By Richa Chakravarty
Owing to the high growth in the consumer electronics, automotive and telecom sectors, and with an encouraging power scenario in India, demand for wires and cables is growing rapidly. According to the Indian Electrical and Electronics Manufacturers’ Association (IEEMA), the potential of the wire and cable industry will be worth US$ 158 billion by 2015.
Wires and cables industry can be divided into four main segments—house wiring, low tension wires, high tension and extra high voltage wiring. Wires and cables find application in almost every sector, however, the major demand comes from the automotive sector, process industry, telecom and power sector, engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) companies, public sector undertakings and utilities, railways and defence establishments.
A whole range of cables are manufactured in India, including polyvinyl chloride (PVC)/ FRLS cables, cross linked polyethylene (XLPE) cables, submarine cables, aerial bunched conductor cables, telecommunication cables such as jelly filled cables (JFC), optical fibre cables, etc.
Electronics Bazaar did a survey (particularly among the EPC, automotive and process industries), to ascertain the leading wires and cables manufacturers in India, based on certain parameters like quality, reliability, competitive price, prompt delivery and service, customer satisfaction, intention of the user to recommend the brand, product quality and certification.
In the survey, 13 companies emerged as the most preferred in India. While this survey is by no means comprehensive, it does provide a glimpse into India’s major manufacturers in this segment. The leading manufacturers are listed in alphabetical order rather than on the basis of any rank.
Leading wires and cables Manufacturers in India (in alphabetical order)
- Anchor Electricals
- Cable Corporation of India Ltd
- Finolex Cables Ltd
- Havells India Ltd
- Hindusthan Vidyut Products Ltd
- Nicco Corporation Ltd
- Paramount Cables
- Polycab Wires Pvt Ltd
- RPG Cables Ltd
- RR Kabel Ltd
- Uniflex Cables Ltd
- Universal Cables Ltd
- V-Guard Industries Ltd
Some companies that participated in the survey
We approached over 100 enterprises from various verticals like the automotive, process, and telecom sectors, apart from EPC contractors and public sector undertakings, to ascertain which wire and cable players have made a mark in the Indian market. The following are some of the companies that shared their preferences with us, helping us to clearly identify the key players/brands in India.
- Ahluwalia Contracts
- Akher MH India Pvt Ltd
- Deep Engineers and Contractors
- Elin Electronics Ltd
- Essar Group
- Gammon India Ltd
- Hical Technologies Pvt Ltd
- Himachal Futuristic Communications Ltd
- Hindustan Construction Company Ltd
- IRB Infrastructure and Developers Ltd
- ITD Cementation India Ltd
- Jaypee Group
- Jindal Steel and Power Ltd
- MBL Infrastructure Ltd
- Miti Associates
- Petron Engineering Construction Ltd
- Parts Trading Co
- SFO Technologies Pvt Ltd
- Shriram EPC
- Tata Projects
- Technimont ICB Pvt Ltd
- VRL Engineering Enterprises
Anchor Electricals
Headquartered in Mumbai, Anchor Electricals is one of the leading manufacturers of electrical components in India. Since its establishment in 1963, it has steadily expanded its business with a belief that while products can be manufactured, it takes nothing less than impeccable quality to create value. Anchor has unrivalled brand recognition backed by its 40 years of quality service, apart from a strong sales network that operates all over India. Anchor manufactures over 3000 products in 20 major product groups.
Products and sectors it caters to: In response to market needs, Anchor Electricals’ product line-up gradually extended to include lighting fixtures, ventilators, ceiling fans, electrical wires and cables, switches and wiring devices, switch gear and protection devices like MCBs, RCCBs and energy meters, etc, making the company the largest ECM manufacturer in India with the largest share in its flagship wiring devices market.
Contact details: Ph: 022-30418888, 30418731; Website: www.anchor-world.com
(As per company website)
Cable Corporation of India Ltd
Set up in 1957, Cable Corporation of India Ltd (CCI) is among the leading Indian companies with ISO 9001 certification from BVQI. The company’s corporate philosophy is, ‘total cable services—from concept to commissioning’. The company is an exclusive licencee for Siemens’ cable trade in India. The company’s two manufacturing plants in Mumbai and Nashik are fully integrated with state of art equipment. Apart from its technical collaboration with Mitsubishi Cable Industries of Japan, CCI products correspond to various international standards like BS, VDE, IEC, GOST, in addition to BIS, and individual client specifications.
