Hyderabad: IT training and education company NIIT has launched a new initiative called 'Playground Kiosks’ in the hermit kingdom of Bhutan.
The idea in a way fructified after discussions with the present King of Bhutan Jigme Khesar Namgyal Wangchuck and senior government officials.
Accordingly, NIIT will be associated in driving the IT literacy programme. “We will set up 130 touchscreen, Playground kiosks in different parts of the neighbouring country in due course," said Mr Rajendra Pawar, Chairman of the company.
The kiosk (computer learning point) will have a satellite dish, a solar panel and will be run by NIIT. All that the Bhutanese student or citizen has to do is get into the kiosk, log on and he/she will get connected to the world, to surf, learn and entertain, he told Business Line in a chat recently in the coastal town of Tenali in Andhra Pradesh, where he received the prestigious Dr Y. Nayudamma memorial award for 2011.
The initiative is part of the Bhutanese Government’s vision to create an IT-enabled society that supports its sustainable economy. It is aimed at getting youth onto using computers, training teachers, civil servants etc. The young King, who studied in India had seen some of the work of NIIT.
“We had discussions, when the Indian Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, had visited the country during the SAARC Summit also and the project was finalised. We are in the process of implementing," he said.
The project aims to reach out to at least one lakh students, train a few thousand IT professionals, schools and enterprises in a couple of years.
Success in my Habit
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Ospyn Tech sets up office in Singapore
Thiruvananthapuram: Technopark-based Ospyn Technologies has opened an office in Singapore with the aim of strengthening its position in the Southeast Asian market.
Ospyn specialises in building enterprise-scale applications employing open source tools and technologies. South East Asia is emerging as new economic growth engine and is witnessing high technology adoptions, according to Mr Kishore Kumar, Director, Ospyn.
The company plans to launch Hrapps (human resource applications) and CaseDesk (online complaint management system) solutions to tap available opportunities.
Ospyn plans to build a strong technology team in Singapore. Mr Kishore Kumar said that the company saw robust growth prospects there.
Mr Parasadu Varghese, Managing Director, said that the proximity to customers is an aspect that underscores the company’s commitment to superior service standards and shortened decision-making cycle. “Our presence in Singapore would help in assisting customers in Southeast Asia to stay technologically competitive,” he added.
Ospyn specialises in building enterprise-scale applications employing open source tools and technologies. South East Asia is emerging as new economic growth engine and is witnessing high technology adoptions, according to Mr Kishore Kumar, Director, Ospyn.
The company plans to launch Hrapps (human resource applications) and CaseDesk (online complaint management system) solutions to tap available opportunities.
Ospyn plans to build a strong technology team in Singapore. Mr Kishore Kumar said that the company saw robust growth prospects there.
Mr Parasadu Varghese, Managing Director, said that the proximity to customers is an aspect that underscores the company’s commitment to superior service standards and shortened decision-making cycle. “Our presence in Singapore would help in assisting customers in Southeast Asia to stay technologically competitive,” he added.
Adani Ports gets nod to build dry bulk terminal at Kandla
Ahmedabad: Diversified Rs 30,000 crore Adani Group's venture Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) received letter of intent from the Kandla Port Trust of Government of India to set up a dry bulk terminal on build, operate and transfer basis.
APSEZ emerged as the highest bidder on revenue share basis and has been awarded the concession in a competitive bidding scenario. The dry bulk terminal will come up at Tekra near Tuna outside Kandla Creek at the Kandla Port, which is India's largest port by volumes. The construction of the new bulk terminal will begin after signing of the concession agreement with the Kandla Port Trust in next couple of weeks.
APSEZ will invest Rs 1,200 crore to commission four berths. The depth at Tekra is estimated to be 16.5 meter and it is aiming to accommodate ships carrying upto one lakh tonne of DWT. Meanwhile, APSEZ is waiting for the response from the African government to commission a port facility. It has already identified potential locations and submitted a proposal to the government of Africa.
"We are extremely pleased to partner with the Government of India and the Kandla Port Trust and would like to thank them for their faith and confidence in the Adani Group's execution and operating capabilities for setting up world class ports. The Kandla Port's strategic location will be an important factor in attracting cargo from the north-west hinterland and will assist Adani Ports to cross cargo handling volumes of 200 million tonnes by 2020," APSEZ wholetime director Rajeeva Sinha said. He added that the company is working on brownfield and greenfield projects for capacity addition at various locations.
