Brief us about your business and products offerings.
Weldwell Speciality was incorporated in 1991 and four years later its associate company Nivek Agencies was established. The company is engaged in marketing High tech arc welding consumables, advanced welding machines for SMAW, GTAW, GMAW & plasma cutting and related accessories from world renowned manufacturers. The company also supplies special welding aids such as consumables Inserts, purging tools, gas monitors, special welding fluxes, gas mixer etc. We help customers in selecting right product, right process and optimum quantity. We are also committed to promote welding education by various means. By virtue of its strong product knowledge, the company empowers users with knowledge.

You have been partnered with the many MNCs across the globe. Can you discuss about your most significant partnership till date?
It is difficult to specify the most significant partnership. We treat all our partners equally. However, from business point of view Special Metals Inc, Welding Products Company, U.K/USA, and Kobe Steel Welding Co. Japan, are very significant. We represent Kemppi (Finland) and Panasonic (Japan) for welding equipment. Presence of these brands is high in the market for their high quality product.

Additionally, we also represent many more reputed manufacturers. Some of them are Hypertherm (USA) for cutting machines, Sandvik for stainless steel, Huntingdon Fusion Techniques (UK) for welding aids, Weldlogic (UK) for special machines etc. In all, we represent about twelve principals in India.

Tell us about availability of your products across the country.
We have more than 200 customers spanning small, medium and large scale industries spread throughout the country. Customers are in sectors like chemical, petrochemical, power engineering, steel, fertiliser, pipeline, and nuclear fabrication. Availability of large quantity of duty paid stocks, fast response time, support direct import.

So far, the welding market in India has been dominated by the use of manual welding equipment. How do you see the acceptance of automated equipment now?
No doubt, automated equipment are being used to a limited extent in various sectors like power, nuclear, ship building, automobile, aerospace, railways. GMAW and SAW are the widely used semi automatic processes across the country. Special processes like Hot wire TIG, Key hole PAW, EBW, Robotic welding are used in specific areas and have very bright future.

What are the major growth drivers for automated welding equipment market?
A few leading manufacturers are likely to establish manufacture centres in India which will bring down the cost of equipment and fast response in case of breakdown maintenance of such equipment. Also application centres in major industrial cities will throw open chances of acquiring knowledge and cost benefits of high end technologies.   

Can you discuss the impacts of volatile steel prices over welding equipment demand?
Steel is an integral part of welding industry. Welding electrodes are made of core wire which weighs 70 per cent of gross weight. Filler wires are nothing but steel/alloys. Therefore, any price increase in steel affects welding consumable industry significantly. But there is a way out. Today, many fabricators are switching to wires for cost reduction, higher productivity processes. This switch over from purely manual process of SMAW to semi and fully automatic processes like GMAW, GTAW and SAW processes has made an important impact on the market demand for GTAW, GMAW and SAW consumables which are rising at 20 to 30 per cent  annually whereas average SMAW electrode is rising at 10 per cent only.

It has also been reported that more than 50% of market is captured by the unorganised welding equipment manufacturers in India. Can you share your comments in this regard?
About 50 per cent of market is captured by unorganised welding equipment manufacturers in India. The unorganised sector in welding machines is part of a typical Indian engineering spectrum. Low-tech, low efficiency, low price machines will continue to be produced and sold due to economic and logistic factors.

The other end is high tech, high efficiency, high priced machines manufactured/sold or marketed by foreign brands. Both will co-exist and only the per cent share will vary from time to time. With passing of time the low technology manufacturers will realise the changing scene in market and move towards high tech and more efficient machines. The unorganised sector may change and then it will pose the real challenge to the world leaders and improve the efficiency of Indian engineering industry.

PRODUCT RANGE
Welding consumables: Flux cored wires, TIG/MIG wires (all grades) with emphasis on Cr-Mo, Ni alloys, SS, Cu alloys,  Al alloys, Coated electrodes, Consumable inserts, Backing strips and soluble dam papers, solar flux (for one-side welding), trailing shield, auto darkening glass etc.

Welding machines: SMAW, GTAW, GMAW machines of Panasonic, Kemppi and Weld Logic brands, plasma cutting machine of Hypertherm USA, PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) from 3M, USA, special purpose machines are also available.