Kemrock inks JV pact with HAL

Vadodara-based Kemrock Industries and Exports Ltd (KIEL), one of the leading manufacturers of Reinforced polymer (FRP) composites, today signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Bangalore, to form a joint venture company to develop, manufacture and market aerospace grade carbon fibre pre-pegs along with its associated pre-pegs for defense and aerospace programmes in India.

Kalpesh Patel, chairman and managing director, KIEL said “Kemrock and HAL have together identified opportunities for development and marketing of aerospace grade carbon fibre pre-pegs, which has immense potential in aerospace and defense programs in India as well as globally."

In the first half of 2010, KIEL commissioned India’s first carbon fibre manufacturing facility in Vadodara, in technological tie-up with CSIR- National Aerospace Laboratory, Bengaluru. The fully integrated plant has an initial capacity of 400 tonnes per annum (TPA). The company plans to increase the capacity of this plant to 800 TPA in the second phase of expansion.

Hindustan Aeronautics, a leading Indian aeronautical company with operations including design, development, manufacture, and maintenance of aircraft, helicopters and their related power plants, accessories, systems and equipment, has now diversified into aerospace related fields, with its aero-space division supplying critical components, structural assemblies and tankages for various launch vehicles and satellites of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).

KIEL is India’s leading producer of reinforced polymer composites, offering a fully integrated range of raw materials and engineered composites products.

The company’s product range comprises of carbon fibre, windmill blades and nacelle covers, railway interiors/exteriors, telecom towers, pultruded profiles, pipes and many more FRP/GRP composite products. Kemrock has presence in over 50 countries.

KIEL has also recently formed a joint venture with a Switzerland-based DSM Composite Resins AG to manufacture unsaturated polyester and vinyl ester specialty resins in India.

In May this year, Kemrock had announced its plans to infuse $300-400 million (approximately Rs 1350 crore to Rs 1800 crore) over the period of next 4-5 years for company's new initiatives and its subsidiary firms.