APSEZ CFO B Ravi stated that the project will become operational in phases and all four berths are expected to be commissioned in next couple of years.
Adani Ports is claiming to be the only private port infrastructure company to operate and construct ports and terminals across six locations in India - Mundra, Dahej and Hazira in Gujarat, Mormugao in Goa and Visakhapatnam. Its port at Mundra in on West Coast is the fourth largest commercial and largest private port in India.
Last week, Adani Group announced to focus on resources, logistics and energy. All of these clusters are confident of emulating the group's leadership philosophy of utilising cutting-edge innovation and technology for growth and expansion, read the media statement issued by APSEZ.
APSEZ emerged as the highest bidder on revenue share basis and has been awarded the concession in a competitive bidding scenario. The dry bulk terminal will come up at Tekra near Tuna outside Kandla Creek at the Kandla Port, which is India's largest port by volumes. The construction of the new bulk terminal will begin after signing of the concession agreement with the Kandla Port Trust in next couple of weeks.
APSEZ will invest Rs 1,200 crore to commission four berths. The depth at Tekra is estimated to be 16.5 meter and it is aiming to accommodate ships carrying upto one lakh tonne of DWT. Meanwhile, APSEZ is waiting for the response from the African government to commission a port facility. It has already identified potential locations and submitted a proposal to the government of Africa.
"We are extremely pleased to partner with the Government of India and the Kandla Port Trust and would like to thank them for their faith and confidence in the Adani Group's execution and operating capabilities for setting up world class ports. The Kandla Port's strategic location will be an important factor in attracting cargo from the north-west hinterland and will assist Adani Ports to cross cargo handling volumes of 200 million tonnes by 2020," APSEZ wholetime director Rajeeva Sinha said. He added that the company is working on brownfield and greenfield projects for capacity addition at various locations.
APSEZ CFO B Ravi stated that the project will become operational in phases and all four berths are expected to be commissioned in next couple of years.
Adani Ports is claiming to be the only private port infrastructure company to operate and construct ports and terminals across six locations in India - Mundra, Dahej and Hazira in Gujarat, Mormugao in Goa and Visakhapatnam. Its port at Mundra in on West Coast is the fourth largest commercial and largest private port in India.
Last week, Adani Group announced to focus on resources, logistics and energy. All of these clusters are confident of emulating the group's leadership philosophy of utilising cutting-edge innovation and technology for growth and expansion, read the media statement issued by APSEZ.
India tops US in using smartphone to go online
New Delhi: India still has a long way to go increasing its smartphone penetration but those who are already connected seem to be using it heavily.
A recent mobile survey conducted by IPSOS and Google reveals that Indian smartphone users are accessing the Internet more than their counterparts in the US.
According to the survey, 56 per cent of smartphone users in the country access the Internet multiple times a day, nearly 40 per cent surf the Net at least once a day and only 6 per cent never use their phone for connecting to the Web. In comparison, 11 per cent of smartphone users in the US never use their device to access the Net and 53 per cent use it to surf multiple times a day.
Emails, Social Networking
Indians also score higher when it comes to accessing emails and social networking sites on their smart phones. According to survey, about 76 per cent of smartphone users in India access social networking sites on their devices compared to 54 per cent in the US.
“The survey reiterates our belief in ‘mobile first'. Culturally, even beyond the well-educated, mainstream Indians are technology curious and device savvy. We believe that the Internet-like telephony did, is making the leap from wired Internet to mobile, and hundreds of millions of Indians will go online on their mobile devices,” said Mr Lalitesh Katragadda, Country Head, India Product, Google India, told Business Line.
“At Google, we are building a powerful, simple, personable mobile ecosystem that helps every user be connected as they want and when they want to,” he added.
The survey reveals the usage of smartphone between the age group of 18- 29 is the highest in the country. While 36 per cent of all smartphone owners in India are in this age group, only 17 per cent are in the 30 to 49 age group.
Music tops the chart
In terms of usage, 77 per cent of smartphone owners listen to music, while 33 per cent use it for playing games and 32 per cent read newspapers or magazine.
