The House Magazine of the Thermax Group Volume 39 No. 1 January-March 2009

Correspondents : J. Natesan Vikas Tripathi Umesh Barde Veena Coutinho Jaise IttyD.Bhanja Jenny Alexander Shivangi Page S. B. Chandak

Jiju K. T. D. W. Bapat R.B.Menon Nisha RaneParvati Venkatachalam Rama Swati Aditya Laxmi Gupta Noorjahan Khan

N. Haridas

Heating Cooling Power Chemical Water&Waste Solutions Enviro Finance Human Resources Administration

Business Technology Group Research & Development ManufacturingIndustrial Relations Mumbai Delhi Kolkata ChennaiBoiler & Heater Thermax Engineering Construction Company

Volume 39 No. 1 January-March 2009

ABCI

MEMBER

Cover

This dramatic composition of a coconut tree – alsoreferred to as the tree of life has a wealth of its own.

The coconut gives water, milk and oil and nearly athird of the world's population depends on thecoconut tree for livelihood and as a food supplement.

The tree has so many other uses. For example, thequill-shaped leaves are used to thatch roofs and makefences and the fibrous material of the coconut goesinto making many coir-based products, includingmattresses. Dried coconut shells and stubs are used asfuel.

And the shade they provide on a beach is verywelcome, especially on a summer day.

–

(Picture by Jill Martin)

Comment

Life is the ultimate work of art.— Woody Allen

Fireside

Fireside

is the quarterly house magazine of Thermax Limited, Pune. For private circulation only. Company related news/features may be reproduced only with the permissionof the Editor. Address : Thermax Limited,Thermax House, 14 Mumbai Pune Road, Wakdewadi, Pune 411 003, India. Tel : (020) 25542263 Fax : (020) 25541226

is also hosted on the website : www.thermaxindia.com Email : abunglow@thermaxindia.com roshan@thermaxindia.com

Views ofthe new facility

in Gujarat.

Back Cover

Printed on recycled paper

How a sewagetreatment facilityin Japan has lit-erally struck gold# Birbal's lessonon being clear-eyed about theobject of one'sloyalty # and aposter for thosewho feel they areunwanted

Excerpts from the book

by the Pulitzer prize winning

author, Thomas Friedman, about how

GE Transportation makes the most

energy efficient locomotives in the world

and how Texas Instruments figured out

that green is good for the company

Hot, Flat and

Crowded

Anu Aga on theneed for businessto turn the mirror in-wards # ChhayaHublikar recountshow Vipassana hascome to her res-cue in sheddingthe load of worries# Umakant Shendeon rain water har-vesting # and theEditor makes apoint about freerides

Meher Pudumjee is the

Business Standard CEO

of the Year # A new

order for a green captive

power plant in Rajastan

# Senior managers of

Thermax listen to Narayana

Murthy on ethical leadership

# Thermax water treatment

expertise for Karnataka

Power Corporation # New

generation absorption

chillers launched # Honour

for outstanding export

performance # Thermax HR gets

recognition # And more …

In a world troubled by thefinancial meltdown and globalwarming, innovation is themost critical challenge beforecorporates, argues MeherPudumjee

Thermax chillers play a role in Den-

mark's quest to maintain a balance

between economy and ecology

# Retrofit services give industrial

boilers a new lease of life in recession

times # Reverse osmosis plants to

provide safe drinking water at the

Delhi International Airport # A new

filtration system to improve efficiency

of boilers that use

heavy oil

2WHAT'S

NEW ?

15VOICES

28SLICE

LIFE

OF

6EXPRESSIONS

9ROUND UP

22SIGNPOSTS

Dr. R R Sonde,Executive VicePresident, talksabout creating anecosystem for re-search, technologyand innovation inThermax, over alean breakfast withAhmed Bunglowalaat the guest housein Koregaon Park

20BREAKFAST

WITH FS

Over the last decade, Thermax hasworked with its partner, ScandinavianEnergi Group (SEG), in optimising

energy use in Denmark by installing absorptionheat pumps for centralised heating – a reverseapplication of centralised cooling withabsorption chillers. Hot water from a centralgeneration facility is used for space heating intown buildings. The heating companies reducethe energy intensity at generating centres bytapping low grade heat from other sources likegeothermal heat from sandstone aquifers orwaste heat from town incinerators. Thermaxheat pumps absorb heat from these sourcesand pre heat the water delivered to thebuildings.

Since its first installation in 1999, whichextracts heat from geothermal energy,Thermax absorption heat pumps are operatingin several district installations in Denmark.Besides improving overall energy efficiency, inreducing the load on power stations, theybring down pollution levels of sulphur dioxide,nitrogen oxide and particles. In recent years,Thermax and SEG have installed heat pumpsto recover low grade stack exhaust gas heat of17MW capacity at a waste to energy plant andanother 15MW at a geo-thermal energy recoveryplant.

Recently, Thermax hasbagged an order for a 3.4MW steam absorptionchiller to be installed indown town Copenhagenas part of a district cool-ing project. The totalcapacity of the plant is15MW which, besides

the output of the Thermax chiller, would bemade up by free cooling using sea water andthrough ammonia chillers. The plant would“save” 2500 tonnes of carbon dioxide peryear. As the Thermax chiller will utilise seawater for heat rejection, it will be providedwith special corrosion resistant Titaniumtubes.

Denmark has achieved living standards andincomes on par with the US, whileconsuming only 44% energy compared toAmerica. It makes use of centralised heatingand cooling projects to slash carbon dioxideemissions. These projects use an array ofheating and cooling technologies – waste toenergy plants, heat pumps for recovery of lowgrade exhaust gases and geothermal heat,absorption cooling, ammonia chillers, coolingby using sea water, etc.

At the upcoming United Nations ClimateChange Conference – to be held atCopenhagen in December 2009 – hostDenmark would be showcasing some of theirgreen energy systems. World leaders anddelegates from 183 countries would be givena guided tour of some of the energy efficientdistrict heating and cooling projects which

reduce the country'scarbon footprint.Thermax absorption heatpumps and chillers areessential equipment inthese systems that helpthe energy consciouspeople of Denmark todemonstrate their respectfor a balance betweeneconomy and ecology.

WHAT'S

NEW ?

2

Thermaxwill feature at theclimate changeconferencein Copenhagen

Thermaxabsorption heat

pumps and chillersare essential equipment

in these systemsthat help the

energy consciouspeople of Denmark

to demonstratetheir respect for

a balancebetween economy

and ecology.

A Thermax installation :

energy efficient

At Cairn India's production

installation at the Mangala oil

field In Rajasthan, three thermic

fluid heaters from Thermax are to be

commissioned to facilitate crude oil

production. They will be installed near the

wells to help the flow of waxy crude from

the oil wells in this field in Barmer district.

Cairn India, a subsidiary of Cairn

Energy, under a production sharing

contract with ONGC, is gearing up to

produce 30,000 barrels of oil daily from

the field by late 2009. Due to its waxy

nature, production teams find it

challenging to make the Mangala crude

flow smoothly from the wells into the pipes

and onward to the nearby processing

facility. The Thermax heaters, each with

an output of six million kilocalories per

hour, will be used to inject hot water into

the oil well to keep the production lines

heated to reduce the oil viscosity and assist

its flow. The crude thus produced is stored

at the processing facility, where oil, gas and

water are separated and desptched.

Thermax heaters, supplied by the

company's Heating SBU will be deployed

at Cairn's production installation for

three applications – the thermal oil inside

the heater will pass on the heat to a heat

exchanger which in turn will heat water

and the hot water will be circulated inside

the oil well. Secondly, the heat will also

come in useful at the processing facility

where oil, water and gas are separated

from the emulsion that comes up from

the well. Finally, the Thermax systems also

heat up the filtered raw water that is

injected into identified wells to maintain

underground reservoir pressure.

Thermax has already supplied steam

generation equipment for assisting the

operations of Indian national oil

companies. Heaters to assist easy flow of

waxy crude is a first for the company.

The three heaters will be commissioned at

the oil field by June 2009.

3

Cairn India banks onThermax heaters for its

oil field operations in Rajasthan

The Thermaxheaters, eachwith an outputof six million

kilocalories perhour, will beused to inject

hot waterinto the oil well

to keep theproduction linesheated to reducethe oil viscosity

and assistits flow.

Heaters to assisteasy flow

of waxy crudeis a first for the

company.

Easy flow of waxy crude with hot water circulation.

For the ten old boilers of Sharjah

Electricity & Water Authority

(SEWA) it could have been the

final trip to the local scrap yard with a

R.I.P (Rest in Peace) signboard. But now

thanks to technology intervention by

Thermax the old boilers, instead of being

junked, could be refurbished.

The service arm of the Boiler & Heatergroup is doing a condition assessment andremaining life analysis study on one of

SEWA's 154 TPH boiler.Thermax specialists will usesophisticated diagnosticmethods and based on theresults will give theirrecommendations. The clientcould then implement therecommendations byretrofitting the boiler and getenhanced steam output from it.The assessment and retrofitcould then be replicated for theremaining boilers.

Thermax has extensiveexperience in retrofit and lifeextension services of old boilersand heaters in India and South

East Asia. Its expertise is also increasingly indemand in the Middle East and Africa.

