to cut emissions per vehicle.
“There are two broad ways to achieve this,” he explained. “One is through advanced combustion and emission technologies, which require significant R&D and validation. The other is vehicle lightweighting.”
Lightweighting, he stressed, plays a crucial role. “Reducing vehicle weight directly impacts fuel efficiency and emissions, and aluminium is central to that strategy.”
He also highlighted the significant gap between India and advanced markets. “When you benchmark aluminium content per vehicle in India against Europe and North America, there is a huge gap. That represents a major opportunity for domestic growth as well as exports.”
Portfolio Evolution: ICE Today, EV Tomorrow
Despite the growing focus on electrification, Craftsman’s aluminium portfolio remains largely anchored in internal combustion engine (ICE) platforms.
“Currently, the majority of our product portfolio is still in the typical ICE platform,” Srivardhan said. “EV penetration in India is still taking shape.”
The company supplies aluminium components for engine platforms across passenger vehicles and two-wheelers, with limited exposure to commercial vehicles.
In terms of revenue mix, ICE continues to dominate. “On the engine side, we have a good share of revenue coming from ICE,” he said. “EV penetration on our side is still marginal, primarily in two-wheelers.”
He pointed out that EV penetration in India currently stands at around 5–6 percent for two-wheelers and less than 2 percent for passenger vehicles.
Lightweighting as a Current Growth Lever
While EV adoption may take time, lightweighting is already a strong area for Craftsman.
“We supply aluminium components related to transmission and structural applications,” Srivardhan said. “We are also present in the two-wheeler wheel market.”
The company has recently added capacity for aluminium alloy wheels, which combine structural strength with weight reduction. “Alloy wheels are a classic example of lightweighting with functional benefits,” he noted. Craftsman also supplies other structural aluminium components for passenger vehicles.
Preparing for EV Platforms
Looking ahead, Srivardhan expects EV adoption to accelerate over the next five to six years, especially in two-wheelers.
“Two-wheelers might move faster, with EV penetration potentially reaching 25–30 percent,” he said. Passenger vehicles, however, are likely to take longer. “There are many variables at play, but we’ll be ready when the market catches up.”
Manufacturing Flexibility for a Multi-Powertrain Future
With EV platforms demanding tighter tolerances and complex geometries, Craftsman is building flexibility into its manufacturing systems.
“As a supplier, we have to be ready for any powertrain that comes to us,” Srivardhan said. “When we select equipment, we ensure it can produce ICE, EV, hybrid, or other powertrain components.”
This philosophy extends to capital investment decisions. “We like to keep our capacities fungible,” he emphasised.
He explained that this starts right at the supplier engagement stage. “From the DAP side, we tell suppliers, ‘You provide us a solution,’ and we evaluate it across three or four product platforms.”
Engineering Ecosystem and Quality Focus
Complex EV geometries demand advanced tooling and process control, areas where Craftsman’s in-house engineering plays a vital role.
“For complex geometries, we rely heavily on our ability to produce our own moulds,” Srivardhan said. “High-pressure die casting with tight tolerances requires extremely high-quality dies.”
Beyond tooling, the company also designs and manufactures its own spm machines. “Our special-purpose machine division helps us address specific inhouse requirements driven from customer expectations.,” he explained.
Quality systems are being strengthened in parallel. “We are focused on getting our quality labs NABL certified,” he said. “We already have two NABL-certified labs and have set an internal target to extend this across all our facilities.”
Sustainability: Materials and Energy Choices
Sustainability remains a key challenge for aluminium foundries, but also a major focus area.
“This is a challenge for anybody in the foundry business,” Srivardhan acknowledged.
One major lever is the increased use of secondary aluminium. “We are actively engaging with customers to maximise the use of secondary aluminium wherever application requirements permit,” he said. “Secondary aluminium reduces energy consumption by nearly 75–80 percent compared to primary aluminium.”
Currently, secondary aluminium accounts for around 45–50 percent of Craftsman’s aluminium usage.
The company is also transitioning fuel usage. “We are converting from LPG to PNG wherever gas is used in melting and processing,” he added.
Global Exposure and Benchmarking
Craftsman actively leverages global platforms such as Euroguss and Alucast to stay aligned with global trends.
“Euroguss is one of the largest platforms for aluminium peers worldwide,” Srivardhan said. “It allows us to interact with customers, suppliers, and technology providers in one place.”
Such exposure is particularly valuable for an India-centric manufacturer. “It helps us benchmark ourselves against Europe and North America and understand where global technology is heading,” he noted.
He also highlighted regional differences in vehicle architecture. “North America is truck-heavy, while Europe focuses more on SUVs and sedans. Understanding these differences gives us a holistic view of safety, powertrain, and casting technologies.”
A Sunrise Opportunity for India
Looking ahead, Srivardhan believes aluminium will play a defining role in India’s automotive growth story.
“In India, we see a multi-fuel, multi-powertrain future,” he said. “Modern ICE engines, hybrids, EVs, CNG—all of them will coexist.”
With vehicle volumes expected to grow across segments, the opportunity for aluminium is substantial. “If passenger vehicles grow from 4 million to 6 million units, two-wheelers from 20 million to 25 million, and commercial vehicles begin adopting lightweighting, the opportunity is phenomenal,” he concluded.
“We are well-positioned to capitalise on it. This generation has a great opportunity to take the right direction.”