According to Canalys, Indian smartphone market stood at 3 million units in the third quarter of 2011 up from 1.7 million units in the same period in 2010. The Google survey points out that 66 per cent of existing smart phone users believe they would access the Internet more through their handhelds in the future.
A recent mobile survey conducted by IPSOS and Google reveals that Indian smartphone users are accessing the Internet more than their counterparts in the US.
According to the survey, 56 per cent of smartphone users in the country access the Internet multiple times a day, nearly 40 per cent surf the Net at least once a day and only 6 per cent never use their phone for connecting to the Web. In comparison, 11 per cent of smartphone users in the US never use their device to access the Net and 53 per cent use it to surf multiple times a day.
Emails, Social Networking
Indians also score higher when it comes to accessing emails and social networking sites on their smart phones. According to survey, about 76 per cent of smartphone users in India access social networking sites on their devices compared to 54 per cent in the US.
“The survey reiterates our belief in ‘mobile first'. Culturally, even beyond the well-educated, mainstream Indians are technology curious and device savvy. We believe that the Internet-like telephony did, is making the leap from wired Internet to mobile, and hundreds of millions of Indians will go online on their mobile devices,” said Mr Lalitesh Katragadda, Country Head, India Product, Google India, told Business Line.
“At Google, we are building a powerful, simple, personable mobile ecosystem that helps every user be connected as they want and when they want to,” he added.
The survey reveals the usage of smartphone between the age group of 18- 29 is the highest in the country. While 36 per cent of all smartphone owners in India are in this age group, only 17 per cent are in the 30 to 49 age group.
Music tops the chart
In terms of usage, 77 per cent of smartphone owners listen to music, while 33 per cent use it for playing games and 32 per cent read newspapers or magazine.
According to Canalys, Indian smartphone market stood at 3 million units in the third quarter of 2011 up from 1.7 million units in the same period in 2010. The Google survey points out that 66 per cent of existing smart phone users believe they would access the Internet more through their handhelds in the future.
Indian Railways to develop three rail corridors in Chattisgarh
New Delhi: Indian Railways has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the government of Chattisgarh for the development of three rail corridors for both freight and passenger purpose in the state.
The rail corridors would be developed in northern region of Chhatisgarh state, approximately 452 kilometres in total length.
These corridors are on the 180 kilometres on Eastern Corridor which will connect mines, a 150 km long corridor in the northern region and a 122 km long East-West Corridor.
These corridors will be implemented through specific Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) or any other appropriate model of Public Private Partnership (PPP), which will be granted appropriate concession for this purpose by Ministry of Railways.
The Ministry of Railways on its own or through its Public Sector Undertaking and Government of Chhatisgarh state on its own or through its designated agencies will participate in the SPVs as equity partners. Under this MOU, Government of Chhatisgarh state will provide land owned by the State Government and the cost of such land will be part of Government of Chhatisgarh state's equity in the SPVs.
The alignment of these corridors will be such as to connect towns and villages in the region also. East corridor will connect Gharghoda and Dharamajaygarh, North Corridor will connect Katghora, Parsa and Surjpur and East-West Corridor will connect Katghora, Pasan and Sindurgarh.
Government of Chhatisgarh state will complete the process of environmental/forest clearances for the projects within a period of two years from the date of application for such clearances. The SPVs will be required to complete the construction of the Corridors within a period of five years from the formation.
The rail corridors would be developed in northern region of Chhatisgarh state, approximately 452 kilometres in total length.
These corridors are on the 180 kilometres on Eastern Corridor which will connect mines, a 150 km long corridor in the northern region and a 122 km long East-West Corridor.
These corridors will be implemented through specific Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) or any other appropriate model of Public Private Partnership (PPP), which will be granted appropriate concession for this purpose by Ministry of Railways.
The Ministry of Railways on its own or through its Public Sector Undertaking and Government of Chhatisgarh state on its own or through its designated agencies will participate in the SPVs as equity partners. Under this MOU, Government of Chhatisgarh state will provide land owned by the State Government and the cost of such land will be part of Government of Chhatisgarh state's equity in the SPVs.
The alignment of these corridors will be such as to connect towns and villages in the region also. East corridor will connect Gharghoda and Dharamajaygarh, North Corridor will connect Katghora, Parsa and Surjpur and East-West Corridor will connect Katghora, Pasan and Sindurgarh.
