Premier Laser is one of the leading providers of fiber metal laser cutting, welding and marking machines in India with infrastructure spread over 30,000 Sqr feet in Mumbai & Bangalore. The company is perfectly positioned for providing solutions for metal laser cutting machines, ranging from job solutions to complete equipment’s on turnkey basis. Its Bangalore facility also houses a demo laser cutting machine where the customer can have a look at the quality as well as trails on their specific requirements can be conducted under control supervision. The infrastructure is designed to facilitate integration of CNC laser machines along with providing training and hands-on experience on the equipment. In an interview with Machine Tools World, Murtaza Eranpurwala, Marketing Director gives a ringside view of the company’s eminence in laser technology and the cutting-edge solutions it provides to the customers at large. Excerpts:
Q. Please brief us about company’s global reach & what are the global alliances that has been made in order to out-front the competition?
Premier has always been at the forefront of technological advances and implementation of the same in its equipment. With that in mind, the company has always worked towards having strategic partnerships and collaborations with key players globally.
Premier has been working with QiaoLian for the supply and services of CNC Laser machines in India since 2016. We have also expanded our footprint in the Middle Eastern region by actively looking and working on collaborations with technically like-minded organizations. The future plans of the company involve having a sizable presence in the African markets.
Q. What are the market prospects for the PREMIER LASER products in India and How do you plan to position these products?
The overall market prospects are good for the entire laser industry, with the push towards “Atmanirbhar Bharat” and a significant uptake in the manufacturing sector over the recent years, especially post covid years, the markets look positive.
Premier has always been in the field of metal fabrication, since 1972, where Gas cutting method was the most prominent method for sheet metal cutting; since then Premier has always identified key areas where there was lack of technological advancement or to say lack of affordable technological advancements.
We at Premier had noticed a trend, where the markets were either flooded with cheap imports or high value European equipment’s the result of which was that the MSME sector was either stuck with underperforming equipment’s or with overpriced equipment’s that put a financial load on the company; with such data in hand, Premier decided to provide equipment’s that are at par with the Euro standards and at the same time affordable in range, thus allowing the average manufacturer to be competitive in his field by lowering investment costs and cost of production.
Premier Laser machines have always been offered as High quality equipment’s, the price of which are slightly higher when compared to cheap Chinese imports, the reason being each of our machines are manufactured as per the strict standards set by us, also undergoing various processes to ensure optimum quality and performance, moreover the components used are of high grade giving long life and reliability over the lifespan of the equipment. Premier laser products are also backed up by the service network of the company, where spares and consumables are kept available either at the Mumbai head office or at Bangalore technical center. The overall plan is to integrate and supply of laser machines which have long life, high productivity life & are also service & user friendly.
Mustafa Eranpurwala, Technical Director
It is extremely important that a good product be supported by great service backup, providing timely and prompt service has always been a cornerstone for Premier’s customer service, and probably that’s why Premier enjoys the luxury of many repeat and faithful customers.
Q. Can you brief us about the marketing strategies that were applied in order to stand out in the competition of the industry?
Premier is currently in expansion mode, and from marketing points we are constantly working towards expanding as well as upgrading our sales and service staff, apart from this company also plans to spend a significant budget proportion on attending trade fairs in India with the sole purpose of displaying the advancements in the field of laser cutting, marking and welding equipment’s.
Q. Please elucidate in brief about the PREMIER LASER’s infrastructure & What are the measures that are being taken from the product manufacturing to distribution?
Premier Laser infrastructure capabilities have grown leaps and bounds in the past couple of years. We have added a customer experience facility at our Bangalore plant with sole focus on providing in depth information and knowledge about the machines and lasers in general. The around 15,000 Sqr feet Bangalore facility also houses a demo laser cutting machine where the customer can have a look at the cut quality, and if he wishes to cut his drawings on the material that he would be using, that can also be done. We have also heavily invested in equipment’s for service and repair of laser components, like Laser power meter for measuring laser source power output, clean room cabinets for laser head repairing & also setup for laser source repairs.