Besides SEWA, Thermax has received a

repeat order from Takreer Refinery of AbuDhabi. Here, a similar condition assessmentand life extension study is planned for therefinery's 250 TPH boiler. Takreer officials,happy with Thermax's expertise on their firstboiler, promptly awarded it the second order.Nigeria's PeTech Ltd has also placed an orderfor retrofitting its three boilers of 80 TPHeach. This is a turnkey project whereThermax would do the study and thenimplement the recommendations forrefurbishing.

These three contracts, valued at close to onemillion US dollars, will follow the same trueand tried methodology. First, non-destructivetests are performed on boiler pressure partsto assess the present condition ofcomponents. Two, correlating the findingswith the boilers' operation and failure history,engineers will arrive at their remaining life.Three, by replacing the worn out pressureparts, the boilers get a lease of new life.

It is a win-win situation. While it opensdoors for Thermax to venture into largescale revamp projects in aging installations, itis an unbeatable proposition for industry inthe throes of recession. “For as low as 30% ofthe cost of a new boiler, an old boiler can beretrofitted for improved performance andavailability,” says Yashwant Ranaware, HeadCustomer Services (B&H Service).

4

in the times ofrecessionLife extension

Thermaxhas extensive experience

in retrofit andlife extension services

of old boilers and heatersin India and South East Asia.

Its expertise is alsoincreasingly in demand

in the Middle Eastand Africa.

Ranaware

with client and

other officials

at site

Reverse osmosis (RO) plants fromThermax will soon provide safedrinking water at the Delhi

International Airport. Forty-one RO plants,supplied by the Water & Waste Solutions(WWS) of Thermax, are beingcommissioned at various locations of theairport, currently being modernised.

The plants are of standardised design withspecial attention given to reliability andaesthetics. The plug and play units come intwo sizes – 250 litres per hour and 350 litresper hour output.

The Delhi airport would gain from Thermaxexpertise in treating water of wide variationsin quality from the different regions of thecountry. The RO system is ideal for treatingwater from bore wells as it takes care of thequality of water which tends to deteriorateover a period of time.

“This is a very interesting, breakthroughorder which can be a marketing model forsimilar large infrastructure projects,” saysKiran Sapre, Head of special products groupin WWS.

Anew, highly effective filtrationsystem from Thermax is deliveringefficiency improvement to industries

that use heavy oil (like furnace oil) firedboilers. The recently launched system issuperior to the conventional mesh filtrationsystem as it can filter even finer particles.

Furnace oil comes with a lot of impuritiesand need to be filtered before it is fed to theboiler. The conventional system using coarsestainers could sieve off only larger particles.Smaller particles below the size of 125microns clog the nozzles of burners causingwear and decreasing combustion efficiency.

As a result there is huge loss of man hours inroutine maintenance and expensive loss ofoil when filters are changed. Moreimportantly, due to nozzle failures,equipment downtime tends to be high.

The system works on the centrifugalprinciple whereby oil fed into it is rotated.Solid particles accumulate in layers on therotor wall and the cleaned oil is drained offdirectly by gravity.

A multinational plant using this system is allpraise for its effectiveness in improving boileroperations.

5

Newfiltration systemforheavyoil fired boilers

Thermaxpotablewaterplants

forDelhiAirport A very interesting,breakthrough

order which can bea marketing model

for similar largeinfrastructure

projects.

A multinationalplant using this

system is all praisefor its effectivenessin improving boiler

operations.

A line up of

RO units :

plug and play

6

Iwas recently invited by Bry-Air Asiato give a talk on innovation. With thefinancial meltdown on the one hand

and global warming on the other, the mostcritical issue for corporates today isinnovation and therefore I thought ofsharing some of my thoughts on thissubject with I had put together for the talk.

Some of you may have read a recentarticle which highlighted the need

for India to think harder on innovation aswe seem to have gone down 18 places tothe 41st position in the Global InnovationIndex. We may be doing better, but othershave moved a lot faster.

Allow me to take you back to the year 1895when Lord Kelvin, President of the RoyalSociety, uttered these famous words,“Heavier-than-air flying machines areimpossible”. Let's fast forward to 1927:“Who the hell wants to hear actors talk?”– a very poignant comment made by JackWarner of Warner Brothers about makingtalking movies; and in 1949,

made a forecast that“Computersin the future may weigh not more than 1.5tons”. We all know what the outcome ofthese so called myths or perceptions aretoday. So innovation starts with dreaming –with a mindset of dreaming big, settingaudacious goals and taking risks.The resultsof innovation are, by its definition,uncertain. So while we applaud and lovesuccess stories, we also need to have anappetite for failure in order to encouragecreativity. Who would have thought thatthe world could come out with a Rs.1 lakhcar if we didn't dream big?

So what really is innovation as seen by thecorporate world? To my mind, doingsomething different to make a product,process or service faster,better, cheaper or more user-friendly for a customer, isinnovation. It is a repeatable,disciplined process thatsuccessfully takes ideas tocommercialisation. As amanagement thinker oncesaid,“you can be tremendousat innovation on the technicalside. But if you cannot wrapthat innovation into acompelling value proposition,then the innovation isn't

worth much at all”.

Where India scores over the world is inwhat Dr. Mashelkar has eloquently termedGandhian Engineering – which allows usto get more from less for much more. Wesee this with the telecom industry, wherecalls in India are the cheapest in the world;the Hepatitis vaccine which costs a tenthof what is available in developed countries;the challenge of creating a Rs.1 lac car ormore recently, a $100 laptop – all of whichwill be affordable for many more people.

It is these unpredictable times that force usto look at our markets and extend ourreach to wider segments and sections ofsociety. A new vista of opportunity notthought of earlier, emerges to serve theaudience at the bottom of the pyramid andprovide them with new products andservices.

There are some misconceptions aroundthis subject – the first being thatinnovation equals technology or products.It certainly is a key part of innovation but ithas several other dimensions; an exampleof which is Air Deccan, which is India'sfirst low cost carrier or Bharti Airtel whichhas unleashed a least cost business modelby outsourcing every backend process –from network operations to IT. In our veryown city, Zensar has come out withinnovative ways of engaging theirworkforce, such that in a sluggish market,they have been able to grow PAT by 35%year on year. Moving to green energy, anelectric car network company known asBetter Place is coming out with aninnovative business model by creating acar-charging-infrastructure which feeds inenergy generated from renewable sourceslike wind and solar through a network of

plug-in plus battery exchangestations. Just as in the telecomindustry, where you buy cellphones from someone andtalk time from another, thisinnovative business modelwill allow you to buy or hirethe electric car fromautomakers and“miles”fromthe company Better Place.

The second misconception isthat innovation happens bychance. The fact is thatinnovation is a discipline and

IndianExpress

PopularMechanics

The results ofinnovation are,

by itsdefinition,

uncertain. Sowhile we

applaud andlove success

stories, we alsoneed to have an

appetite forfailure in order

to encouragecreativity.

EXPRESSIONS

7

not a random process. Innovation in anorganisation should be like any otherbusiness endeavor, such as supply chain,finance or HR, with formal systematicprocesses, people and tools to help directand execute; with creativity as its chiefcomponent. New ideas flow and flourish ininformal non-hierarchic environmentswhere“what is right”is considered moreimportant than“who is right”.

The third misconception is that innovationis a long term project. Innovation candeliver value over multiple time frames, notjust the long term. It provides a steady flowof new offerings over time, not just anoccasional blockbuster product or service.

An innovator is one who looks atsomething that everyone sees, but seessomething that no one has seen. Here's anexample: A 50 foot long trailer with 48 inchwheels got stuck while entering a tunnel inNewYork because it was approx. a foottaller than the height of the tunnel.The fireand transportation spent thewhole day searching for a solution, to noavail. Suddenly a child passing by asked herfather,“Dad, why can't they deflate the tyresand the height will automatically comedown.”An example of innovative thinkingin our daily lives.

In the corporate environment, the Board'srole in supporting investment in systematicinnovation over time, is critical. Quarterlypressures for financial results cannot andshould not come in the way.These aretrying times for all of us world over, and asmentioned in my previous column, cash isparamount. Having said that, we would liketo continue all investments planned forR&D and of course innovation, which moreoften than not requires a mindset ratherthan resources.

If we move to politics, the U.S. PresidentBarack Obama was acknowledged for hisinnovative Presidential campaign whichcreatively harnessed social networking siteson the internet to enlist support, registernew voters and generate record campaignfunds.

Of course it is ironic that when Obama wascampaigning, another dubious innovationin the country sent the world into a tailspin– toxic debts packaged as financialderivatives and sold to millions of

unsuspecting investors.

A thought for reflection. Innovativefinancial engineering , the innovativebloodbath at Satyam unfolding or therecent innovative counterfeit gold coinsscandal. Where do we draw the line? Isthere a need, perhaps, to introduce theterm ethical innovation?

Two years ago, we decided to discontinuethe English Open Forum since it wasperceived that the kind of questions askedthere were very operational.TheDivisional Head and EC member decidedto continue the process in their respectivedivisions, which is an excellent idea andshould continue. However, after thesuccess of the Marathi Open Forum thisyear I must thank Roshan from CorporateCommunications for suggesting that were-start the English Open Forum formattoo. It gives us a chance to meet a wideraudience, listen to your concerns, answerqueries, clear any misconceptions and anopportunity for Unny and me to addressall of you.