Government of Chhatisgarh state will complete the process of environmental/forest clearances for the projects within a period of two years from the date of application for such clearances. The SPVs will be required to complete the construction of the Corridors within a period of five years from the formation.
Monday, February 27, 2012
Yamaha looks at making 250-cc sports bikes locally
Mumbai: Gauging at the success of the 250cc sports bike retailed by Honda, fellow Japanese competitor Yamaha is also gearing up for local manufacturing of its planned 250cc sports bike, as against assembly operations done by Bajaj Auto for Kawasaki.
A locally manufactured motorcycle will entail zero duty, thereby, allowing the company to price the product competitively as against 30 per cent duty attracted by an assembled product, where different parts of the bike are imported to be assembled together.
Arch-rival Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI) has been clocking an average of 3,000 units every month on the CBR250R sports bike, which the it fully makes in India. Over the last few months, Honda is in the process of phasing out the CBR250R, to make way for the new 2012 model.
Roy Kurian, national business head, India Yamaha Motor, said, "The market for 250cc is growing and we are studying that. There are a couple of models in that segment and people are upgrading to 250cc bikes. We will do 100 per cent localisation of that bike...we will manufacture it here."
Talks about Yamaha launching a 250cc bike has been doing the rounds for several months, but the company has only delayed its entry into the segment. "We have taken the feedback from people who have bought 200-250cc bikes and our feedback says they are not fully 'satisfied' with their products. So there is a need for a better bike than what is available today. Internationally, we have the Fazer 250, but I cannot comment when we will launch a bike in that segment,” added Kurian.
Bajaj Auto imports several parts of the 250cc-powered Kawasaki Ninja into India, before assembling them at its plant in Chakan, Pune. Due to added duties, the Ninja is priced well above the price position of the Honda CBR 250R. While the Ninja costs Rs 300,000 (on-road Mumbai), Honda's CBR250R costs nearly half of that at Rs 155,000 (on-road Mumbai). Reports suggest that Yamaha has been doing a market study for a 250cc bike, which according to sources was scheduled for launch last year. However, the management decided to gauge the response for the Honda CBR250R.
This year, Yamaha has decided to focus on scooters, which is scheduled for launch in the second half. It is confident of achieving sales of 400,000 units (including exports) in the next year. This would constitute 40 per cent of total targeted sales of one million by 2013, said Kurian.
"While we are focussing on scooters this year, it does not mean we are moving away from bikes. The bikes will remain as our main stay in the longer term,” added Kurian.
A locally manufactured motorcycle will entail zero duty, thereby, allowing the company to price the product competitively as against 30 per cent duty attracted by an assembled product, where different parts of the bike are imported to be assembled together.
Arch-rival Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI) has been clocking an average of 3,000 units every month on the CBR250R sports bike, which the it fully makes in India. Over the last few months, Honda is in the process of phasing out the CBR250R, to make way for the new 2012 model.
Roy Kurian, national business head, India Yamaha Motor, said, "The market for 250cc is growing and we are studying that. There are a couple of models in that segment and people are upgrading to 250cc bikes. We will do 100 per cent localisation of that bike...we will manufacture it here."
Talks about Yamaha launching a 250cc bike has been doing the rounds for several months, but the company has only delayed its entry into the segment. "We have taken the feedback from people who have bought 200-250cc bikes and our feedback says they are not fully 'satisfied' with their products. So there is a need for a better bike than what is available today. Internationally, we have the Fazer 250, but I cannot comment when we will launch a bike in that segment,” added Kurian.
Bajaj Auto imports several parts of the 250cc-powered Kawasaki Ninja into India, before assembling them at its plant in Chakan, Pune. Due to added duties, the Ninja is priced well above the price position of the Honda CBR 250R. While the Ninja costs Rs 300,000 (on-road Mumbai), Honda's CBR250R costs nearly half of that at Rs 155,000 (on-road Mumbai). Reports suggest that Yamaha has been doing a market study for a 250cc bike, which according to sources was scheduled for launch last year. However, the management decided to gauge the response for the Honda CBR250R.
