Market

In the backdrop of the swiftly changing

landscape of India is a group of companies
working to complete a young nation's dream of
becoming an economic superpower. Amongst
the many pioneers is an iconic company called
Crompton Greaves (CG).
In the 75th year of its Indian identity, it has
notched up several laudable performances and a
portfolio of products, solutions and services that
bill over Rs. 9000 crore (US$ 2 billion) annually.
As its status has grown so, too, has the scope
and size of its operations. In the year 2005, the
company transmuted from an Indian entity into
a global giant with a healthy appetite for value-
added acquisitions.
With a permanent footprint in ten countries,
CG is fast emerging as a leading power
solutions provider, across the world and has
constantly focused on providing integrated
solutions and superior knowledge-based
products and services. The company is part of
the powerful Avantha Group, a Rs. 18,000 crore
(US$ 4 billion) conglomerate with an impressive
range of businesses.
The company has manufacturing bases in
Belgium, Canada, Hungary, India, Indonesia,
Ireland, the UK and the US.
Achievements
Crompton Greaves' distinguished history is
paralleled by its equally distinguished track
record of development and pioneering
engineering initiatives. Its most recent
breakthrough has been the indigenous
development of an 800kV gas circuit breaker.
The first product was despatched on 27th
January 2011 to the Uttar Pradesh Power
Transmission Corporation Limited for its
Unnao/Mainpuri feeder line. Eight of these are
currently on order.
Separately, the company has developed a
1200kV surge arrester for the National Test
Station power project being constructed at Bina
in Madhya Pradesh.
In an earlier development, CG had
manufactured a 1200kV capacitive voltage
transformer (CVT) bagging the India Power
2009 award from the Council
of Power Utilities of India.
With this development
Crompton Greaves has
achieved the distinction of
being the first Indian company
to develop two products of
this rating. Today, it stands on
the threshold of partnering
the indigenous development
of ultra high voltage
technology.
These successes have led to
CG earning a number of well-
deserved accolades. The
coveted CII-EXIM Bank 2010
award for Business Excellence
and Empower Award 2009
given to Crompton Greaves
Lighting, Baroda in the
category of Market Impact -
Fluorescent Tube Lights
are two of the most
recent ones.
In what is widely
recognised as a
creditable pioneering
venture, the
corporation has
entered into an
agreement with the
New York State to
establish a US-based
research and
development (R&D)
facility and take
advantage of its public-
private partnership at
the Albany Nanotech
Facility. This is amongst
the world's most
advanced silicone wafer R&D and prototype
manufacturing outfits to focus on R&D activities
in the fields of smart grid technologies and
renewable energy applications.
Continuing its good work on cutting-edge
technologies, the company has signed a
memorandum of understanding with IIT
Mumbai to provide ten outstanding students
with scholarships and allowances to undertake
selected projects.
History
In 1878 Colonel R E B Crompton founded
the business at Chelmsford, Essex, England
under the name of R E B Crompton & Co.
The company merged with F&A Parkinson
and established Crompton Parkinson Limited.
In 1937, this entity created a wholly
owned Indian subsidiary called Crompton
Parkinson Works Limited in Mumbai
and concurrently a sales organisation
christened Greaves Cotton & Crompton
Parkinson Limited.
Ten years later, on the eve of independence,
the company was taken over by Lala
Karamchand Thapar, an eminent Indian
industrialist who formed the Thapar Group. In
the 1960s Crompton Greaves took the first
steps to revolutionise its portfolio which till
then comprised only motors and consumer
products. Towards this, it acquired transformer
technology from Westinghouse Electric
Corporation of the US for the manufacture of
400kV transformers as well as the aluminium-
wound ones. This was followed by further
expansion in the switchgear vacuum interrupter
and allied businesses.
In 1966 Crompton Parkinson Works and
Greaves Cotton & Crompton Parkinson merged
to create Crompton Greaves Limited the
powerhouse we know today. Crompton Greaves
is now a publically listed A-category company in
both the Stock Exchanges of India and on the
London Stock Exchange.
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Product
Crompton Greaves has three
main lines of business: power
systems, industrial systems and
consumer products.
The company's power systems
group consists of transformers,
switchgears, power quality,
executing turnkey engineering
projects, power automation
systems, solutions and services.
The company is amongst the
world's top ten transformer
manufacturers. It is also amongst
a handful of world companies
that designs and manufactures
power and distribution
transformers and reactors. These range in
capacities from 160kVA to 600MVA and 11kV
to 765kV conforming to International Electro
Technical Commission (IEC), American National
Standards Institute (ANSI), Indian Standards (IS),
British Standards (BS) and other internationally
recognised and accepted benchmarks.
In the industrial systems category, Crompton
Greaves manufactures a wide spectrum of high
tension (HT) and low tension (LT) rotating
machines motors and generators as well as
related solutions. This business group has
recently forayed into drives, automation and
process control products. Its variable speed
drives have applications up to 5 MW. This
strategic business unit (SBU) is also a leading
player in traction motors, railway signalling
products and stampings.
Renewable energy is the next growth area.