I was very happy with the kind ofquestions and concerns raised as well assome solutions arrived at, at the forumitself. Am also glad Unny and I had theopportunity to share with all of you thecurrent situation, our concerns,expectations as well as our vision andvalues. As mentioned in the Open Forum,managing our cash flows prudently,starting Project Everlean to minimisewastage, streamlining our processes andsystems to enable robust growth,investment of time and money ininnovation are all a MUST, but to whatpurpose? To realise our vision “to be aglobally respected, high performancecompany providing sustainable solutionsin energy and the environment.” You willnotice that our vision, which was createdalmost six to seven years ago, has nonumbers – this was arrived at intentionallysince we believe that becoming globallyrespected, high performance andsustainable as an organisation will in itselfgive us the growth and profit, and it willcome with a purpose.

“Globally respected”is a very lofty butachievable phrase, which encompasses all

department

Participate anddramaticallyeliminate all

kinds of waste;significantlyimprove our

service levels toall our

stakeholders,invest time and

money ininnovation and

appropriatetraining

and in buildingskills and

talent.

of the following: A healthy balance sheet; avalue based organisation; thrives onexcellence and customer delight; isconstantly re-inventing itself; a front runnerin technology; is able to attract and retaintalent; a company that is world class andwhich sets the benchmark.

A“high performance”organisation which isable to bring out the extraordinary in theordinary; a disciplined yet passionate andcommitted team of people raring to go; amindset of enjoying learning, sharing and

applying.

“Sustainable Solutions in Energy andEnvironment”: Providing customerssolutions that are sustainable and in tunewith conserving energy and preserving theenvironment.

And, of course, the vision we have set forourselves can only be achieved, if we havea strong bedrock of enduring values.

We have recently refined and documentedthese values, which are:

8

Respect for human lives and human dignityRespect for what is right, and not who is rightRespect for diversity – religion, caste, gender

Respect for systems and processesRespect for performance, behaviour and discipline

Deliver what is promised to all our stakeholdersA commitment to excellence in all that we do

Being true to ourselves in our personal and professional dealingsand doing what is right at all times

Nobody will exploit the company for personal gain or gratification

Encourage reuse, reduce and recycle, energy conservationA strong sense of giving back to society

We must remember business cannot survive in a society that fails.

Respect:

Commitment:

Honesty and integrity:

Concern for society and the environment:

To summarise my expectations (and I haveadded one more since the Open Forum):

1. Look for opportunities with a positivemindset

2. Make prudent use of all resources,especially money.

3. Participate and dramatically eliminate allkinds of waste; significantly improve ourservice levels to all our stakeholders, investtime and money in innovation andappropriate training and in building skillsand talent.

4. Invest time in establishing simple yetrobust workflows, systems and processes.

5. Performance is critical, but values aresacrosanct.

With best wishes,

Meher Pudumjee

ROUND UP

9

Meher Pudumjee

CEO of the Yearhonoured as the

Meher Pudumjee, Chairperson,

Thermax Limited, has been

chosen the Business Standard

CEO of the Year 2007-08.

A distinguished jury headed by Nandan

Nilekani, co-chairman of Infosys announced

Meher's name. The award acknowledges the

sustained growth of Thermax and the value

return to shareholders. In a year marked by

reports of corporate misgovernance

Thermax's reputation in growing without

compromising ethics came in for the Jury's

special mention.

“While I am happy to receive this award, it

is really an honour for Thermax,” said

Meher reacting to the news. “I would like to

acknowledge the dedicated efforts of the

entire Thermax team that made it possible.”

Thermax has won a noteworthycontract to provide a raw watertreatment facility to the Karnataka

Power Corporation Ltd (KPCL). The facility isfor the Corporation's Raichur Thermal Power

Station. When commissioned by January2010, the Thermax facility will give thepower station around 1173 million litresper day of treated water for cooling watermake-up and other uses.

KPCL awarded the contract to Thermaxfollowing the earlier successful

commissioning of an ash water recycle systemthat has substantially reduced the intake offresh water for plant operations. Thecompany's extensive experience in providing awide range of water and waste watertreatment facilities to power plants was adecisive factor in favour of Thermax inclinching this contract.

for Karnataka Power

water treatmentProven

expertise

10

Thermax has bagged an order to buildand commission a power plant forJK Lakshmi Cements using the

waste heat from their production unit. The12.1 MW captive plant at Sirohi, Rajastan,will have an air cooled condenser with fivewaste heat recovery boilers.

Thermax had earlier built one of India's firstcaptive power plants using cement plantwaste heat for JK Cements at anotherlocation in Rajastan. The new order followsthe successful commissioning of that plant in2008. Thermax will be constructing thisplant also with technical assistance fromTaiheiyo Engineering Corporation, Japan.

The five Thermax boilers will generate 72TPH of low pressure steam and feed it to the

steam turbine. The air cooled condenserreduces the water intake for the project, abig plus for the water scarce project site.

The project will utilise waste gas at 300 C-400 C from two sources – hot combustiongases coming out of the preheater tower andthe hot air coming out of the clinker cooler.Customised dust removal systems and aspecial boiler design will ensure optimumoutput with reduced operation andmaintenance costs.

For the client it will be a double bonus onthe energy and environment fronts. Theplant will generate economical green powerfrom the waste heat which will entitle themto claim carbon credits when it iscommissioned in 2010.

0

0

Green power

JK Lakshmiplant for

Cements

Thermax has wonaccolades from theFederation of Indian

Export Organisation (FIEO)for outstanding exportperformance. FIEO's Goldtrophy and Certificate ofExcellence (Niryat Shree)were awarded for exportsduring 2005-06.

On behalf of Thermax,Govind Lal, CorporateRegional Manager, Delhi,received the award from thePresident of India.

ExportHonour for

Thermax

The first

green power

plant : resource

efficient

Govind Lal

receiving the

award from

the President

11

Infosys Chief Mentor Narayana Murthy'svisit on 19th January capped the ERPimplementation project of Thermax to

integrate its processes for operationalexcellence. Earlier, on 14th and 16thJanuary its Water & Waste Solutions andEnviro businesses went live, bringing themunder the ambit of the ongoing ERPprogrmme. Infosys, the implementationpartner, and the Thermax team drawn frombusiness units and business technology group– successfully implemented the Oracle E-Business Suite (Release 11i) for these SBUs.Successful inventory and accounting closureof the first month complemented the go-live.

The eight month project diligently stuck tothe planned completion dates of its majormilestones, culminating in the successful go-live. Business benefit workshops for keystakeholders, rigorous monitoring by SBUchiefs and the CIO and a well thought outdata migration strategy made the transitionfrom the legacy system smooth and painless.

For Infosys this was the first ERPimplementation job in India.

On his visit, Narayana Murthy met the coreimplementation team of WWS, Enviro andBTG who shared their experience ofimplementation. He complimented theThermax team for its efforts and initiatives.Later, addressing the senior management,Mr. Murthy spoke about the necessity ofethical business, in the wake of the recentSatyam scandal. Commenting on leadershipqualities, he recommended simple butimportant habits like reading and listening tomusic.

Narayana Murthy

and ethicalERP

leadershipwith

New headfor chemical product

performance group

KS Rajan has joinedThermax in February, 2009as Head of the Product

Performance Group in Chemicals.

Before joining Thermax he wasGeneral Manager - TechnicalMarketing with GE Water & ProcessTechnologies, Bangalore. A graduatein chemistry from Calicut University,

Rajan brings with him 30 years ofrich and varied experience incompanies like BARC, Kobe SteelLtd, ION Exchange India Ltd, NalcoChemicals and GE Water (BetzIndia).

welcomes Rajan and wisheshim a successful and rewardingcareer with Thermax.

Fireside

Murthy at

Thermax House :

role model

12

Thermax received a commendation for "Strong Commitment toHR Excellence" at the CII (Western Region) HR Awards forExcellence 2008. The top award went to Hindustan UniLever Ltd

and others who also won commendation along with Thermax includedEMCO, ICICI Prudential and Larsen & Toubro.

On behalf of Thermax HR, Rajeena Thomas and Amol Warty receivedthe award from S Ramadorai, CEO & MD of Tata Consultancy Servicesat the HR Summit held in December at Mumbai.

steam firedUpgraded

absorptionchillers launched

Thermax Cooling Business launched its new series ofabsorption chillers (code named GNxt). At a function heldat EERC, Shishir Joshipura and his team unveiled the new

steam fired chiller in the presence of top management. Over thenext six months, the entire old range of Thermax chillers will bephased out and replaced by the new generation machines.

The double evaporation process reduces the steam consumptionand hikes up the efficiency and output of the new chillers. Avariable frequency drive for solution pumps helps the new system to

improve performance in part load conditions. Thenew chiller will score high in special applications inthe paper and chemical industry.

The new generation chillers have been developedwith in-house capabilities and the dedicated work of across functional team over one and a half years. “Weare geared up for tough times,” says Sudhir Vahal,Cooling SBU Head.

Thermax'scommitment to HR

excellencerecognised

At the launch

of the new

chiller : more

for less

At the awards

function : Rajeena

and Amol

13

For the 3rd consecutive year Thermax participated in the MumbaiMarathon. Thermax put in a good effort by fielding a 15 member CorporateChallenge Team.

The team ran for Akanksha Foundation and raised a total amount ofover Rs. 5 lacs for the NGO.

Mumbai Marathon 2009Standard Chartered

Thermax

B& H presented two papers at Steamtech 2008,a national conference on boiler & steamsystems held in December at Ahmedabad.

Nagaraj Shenoy from field engineering presented apaper on AFBC boiler in bed evaporator coils erosionand its operational controls. His colleague from theServices Group, Vijay Jadhav, read a paper onmaximising boiler availability through conditionassessment.