This year, Yamaha has decided to focus on scooters, which is scheduled for launch in the second half. It is confident of achieving sales of 400,000 units (including exports) in the next year. This would constitute 40 per cent of total targeted sales of one million by 2013, said Kurian.
"While we are focussing on scooters this year, it does not mean we are moving away from bikes. The bikes will remain as our main stay in the longer term,” added Kurian.
Corporate travel to grow 10-15% this year
New Delhi: Undeterred by the global slowdown, Indian Inc is spending on corporate travel, pushing up the outbound market for MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions and exhibitions). The Indian outbound MICE market is estimated to be around $550-600 million and is expected to increase by 10%-15% this year.
About 1.5-1.8 million passengers travelled outbound for meetings and conventions. Pharmaceuticals, cement FMCG, IT and financial services are the major industries contributing to the sector.
Forecasting a strong growth, Travelport COO Heena Akhtar said the industry was expected to grow by 10-15%. "The slowdown meant that regular companies cut down on their corporate travel last year. But this year, we are expecting a revival in incentivized travel and meetings by corporates,'' she said.
According to a study on India's MICE market by Synovate Business Consulting, the most popular destinations in Europe in the last two years included Germany with 73% opting for the destination followed by UK (52%), France (51%) and Switzerland (45%).
Speaking on the interest in Germany, German National Tourist Office director (sales and marketing) Romit Theophilus said, "Indians have a high spending capacity and we are expecting a 10-15% growth in business tourist arrivals this year.''
GNTO has seen a sustained growth of 20% year-on-year from Indian travelers with the number of visitor overnights growing by 26.2% in 2010 as compared to January-December 2009.
Lower hotel rates and carrier options in Europe supported by infrastructure, the vast number of businesses placed in European countries and services have popularized Germany as a business travel destination according to the report.
Other destinations too have seen significant growth from Indian tourist arrivals under the MICE segment including Hong Kong by 12%, Malaysia (15%), Thailand (30%) and Czech Republic by 40%.
The study also pointed out that top management accounted for 70% of the meetings and 50% of the conferences in MICE trips. Incentive trips were mostly conducted for executives and middle management accounting for 30% of the MICE trips.
Among the factors considered important for corporate travel are nature tourism, food and dining and cultural tourism, the report said.
Incidentally, countries like Austria, Indonesia, Turkey and Bhutan have offered discounted offers to woo large size groups while new entrants like Czech Republic, Spain and South Africa are pitching for an India-centric policy to tap the Indian MICE segment.
About 1.5-1.8 million passengers travelled outbound for meetings and conventions. Pharmaceuticals, cement FMCG, IT and financial services are the major industries contributing to the sector.
Forecasting a strong growth, Travelport COO Heena Akhtar said the industry was expected to grow by 10-15%. "The slowdown meant that regular companies cut down on their corporate travel last year. But this year, we are expecting a revival in incentivized travel and meetings by corporates,'' she said.
According to a study on India's MICE market by Synovate Business Consulting, the most popular destinations in Europe in the last two years included Germany with 73% opting for the destination followed by UK (52%), France (51%) and Switzerland (45%).
Speaking on the interest in Germany, German National Tourist Office director (sales and marketing) Romit Theophilus said, "Indians have a high spending capacity and we are expecting a 10-15% growth in business tourist arrivals this year.''
GNTO has seen a sustained growth of 20% year-on-year from Indian travelers with the number of visitor overnights growing by 26.2% in 2010 as compared to January-December 2009.
Lower hotel rates and carrier options in Europe supported by infrastructure, the vast number of businesses placed in European countries and services have popularized Germany as a business travel destination according to the report.
Other destinations too have seen significant growth from Indian tourist arrivals under the MICE segment including Hong Kong by 12%, Malaysia (15%), Thailand (30%) and Czech Republic by 40%.
The study also pointed out that top management accounted for 70% of the meetings and 50% of the conferences in MICE trips. Incentive trips were mostly conducted for executives and middle management accounting for 30% of the MICE trips.
Among the factors considered important for corporate travel are nature tourism, food and dining and cultural tourism, the report said.
Incidentally, countries like Austria, Indonesia, Turkey and Bhutan have offered discounted offers to woo large size groups while new entrants like Czech Republic, Spain and South Africa are pitching for an India-centric policy to tap the Indian MICE segment.
