The bio-feed man

SPOTLIGHT: Priya Chemicals President, Dr R Y Angle's, enthusiasm extends to the entire SME sector.

As you enter the small office of Priya Chemicals at Mahim in Mumbai, you can immediately sense the high energy levels. Dr R Y Angle's passion for his work and his enthusiasm communicates itself instantly.

Angle, who earned his doctorate from the prestigious University Department of Chemcial Technology, Mumbai univrsity, decided to strike out on his own, after working for big private and PSU enterprises in the mid 70's .

As Angle puts it, "an inner voice" compelled him to leave a big fat pay cheque and start on his own.

With the help of a Rs 6 lakh loan and a working capital loan of Rs 25,000 from Maharashtra State Financial Corporation (MSFC) and the Bank of Maharashtra, Angle started a unit to produce hydrolysed proteins in 1980 and has today touched a turnover of close to Rs 8 crore.

Along the way, Angle built himself an international reputation for quality and innovation. That today, 95 per cent of his turnover comes from exports, speaks for itself.

Not only the high export volumes, but the six process patents and stringent Fami-QS certification from the European Union (EU), underscore his commitment to innovation and quality.

Priya Chemicals is the largest manufacturer of amino acids and amino acid-based products in the country. It is also the only Indian chemical company whose products have been certified by EU as products meeting the standards of organic farming.

Angle who has worked on the committees of Bombay chambers and Confederation of Indian Industries on SMEs, is vociferous about the SMEs' need to pick up the gauntlet thrown down by global challenges.

"In this era of globalisation and fierce competition, Indian SMEs will survive only if they diversify into export markets and don't become single product suppliers to a few big companies," says Angle.

"For that, one has to show commitment to innovation and quality," Angle points out. "If an entrepreneur thinks that because he is producing good quality products at cost efficient prices he will get export orders, he is making a big mistake. One has to take the lead and tap on the doors of big multi-nationals and convince them about one's product." Angle himself is a testimony to that.

"In 1990, I personally went to various consulates in Mumbai, met their trade representatives and sought information on companies and their import needs and wrote to them. Then in 1993, I got my first export order," he says.

"However, today's entrepreneur has the Internet on his side. Eversince the Internet came to Mumbai in 1997, our export order book has zoomed," Angle claims.