Ingenious in talks with Indian pharma majors

Plans to licence its process simulation modules

Huston-based Ingenious Inc is in talks with Indian pharmaceutical majors and other chemical manufacturers for improving plant performance and supply chain management through its process simulation modules.

Speaking to Business Standard, Vibhu Sharma, chief executive officer of Ingenious Inc, said, "The company is in talks with majors like Ranbaxy, Dr Reddy's Laboratories, Sun Pharma, Biocon and Alkyl Amies to use our process simulation modules."

The company has four uniquely-developed suites "� Pro-Online, ProPlan, ProSched and ProDyn "� which help in the production, planning, scheduling, process simulation and optimisation.

Sharma said that the company already has 60 clients in India and is looking at adding 15 more this calendar year. "The talks with various companies are in the advanced stage and we are hopeful of licencing these products to implement them in their plants," he said.

According to him, the simulation and scheduling tools can play an important role in accelerating development, reducing cost, increasing capacity and meeting critical path requirements.

Sharma said that the IT implementation with advanced simulation packages in the industry is not taken off in the country unlike in China which is marching ahead in automation levels at a must faster rate.

The ProPlan and ProSched can be used for planning and scheduling while ProDyn offers web-enabled simulation and Pro-Online provides plant performance management besides low-cost engineering services for basic engineering and feasibility studies.

According to him, Dr Reddy's Labs is looking at a chemical process simulation software which can increase the chemical engineering productivity and accuracy, while Sun Pharma and Jubilant are planning to implement the ProSched solution.

Ingenious, for the first time in the country, has undertaken a unique project in association with Pune-based Praj Industries for providing simulations and implement solutions using ProDyn.

"The company aims to provide training tools through this module which is a mirror-image of the plant manufacturing ethanol," he said.

The $1.5-million company, in order to consolidate its position further in the Indian market, is looking at either partnering with another company in the same area or by acquiring another company.

"Out of our total revenue 60 per cent is from the Indian operations. To further consolidate our position we are looking for both organic and inorganic means of growth," Sharma said.

"We are also looking at having an equity partner. We would like to keep the majority of control in our hands and give 10 per cent to 20 per cent share to another company which would like to partner with us," he added.