We envisage steel as a key component for building the nation of tomorrow. And hence goes our organisational mission of being admired as a player in nation- building, says Saket Agrawal, Managing Director, MSP Steel & Power Ltd.

What will enhance the usage of steel in the construction and infrastructure sector?

Steel is mostly used for concrete reinforcement in the construction process, however, that is not the only use. Construction technology is changing continuously.

Factors like strength, durability, corrosion, cost, versatility, and sustainability are the key differentiators. Sustainability is a major drift from the way things were built years ago. Renewable, reusable, and repeatable are how the imagined future shall be. Use of steel fits the bill perfectly. Green construction will become a mandate in another decade. The use of steel will be promoted as it can be extracted and reused.

On the design aspect, new-generation architects are using better façade in design. Cantilever designers use the same aspect in façade, subsequently use of concrete will go down, and that of steel frames will increase. When we make steel frames and use renewable material in between, it endures through both the environmental and the seasonal wear and tear.Hanging structures like platform extensions have made it inevitable to use only steel.

Light gauge steel frame is used to construct houses, quarters, schools and shelters.Construction with light gauge steel is fast picking up in Southeast Asia, and the African nations.

Indian infrastructurehas already been paced up with introduction of many projects by the ministry. Mass housing under the PMAY scheme will lead to an upswing in concrete houses in rural areas thereby leading to increased steel consumption in terms of rebars and pipes. Other than this, mass commute, high mobility intra-city connectivity and intermediate storage warehouses, which are on a binge will also contribute to the augmentation in steel adoption. 

We want to be a nation builder and participate in nation building through steel supply. More and more urban planners are giving provision for overhead pedestrian walkway in high density populace. That will need millions of tonnes ofrobust steel. Electricity distribution in rural areas is a government priority and poles will be made of steel.Railways is strategically inclined towards modernisation. Railway overbridge (ROB) andunderbridge (RUB) are an ever-expanding need. New routes for passengers as well as cargo transfers shall rely on Railways as the national carrier. All platforms under city metro expansion to connect the urban and suburban settlements will amplify the need of steel usage. We envisage steel as a key component for building the nation of tomorrow. And hence goes our organisational mission of being admired as a player in nation-building. 

How much of a role does R&D and indigenous technology play in your manufacturing process?

With this self-declared onus of becoming a major player in nation-building, we started off a journey to strengthen the manufacturing practices. Being an integrated steel player, we adopted the usage of iron beneficiation process to optimally use iron ore and domestic thermal coal for making steel.

We envision to achieve World Class Manufacturing (WCM) standards and rolled out a 5-year strategy. Engaging with the best-of-class talent, featuring the lessons on improved supply chain (TOC), impinging on the quality circle (QC) at the front-line at all our manufacturing facilities is now a trait of MSP Organizational Culture. We have scaled steps of excellence by unanimously embracing Six Sigma studies for our product quality and Kaizen culture for our process quality. We are proud to state this is a norm now. 

We have reimagined our manufacturing process and reengineered it to suit the raised bar of customer expectations. This year, we upgraded our testing labs as per standards of NABL. The RDSO surveyed us and accredited to their standards of production. Focus on ISO 45001 along with ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 is ingrained in our processes.

With the advent of Industry 4.0, we have launched a multi-pronged approach towards the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT) and Augmented Reality (AR). Our surveillance systems are upgraded to computer aided vision, and our quality monitors at processes will deploy IoT to preen out the defectives at the source. We thrive on continuous innovations. Having launched our CRM application very recently, we aim to achieve the moment of “Aha” state of Customer Delight and we will keep walking till we achieve it. 

As India deals with the second wave of Covid-19, how are you managing your supply chain and after-sales services? 

The second wave of Covid-19 has put the whole nation on backfoot, every government policy is being given a second thought in the wake of this pandemic. At MSP, we are committed to being a contributor in nation building. We rehashed the supply chain with fortified trust in the MSP Parivar and the network of supply partners. Order sizes were made flexible with multiple options on the transport vehicle forged our post- Covid market recovery. Our sales force acted nimble-foot to reinforce our trust in the market assuring brand visibility to embrace the new normal of business behaviour.

We swiftly adopted online/virtual modes of customer relationship. Proactive agility to channelise all customer communication over the virtual platforms gave us the quick migration in the post-Covid market and created the top of the mind recall for market. Initially, it was curiosity to explore the smart options; gradually we are now in skin with the virtual work mode. 

Various HR policies were modified to enable work from home. We went closer to the people and dispelled the looming fears of layoff or headcount reduction. Inspiring organisational value of teamworkmutually motivated our cohesive culture, and we sustained the first wave. The learning from last year (2020) helped us resuscitate our formidable response to the second wave pandemic. 

To overcome the economic jerks given by the second wave, we not only need the policy level intervention, but also need to contribute shoulder-to- shoulder with the people around to rebuild. Adjoining villages at our plant locations in Odisha and Chhattisgarh were the beneficiaries of the oxygen assistance, ambulance support and overall distribution of masks and sanitisers. We will continue our support till the threat is over.