To gain a foothold here the company has
already developed small hydro- and windmill-
generators. The energy efficient brushless
technology pioneered by Crompton Greaves in
India has wide application in the brushless direct
current carriage fans used by the railways.
The company's consumer products includes
household, industrial and outdoor lighting,
domestic and industrial fans, domestic and
agricultural pumps, integrated security solutions
and home automation and home appliances
such as geysers, mixer grinders, toasters, electric
irons and electric lanterns. This vertical is the
company's second largest SBU, highly capital
efficient and a significant cash generator. It also
enjoys a substantial brand presence and
goodwill in India.
Recent Developments
The last few years have been marked by a spate
of acquisitions that have not only enhanced the
company's global reach and impact but have
also helped Crompton Greaves emerge as
a formidable trend-setter in diversification
and R&D.
CG established its international manufacturing
footprint in 2005 by adding to its fold a
diversified ensemble of companies: the Pauwels
Group of Belgium which operates in the area of
power and distribution transformers and has
manufacturing facilities in Europe, Asia, Canada
and the US; Ganz, acquired in 2006, is a hi-tech
Hungarian company manufacturing power
transformers, GIS switchgears and rotating
machines; Microsol (2007), a company with
expertise in medium- and high- voltage sub-
station automation, operating in the US and the
UK; Sonomatra (2008) from France, specialising
in on-site maintenance and repair of
power transformers and on-load tap
changers, oil analysis, oil treatment
and retro-filling; the US-based MSE
(2008) engaged in engineering,
procurement and construction (EPC)
of high voltage electric power
applications and power technology
solutions (2010) of the UK for high
voltage electrical engineering.
Each of these acquisitions has
fulfilled a key role, strengthening the
company's capabilities as a provider of
integrated solutions, services and products,
including alternative energy.
In a separate exercise, Crompton Greaves has
also inked a joint venture with ZIV of Spain to
deliver automation systems such as protective
relays, bay control units, bus bar systems and
sub-station units. In India, it concluded an
arrangement for the acquisition of three
businesses of Nelco in 2010 traction
electronics, SCADA and industrial drives.
Promotion
A company on the fast track, operating in
a volatile market environment, seeks to
continuously introspect, innovate and evolve.
It is this instinct that prompted Crompton
Greaves to go in for a makeover. The 'C' and
'G' of the company's initials were selected to
lead this transformation.
On 15th October 2009 the company
launched its new corporate brand identity giving
itself a fresh new look. Using young, modern
fonts and vibrant colours the new logo signifies
four trigger words: passion, responsiveness,
down-to-earth and trustworthy. A new
Crompton Greaves had emerged with two
promises of 'Smart Solutions, Strong
Relationships'.
While high-visibility multi-media platforms
offer a fine opportunity, it is the platforms of the
Hanover, Dubai Electricity Fairs, Elecrama,
Gridtech, India Electricity, Energy Expo, El Asia,
Acetech, Empower India, Lii, etc. that provide it
more focus. At its must-visit stalls, Crompton
Greaves is able to deliver a powerful message: it
can compete with any world-class company and
benchmark its products and technologies with
the best in the business.
To ensure that the
customer is effectively
updated on new product
developments, the company
has identified the sales
counter as its first point of
contact. Crompton Greaves
provides product information
leaflets and catalogues at all
these locations. In order to
broaden its reach Crompton
Greaves joined hands with the
Rural Marketing Association of
India (RMAI) as the title
sponsor for the 3rd RMAI
Corporate Awards 2010.
On a less commercial plane, Crompton
Greaves finds itself fulfilling its social
commitments. That it takes this responsibility
seriously can be ascertained from the fact that a
CSR Council comprising all business heads has
been formed. This council interacts with the
corporate CSR team to create new initiatives
and review the progress of the various on-going
projects by the units.
Brand Values
Crompton Greaves is a responsible corporate
citizen. It helps customers use electric power
effectively and increase industrial productivity in
a sustainable way. Through this, it expects to
achieve the dual purpose of aiding economic
emancipation and improving the quality of
personal life.
The company places a high premium on
relationships and strives to develop solutions
that affect people in a very agreeable way. Its
ideology, enshrined in its own private Panchsheel,
is driven by its five core principles: performance
excellence; leading edge knowledge; nurturance;
customer-orientation and intellectual honesty.
www.cgglobal.com
31 BUSINESS SUPERBRANDS
The company's switchgear division a part of
CG's power systems business, became the first
Indian entity to indigenously design and develop
an 800kV 50kA gas circuit breaker, a 1200kV
CVT and a 1200kV lighting arrester. These were
successfully type-tested in laboratories in South
Korea and India
The prestigious order for supplying two
500MVA power transformers for the
Commonwealth Games was bagged by CG
Power; this incidentally is the highest MVA
rating for a 400kV system
CG Power Overseas remains the number one
source for SLIM

transformers and wind farm

installations
The three-winding transformer designed
around solar power applications is a CG Power
innovation
Things you didnt know about
Crompton Greaves
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