“This year, Armatec-FTS agitator sales is going to double” – Florian Wueck & Vijay Kumar Lanka

1. Tell us more about Armatec –FTS and what motivates your entry into the Indian biogas market?

Florian Wueck: Armatec FTS began its business 60 years ago in the farming industry and now 40 years in the mixing industry of Germany & Europe. With Vijay, it has been 6 years since we have been doing business in the Indian biogas sector. I think we have great opportunity here because India is the fastest growing biogas market in the world. We are working hard here.

2. What are the European experiences & expertise that you come with here?

Florian Wueck: The first biogas plant was built in Germany in 1995. Asia has mostly small scale plants. From small scale to large MW level plants, we come with wide experiences. Armatec can offer solution for any kind of waste with low operation cost and low power consumption. Biogas players can trust us as we have worked for more than 10 years in the biogas market around the world.

3. Very few CBG plants have been established so far. What are your thoughts on the potential for biogas in India?

Florian Wueck: We can see that the market is great for us because India needs CBG for buses, trucks, tuk-tuk, taxis and many more. This is the big opportunity that we have in the Indian market. In the German or European market, the gas goes for the electricity, but here you have bio-CNG.

Vijay Kumar Lanka: Last year we sold 171 agitators and this year the sales are going to be doubled. Our clients have big plans coming five years and we would be requiring a bigger production unit to supply them.

4. What is the range of products that you come with?

Vijay Kumar Lanka: We have the mixing technology. We come with range of agitators like the side entry agitators and peddle agitators. In side entry agitators, we have EVO and EVO Plus. The EVO+ are the best available agitators in the market globally because it comes 7.5 KW connected load and performance being better than 15 KW agitators. In the last few years we have sold more than 300 agitators in India. Most of the customers are repeated customers with us and we gain business with good references. The customer experience has been good as they are referring our agitators for their future projects too.

5. India possesses a diverse range of feedstocks, including paddy straw, wheat straw, cotton stalk, cow dung, and more. Given this wide variability in feedstock composition, how efficiently can your mixers operate within digesters to ensure optimal performance?

Florian Wueck: Our mixers have no problem with the feedstocks. In Germany or Europe, we have different feedstocks like grass, corn, straws etc. Feedstocks in India are different but our mixers can mix any substance with same viscosity etc. Our mixers are energy efficient too. The problem at times lies with the pre-treatment systems. When you cut the feedstock and crush it with bio-grinder, then everything works. A good pre-treatment is necessary for the system. The manpower has to be trained so that they can solve these kinds of issues by them.

Vijay Kumar Lanka: Generally we don’t sell just the agitators; we give complete mixing solutions. We design our agitators based on the feedstocks and the exact numbers that a project requires. As the Indian market is expanding, we have come up with our new assembly unit in India and also a service center. This would give boost to our business.

6. Most biogas plants in this region rely on paddy straw, which has a high silica content that damages the fans and blades of mixers. What are your thoughts on this challenge?

Vijay Kumar Lanka: The paddy in straw in North India has high silica content. Our agitators are slow moving ones. Our 7.5KW agitators come with 96 RPM and could be reduced to 60 RPM and there would be no wear & tear with the mixers. We haven’t changed a single propeller in India, Germany or any other country due to wear & tear.

7. What are the problems you encountered with the Indian biogas industry?

Florian Wueck: There is lack of trained & skilled manpower here. We can win together if they just not purchase products from us but also get trained enough in biogas processes. We are doing our part by giving training regarding agitators to our customers. There should be some professional training institute for the biogas project operators in the country.

8. How Armatec-FTS differs from other companies?

Vijay Kumar Lanka: We are a 100% subsidiary in India with a strong team to give immediate service to customers. We keep a healthy inventory. We do selling in Indian rupees. For cost optimization & transportation, we just import the core units and buy the motors within India. The blades are fabricated in India. Armatec has become favorite mixers in the Indian market in such a short span of time. We are in the process of ‘Make In India.’ We have a production facility in Hyderabad with 12,000 sq feet and we have started assembling our agitators and fabricating ceiling plates etc. for future customers. We are also brining other companies to the Indian market that would fuel the biogas growth. We would be manufacturing our own pumps in India within one year.

9. How are your aftersales services and how price-competitive is Armatec?

Vijay Kumar Lanka: We have a strong 7-member team for servicing. Generally, our agitators do not require any service for the first three years or 10,000 working hours & the clients only need to change the gear oils. Our customers do not need to keep any inventory of spare parts and we can supply them within 24 hours from Hyderabad. And because we are focusing more & more on localization, the products are becoming highly price-competitive.