The presence of Italian market leader Lauri Isotermici as a partner provides Kryo one of the biggest competitive advantages in the Indian market that is at the cusp of immense business opportunities in the cold chain space, writes Rajesh Rajgor
Every month we have covered the immense capabilities and potential of India’s cold chain segment in logistics, refrigerated containers and superlative work in cold storages to tackle the growing demand in the cold chain segment. Only because we scratch below the surface and dig deep, we are able to unearth companies and their superlative work that not only makes them successful but also put India on par with quality available globally. Amid the pandemic, where each country has ramped up their cold chain infrastructure, according to a study about the all-India cold chain infrastructure capacity, NABARD Consultancy Service (NABCONS) assessed the requirement at 350 lakh MT capacity of cold storage for perishable fruits and vegetables.
Currently, the overall cold storage capacity across the country is 374.25 lakh MT. The National Centre for Cold Chain Development puts out a study that says India needs 60,000 refrigerated trucks today as against the current capacities of roughly 15,000 trucks. In order to meet the burgeoning demand, Kryo Lauri was set up during the ongoing pandemic. Founder and Managing Director Sagar Kokate shares: “In a very short time period we were able to set up our production facility at Phase II Chakan, MIDC. Today, we have a fully operational plant setup in 30,000 sq. feet gated premises. Our facility is well-equipped with all the required tools which are required for the manufacturing of best quality MS reefer containers.”
According to Koundinya P, Co-Founder and Executive Director, Kryo is the first company in the Indian sub-continent to have a unique Indian-Italian JV, especially in the refrigerated container space. The group has four production plants in Europe, as well as state-of-the-art numerical control machines and a range of products capable of satisfying the most demanding customers. The high quality of the service is recognised by major car manufacturers such as Ford, Volkswagen, PSA and Renault and Iveco, for whom Lauri is ‘official converter’.
Italian Expertise for Indian Cold Chain
Emphasising on the vision for Kryo Lauri group in India, Mario Grespi, Managing Director, Lauri Group, states, “Our aim is to intensify our relationship and product penetration in India through strong association with Kryo. At Kryo Lauri we wish to achieve full operability on the entire range of products that are dedicated to the world of commercial vehicle insulation.” Elaborating on the value that Lauri Group brings to Kryo containers, the co-founder explains: “With Lauri’s top-notch manufacturing know-how, we have started manufacturing of metallic refrigerated containers. In Kryo, we combine strength, quality and quantity of service. The joint venture with Lauri Isotermici is one of the biggest competitive advantages of our company.”
“Lauri is a market leader in the vehicle mounted reefer containers and began their journey from the year 1984. They have the best-in-class manufacturing facility in Mantova, Italy with the manufacturing capability of 800-1000 vehicles per year. Their step-by-step assistance will help us deliver world class containers to India that can compete with the best in the market,” he adds. Currently, Kryo Lauri has setup a fully operational facility for manufacturing of metallic reefer containers along with MS corrugated boxes. “Our newly designed MS corrugated boxes are available with different combination like internal sheeting with stainless steel, aluminium, fibre sheets, etc. For flooring we are offering aluminium T section, aluminium chequred plate and SS corrugated floor for special applications of fisheries or dairies,” reveals Kokate. The Italian JV has enabled Kryo to establish refrigerated containers that are acceptable in the industries in India right from perishables to pharmaceuticals.
“Today there are the same preconditions for developing the refrigerated transport business in India, a country with a great industrial tradition and enormous growth potential. The collaboration between the Italian and the Indian teams allows us to identify and satisfy the requirements of the local customers, in order to design and implement the best possible solution,” informs Italo Rebuzzi, Director–Export, Lauri Group.
Kryo-Lauri USP
As the fleet operators in India look for efficient ways to reduce fuel consumption and faster turnaround times, they also look at the weight of the refrigerated containers. Most fleet owners face issues with MS containers that are heavier in weight and look for options and solutions to reduce the weight of the boxes. Says Kokate: “We at Kryo-Lauri have put a lot of effort in the weight reduction of the container. For example, take a 14-feet container; the weight of the GRP/PPGI container would be around 1,300-1,350 kg whereas with the same dimensions we manufacture MS/SS containers with the weight of the container being 1,600 kg. We perform the Stadpro analysis and FEA analysis (Finite Element Analysis) to calculate the load distribution in the container and to avoid the future failure of the boxes.”