Franchise market growing at over 30% per annum
Hyderabad: The country’s franchise market, estimated to be $4 billion in 2011, is growing at a healthy pace of over 30 per cent per annum with tier II and tier III cities gradually getting hooked to the network of retailers and franchisers.
If the education sector was in the forefront offering franchise options, it now encompasses food and beverages and other services sectors, according to representatives taking part at the two-day FRO 2012 being hosted at the Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC).
Mr Gaurav Marya, President of Franchise India, said: “Franchising in India has witnessed impressive growth of around 30-35 per cent year-after-year over the last 4-5 years with an estimated turnover of $4 billion. It is helping transform good ideas into businesses. The FRO serves as a platform to identify, foster and commercialise innovative business start-up ideas and to meet the demands of today’s dynamic entrepreneurial arena.”
Brainworks, Buzz, Chhabra 555, Coffee Beans and Tea & Leaf, Cookieman, Gelato, Juice Salon, Mother Earth, Kwality Walls, New Zealand Naturals, are among a host of others taking part in the concurrent exposition.
The exposition serves as a regional platform for potential tie-ups where companies present their franchise concepts. Typically, franchise options come with a starting investment of Rs 5 lakh going up to Rs 5 crore.
More than 5,000 participants are expected to take part during the event and get a chance to interface with companies’ representatives and explore opportunities for collaboration.
If the education sector was in the forefront offering franchise options, it now encompasses food and beverages and other services sectors, according to representatives taking part at the two-day FRO 2012 being hosted at the Hyderabad International Convention Centre (HICC).
Mr Gaurav Marya, President of Franchise India, said: “Franchising in India has witnessed impressive growth of around 30-35 per cent year-after-year over the last 4-5 years with an estimated turnover of $4 billion. It is helping transform good ideas into businesses. The FRO serves as a platform to identify, foster and commercialise innovative business start-up ideas and to meet the demands of today’s dynamic entrepreneurial arena.”
Brainworks, Buzz, Chhabra 555, Coffee Beans and Tea & Leaf, Cookieman, Gelato, Juice Salon, Mother Earth, Kwality Walls, New Zealand Naturals, are among a host of others taking part in the concurrent exposition.
The exposition serves as a regional platform for potential tie-ups where companies present their franchise concepts. Typically, franchise options come with a starting investment of Rs 5 lakh going up to Rs 5 crore.
More than 5,000 participants are expected to take part during the event and get a chance to interface with companies’ representatives and explore opportunities for collaboration.
TRF Ltd inks pact with German firm
Kolkata: TRF Limited, part of the Tata Group, has entered into an exclusive agreement with Schade Lagertechnik GmbH to manufacture and market the latter's yard equipment in India. This agreement aims to meet the need for higher capacity stackers, portal scraper reclaimers, circular storage systems as well as wagon tipplers to meet TRF's ambitious growth plans in infrastructure industries like, steel, power ports, cement and mining.
As part of the agreement, Schade of Germany will provide TRF, a leader in material handling equipment and processing systems, the necessary know-how, assistance and key components for making higher capacity yard equipment. The agreement allows TRF to sell Schade's equipment in India.
The dual advantage of producing the high capacity bulk material handling equipment at a comparatively lower cost in India, at TRF's Jamshedpur plant, and the application of technical expertise from Schade will give domestic infrastructure sector access to world-class German technology at competitive prices.
Commenting on the agreement, Sudhir Deoras, managing director, TRF Ltd said: "We have worked with Schade in the past and together we would be able to meet customer needs." Incidentally, TRF and Schade have ealier worked together to supply and instal Asia's first and biggest radial stacker reclaimer at NSPCL's thermal power plant at Bhilai.
Speaking on the ocassion, Karl-Heinz Fiegenbaum, managing director, Schade said: "We have been looking out to join hands for the Indian market with a well established equipment manufacturer serving the local bulk materials handling sector." This tie up will also meet the needs of our joint future clients in India."
Schade, Germany has nearly 130 years of experience in bulk material handling equipment and has supplied more than 600 machines worldwide. It enjoys the benefit of a global network combined with large product range and high expertise. The alliance will thus create opportunities for the cross-fertilisation of technical capabilities and pave the way for transfer of knowledge, especially best practices and expertise within the two companies.
