Raj Mathur (seated, left), Komtech’s president and CEO, attributes the firm’s success to a committed management team.

By the end of this year, Ontario, Canada-based Komtech Inc., will open a division in Bangalore, India, called Komtech Plastics India Ltd., to take advantage of the growing market there, President and CEO Raj Mathur says. “The Indian market is increasing dramatically,” he explains. “We want to capture the local growth market in India and grow exponentially.”   

The 50,000-square-foot plant in India will host similar  operations as its Canadian headquarters, including injection molding, assembly work, tool manufacturing and building, and product manufacturing for the automotive, medical, electronics and telecommunications markets. The company’s capabilities also include project management, electric assembly, global mold manufacturing, silk screening, prototyping and product design support.

The India division will focus on that country’s market, Mathur says. Customers in Canada, United States, Mexico, Singapore, China and Europe will continue to be served by its Canadian operation and, if needed, supported from India and Malaysia. “We entered several trade shows two or three years back and there was so much interest [from this region] we thought about starting operations [in India],” he says. Besides, North American customers are also asking Komtech to support their operations in India, he adds.

This will be Komtech’s second division in Asia. In 2005, it acquired a tool manufacturer in Malaysia, which now operates the company’s tooling division. The division is able to complete tooling orders in six weeks, half the time and cost of its competitors. “Since our shop in Malaysia works 24 hours a day, it is a big difference from the way most North American companies work,” Mathur explains.

Efficient Processes
The strong Canadian dollar is on par with the U.S. dollar, so Komtech’s export business is suffering dramatically, Mathur explains. As a result, the company has implemented new lean manufacturing processes and expanded its market base. “We are not getting the exchange advantage,” he explains. “We have had to install some efficiencies into the system and make operations more lean and efficient. We are constantly looking for opportunities to reduce cost.”

Manufacturing employees are required to complete Paulson’s Training Program, an online course covering injection molding operating processes and technology, which allows operators to have more control and ownership over the manufacturing processes. This requirement was implemented six months ago and has helped the company increase manufacturing efficiency by five percent, he says. Komtech also implemented a material handling system eight months ago that reduced inventory costs by about 3 percent.

The company switched to a central regrinding of resin, which gave a better control of inventory, Mathur says.

The company mainly had focused on the automotive industry, but expanded into the medical, electronics and advanced consumer fields earlier this year. “To cope with the changing market, we decided not to focus heavily on one industry,” Mathur explains. Last year, the automotive industry represented 60 percent of its business; today, it is only 40 percent.

The company is very selective in which industries it deals with, he continues. “One of our important customers tried to give us business at an unacceptable price and we had to politely turn it down,” he says.

"A lot of our competition has gone bankrupt or closed down in the last year because they take on products at a low price and eventually have to pay the price,” he adds.

Employee Focus
Mathur attributes the success of Komtech to a strong and committed management team. Providing a successful working environment for its employees is integral to the growth of the company, and its mission statement expresses Komtech’s commitment to this idea. Its guiding principles have led Komtech to find ways to further improve its customer service and the quality of its products.

“We are committed to achieving total customer satisfaction by continuous improvement of processes and products, customer service, providing training to our employees and investing in technology,” the company says.