We are a true leader in power quality solutions

EPCOS, a TDK Group Company, develops, manufactures and markets electronic components and systems, focusing on fast-growing leading-edge technology markets, which include automotive electronics, industrial electronics and consumer electronics as well as information and communications technology. “We have played a leading role in energy efficiency in terms of compensation of reactive power because we are the leading manufacturer of power factor correction capacitors,” says N Balakrishnan, Managing Director, EPCOS India Private Limited in an interaction with Electrical India.

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Kindly take us through the journey of the company in India.

The main share of TDK’s current electronic components business in India was started decades ago under Siemens Ltd, India, which served as the sales arm of Siemens Matsushita. The company changed to EPCOS India Private Limited when EPCOS AG evolved from Siemens Matsushita in 1999. In 2008, EPCOS AG was acquired by TDK Corporation and since then the company has grown to be a leading player in this field. Starting from a small factory with three winding machines, our first-year billing was close to Rs 2 crore. Today, we boast of 100 winding machines, state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities with the widest range of products. We look forward to generating business worth Rs 1000 crore in the next year. More than 50 percent of the products manufactured in India are exported across the globe. We are proud of the fact that we are the only manufacturer producing the entire gamut of film capacitors under one roof.

How do you envisage the growth of the company in Indian markets as compared to the European and Japanese counterparts?

India is a very fast growing market, whereas Japan and Germany are more mature markets. As export-oriented countries, they are known for their global presence. So, they definitely would be able to transact business from Europe and Japan to the other countries. TDK in India is well-positioned for further growth here, as we have manufacturing facilities located right in India, which is an advantage compared to other Japanese and European companies.

What are the application sectors for your products? What kind of technological innovations would you like to incorporate in your products to make them more energy efficient and sustainable?

We have a prominent presence in the capacitors market, particularly, film capacitors that are very mature products. The capacitors we manufacture have applications in the electronics industry like automotive, industrial and information and communications technology. The AC capacitors that we manufacture are used in all kinds of motors, pumps, and home appliances like refrigerators, washing machines, dishwashers, and air conditioners. The power factor correction (PFC) capacitors that we manufacture in India are useful in all kinds of power networks, be it in an industrial network or a transmission distribution network.

Our capacitors enhance the power factor by compensating the reactive power and bringing the power factor closer to unity, thus considerably increasing the overall energy efficiency of the power networks. Utilities will penalise customers if their power factor is not close to unity. For this reason, our capacitors are in demand. To mitigate harmonics, we offer filters consisting of capacitors combined with reactors. The next level is PFC systems with capacitors and reactors that can switch in real-time.

In addition to PFC capacitors, we also have introduced our PQSine™ series of active harmonic filters to address the problem of harmonics. Another new product is PQvar™ static var generator (SVG). Basically, it provides real-time compensation to ensure that you have continuous unity power factor even if you have a varying low load. This you cannot achieve with the existing compensation systems because at some point – with some variation in the load – the power factor could either drop or rise and you will have to make some adjustments. But this won’t happen with an SVG. So, it ensures that the power factor is unity at all times. That is how we are progressing. We have played a leading role in energy efficiency in terms of compensation of reactive power because according to our research we are a global market leader for PFC capacitors. And in India we have the largest market share of around one third. Based on this and our growing portfolio, I can confidently say that we are a true leader in power quality solutions.

Do you have research and development unit in India?

Our Research and Development is headquartered in Europe and an extended arm is present here in India. We have a full-fledged R&D department for all capacitors.

Do you have the applications in electric vehicle charging stations?

The capacitors, we produce, are applicable in charging stations. We have geared up to supply components to hybrid and electric vehicles. We are also preparing for a future which has to yet become a reality in India i.e. autonomous driving, driverless cars, etc.

The Government has plans of generation of 175 giga watts of renewable energy. So what kind of opportunities do you envisage for your company?

I think solar energy is gaining momentum as 100 GW of solar energy generation has been planned. In solar generation, our involvement will be in electronic components used in solar inverters, and we already have business ventures with major solar inverters players, to whom we supply the essential electronic components.

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