Products and sectors it caters to: CCI manufactures a wide range of power cables in materials like PVC, XLPE, paper, fluoropolymer, apart from elastomeric insulated power cables. It specialises in HVDC cables, mining cables, aerial bunched cables (33 kV), winding wires, etc.
Contact details: Ph: 91-22-2666764-68; Fax: 91-22-2632694/2694276; Website: www.cablecorporation.net
(As per company website)
Finolex Cables Ltd
Finolex Cables Ltd, the flagship company of the Finolex group, is among India’s leading manufacturers of electrical and communication cables. Finolex has been accorded the coveted ‘Superbrand’ status for five consecutive years because of the quality of its products and services.
Finolex has also entered into a JV with J-Power Systems (a joint venture between Hitachi and Sumitomo), world leaders for the manufacture of extra high voltage (EHV) cables, and is setting up a state of the art manufacturing facility near Pune. The JV will produce EHV cables of up to 500 KV for the world market.
Products and sectors it caters to: Offering ‘total electrical solutions’, the Finolex portfolio includes PVC insulated electrical cables, flexible cables for industry, cables for the agricultural and automobile sectors, and LT power and control cables. The communication cables range includes jelly filled telephone cables, trunk and distribution CATV, and branch and drop coaxial cables for cable TV, apart from LAN cables and copper and fibre components from Leviton of USA for structured cabling. Finolex has added more products to its electrical solution range, which includes Finoswitch, Finoglow CFLs and T5 tubes and luminaries.
Contact details: Ph: 020-27475963; Fax: 020-27472239; Email: [email protected]; Website: www.finolex.com
Havells India Ltd
Qimat Rai Gupta, CMD
Havells India Ltd is among India’s fastest growing electrical and power distribution equipment manufacturers. Havells owns some of the most prestigious global brands like Crabtree, Sylvania, Concord, Luminance, Linolite and SLI Lighting. Havells is a name synonymous with excellence and expertise in the electrical industry. With 94 branch offices and over 8000 professionals across 50 countries, the group has achieved rapid success in the past few years. Its state of the art manufacturing units in India located at Haridwar, Baddi, Noida, Faridabad, Alwar, Neemrana, and manufacturing plants located across Europe, Latin America and Africa, churn out globally acclaimed products. Its 20,000 strong global distributor network is prompt to give services to customers.
Products and sectors it caters to: The products range from industrial and domestic circuit protection switchgears, cables and wires, motors and fans to electrical water heaters, power capacitors, CFL lamps, and luminaires for domestic, commercial and industrial applications, and modular switches covering the entire gamut of household, commercial and industrial electrical needs.
Contact details: Ph: + 91-120-4771000; Fax: +91-120-4772000; Email: [email protected]; Website: www.havells.com
Hindusthan Vidyut Products Ltd
RP Mody, chairman
Hindusthan Vidyut Products Ltd (HVPL) was incorporated in 1959 as Indian Aluminium Cables Ltd. It is one of the leading manufacturers of overhead conductors, underground cables and HT insulators. The company has built a reputation for its quality products and has been awarded the ISO 9001: 2008 certificate by Bureau Veritas Quality International (BVQI), UK. The company exports large quantities of cables and overhead conductors to various countries.
Major products: The company manufactures XLPE insulated cables of up to 132 KV, HT and LT aerial bunched cables, single core cables of up to 1000 sq mm (concentric conductor), multi-core cables of up to 630 sq mm (circular and sector shaped conductor), etc. Other products in its portfolio include mining cables for HT and LT systems, PVC power cables, control and railway signalling cables, instrumentation cables, FRLS/non FRLS cables, etc. It also manufactures conductors from 11 kV distribution to 800 kV transmission lines and insulators.