B&H Group also participated in an exhibition heldalong with the conference.

presents papers

conferenceat Steamtech

The speakers

at the conference :

expert views

Meet Atul Pillai, Class 12 student atDastur Junior College, who playsfootball for his college team. Atul

has a passion for drums which he loves toplay and can't wait for the exams to be overto return to his practice sessions.

He received an award for the Best HouseCaptain (Boys, 2008-09) from Deepak Mane,Director of Sports, Pune University.

Atul's parents, Lalitha and Jagannath Pillai,both work for Water & Waste Solutions inThermax.

14

Gold MedalforAmitkumar

for AtulRecognition

Five year old SamruddhiDeokar won the first prize inthe fancy dress competition at

her school, Rosary International,Bibwewadi, Pune. A student ofJunior Prep class, Samruddhi hadearlier won the top prize for'proficiency in all subjects' in thenursery category for 2007-08.

Samruddhi is the daughter of PDDeokar from the mechanicalengineering department of B&H.

Samruddhiwins fancy dress

competition prize

Amitkumar Mistry, a youngdesign engineer with theUtilities boiler group has

won a gold medal for a project on'Hydrogen by steam reforming ofnaphtha.' The project was part of hisfinal year BE Chemical course at theMS University, Baroda.

Amit is also the author of a publishedarticle, Self cleaning fluidised bedheat exchangers in the ChemicalWeekly.

Vishwas Jumde fromB&H manufacturingservices and Vinayak

Bankapur of Power – projects,have received the ProjectManagement Professionalcredentials.

They cleared the PMP examconducted by the ProjectManagement Institute, USA.They have now joined the selectband of professionals inThermax who have a deeperunderstanding of projectmanagement.

PMPand

BankapurJumde

status for

Atul : budding leader

Jumde

and Bankapur :

project

expertise

Samruddhi :

top prize

winner

Amit :

striking

gold

It is sad but true that in recent timesbusiness is being looked at with greatsuspicion and mistrust by people from all

strata of society. The global financialmeltdown has taken countries, markets andinvestors – big or small – in its downwardspiral. Though the crisis started in the USbecause of the greed of a select band of“enterprising” people, and was abetted byfrighteningly low standards of theprofessional class and let down by regulatoryframeworks in the instruments of policy; ithas affected many countries. With therecent happenings, can we claim that IndiaInc. is above board?

It is a pity that there is such an erosion offaith that it has and can continue toundermine the good work done by hundredsof organisations and can spread anatmosphere of mistrust and cynicism.

Not so long ago, in India, there was a timewhen government was trusted and theprivate sector was seen as rapacious andexploitative. Pre-liberalisation we had aclosed economy whereby business and profitwere dirty words and our economy couldgrow at a subdued rate of around 4%. Post-liberalisation we were moving in the oppositedirection when Government credibility hitan all-time low and the corporate sector wasincreasingly being seen as the answer tomany of the development challenges we faceas a country.

Arun Maira, former chairman of The BostonConsulting Group, India, points out in oneof his articles that in the early years ofIndependent India, the Tata group wasconvinced that what was good for India wasgood for Tata's too. He contrasted thisattitude with the General Motors'Chairman's recent approach in the USA thatwhatever is good for GM must be good forAmerica too. He was highlighting the sharpcontrast between the lofty ideals thatinspired some of the local businesses in theearly years and the blatant self-centrednessthat globalised business has come tosymbolise today.

Globalisation on one hand has brought theworld closer, has helped create wealth, liftedmany people from poverty but on the otherhand it has destroyed indigenous cultures,created sweatshops of outsourced businessfrom developed economies, unemployment

and social unrest.

For me, the question is not whether we wantcapitalism or not but how do we make ithumane and ethical.

Capitalism unchecked has encouragedselfishness and disregard for others. Overthe years there has been a shift in our valuesand nobody questions the means by whichpeople create wealth. People have startedglamourising and worshipping “success”which means accumulation and conspicuousconsumption of wealth. Media keeps talkingabout the 'Billionaire Club' and very little istalked about how this wealth is created andutilised. We have forgotten an importantlesson taught by Gandhiji about trusteeship.

Post-liberalisation it is true that we reached9% growth levels and some of theentrepreneurs have done extremely well inIndia and abroad. But has this Shining Indiareached out to forgotten Bharat thatcontinues to languish with the mostembarrassing statistics?

India has the highest number ofmalnourished children in the world. It is45.9% as against 10% in China and acountry like Sub-Sahara which conjuresup images of famine and emaciated babieshas 25% underweight children.

After 62 years of independence, 39% ofIndian population is illiterate which isalmost equal to the population of the U.S.

Out of 100 children born, 15 will neverhave a chance to attend school.

Of the 85 who attend school, 50% willdrop out below Class V.

Of the 50% who stay in school, only 10%will complete Class X.

If you and I belonged to such malnourishedand illiterate groups of people, how wouldwe view Shining India? Would we applaudtheir success or be angered by theirinsensitivity? Can business ever succeed in asociety that fails?

Apart from consumerism and thisglorification of success at any cost, in thecurrent capitalistic model, we remainshortsighted. By hook or by crook we wantto achieve our quarterly targets. Thesetargets have to be achieved not just for abloated ego but also because it is tied upwith huge financial benefits. Any company

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15

VOICES

HumaneCapitalism

While rightly criticisingthe poverty of politicalleadership, let us also

turn the mirrortowards us – how

many business leadersdo we have today who

command publicrespect?

16

If educationalinstitutions, families

and media have failedto show what it meansto be a decent human

being, a child cannot beblamed for joining therat race and ending up

becoming a rat.

that focuses on short term at the cost of longterm is bound to suffer in the long run. Inthe short run people, innovation and valuescan be compromised but for sustainedgrowth, these need to be nurtured. Whilepeople at the top need to be rewarded,under our current system, a few are overcompensated. The salaries along withincentives and perquisites have gone amokand had it not been for the current crisis,would have climbed to new levels, wideningthe gap between the haves and the have-nots.

Over the years, regulatory frameworks havecome up with many rules and regulations tokeep capitalism in check. However, in ourgreed we find creative ways of circumventingthe spirit of the law. There are companiesthat have blatantly violated the spirit ofgovernance yet behind a facade ofappearances, won awards for goodgovernance.

While I am a great believer in corporatesocial responsibility, I also would urgeassociations like CII, FICCI, ASSOCHAMand association of NGOs like I-Congo todemand accountability from theGovernment. The ability of corporates tomake a difference in the social sector cannotmatch the financial resources of theGovernment. Unfortunately, from RajivGandhi's time it has been openlyacknowledged that 85% governmentspending on social sector is wasted incorruption and mismanagement. Can we allwake up and demand accountability for thisspending?

Similarly, there has to be accountability fromthe corporate world. The best form ofregulation is of course self imposed, but bythese recent exposes we have forfeited theright to talk about them. A properregulatory framework and accountability areessential if humane capitalism has to see thelight of the day. First of all, it will channelisea company's resources in the proper directionand leave them with enough surplus andinclination to reach out to theircommunities. I am a strong believer thatunless companies succeed financially, theywon't be able to discharge their socialresponsibilities. So, regulation andaccountability have to be seen primarily aspre-requisites for the effective performanceof business organisations.

During the Independence time, we hadvalue based leaders like Gandhi and Nehru.

In today's time we are all disillusioned withthe corruption that has crept into ourpolitics and have started accepting politicianswith criminal records. What is worse, thereis a nexus between politicians, bureaucratsand businessman so that each can un-ashamedly abuse their power and reappersonal gains.

Under unethical capitalism, nobody whosehands are tainted will dare ask theGovernment awkward questions. The wayour society is moving, most people have lostthe moral authority to question anyone.The current happenings constitute ashameful chapter in the history of Indianbusiness. It is an indicator of our deep-seatedmalice. While rightly criticising the povertyof political leadership, let us also turn themirror towards us – how many businessleaders do we have today who commandpublic respect?

The question is where do we begin and whowill make our capitalism humane andethical. I think everyone will need to playan active role in changing. Our definition ofwhom we consider as successful will have tochange. Our awards and rewards will haveto be questioned and our values will have tobe revisited.

Right at the school level, we have corruptedour kids by insisting that they get the highestmarks at any cost. Guide books, tuitions andcheating are all accepted as the price to dowell in exams. If educational institutions,families and media have failed to show whatit means to be a decent human being, a childcannot be blamed for joining the rat raceand ending up becoming a rat.

The current global crisis is a wake up call forall of us to ask some fundamental questionsabout ourselves, our society and our world.

I would like to end with these lines from thepoem “Man in the Glass” by Dale Wimbrow.If leaders can take this to heart, it wouldmake our world a much better place to livein.

You may fool the whole world down thepathway of life

And get pats on your back as you pass

But your final reward will be heartaches andtears

If you've cheated the man in the glass.”

(Abridged from a talk byat I-Congo, Mumbai, on January 22, 2009)

Anu Aga

Iheard aboutVipassana forfirst time many

years ago whenMrs. Agaparticipated in acourse. Whenproblems at homegreatly disturbedme, especially whenboth my parents died in a gas cylinder blastabout six years ago, I really thought ofattending such a course. But it neverhappened. Then, in 2008 when during aWomen's Day event, when some of uslistened to Mrs. Aga, I felt I shouldn't delayany more. It was time for me to beginpractising Vipassana.

