Positives in plastics: Joy Kunjukutty

In a shifting technological landscape, there’s no industry that hasn’t seen immense change over the past 20 years or so. And as the Co-Founder and Director of Sunrise Industries, Joy Kunjukutty has seen many firsts.

Founded in 1983 as Sunrise Industrial Equipments, the organisation began with a small shed, basic equipment, and a single order on hand. The deal was made with a five-year guarantee, a long period that was hardly a common practice. However, Joy believed the promise of quality would be beneficial for a manufacturing company still in its early days. "We had a lot of confidence in our ability to deliver on our promises and a determination to succeed," says Joy. "We haven’t looked back since."

"We had a lot of confidence in our ability to deliver on our promises and a determination to succeed."

Armed for success

Joy is always armed with a vivid vision for Sunrise, one that’s strategically mapped and marked by practical milestones. To achieve his goals, he ensures all operations are backed by a committed technical team and talented marketing professionals. Under his leadership, Sunrise has matured into one of India’s top designers, manufacturers and suppliers of anti-corrosive equipment, pipes and fittings made with composite technology from engineering plastics.

It is the first and only company in Asia to receive ISO 9001:2000 certification to manufacture the complete range of thermoset and thermoplastic-lined products. It has also set the record for manufacturing some of the largest products in India, including the fibre-reinforced plastic (FRP) HCL storage tank, FRP chlorine dioxide storage tank, and abrasion-resistant FRP chutes.

Today, Sunrise’s state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities cover 74,000 square metres of shop floor and administrative offices, with 450 technical and management staff, on the outskirts of Vadodara in Gujarat, India. As a leading South Asian manufacturer, Joy ensures that all aspects of the process are of a high quality, including design, detailed engineering, manufacturing, testing, construction, commissioning and troubleshooting capabilities.

Strategically located in the central industrial belt of western India, Sunrise has also become a leading exporter. "We have business dealings all over the world, including the US, Europe, Middle East, Asia and South America," Joy notes.

"We have business dealings all over the world, including the US, Europe, Middle East, Asia and South America."

Creating awareness

"When we started, there wasn’t much awareness of our types of products. It was really hard because people didn’t use anti-corrosive products at the time," says Joy. "It was very difficult for the market to accept our products because of the nature of the materials."

According to Joy, there are still few companies creating new products purely for their industries. This quarter, he hopes to finalise the acquisition of some new land, shift the focus to exports and create new opportunities. With an aim to continuously create extraordinary products and new value for customers, it’s no wonder that Sunrise has partnerships that have been thriving for decades.

One of Sunrise’s major suppliers, Ashland Group, has been the company’s partner for more than 30 years. "They acknowledge that partnering with us means growth and I appreciate their unwavering support," Joy shares.

So, it’s safe to say that Sunrise has been met with success at every corner. The company has completely outfitted the largest pickling plant in India, supplying FRP equipment, tanks, pipes, fittings and ducting. For the largest acid regeneration plant in India, Sunrise has supplied FRP, polypropylene-FRP equipment, tanks, absorbers, scrubbers, stacks, ducting and pipes.

Future shift

Joy isn’t worried about the competition. Instead, he hopes to make use of the next generation for the benefit of the industry and India. "There will always be competition and our industry has not completely matured yet. In the future, there will be further shifts in how we manufacture and design to exceed customer expectations, and there is strong competition to introduce the right product into the market at the right time."

Joy plans to create a skills development centre onsite in Gujarat, with the aim of attracting new college graduates from other disciplines such as IT. After training them to meet the industry’s requirements, they then can be directly employed in the necessary fields that will help the industry mature.

"Bringing in young, talented and bright employees is an opportunity to achieve our long-term goals," says Joy. "And of course, as we continue to innovate, our long-term goal will always be growth, and to continue holding first place in our industry."

"Bringing in young, talented and bright employees is an opportunity to achieve our long-term goals."