(An exclusive interview with Arvinder Singh Pental, Vice President, Voltas)
Oct 29, 2020
Voltas Limited, India’s Largest Air-conditioning, and Commercial Refrigeration company, in early 2000, pioneered the manufacturing of freezers in India. In the last two decades, Voltas has brought about a revolution providing the largest and most exclusive range in freezers, convertibles, chest coolers and Combo coolers, to customers in India.
The complete range is aesthetically crafted with best in class performance, tropicalized for high ambient conditions, excellent insulation helps maintain temperature during power outages, corrosion-resistant durable cabinet ensures reliability for years, designed with an eco-friendly refrigerant and an energy-efficient compressor, they’re great for the environment.
Frozen foods and ice creams find a robust and reliable home in Voltas Hard Top and Flat Glass Top Freezer range – built to last for years to come.
Opting for a Voltas Commercial Refrigeration product is what we call, peace of mind. With India’s most energy-efficient cooling technology, product safety and reliability, the freezers are equipped with Stucco Aluminum / PCM (Pre-coated Metal) liner for hygienic storage of food products.
The approach to Voltas gave Ice cream Times an opportunity to converse with Arvinder Singh Pental, Vice President – Commercial Refrigeration. This exclusive conference interview is especially covered in lieu of the ongoing pandemic where Voltas is trying to create awareness amongst customers that consuming hygiene products like ice creams do not promote the spread of the virus in any sense.
As we step ahead with our first question, we asked Mr. Pental about the prime features of Voltas’ freezers and how are they different from the other makes?“As the largest and most trusted brand we’d like to say that while designing freezers, the important aspect to keep in mind besides aesthetics (for impulse generation) is product Reliability & Safety (considering the commercial application and high value of the perishable products stored)”.
“More importantly, the selection of the critical components for performance & reliability and optimizing the refrigeration system design results in best in class energy efficiency.
As a brand we are conscious of the retailer investments and the recurring running cost, hence drive energy efficiency.”
Voltas v/s Other Freezers: Voltas has the largest range of freezers (50 ltrs to 600 ltrs capacity)“Clear distinct advantage that Voltas has versus the rest of the competitors is also on the temperature that you see in our products. Normally freezers are designed with a temperature of -18°C, to keep the product stabilized at that particular temperature. While we design our product range, the product temperature is kept at -18°C with an option to take it further down to -23°C. The reason we do this is because in India we have a unique issue of power fluctuation or power disruption.”
During electricity break-down, depending on the hours of power failure- there is an impact on the product stored inside So if the temperature maintained is at -23 or -22°C then at the time of power loss when the temperature gradually starts rising to -18°C or -16°C, it still maintains the products inside, in their original form. This further maintains its shelf life. If we design the freezer up to -18°C only, then the temperature rise (drop) is much higher as compared to -22°C or -23°C. Hence this way the products inside our freezers are safe, because of the temperature being designed as such.
Components of inner structure: In addition, while designing the freezers, its interior should also be considered. There are two categories of the inner liner that the industry uses. Many of the companies continue to promote the stucco-aluminum sheet only. We offer models with the option of Stucco Aluminum and PCM (Pre-coated Metal sheet). Both materials have distinct advantages, however, PCM provides more durability.
Voltas has the largest range of Convertible models (50 ltrs to 800 ltrs) for storing beverages, dairy products, frozen food and ice cream, together, at their ideal temperature-used for positive temperatures as well as for negative temperature applications with the help of a thermostat. The complete range is with PCM inner liner.
While the majority of the players in the industry have reduced their product portfolio, offering solutions through convertible models, Voltas continues to offer the stand-alone freezer range to support the ice cream / frozen food industry.
Voltas offers different product categories. The reason for this is that we believe that the consumer and the end-user should be thoroughly informed; though it takes time to educate them. For e.g. many manufacturers provide a convertible model for ice-cream application. If the retailer, by mistake, adjusts the thermostat setting to a much lower temperature compared to the desired level – the freezer would convert into a cooler thus leading to a risk of the ice cream stock becoming spoilt.
Imported Combo cooler range offers dual functionality of a cooler and a freezer. The cooler compartment can be used for storing cold beverages. The freezer, for storing ice-cream and frozen foods.
In short, looking at the diverse product applications, Voltas shall continue to offer the exclusive freezer range to support the ice cream industry. Our products are best in class with reference to design, performance, reliability and safety, supported by the largest distribution system in the country and an extensive & well trained after-sales network.
Fluctuating power supplyTalking about the inbuilt stabilizers within the freezers, none of the brands in the market are actually offering an inbuilt stabilizer option. As a practice, freezers are run without a voltage stabilizer.
To ensure product reliability Voltas models are designed using critical components that have high voltage tolerance (180 volts to 260 volts) resulting in fewer failures.
Solar PowerNowadays solar panels are used extensively. How far does Voltas support this technology?We are in the development stage, working on a Hybrid design (through Solar and Compressor both) to cater to 24×7 functionality, all year round, and through all seasons. The unit can run on solar during day time, and at night, monsoons and winters, they run on electricity, through a convertor to maintain the desired temperature and product life.Considering the large freezer range (50 ltrs to 600 ltrs) optimizing the Solar panels is also critical.
Pandemic TimesWith the ongoing times, there are many companies promoting imported freezers and are facing a hard time selling their products. What opportunity does Voltas sees to grab the market?In reality, the pandemic has impacted everyone., The Ice cream and beverage industry in particular is going through challenging times. Hopefully, it will now be in the recovery phase.With the strong Make in India sentiments and drive, by the government of India, equally supported by the initiatives being taken – the pull and the traction is more for Indian models.
The last 5-7 years have witnessed the industry importing large numbers of freezers from China. To remain competitive, Voltas followed a balanced approach (make v/s buy), with import of smaller models and also leveraging the local manufacturing for larger capacities.
To cater to the increased demands for locally produced models, we are investing in a new greenfield facility in South India – doubling the existing manufacturing capacity. The objective is to be self-reliant and continue to support the market, with best in class products and remain competitive.
The onset of the pandemic in India took place during the peak season, affecting a majority of the ice cream brands. We are more than willing to collaborate with the ice cream companies offering solutions that would help increase sales. For reaching out to the rural and upcountry towns, ice cream brands can leverage Voltas’ widest, largest, most reliable sales and after-sales (service) network.
Voltas’ ‘Make in India’ exports:To gain national and international market for Indian products, what strategies can be employed to get export orders?
Our plans are to be completely self-reliant, in order to cater to the market demands for India region (including the neighboring countries)” and with the second facility coming up in South India, we will push for expansion in Africa and Middle East region.