According to company president Shailesh, air conditioning and commercial refrigeration leader Blue Star Ltd hopes business will improve from the second quarter of 2021-2022 after being hit hard by the second wave of COVID-19, associated with a “bad summer season”. Haribhakti.

Having learned the lessons of the pandemic on the need to mitigate the risks of geographic concentration and seasonality, the company is now focused on growing its exports and also plans to participate in production-related incentive programs (PLI ) announced by the government through a new subsidiary.

It is also investing around Rs 130 crore in a new freezer and water cooler manufacturing plant in Wada, Maharashtra, which is expected to be commissioned towards the end of 2021.

“The sudden turn of events resulting from the emergence of the second wave of COVID crippled the economy and our businesses in the first quarter of fiscal 22, and we had to face another bad summer season,” wrote Haribhakti in his address to shareholders in the company’s annual report. report for 2020-2021.

He said, however, “With renewed national focus on strengthening health infrastructure and an accelerated vaccination campaign, I hope things start to improve from the second quarter of FY22.”

Haribhakti said that with the momentum gained at T4FY21, the company “looks forward to a great summer season. In addition, the Union budget announced on February 1, 2021 is expected to put India on a very high growth path. “before the onset of COVID. -19 second wave.

Commenting on the way forward, Blue Star Vice President and General Manager Vir S Advani said: “In the post-pandemic world it is becoming increasingly clear that we need to focus on risk mitigation. geographic concentration and seasonality. “

In this context, he added, “the growth of our exports is essential. In fiscal year 21, we further consolidated our position in the Middle East, North Africa and North Africa regions. SAARC and continued to invest in building the Blue Star brand in the Middle East. “

In addition, he said, “we are ODM (original design manufacturer) partners for a few international brands. The upcoming EXPO 2020 in Dubai and the FIFA tournament in Qatar continue to offer growth opportunities.”

Advani added that Blue Star will also participate in the PLI programs announced for many product categories by the government under the “Aatmanirbhar Bharat” program.

“The company’s newly formed subsidiary, Blue Star Climatech Ltd, will participate in the PLI program for some of the components it will manufacture at its new manufacturing unit being installed in Sri City,” he added.

The company is also in the process of setting up a new freezer and water cooler manufacturing plant with an investment of around Rs 130 crore in Wada, Maharashtra.

“This new plant, which is expected to be commissioned towards the end of 2021, is expected to have the capacity to produce approximately 2,000,000 freezers and 1,000,000 storage water chillers per year,” Advani said.

Emphasizing the need for a digital push in the era of COVID-19, Advani said: “This has become particularly important. As the Kala Amb factory has become a “smart factory”, all of our factories are now IoT compatible, resulting in increased efficiency. improvement and cost reduction initiatives. “

As digital investments will continue at an aggressive pace throughout the value chain, he said, “The next frontier to master will be the exploration and analysis of customer data. are part of the DNA of the organization, are essential to securing our future. “

Haribhakti has identified improving competitiveness in all business sectors as a top priority “to improve our market share in India and international markets” and the company has launched several strategic programs in this direction.

These include investments in R&D, Industry 4.0, capacity expansion, supply chain risk reduction and digital initiatives including customer analytics and process automation. robotic processes, among others.

“We aim to increase our market share in India by expanding our distribution reach and making the Blue Star brand relevant to new emerging customers in the B2C and B2B segments. We will also continue to make significant investments in brand building, ”he said.

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