The large number of factors that influence the performance of the refrigerated transportation and larger cold chain is not within the control of either service providers or end users. For example, a refrigerated trucking service provider must be dependent on the quality of the roads; serious damages can happen to the container if it goes on bad roads which in turn can damage the products inside and this is one of the major bottlenecks for the cold logistics.
“Before the start of our work, our design team makes sure to understand the requirements of the client and we provide the best possible solution. Our major concern at Kryo-Lauri is not only to deliver the best product, but also constantly work closely with the client to meet his requirements. We have to meet the best possible solution to minimize the loss and value of the products that have to be stored and transported. We have manufactured the containers for the applications like pharmaceutical and vaccines. All our products are US FDA and pharmaceutical compliant, agricultural commodities, food services, quick service restaurants (QSR), sea food, RTE foods, dairy commodities, etc.,” Kokate states.
One of the important aspects that is crucial is this regard is the application and road type. Kryo-Lauri’s research and development team conducts comprehensive research about the weather and terrain of the regions the vehicle is going to operate in and design containers specifically to meet the requirements. “We use durable and sturdy HR sheets, CR sheets, SS 304 sheets, CO2 welding during the manufacturing process. We also have an expert paint team, wherein all the necessary protocols would be followed during the painting process. We manufacture 100 per cent water-proof containers and complete stainless steel internally as a pharmaceutical-compliant container. We perform thermal imaging before the vehicle delivery as part of our testing process and also install GPS and temperature tracking devices base on customer requirement. It is also our work to ensure the accessories like partitions, hatch-doors, side doors, bulk heads, strip curtains, etc. as per the requirement of the client. Additionally, our product come along with a two-year warranty against any manufacturing defect,” explains Kokate.
Journey so Far
Kryo with an initial investment of Rs 1 crore has procured the international standard machinery required for the manufacturing of MS-SS containers and is currently implementing a plan to expand its product portfolio to GRP. “At present, we manufacture 10-12 vehicles per month and the plant is designed with capacity of 40-45 vehicles’ production per month and once the GRP manufacturing starts, we expect that the capacity will go up to 120-130 vehicles per month. Our team constantly works towards giving the best quality product to the clients within the delivery schedule, for which we are procuring the machinery from Italy and we are going to commence with the GRP manufacturing very soon,” Kokate informs.
Incorporated in May 2020, post the unlocking Kryo-Lauri manufactured an industry standard 14-feet container which was used as the display vehicle for potential customers. The team is elated with the good cooperation shared from individual fleet owners. They are now looking forward to orders from dealers and OEMs to become their authorised refrigerated container builders. Recalling the work and the journey so far, Kokate reminisces: “When the clients visited the factory, we had shown the product and then they were quite impressed with it and gave us the initial order of five vehicles and from there on there has been no looking back. With the designs and drawings which we have received from our Italian team we have delivered the vehicle for the storage and distribution of fruits and vegetables, where the client was extremely satisfied with the container quality.’
“After this initial order from Global Agro Fresh (P) Ltd. we got orders from various other sectors including dairy, pharmaceuticals, fisheries, individual fleet owners, etc. In a very small time period we have got associated with many established brands like Hatsun Dairy, Gowardhan Dairy, Hetero Drugs, Mother Dairy, Creambell, Bombay Cold Chain Solution, Gurukrupa Frozen Goods Carrier, etc.,” he adds. The exciting journey doesn’t just pause here. The benefits that the Government of India has provided with respect to 100 per cent FDI has waived the levy of excise tax on domestic production and customs for import of ready-to-use reefer equipment, which is definitely helping Kryo-Lauri to explore different segments in the market. “Apart from manufacturing reefer containers, our joint collaboration is seeking new opportunities by helping the country in the vaccination drive. We have manufactured portable cold rooms under the sub-brand Kryo Ultrafreeze. We are also in the initial research phase for introducing our own logistics fleet by Kryo-Logistics. Our teams, both from India and Italy, are working together on new ideas and designs which are yet to be launched in India,” reveals Koundinya. If all goes as planned and the initial orders further translate into growth, the company may also look at exports. “With high-quality standards of local production, specialized engineers and workforce, India can be a hub serving the whole Asian area as well as a platform to amplify the technology beget by the collaboration between two groups. The projection of the collaboration across the continent will be a logical consequence of the Kryo-Lauri JV,” concludes Mario Grespi.