TRF has extensive experience in the design, supply and installation of bulk material handling equipment including the design, manufacture and erection of stackers, reclaimers and wagon tipplers. TRF also undertakes turnkey projects for infrastructure development industries such as power and steel plants, port, cement, chemical and mining.
As part of the agreement, Schade of Germany will provide TRF, a leader in material handling equipment and processing systems, the necessary know-how, assistance and key components for making higher capacity yard equipment. The agreement allows TRF to sell Schade's equipment in India.
The dual advantage of producing the high capacity bulk material handling equipment at a comparatively lower cost in India, at TRF's Jamshedpur plant, and the application of technical expertise from Schade will give domestic infrastructure sector access to world-class German technology at competitive prices.
Commenting on the agreement, Sudhir Deoras, managing director, TRF Ltd said: "We have worked with Schade in the past and together we would be able to meet customer needs." Incidentally, TRF and Schade have ealier worked together to supply and instal Asia's first and biggest radial stacker reclaimer at NSPCL's thermal power plant at Bhilai.
Speaking on the ocassion, Karl-Heinz Fiegenbaum, managing director, Schade said: "We have been looking out to join hands for the Indian market with a well established equipment manufacturer serving the local bulk materials handling sector." This tie up will also meet the needs of our joint future clients in India."
Schade, Germany has nearly 130 years of experience in bulk material handling equipment and has supplied more than 600 machines worldwide. It enjoys the benefit of a global network combined with large product range and high expertise. The alliance will thus create opportunities for the cross-fertilisation of technical capabilities and pave the way for transfer of knowledge, especially best practices and expertise within the two companies.
TRF has extensive experience in the design, supply and installation of bulk material handling equipment including the design, manufacture and erection of stackers, reclaimers and wagon tipplers. TRF also undertakes turnkey projects for infrastructure development industries such as power and steel plants, port, cement, chemical and mining.
Agriculture Ministry, Isro to forecast accurate farm production
New Delhi: The union agriculture ministry is gearing up to provide advance and accurate forecast of farm output in the kharif season by setting up a remote sensing centre in New Delhi with the help of Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro). The centre is likely to be operational in a month's time.
"Isro has developed basic procedures, models, and software packages for crop area and production forecasting, using remote sensing and weather data. We will be engaging seven Isro scientists who, along with our agriculture scientists, will come out with reliable information about agri output," said agriculture secretary Prabeer Kumar Basu.
The technology will be used for the analysis of cropping system (satellites provide valuable inputs for diversification and intensification of crops), mapping of sodic and usar soils, assessing the impact of droughts and floods, weather forecasting and monsoon prediction.
"The prediction of monsoon is difficult even with remote sensing technology. But the assessment of drought is quite easy. Satellite data will help us in contingency planning and for drought declaration process. We will extend the use of this technology for the analysis of water index and rainfed areas," he said.
The ministry is running a country-wide project, 'Forecasting of agriculture outputs through satellite, agrometeorology and Land-based observations' (FASAL) for forecasting major crops including wheat, rice, millet, jowar, bajra, oilseeds and sugarcane. From this year onwards, remote sensing technology will be used to forecast horticulture output as well.
"Isro has developed basic procedures, models, and software packages for crop area and production forecasting, using remote sensing and weather data. We will be engaging seven Isro scientists who, along with our agriculture scientists, will come out with reliable information about agri output," said agriculture secretary Prabeer Kumar Basu.
The technology will be used for the analysis of cropping system (satellites provide valuable inputs for diversification and intensification of crops), mapping of sodic and usar soils, assessing the impact of droughts and floods, weather forecasting and monsoon prediction.
"The prediction of monsoon is difficult even with remote sensing technology. But the assessment of drought is quite easy. Satellite data will help us in contingency planning and for drought declaration process. We will extend the use of this technology for the analysis of water index and rainfed areas," he said.
The ministry is running a country-wide project, 'Forecasting of agriculture outputs through satellite, agrometeorology and Land-based observations' (FASAL) for forecasting major crops including wheat, rice, millet, jowar, bajra, oilseeds and sugarcane. From this year onwards, remote sensing technology will be used to forecast horticulture output as well.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)