It was not easy to make up my mind, as Iworried about how I would go leavingbehind my children, how to makearrangements for their food and things likethat. My colleagues and my children weresurprised as I am very talkative and duringVipassana you have to observe 10 days ofnoble silence. And there were othercomments from my children like, “how comeyou thought of going away now, when evenduring our 10th and 12th exams, you didn'ttake leave?”

I reached the Vipassana Centre near SarasBaugh, in Pune, on a Sunday at around 3.45p.m. There were 87 of us including 27women. An introductory lecture thatevening oriented us about the basicphilosophy: everyone seeks harmony andpeace, which most of us lack in our dailylives. We ought to live at peace withourselves, and at peace with others.Vipassana, a form of meditation, would helpus by making us see things as they really are.The lecture informed us that it is one ofIndia's ancient techniques developed byGautama Buddha more than 2500 years ago.

The 10-day residential course that we wereattending asked the participants to follow aprescribed code of discipline, learn the basicsof the method, and practice sufficiently toexperience its beneficial results. For the next10 days we had to follow a strict regimen –the day begins at 4:00 a.m. with a wake upbell and continues until 9:00 p.m. There areabout ten hours of meditation throughoutthe day, interspersed with regular breaks andrest periods. Every evening at 7:00 p.m.there is a videotaped lecture by the teacher,S.N. Goenka, which helps participants tounderstand their experience of the day.

During the entire time,we are to maintainsilence and to tune offfrom all media. Thisschedule has provedworkable and beneficialfor hundreds ofthousands of people fordecades.

The course requireshard, serious work which involves a lot ofself discipline. First, you have to observe amoral code of conduct – abstain fromviolence, stealing, sexual activity, use ofintoxicants and false speech. This code is forcalming the mind which otherwise would betoo agitated to perform the task of self-observation. The next step is to developsome mastery over the mind by learning tofix one's attention on the one reality that wecan experience – the ever changing flow ofbreath as it enters and leaves our nostrils.

On the third day I began missing mychildren. The life that I left behind, officework and so many other things came back tome. Things that we were expected to gentlypush away as we concentrated on ourbreathing and emptied our minds. Suddenly,I wanted to run away from the centre andcome home. This is something manyparticipants experience in the early stages ofmeditation. But gradually my fears camedown and I was able to settle down toexperience the peace that comes withshedding the load of worries that I have beencarrying with me.

Vipassana helps us to observe ourselves,through disciplined attention to the physicalsensations forming the life of our body thathave a deep connection to the life of themind. I realised during those 10 days thatwith proper training and practice it ispossible to observe one's breathing and bodysensations, and today I know that both arerelated to the state of my mind.

The course gave me an idea of what can beachieved through daily meditation if Icontinue to focus on the common root of mymind and body. Experienced practitionerstell us that it will dissolve the mentalimpurities within us, resulting in a balancedmind full of love and compassion. I know Ihave quite a long way to go, but I am glad Ihave begun the journey.

— Chhaya Hublikar(Front Office, Thermax House)

17

VIPASSANA:“Shedding the load of worries.”

Suddenly,I wanted to runaway from the

centre and comehome. This is

something manyparticipants

experience in theearly stages of

meditation.But gradually myfears came downand I was able to

settle down toexperience the peace

that comes withshedding the load ofworries that I havebeen carrying with

me.

It was while working with our watertreatment division (now WWS), abouteight years ago, that I came across some

good literature on rain water harvesting. Itimpressed me and I wondered why such a simplescheme to use abundantly available rain water toimprove the ground water level is not beingfollowed by everybody. Especially, when there isa drought-like situation in many parts of ourcountry and water is getting to be more andmore precious.

Later on, after I moved to BTG, in one of ourinternal meetings the subject of rain waterharvesting cropped up. To add some spice to mymundane days, I compiled information on rainwater harvesting, read through the successstories and prepared a presentation on thesubject. When my colleagues received mypresentation with enthusiasm I was encouragedto take it to people who cared to listen – housingsocieties, social gatherings and communitymeetings. The response everywhere wasuniformly good and some of my listeners werecharged by the idea and wanted to implement itin their premises.

During one such presentation someone askedme if I had really implemented it scientifically.At my house near Padmavati, that's built on a3000 sq.feet plot, I had only dug a one-foot deeppit in one corner. Some water from a nearbydrainpipe flowed into it, but it struck me I wasnot really capturing the huge quantity of rainwater. As the saying goes “practice what youpreach”, I decided to go about it in a proper way.On the ground, I interconnected the drainpipesthat brought down the rain water from the rooftop. This water flowed into a new 120 feet deepborewell that I got dug near the house. In themeantime, I also contacted a specialist in rainwater harvesting for suggestions and help. Heinspected the area around my house andsuggested that the water should be filteredbefore it went into the borewell. At a nominalcost he even supplied the filter, basically acombination of mesh and pebbles to clean thewater from the first rains.

Now, throughout the year we have water in theborewell and some time back when we built anupper storey, water for the construction wastaken from the well. By saving the money thatwould have been spent on buying water fromtankers, the rain water paid back the cost of theborewell. Though the rain gods sometimes seemto be angry with us, when we do have a goodmonsoon, I have the comfort of knowing that at

my house precious water can bepreserved. The surrounding area willalso gain as the rain water that goes intothe borewell at my house raises theground water level.

I am also getting an extra benefit. ThePune Municipal Corporation (PMC)provides for a 5% house tax exemptionfor houses where rain water harvestingis done and another 5% where solarenergy is being used. As a solar waterheater is already installed at our house,I am now getting ready to submit thenecessary documents to a get a 10 % taxexemption.

Another monsoon will soon be with us.Why not try rain water harvesting inyour house? In housing societies where itis not yet tried (for new ones it ismandatory), it is only a question ofsomeone popularising the idea that webetter be prepared for difficult times. Letus remember, “Love nature, help nature.It will help all of us.”

If I can be of help, you can mail me atumakantshende@yahoo.com.sg

—(BTG)

Umakant Shende

18

I have thecomfort ofknowing

that at my houseprecious water

can bepreserved. The

surrounding areawill also gain asthe rain waterthat goes intothe borewell atmy house raises

the groundwater level.

My experiencewith rainwater

harvesting

The next best thing to car pooling isgiving rides to people when you'redriving to office and back or on

trips out of town. I do it as a matter ofroutine. On many mornings, I gave a ride toa “regular” who waits at a particular placeand waves out as soon as he spots my car.He is a carpenter who works with armycanteen stores. Over the years I have cometo know his whole life story – his village, hisfamily, his job. He comes from a village ofcarpenters, called Sutarwadi, which is on theoutskirts of Pune. As he is a professionalcarpenter and I am an amateur one wesometimes “talk shop” on the short journeytill he gets off. Once he told me an ironicfact. In his village it is difficult to find acarpenter as all of them have migratedelsewhere! But the name has stuck.

On the same road I sometimes meet apostman who works in the post office insidethe University. He had met with a seriousaccident and it took him many months toresume work and get compensation from themotor tribunal court. Whenever I give him aride, he always invites me to his house for acup of tea. I find that very touching.

Once on my way home from office I gave alift to an old man who insisted that I drophim right opposite his house so that hisfamily could see him getting out of the car. Itwas amusing!

Giving rides is an interesting way to keep intouch with the reality around you. Once ona road trip to Goa, my wife and I gave ridesto a number of villagers on the way. Some ofthem even offered to pay the “fare” theynormally give to tempo and truck drivers forthe ride. Obviously we refused which kind ofconfused them, as they must be wondering

about our “motive” for giving free rides.

Of course, I am careful about whom I givefree rides to, just avoid any untowardincidents. There are always these hordes ofschool boys wanting to thumb a ride. And Iuse my judgement whether to stop or not.

Given the state of the public transportsystem in Pune, so many people suffer fromthe lack of environment-friendly and safemobility. I have noticed that many twowheeler riders give lifts to people when theyare riding alone. I am doing the same, witha car, which is grossly underutilised whenthere's only one occupant. Such a waste! It'ssomething like having a bath in a bathtubwhich would hold about 200 litres of waterversus a bucket bath where you would use20 litres. Either way, the result is the same.You are clean enough to come to the officeand do whatever you do at work.

About two years ago my wife and I wereheading towards a beach near Alibaug, whenwe saw a young local couple with two kidswaiting under a tree – obviously for a bus orsome other mode of transport. When Istopped near them they didn't make anymove towards the car. They just waitedstoically till my wife spoke to the womanand told her that the ride was free and theycould get in. They did and we dropped themoff where they wanted to go which was onour way. While getting out of the car, thewoman thanked us and said, “My childrenhave enjoyed this ride in your car.” Musthave. Ours also used to when they weresmall.

— Ahmed Bunglowala

19

Giving

rides is an

interesting

way to

keep in

touch with

the reality

around

you.

for a reality checkGive a free ride

Dr. R R Sonde, Executive Vice President – Technology & Innovationgives Ahmed Bunglowala a rapid fire update on the company's agendafor technology and innovation and talks about why now is the goldenopportunity for Thermax, over a breakfast of dosas, orange juice andpapaya on the lawns of the Thermax guest house in Koregaon Park.

The side lane leading to the Pudumjeebungalow in Koregaon Park – whichfunctions as a VIP guest house – is

lined with some very old banyan trees whichare probably more than 100 years old. Thecomplex ecosystem they have created givesyou a feeling of being in another era wheneverything was okay with the world andhumans and nature lived in harmony. Alas!