Contact details: Ph: 011-23310001; Fax: 011-23313707; Email: [email protected]; Website: www.hindusthanvidyut.com
Nicco Corporation Ltd
Nicco Corporation Ltd (NCL) is the flagship company of the Nicco Group. For over six decades, NCL has been one of the pioneers in the cable manufacturing industry. It produces a wide range of power, control, instrumentation and telecom cables; offering a spectrum of engineering services and executes turnkey projects. Established in 1942, the US$ 67 million worth Nicco Group is a widely respected Indian industrial powerhouse. Its other activities include HR services and amusement parks. The diverse and dynamic group employs over 2000 people and comprises Nicco Corporation, Nicco Engineering Services, Nicco Parks and Resorts and Nicco Internet Ventures Ltd.
Major products: The company manufactures a wide range of products covering XLPE cables, PVC insulated cables, electron beam irradiation cables, building wires, instrumentation, fire survival products, fluoro polymers, kapton, traction conductors for railways, etc.
Contact details: Ph: 91-33-6628-5250/5255; Fax: 91-33-2230-9443; Email: [email protected]; Website: www.niccocables.com
(As per company website)
Paramount Cables
Sanjay Aggarwal, chairman & CEO
Established in 1955, Paramount Cables is one of the leading manufacturers of wires and cables in the country. The company has its manufacturing units in Khushkhera (Rajasthan) and Dharuhera (Haryana) that provides a complete range of cables. Both the units have been certified under ISO 9001:2008 and ISO 14001:2004 and SMR International Certifications Ltd (South Korea). Paramount’s UK subsidiary—AEI Cables, established in 1837, is one of the oldest companies. Over the years, the company has created a wide customer portfolio ranging from infrastructure to industry segment, public sector units to utilities. The company also provides instrumentation cables to ISRO.
Major products: It has a comprehensive product range that includes high and low voltage XLPE cabels, PVC power and control, aerial bunch cables, instrumentation cables, JFTC, optical fibre, railway signalling, axle counter, MDF switch board, FRLS and ZHLS buliding cables.
Contact Details: Ph: +91-11-45618800, 900; Email: [email protected]; Website: www.paramountcables.com
Polycab Wires Pvt Ltd
Inder Jaisinghani, chairman & managing director
Polycab Wires Pvt Ltd is among the largest electrical cable manufacturers, with a turnover of over Rs 37 billion (3700 crore) in 2010-11. With its manufacturing facility located in Daman, the company has been making power cables as well as light duty cables. Polycab Wires is ISO 14001 and 18001 certified. Its state of the art plant is equipped with the most advanced imported machinery and its laboratories are equipped with the latest testing equipment ensuring rigid quality control of all raw material, inprocess material and finished goods. The company has its own insulation compounding unit with a capacity of 3600 tonnes/month for the most consistent quality of PVC, FR, FRLS, HRFR and FRZH for the insulation of wires and cables.
Major products: It offers a wide product range of HT/ LT XLPE, power and control cables, apart from fire-proof zero halogen, mining, welding, rubber, PVC/LDPE screened/unscreened instrumentation, railway signalling, aerial bunched, jelly filled, LAN, and coaxial cables.
Contact details: Ph: 022- 24327070; Fax: 24327075; Email: [email protected]; Website: www.polycab.com
RPG Cables Ltd
Harsh Goenka, chairman
Ramesh Chandak, CEO
RPG Cables Ltd, now known as KEC International Ltd, is part of RPG Enterprises, one of the largest industrial houses in India, with interests in core sectors like power generation, transmission and distribution, telecommunications, tyres, agriculture, retailing and speciality chemicals. The company is among the leading manufacturers of power and telecommunication cables in India. It is a major supplier to the Department of Telecommunications and MTNL. RPG Cables Ltd has been formed subsequent to the merger of the following three cable companies of the RPG group—Asian Cables and Industries Ltd, RPG Telecom Ltd and Upcom Cables Ltd. RPG Cables Ltd also offers turnkey installation services involving cable laying, jointing, testing and commissioning.
Major products: The company manufactures a wide range of XLPE power cables (single/multi core and with FRLS sheath), PVC insulated (heavy duty, mining, power control, flexible cables), PIJF telephone cables with a capacity of 66LCKM and fibre optical cables.