The infrastructure at Bangalore is designed to facilitate integration of CNC laser machines along with providing training and hands on experience on the equipment’s. The service infrastructure is built on Offline as well as Online model, where the immediate support is activated as soon as the a service call is raised, Using latest software’s in communication the entire process is monitored & updated with all key participants in the loop.
Premier also focuses on providing turnkey solutions, which included Premier HPAD air delivery system, Gas management system and complete power management.
Taher Eranpurwala, C.E.O
I have always believed that doing business should not only be for yourself but should be done as a collective means of development and growth of all the parties involved. I have always believed this and worked accordingly, and may be that’s why I can proudly say that today Premier holds a very respectable position in the market. Over the years Premier has grown many folds, and with it we have worked on collective betterment of our vendors, staff and customers.
Q. Brief us about the R&D and Quality policy for your business?
Since major equipment’s are being imported the R&D of the equipment is done in co-ordination with the manufacturer at the manufacturing facility under guideline set by Premier and the process is inspected on regular intervals, all the feedbacks received regarding the service or quality of the equipment is shared along with the manufacturer and a detailed plan is prepared to integrate those feedback in our process. Any advancement in the technology or any other process is promptly communicated & after a quick feasibility study implementation of the same is carried out.
In terms of Quality, the company policy is very clear, no compromise on quality whatsoever. All components and model is mentioned to the customer before going ahead with the machine finalization, also the same is given in writing to the customer for cross reference purpose at the time of delivery.
Strict Quality control measures are implemented at various stages of manufacturing, dispatch, integration and final dispatch of the equipment and supervised by the senior service team members to ensure the quality of the product being delivered is at par with commitments made to the customer.
Q. What are the key technological trends that are driving your industry?
A major factor that can be said to be the driving force behind the laser industry would be advancement’s in Laser beam and optics delivery; over the years the technology has become more refined and higher output sources are being developed at much faster rates, coupled with beam delivery tech, that reduces loss of energy, and more protection has empowered laser machines to cut higher thickness materials and achieve better cut quality & cut finish.
Apart from being faster, the technology is also becoming cheaper as more refinements allow the suppliers to provide better equipment’s, the cost of production also goes down.
Shabbir Eranpurwala ,Technical Director
Being in a field where technology is evolving at such rapid speeds, its imperative that we as Premier provide the best-in-class solutions and at affordable rates to the customer. The onus of Bringing “Whats best for the customer” falls on the technical team as we evaluate the feasibility of the technology and at the same time make sure that their investment cost remains optimum for the major MSME sector.
Q. Could you brief us on Indian & Global perspective of machine tool manufacturing industry? What are the distinguishing factors?
Machine tool manufacturing Industry has different dynamics in India when compared to global markets or more importantly with the European markets. Indian units have always enjoyed the luxury of cheap labor as well as a strong and robust domestic market.
Global markets where more technology driven and hence have had many advancements at much faster rate than that was achieved in the Indian markets. But we believe that is changing, especially post 2019-2020 pandemic, where Indian manufacturers have started adopting new and improved automation technology to upgrade their production line and improve the overall quality of the product.
Q. Please comment on the current machine tool scenario in India ?
The current scenario is very optimistic and bright for the Indian markets, with adoption of technology being much faster and rapid we look forward towards a robust performance of the overall manufacturing sector.
Q. In your opinion how can the Indian machine tool industry become globally competitive?
To be truly competitive, we believe we as a notion should first develop infrastructure that if supporting the MSME sector at large, by providing not just subsidies or incentives, but by encouraging adoption of new methods and techniques which will improve production quality and speed, this can be achieved by developing the process as well as the skills of the work force
Q. How do your perceive the future of the Indian machine tool industry ?
Future looks bright, with a robust outlook for the manufacturing and allied sectors which will be the driving force for the machine tool industry in India.
Q. What is your vision for PREMIER LASER?
We intend to place Premier amongst the Top players of the Indian Laser equipment industry in the coming 5 years, by focusing on technological advancement & constant endeavor on providing effective solutions for the sheet metal fabrication industry.
