Kent RO plans Rs 150 crore investment to set up a manufacturing unit

Water purifier maker Kent RO Systems Ltd is investing Rs 150 crore over the next three years to set up a new manufacturing unit which will help it double its overall turnover to Rs 2,000 crore, according to a top company official.

The company, which has recently brought to the market a zero water wastage purifier, is looking at add capacity of 4 lakh units annually through its third unit.

"We are putting up a new unit in Noida, in addition to the two existing units. It will take about three years to come up. The new plant would have another Rs 150 crore investment in the next three years," Kent RO Systems Ltd Chairman and Managing Director Mahesh Gupta told PTI.

At the moment, the two existing units can manufacture about 8 lakh units annually and another 4 lakh will come up, he added.

"When all the three units are there, I can do Rs 2,000 crore turnover. If not in three years, we should do in five years," Gupta said, adding the current turnover is Rs 1,000 crore.

When asked about the outlook for 2020, he said the company has been growing at 15 per cent and sees itself growing at similar level.

"We have come into kitchen appliances for cooking under Smart Chef brand. We will continue to work on them and we will continue to push for zero water wastage purifier. I see myself growing at 15 per cent," Gupta said.

Commenting on the zero wastage water purifier, Gupta said it not only addresses consumers' concerns of good quality water but also issues raised by the National Green Tribunal (NGT) and environmentalists over water wastage.

Stating that with its patented zero water wastage technology, the company has come up with the solution to address those concerns while also maintaining essential minerals in the water.

"Our existing products will be modified to zero water wastage and for that a consumer has to spend Rs 2,000 more," Gupta said, adding Kent was ready to share the technology with other competitors for "a nominal cost of Re 1 with credit to the company".

The company's RO water purifiers are available at a price range of Rs 17,000 to Rs 1.2 lakh.

Gupta further said the water purifier industry has been in consultations with the government, which has been directed by the NGT to come with a notification after it prohibited use of reverse osmosis (RO) purifiers where total dissolved solids (TDS) in water are below 500 mg per litre.

With the new zero water waste technology, Gutpa said he hoped to offer a solution that addressed everyone's concerns.