Contact Details: Ph: +91 22 6667 0300; Website: RPG Group www.rpggroup.com; KEC International Ltd www.kecrpg.com; RPG Cables (A Division of KEC International Ltd) www.rpgcables.com
RR Kabel Ltd
RR Kabel, an ISO 9001:2008 certified company, is one of the premier manufacturers of electrical wires and cables in India. It has earned the distinction of being one of the leading Asian manufacturers of fire safe cables with halogen free flame retardant insulation that has ISO 1400l:2004 and OHSAS 18001:2007 certification. It has international accreditations like BASEC (UK), UL (USA), VDE (Germany), NF-USE (France), PSB (Singapore), SASO (Saudi Arabia), etc.
Major products: Its range of products include building wires and cables, single or multi-core controls, armoured and unarmoured, shielded and braided cables. RR Kabel uses a range of RoHS compliant polymers for insulation and sheathing. It also offers communication cables for telephone and switchboards, co-axial cables for CATV networks, apart from 4-pair UTP CAT 5e and CAT6 cables for computer LAN networks. Further, the company has the distinction of having introduced the concentric and compactly laid UNILAY conductor technology.
Contact details: Ph: +91-265-2321891/92/93; Fax: +91-265-2321894; Email: [email protected]; Website: www.ramratna.com
(As per company website)
Uniflex Cables Ltd
VK Bajaj, COO
Uniflex Cables, incorporated in the year 1981 (now a subsidiary of Apar Industries Ltd), is a name to reckon with, having established itself as a quality conscious manufacturer and exporter of a vast line of electrical and telecom cables, marketed under the brand name UNICAB. The company has also established five major divisions for manufacturing and testing different power and telecom cables. Uniflex Cables Ltd has established a modern manufacturing set up at Umbergaon (Gujarat).
Major products: The company has established a distinct division to manufacture and test LT/MV XLPE, elastomeric cables, LT PVC cables, optical fibre/jelly filled cables, etc. The firm’s quality strategy is centred on developing speciality and innovative cables for critical applications in compliance with Indian and international standards. These cables are designed after detailed engineering in order to meet specific requirements and for high performance.
Contact details: Ph: +91-22-26740001/26740002/26740003; Fax : +91-22-26740600; Email: [email protected]; Website: www.uniflexcable.com, www.unicab.com
Universal Cables Ltd
DR Bansal, managing director
Universal Cables Ltd (UCL) was established in 1962 to manufacture paper insulated power cables in technical collaboration with the world’s largest cable producer, BICC, UK. UCL is a vibrant progressive company and is headed by DR Bansal. UCL entered into a collaboration with Asea Brown Boveri Kabel AB of Sweden to manufacture XLPE insulated power cables for the first time in India and today, it is a forefront runner in the industry. It is credited with introducing vertical continuous vulcanisation (VCV) technology for the first time in India. Its R&D laboratory is recognised by the Department of Scientific and Industrial Research, Government of India.
Major products: UCL offers the widest range of cables, like jelly filled telephone cables, optical fibre cables and extra high voltage cables in the range of 220-400 kV. It also has a capacitor division, run in technical collaboration with Toshiba, Japan.
Contact details: Ph: 01143554879; Fax: 011-23711561; Email: [email protected], [email protected]; Website: www.unistar.co.in
V-Guard Industries Ltd
Mithun Chittilappilly, executive director
V-Guard Industries Ltd was established in 1977 by Kochouseph Chittilappilly. The company is nurtured by quality consciousness, a collective passion for hard work and the will to succeed. V-Guard’s winning edge is in its technological excellence, automation and computerisation that have combined to help the company reach the threshold of achieving a Rs 10 billion turnover. The value of commitment to quality is also cherished by more than 1300 staff members and over 4000 workers engaged in the production process.
Major products: V-Guard offers PVC house wiring cables, LT power and control cables. The wires are not only ISI marked, but have three layer insulation and are made of 99.97 per cent copper, possessing a high degree of flexibility, fire resistance and high conductivity.
Contact details: Ph: +91-0484-3005000; Service helpline–180030001800 (toll free); Fax: 0484-3005100; Email: [email protected]; Website: www.vguard.in