I am heading to the guest house – after along drive from Aundh – to meet my guestDr. R R Sonde, who had expressed his wish totalk about technology and innovation sittingon the lawns of the bungalow – “for a changeof scene from restaurants and offices.”Ramchandra, the polite caretaker, has puttogether a healthy breakfast of dosas, sambarand chutney accompanied with orange juiceand cut papaya. Just the right menu to gowith the natural ambience of the place; andI'm sure it would meet with the approval of“Everlean” Pravin Karve!

To warm up, I ask him about his threepersonal favourites in innovation that haveimpacted the world deeply. He thinks for awhile and names vaccines, optical fibres andatomic energy as the most significant. Whilevaccines have helped humanity to survive thehostile world of bugs; optical fibres havesingularly caused a collapse in distances; andsplitting and fusion of the atom has released aperpetual source of energy. Any talk on energybrings a sparkle in Dr. Sonde's eyes. “We areall manifestations of energy and vibrations,” hesays, sipping some orange juice. The caretakerbrings the first round of dosas – thin and crisp– just the way they should be.

Talking about the Indian context, Dr. Sondesays the role of technologies in recycle andreuse is vast as the country suffers fromperennial problems related to land, energy andwater. “We can play a role here by developingand providing technologies appropriate torural and semi urban India, to improve thequality of life and generate livelihoodopportunities for millions,” he says with hischaracteristic enthusiasm.

I ask him to describe the emerging blueprintof innovation and technology for Thermax.

He prefaces that you need a very pragmaticapproach to innovation and technology andthat there is nothing fanciful about it. He hasrestructured the former R&D set up as theRD Aga Research, Technology andInnovation center (RDA-RTIC). As recessionhit unexpectedly, he has had to put on holdthe construction plans for a new innovationand technology centre in Pune. “I had toquickly invert the model on development oftechnologies in these difficult times,” hestates. The existing infrastructure at theEnergy & Environment Research Centre(EERC) is being put to use to get thingsgoing.

He tells me that 23 company-wide projectshave been identified and these will beimplemented in the span of six, 12, and 18months. He mentions two to give me aflavour of the projects – a permanent solutionto in bed tube failure and carving a nichemarket in inlet air quality. “This is a collabo-ration between RTIC and the business unitsto find solutions and make improvements inour products and processes. I have beenconstantly provoking and challenging ourbusiness units into action,” he says. In abroader sense, he describes his role as helpingin “creating an ecosystem” for research,technology and innovation to make thingshappen in a sustained way. In terms of thebalance sheet, he mentions that Unnikrishanestimates that Thermax can add Rs. 2,200crore to its top line if all the 23 projects arewrapped up successfully. “The focus needs tobe sustained,” he cautions.

I ask him whether innovation is too top heavyin Thermax. He firmly believes thatinnovation has to be driven from the top for itto percolate fast. “Everyone has to beinnovative in the organisation,” he says.According to him there are no short cuts toinnovation and the “constraints of time” haveto be overcome. “We have to make it happenand there's no conflict between invoicing andinnovation,” he asserts. Thinking and actingstrategically will do the trick, he adds. Thelong term focus areas for Thermax, as heoutlines them, are in renewable energy, cleancoal technologies, nuclear energy (balance of

BREAKFAST

WITH FS

20

Creating an ecosystem for inn

21

plant equipment to begin with), waste toenergy projects and desalination. “We have totake a quantum leap in technology,” he says.His impatience to push things through ispalpable. “I feel we are too soft sometimes,” hecomplains.

I invite his views on what kind of corporateculture encourages innovation to flourish. Hementions four things. First, where there'sfreedom with responsibility – “we are blessedwith that freedom.” Second, rewards andrecognition – “we need to develop amechanism to reward talent.” Third, teameffort for success – “there's a lacunae in this inThermax.” And, fourth, tolerance to failures –“Thermax needs to cultivate this trait.”

Given its past record, he says, Thermax is wellpoised to make innovation a way of life oncethe “ecosystem” he mentioned earlier is inplace. He names three “significant” Thermaxinnovations in the past – creating a successfulstate-of-the-art absorption cooling business;designing incinerator systems for difficultwastes and developing combustion systems fora variety of fuels, including biomass.

He believes there's a lot to be gained byworking together with academics andacademic institutions to further the reach andscope of innovation in Thermax. “The bigadvantage is that you can get their knowledgeand expertise at a very reasonable cost and wehave already made a good beginning in this,”he says.

Two of Dr Sonde's favourite words arepassionate and involved. About BARC, wherehe spent 22 years as a nuclear scientist, hesays: “We didn't work for the money but forthe excitement.” The technology denialregimes, he adds, further added to thechallenge and excitement of working in aworld-class institution created by Dr. Bhabha.When he moved to NTPC to a “tough job” ofbusiness development he had to revisit himselfand it's in this phase of his life that he took toyoga with Sadguru “It has been the nectar ofmy life ever since,” he says. Yoga, heelaborates, gives him the positive energy toadd value every day and that he can dowithout sleep or food but the daily yogaregimen is sacrosanct.

We are satiated with Ramchandra's delectabledosas and we refuse his offer to have onemore. He looks a little disappointed and wesettle for some more orange juice towind up the conversation. Dr. Sondetells me that his transition from thepublic and semi-public sectors to the

private sector was with “mixed feelings” andthat he knew Thermax to be a verycompetent company before he joined up aboutnine months ago, on the personal invitation ofDr. Mashelkar and Unnikrishan. What alsohelped to make up his mind is the dozen or sotext messages from Meher Pudumjee, whoobviously shares his passion for innovation andtechnology (see ). He's feelingupbeat and likes to take things in his stride, hesays. On a philosophical note he adds:“Between misery and happiness you are thesole arbiter.”

He sums up that the world is in the throes ofclimate change and the financial meltdownand that the human intellect is very capable offinding solutions to get out of these self-mademesses. “We have to change our lifestyle andmoderate our consumption,” he exhorts.

Talking about Thermax, he observes: “Whatwe do today in innovation will have a bigimpact tomorrow on business.” In other words,this is the golden opportunity for Thermax “tobe a globally respected company,” according tohim, quoting from the company's visionstatement.

We say our goodbyes and we thank thecaretaker for his hospitality.On my way out I pause for awhile to admire the majesticbanyan trees again. Lookingat them, what Dr Sonde saidabout creating an “ecosystem”for sustained innovationmade perfect sense. Inthe big picture, ecosystemsare the repository ofnature's “free services”which sustain life on thisplanet.

Expressions

ovative thinking and doing

We have tochange ourlifestyle andmoderate ourconsumption.

SIGNPOSTS

22

If It Isn't Boring, It Isn't GreenIn his new bestseller Thomas Friedmandraws attention to the urgency of a “green revolution” in the face

of destabilising climate change and rising energy demands.Two excerpts from the book which show the way

in energy efficiency innovation.

Hot, Flat and Crowded,

So here's a little news quiz:

Which city in Pennsylvania has a trade surpluswith China, Mexico, and Brazil?

ANSWER: Erie.

How could an old-line, blue-collarmanufacturing city like Erie have a tradesurplus with China, Mexico, and Brazil?

ANSWER: One company, GE Transportation.

Well, what does GE Transportation make inErie that is so exportable?

ANSWER: It makes big o1' locomotives –those huge industrial size diesel engines thatpull long trains!

So how did GE Transportation, located in theformer heartland of American manufacturing,now the heartland of America's rust belt,become the most profitable maker oflocomotives in the world?

ANSWER: A combination of greatengineering by a traditional Americancompany in a traditional American town, a

global market looking for cleaner locomotives,and a U.S. government that demanded higherand higher standards. Those high standardshelped to drive the innovation of a big trainengine that spewed out less pollution, whilealso increasing fuel economy and therebylowering emissions in the bargain.

And it is that interaction between governmentregulators and corporate managers andengineers – that dull, gray, boring interactionabout standards – that is essential on a grandscale if we are going to spur the innovation weneed to have a real green revolution.

Sure, everyone wants to be an eco-star.Knowledgeable eco-stars like Al Gore arecritical; they draw attention and passion to anissue. But they make a difference only if theyare followed up by “revolutionary bureaucrats”– men and women who can write emissionsand efficiency standards, and who, with theflick of a pen, can change how muchelectricity fifty million air conditionersconsume or how much diesel a thousandlocomotives guzzle in one year. That'srevolutionary.

CO2

When it comes to the role ofregulation in stimulatingenergy efficiency inno-

vation, there is no better examplethan GE Transportation, whichemploys 5,100 people, many of themengineers, in its headquarters in Erieand in another plant in nearby GroveCity.

GE Transportation's president andCEO, John Dineen, describes hislocomotive factory as a "technologycampus," because "it looks like ahundred year-old industrial site, butinside those hundred-year-oldbuildings are world-class engineersworking on the next generation'stechnologies. People look at our bigfactory and they mistake it for atraditional manufacturing business,when what really drives this businessis technology."

Hourly workers at GE Transportationmake almost double the average wagein their respective cities – thankslargely to the export of the 240,000-plus-pound, $4 million EvolutionSeries diesel locomotive, or EVO forshort. GE Transportation will haveexported about three hundred ofthem to China by the end of 2009and also sells them to railroadcompanies worldwide, including inMexico, Brazil, Australia, andKazakhstan.

The EVO's new twelve-cylinderengine produces the same horsepoweras its sixteen-cylinder predecessor.Best of all is that these locomotives

are reliable. "They don't stop on the tracks,"says Dineen.

