Scientific and Industrial Testing and Research Centre (Si’Tarc) will take up a project soon to develop slurry pumps that will have wider applications in industries and can be manufactured in Coimbatore.
Ma. Sendil Kumar, Si’Tarc president, told The Hindu that the ₹12.7- crore project will be supported by the Central government with 80 % of the funds coming as grant (nearly ₹10 crore). The Si’Tarc will develop the pump and pumpset manufacturers here can produce it commercially. “We will do the prototype. Individual companies who want to manufacture it should take care of the tools,” he said.
The project is for a year though the Association has asked for two years. Pumpset industry is identified for Coimbatore under the one district one product scheme of the Union government and hence, the industry should look at catering to value added segments.
Explaining the demand for such pumps, Mr. Sendil Kumar said India has just about 1.5 % share in the world pump market. Manufacturers in Coimbatore supply to all major pumpset brands and corporate companies. However, these are mainly in the clear water segment. In the global market, almost 35 % of the pumps are for waste water applications. “India imports ₹200 crore to ₹300 crore worth slurry pumps annually,” he said. “The world market for these pumps is very big and it goes for a lot of industrial applications,” he added.
For the Micro, Small and Medium-scale pumpset manufacturers in Coimbatore, research and development is a major bottleneck to get into such segments. “We want to develop a slurry pump that will meet the standards of the US and EU markets and can be made by MSMEs here,” he said.
Si’Tarc had, earlier, developed a smart pump, which is now qualified for supply under the Kusum scheme. This will also be taken up for commercial production soon, he said.
