One of the leading manufacturers of specialist bearings, KCI Bearings (India) P Limited is an IATF 16949-certified business that was founded in 1970. The company offers top-notch products due to its emphasis on customisation and strict quality and validation. In this interview with Rajesh Rajgor, Bhavin Gadani, Director, KCI Bearings, shares information about the company’s products, growth plans and share in both domestic and foreign markets
Could you share a brief about KCI Bearings?
For many years, KCI Bearings has been a top OEM supplier in the domestic market for commercial vehicles. We have been providing OEMs with bearings for the last 30 years, including Tata Motors. Our OEM business partners have assisted us in expanding and getting to the point where we are now. We have all the tools necessary to manage enormous numbers and our strong internal research team supports top-notch quality. One of KCI Bearings’ USPs is that the company manufactures all the bearing components in-house, including the inner and outer races, retainers that are also known as cages and rolling elements that are also known as rollers. We have our own cage retainer and heat treatment facilities. Minimum warranty failures result from complete manufacturing control. Now, we are actively researching the specifications for electric vehicles and the modifications that would be necessary for transmission gear boxes.
How much emphasis does the company place on quality control and validation?
Our integrated factory, which assures strict quality control from heat treatment to final assembly, is the single most crucial component of our operations. KCI Bearings designs and produces everything from cages to rollers. The main goal of exceeding consumers’ quality expectations is to produce products of the highest quality. Making our operations efficient and lean helps achieve ‘zero defects’ by focusing on defect prevention. To ensure extended life in the most challenging operating situations and to establish KCI Bearings as a highly dependable brand in the automotive and textile industries, all the company’s products are designed, developed, manufactured and tested internally.
Every product developed at KCI Bearings begins with an understanding of the needs of the customer and we base our product development on these needs. The time it takes to build a product has significantly decreased thanks to modern design and infrastructure tools, which has sped up our ability to provide finished goods to clients. On endurance test rigs with online data monitoring capability for individual bearing testing, aggregate testing and benchmarking, newly produced products are evaluated and validated. There is complete internal capability for product validation and test rig production in accordance with technical specifications provided by the client. We have grown so confident in our clients over the years that we are now the exclusive providers for numerous OEMs.
Could you update us about your new products and models developed for electric vehicles?
In the electric vehicle category we have developed new products for two-wheelers in bearings and precision machined components. Apart from that, we are developing products in the applications which are there to stay in electric vehicles such as steering, shock absorbers, etc.
What about investments and improvements in manufacturing and R&D?
We are continuously benchmarking and upgrading ourselves with global standards of quality and reliability. We offer OEMs excellent value proposition by providing them world-class products that are tested by customised software and physically validated within the least amount of time. To cater to the growing demand, we have been adding capacity consistently in high-precision press, moulding machines and dedicated grinding lines for special CRBs and are setting up automatic assemblies. We have planned capex investment of Rs 25 crore over the next three years. As a part of our green energy initiative, we have already set up a 300 KW solar plant this year and another 500 KW plant is planned for the near future.
How has the business been over the past two years and what is your company’s market share?
Post the pandemic we are witnessing a huge surge in demand from all segments of the automotive sector. We have been growing by 25 per cent year-on-year since the last two years and expect this trend to continue. After the supply crisis in the post-pandemic period, many global players are looking at India as a manufacturing hub for quality products. KCI Bearings has a pan-India presence with a strong network of dealers and distributors. We are a preferred brand for OEMs that involve us at a very early design stage and we support them till the end of the product lifecycle. Whether OEMs or the replacement market, we always design our products by keeping the end user in mind. It allows us to make decisions based on long-term commitment and gives us an edge over our competitors who are there just for achieving short-term business goals. This holistic view is the reason our warranty costs are zero and minimum branding is required for KCI Bearings.
How has the company’s performance in both domestic sales and exports been?
As mentioned earlier, we are doing very well in the domestic markets by providing new products to existing OEMs while developing new customers too. We have been exporting products to Europe, the Middle East and South Asia. Now we are also targeting other developed markets, including the US.
What is your outlook for FY23-24?
Based on the current scenario and new development projects, the growth prospects are very bright for KCI Bearings. We are expecting at least 30 per cent growth for FY23-24. The company has always created an environment in which any challenge from the market is converted into inclusive growth of the company, employees and management. With such strong beliefs and values, we are surely looking towards a bright future.