One of the key factors driving GETransportation to design the EVO the way itdid was the U.S. Environmental ProtectionAgency's Tier II emissions standards forlocomotives and other transportationvehicles. The new standards were issued in2004 and required big reductions in theemissions of both nitrogen oxide andparticulates. GE had no choice but to meetthe new baselines, but the big question washow. Whenever a company makinglocomotives faces a standards issue like this,it can choose to trade off different variables.It can make its engine cleaner, for instance,at the expense of miles per gallon or milesper hour or reliability. GE's chairman, JeffreyImmelt, decided that instead of just tweakingthe company's existing locomotive engine,which met the Tier I standard, so that itcould meet Tier II, they would simply startover.

'We knew we had to lower emissions,"recalled Dineen. "If we wanted, we [also]knew we could trade things off on fuelefficiency and reliability, but we made a betinstead to advance all three throughtechnology by redoing the whole engine. . .When you want to move all the variables inthe right direction at the same time, youneed to start with a clean blackboard. Wewent to a larger, more robust engine thatcould handle higher firing pressures in thecylinders, with new materials, new designs,and new pistons. We went for betterreliability, lower emissions, and more milesper gallon – all at the same time." Yes,ultimately it was GE's engineers who figuredout how to do this, and GE influenced theEPA on where to strike the balance. But thespark was definitely the 2004 Tier IIemissions standard, said Dineen. "The EPAcan be credited with instigating the need todrive new technologies into theselocomotives."

Carbon emissions are directly correlated to adiesel locomotive's miles per gallon; as mpggoes up, emissions go down. So when GEdecided to build a new engine that not onlymet the new Tier II EPA standards for

You'd think one thingthat a railroad-based country likeChina would be making is its ownlocomotives, and you would be right.China does make its ownlocomotives, thousands of them, andthey are much cheaper than GE's, butit turns out that GE's are the mostenergy efficient in the world, with thelowest emissions of CO , traditionalsoot particles, and nitrogen oxide, andthey get the best fuel mileage per tonpulled. That's why China buys them.

2

23

nitrogen oxide, but would also get bettermileage per ton pulled, it was able to reduceboth the nitrogen oxide emissions of theEVO and its emissions.

Back in 2004, this latter improvementseemed like just a nice added touch.reductions were not part of the EPA Tier IIagenda. But in the past two years, carbonemissions, especially for a country like China,became a huge issue, and China'sgovernment-owned railroads and a lot ofother customers suddenly became eager tobuy a locomotive that got better fuelefficiency and produced lower nitrogen oxidepollution and lower emissions. "Wewere not sure the Chinese would beinterested in lower emissions, but they are,"said Dineen. Actually, given the fact thatChina in 2008 overtook the United States asthe world's leading carbon emitter, with allthe opprobrium that entails, it is notsurprising that big state-owned Chinesecompanies would be eager to improve theiremissions in a cost-effective way. The key,though, was to make lower emissions almosta free add-on that China's railroadcompanies could afford. When emissionreductions come through reductions in fuelconsumption, said Dineen, "we see veryquick adoption rates, not only in the U.S.market but in international markets that donot have government mandates."

The carbon emissions issue, added Dineen,"came up on us faster than we ever couldhave imagined. We got out in front of it,because of our own regulations. Regulationspushed us out there, we were early, and bythe time others were interested, we had anadvantage in this area."

The new EVO was 5 percent more fuelefficient than its predecessor. What's 5percent? Over the twenty-year life cycle of

the locomotive, it saves approximately300,000 gallons of diesel fuel and thecorresponding carbon emissions. And whenone railroad buys hundreds of theselocomotives at a time, that can add up to alot of fuel and carbon saved.

"Now we're already deep into discussionsabout Tier III and IV standards," saidDineen. "The more. carbon gets taxed, andfuel prices increase, the more it will push usto become more fuel efficient. GE and theEPA have recognized the lesson from Tier IIand are looking for technology solutions thatreduce traditional pollutants like nitrogenoxide, while improving fuel efficiency andcarbon emissions. And, by the way, thehigher the standards, and the moretechnology necessary to achieve them, thesmarter the engineers we need to hire."

Indeed, GE Transportation has a hugeappetite for talented engineers, but the Erieschool system was struggling to keep up in itsability to teach math and science. So the GEFoundation put $15 million into improvingthe math and science program in the localschools. It is not that GE is hiring highschool grads from Erie to be its engineers,but if it wants to attract quality engineers toErie and keep them there, it needs to helpmaintain a quality school system.

"This is western Pennsylvania," said Dineen."This is not Silicon Valley. I spend a lot oftime with the local government trying to getthe leaders to recognize that our competitiveadvantage is rooted in technology, and notlow-cost welding. So we are challenging thistown to make sure we are constantlyimproving math and science education."

In short, companies like to locate where theengineers are the best and most plentiful andwhere the standards are constantly pushing

CO

CO

CO

CO

2

2

2

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24

GE had no choice but to meet the new baselines, but the bigquestion was how. Whenever a company making locomotives facesa standards issue like this, it can choose to trade off differentvariables. It can make its engine cleaner, for instance, at theexpense of miles per gallon or miles per hour or reliability. GE'schairman, Jeffrey Immelt, decided that instead of just tweaking thecompany's existing locomotive engine, which met the Tier Istandard, so that it could meet Tier II, they would simply start over.

If It Isn'tBoring,It Isn'tGreen

SO one day a few years back your bosscalls you and says, "Have I got a dealfor you! We're deciding where to build

our next wafer fabrication facility forproducing leading-edge microprocessors.China, Taiwan, and Singapore have alloffered tempting subsidies and tax breaks ifwe build it in one of their countries. Butwe'd like to stay here in the Dallas area, nearour microchip design center and otherfacilities. Wherever this building goes,though, you – the building team – need toerect the new plant in 2005 for $180 millionless than we built its predecessor for in1998."

"Oh, yeah, right," you say. "Build a newbuilding for $180 million less than itspredecessor cost seven years earlier. Whodoes that?

Sounds crazy, but that is exactly thechallenge that the leadership of TexasInstruments laid down to its building team inthe early 2000s, and here's what's reallycrazy: The building team went and did it.And here's what's even crazier: The cost-saving strategy the building team adoptedwas to make the building as green and asenergy efficient as possible and that is howthey hit their target. Designing green

and therein lies an

important tale.

Besides making homes and cars more energyefficient, there is a mother lode of energyefficiency waiting to be exploited incommercial buildings through buildingdesign – illustrated by the Texas Instrumentswafer factory in Richardson, Texas. And thekey to it is the realization that a properlydesigned energy-efficient building can notonly be cheaper to operate, it can be cheaperto build than a conventional building.Buildings use roughly 40 percent of the totalenergy consumed in the United States and70 percent of total electricity. When thegeneral public comes to believe that green isthe cheapest way to therevolution is really under way. I visited thenew TI wafer factory in 2006 while making adocumentary on energy for the DiscoveryTimes channel. (By the way, what is a wafer?According to the technology dictionaryWebopedia.com, it is a thin, round slice ofsemiconductor material, usually silicon, fromwhich microchips are made. The silicon isprocessed into large cylindrical ingots, slicedinto ultra thin wafers, and then implantedwith transistors before being cut into smallersemiconductor chips.) Wafer factories alwayshad a minimum of three floors, because ofthe complicated cooling systems and supportequipment that had to surround themanufacturing line.The TI design team came

washow they saved money,

build and operate,

them higher. Everything is connected:Higher climate and emissions standardsdemand smarter products, smarter productsdemand smarter workers, and smarterworkers like to live in clean environmentswith good schools, so they end updemanding still higher standards. If Americawants to thrive in the Energy-Climate Era,the federal, state, and local governments allneed to be driving that virtuous circle all thetime.

Probably the most oft-cited theory aboutthe relationship between environmentalregulation and innovation is the "Porterhypothesis," first expounded by theHarvard Business School professor MichaelPorter in 1991. He asserted that " appro-priately planned environmental regulationswill stimulate technological innovation,

leading to reductions in expenses andimprovements in quality. As a result,domestic businesses may attain a superiorcompetitive position in the internationalmarketplace, and industrial productivitymay improve as well."

Another way of putting it, Porter explainedto me, is that pollution is simply waste:wasted resources, wasted energy, wastedmaterials. Companies that eliminate suchwaste will be using their capital,technology, and raw materials moreproductively to generate maximum valueand, therefore, will become morecompetitive. So, properly craftedenvironmental regulations give a kind oftwo-for-one kick – they can improve boththe environment and the competitivenessof a firm and a nation.

25

up with a way to build the 1.1. millionsquare-foot Richardson factory with just twofloors – a huge savings in square footage andall the mass and energy needed to support it.TI also consulted with Amory Lovins andthe green building experts at the RockyMountain Institute to design other parts ofthe plant in a way that would lower itsresource consumption, a savings that, overthe life of the factory, can exceedconstruction outlays. Together, TI engineersand the RMI team designed big water pipesand air-conditioning ducts with fewerelbows, which reduced friction loss and letthem use smaller, energy-saving pumps. Tobring down cooling costs in sun-baked Texas,engineers designed a plastic membrane thatreflects 85 percent of the sun's radiation fromthe roof. In addition, the windows in theadministrative wing were designed withspecial shelves that reflect light deep intoroom interiors, reducing the need forartificial lighting. Recycled water was used torun cooling equipment and irrigate outdoorlandscaping whose environmental impact thedesigners minimized by using native plants.These moves, together with innovations inhow air is circulated, cooled, and recoverednaturally, reduced total heat so much that TIwas able to get by with one less hugeindustrial air conditioner than wouldnormally have been required.

"We needed seven chillers instead of eight,"said Paul Westbrook, who overseessustainable design and development for TI'sworldwide building team and helped turn TIleaders on to green building by taking themto tour his solar home. "Those chillers areabout 1,600 tons each and cost about $1million each to buy and install." Greenbuilding is not necessarily about producingyour own power with windmills and solarpanels, he added, "it's about addressing theconsumption side with really creative designand engineering to eliminate waste and

reduce energy usage. It's the next industrialrevolution. Green building added some cost,but overall, we built a green building for 30percent less per square foot than ourprevious facility six miles away."

The key to pulling that off, explainedWestbrook, was making the TI factory inRichardson "the Prius of wafer factories."How so? 'We didn't just take the old designand try to tweak it to save a little moneyhere and there. We took out a blank piece ofpaper, we looked at how everythinginteracted with everything else, and we cameup with a whole new design that turned outto be not only cheaper to build but cheaperto operate."

The main lesson of this, said Westbrook, isthat if you rethink every process and all theconnections between each process – forinstance, how waste heat from one systemcan be used to power another, rather thanjust cooled with another air conditioner, orthe way the Prius used braking to generateelectricity to charge the batteries – you canactually take two goals that everyonethought had to be in opposition (savingmoney and building and operating green)and accomplish them together.

It is not easy, though. You need to put a lotmore thought into the original design. Youhave to think of a house or building not justas walls, windows, and floors, with lights,heating, and cooling, but as a system ofsystems, and then rethink how they allinteract. Historically, the heating and air-conditioning never talked to the windows.The windows never talked to the lighting.The lighting never talked to the doorways.So everything was usually on all the time andnothing talked to anything, let alone to thegrid or to the energy market. With anintelligent building, with occupancy sensorsin every room, you could have the ting and

26

The LEED Green Building Rating System encourages the adoption ofsustainable green building practices by creating a recognizedbenchmark for the design, construction, and operation of high-performance green buildings. LEED, which was spearheaded in themid-l990s by Rob Watson, the eco-consultant, is managed today bythe U.S. Green Building Council. It gives out basic, silver, gold, andplatinum certifications to buildings based on five criteria –sustainable site development, water savings, energy efficiency,materials selection, and indoor environmental quality.

If It Isn'tBoring,It Isn'tGreen

auditorium, classroom, or office heated andlit only when it is in use. But more thanthat, smart windows can let in more lightand heat when it is cold and dark and keepout more when it is hot and sunny, andthese windows can be constantly talking toboth the overhead lights and the heatingand air-conditioning systems. Solar walls canbe used to light up the school or power thebattery of the school bus. When you start tothink of a building as system of systems, nota block of bricks, all kinds of things becomepossible. And just imagine all these highlyefficient smart buildings being integrated intoan intelligent Energy Internet, where eachbuilding's flexibility is used to serve the needsof other buildings, not just its own. Althoughcompleted by 2006, the TI factory has beendelayed from going into operation by adownturn in the chip business. But thebuilding is ready to go and all the systemshave tested out. The tests indicated thatwhen it is fully humming "we should seeabout $1 million a year in utility savings inthe first year and around $4 million a year inlower utility bills when fully running," givencurrent electricity prices, Westbrook said.That is about a 20 percent savings onelectricity and a 35 percent savings on waterfrom its predecessor, he added. "When we dostart production, it will ramp up over anumber of years – and our savings will rampup with it."

Texas Instruments was proud "to prove youcan [be] green and energy-sensitive andreduce costs and increase profits," ShaunnaBlack, TI's vice president for worldwidefacilities, said to me back in 2006, when thebuilding was just being finished. "Amazingthings happen when people claimresponsibility for creating the impossible."

That is the challenge we need to lay downacross America – taking responsibility forcreating the impossible. If I could wave amagic wand and impose one regulation tohasten achieving that goal, it would be a lawrequiring every first-year drafting,engineering, and architectural student totake a course in LEED (Leadership in Energyand Environmental Design) building andsystem design.

The TIfacility in Richardson is LEED Silver.

LEED is a perfect example of anenergy/environmental standard that did notcome from the government down, but fromsociety up, as society has come to value moresustainable workplaces. The standard hasspread virally, so far, so fast, and socompellingly that studies now show thatoccupancy, rental rates, and sale prices arehigher in LEED-certified buildings than inconventional ones.

But we cannot just depend on volunteerism.Landlords chronically under invest inenergy-efficient designs, buildingconstruction, and appliances, because theirtenants pay the electric bills. When thetenant pays, the landlord doesn't care aboutforward operating costs, so he will minimizeall upfront capital expenditures. When thelandlord pays, the tenants don't care aboutefficiency and will not look to optimize andminimize ongoing energy consumption. Andoftentimes, people just don't know that thislight bulb or that dishwasher is better thananother in terms of energy efficiency, so theywill not make the right choices, even if theyare economically incentivized to care. Thatis why you want the government to step inand guide the marketplace.

This can be done in many ways, includingoutlawing certain kinds of energy-greedylight bulbs or mandating performancestandards for cars, buildings, and appliances– so people don't have any choice but to beenergy efficient. As the Stanfordclimatologist Stephen Schneider put it inan interview with Katherine Ellison,published on July 2, 2007, on Salon.com :"Volunteerism doesn't work. I've said thisabout 85,000 times. It's about as effective asvoluntary speed limits. No cops, no judges:road carnage. No rules, no fines: greenhousegases. We're going to triple or quadruple the

in the atmosphere with no policy."

(Excerpted

by Thomas Friedman)

fromHot, Flat and Crowded

The LEED Green BuildingRating System encourages the adoption ofsustainable green building practices bycreating a recognized benchmark for thedesign, construction, and operation of high-performance green buildings. LEED, which

was spearheaded in the mid-l990s by RobWatson, the eco-consultant, is managedtoday by the U.S. Green Building Council. Itgives out basic, silver, gold, and platinumcertifications to buildings based on fivecriteria – sustainable site development, watersavings, energy efficiency, materials selection,and indoor environmental quality.

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27

One fine day, Emperor Akbar wasdiscussing the brinjal with Birbal. Hetold him what a delicious and

nutritious vegetable it was. Much to Akbar'ssurprise, Birbal thoroughly agreed with himand even sang two songs in praise of thehumble brinjal.

After a couple of days the royal chef cookedbrinjal curry for lunch. Birbal was also eating atthe palace that day. When the brinjal currywas served to Akbar, he refused it, saying it wasa tasteless vegetable, full of seeds and lackingin nutrition. He then asked that it be served toBirbal who loved brinjal.

But birbal too refused, saying it was not goodfor health. At this, Akbar impatiently askedhim why he had changed his mind when just afew days ago he was all praise for the brinjal.

Birbal replied that he had praised the brinjalonly because his emperor had praised it andcriticised it when his majesty had critisised it,

as he was loyal to his emperor and not to thebrinjal. He said the brinjal could not makehim a minister no matter how much hepraised it. He went on to say that he was his

majesty's obedient servant, and not that ofthe brinjal.

Akbar was pleased by his honest and wittyresponse.

(Source: Birbal Stories)

Resource-poor Japan just discovereda new source of mineral wealth –sewage.

A sewage treatment facility in central Japanhas recorded a higher gold yield from sludgethan can be found at some of the world's bestmines. An official in Nagano prefecture,northwest of Tokyo, said the high percentageof gold found at the Suwa facility was probablydue to the large number of precisionequipment manufacturers in the vicinity thatuse the yellow metal. The facility recentlyrecorded finding 1,890 grammes of gold pertonne of ash from incinerated sludge.

That is a far higher gold content than Japan'sHishikari Mine, one of the world's top goldmines, owned by Sumitomo Metal Mining CoLtd, which contains 20-40 grammes of the

precious metal per tonne of ore.

The prefecture is so far due to receive 5million yen ($55,810) for the gold, minusexpenses.

It expects to earn about 15 million yen for thefiscal year to the end of March from the goldit has retrieved from the ashes of incineratedsludge.

"How much we actually receive will dependon gold prices at the time," the official said.

Some gold industry officials expect prices thisyear to top the all-time high above $1,030 perounce set in 2008, on buying by investorsworried about the deepening economicdownturn.

(Source: Reuters)

SLICE

LIFEOF

28

trymissing

acouple

ofcar

payments.

Sewageyieldsmoregold

The power ofagreement

Ifyouthink

nobodycares

aboutyou,

thantopmines

... And this poster

Lunch time at the cafeteria at Thermax

House, which is a mix of eating,

sharing and conversation. How have you

been in the first half today?

Not bad, could have been better.

Try some of this aloo methi.

Thanks, I love it.

DRUMCOILPANELSHELL

The new manufacturing facility of Thermax,

at Savli in Gujarat, strengthens the company's

manufacturing muscle for boilers.

The four plants in operation – drum, coil,

panels and shell – provide a boost to project

completion and timely despatches.

The well-equipped facility has already

shipped heating systems to Thermax

customers in India and abroad which

includes a single piece

100-ton consignment to

Saudi Arabia.

Glimpses of the manufac-

turing action on the Savli

shopfloors

Savli deliversthe goods.