Engineering head John Bangura did not endorse any of these. He wanted a chemical into which the laminations could be dipped to remove the stains. Bangura knew such a thing existed in the United States. The team was in a fix until a vendor referred someone who could possibly supply such a chemical. Phone calls were made and the chemical was promised. The team waited with bated breath.
“We hear this faint kei kei horn noise at the gate. Guess who shows up? A guy in the ricketiest Luna I’ve ever seen in my life. I swear to god man, the ricketiest. There is this guy on it, one foot on the pedal and below the other foot is this white plastic drum,” said Saran.
A lamination was dipped in the green-bluish liquid and magically “it comes out spotlessly clean.” Saran does not know the liquid’s composition. But “it works like a charm.” The ‘Luna guy’ is among a handful of vendors Saran’s team works with for making HyPixi—a retrofit kit to convert vehicle engines into electric hybrids.
HyPixi promises 20% reduction in carbon emissions and 20% increase in mileage. The ‘Luna guy’ is a significant mention because vendors like him, though always around, have never been a part of the startup ecosystem. Fact is, hardware entrepreneurs do not have much of a domestic vendor network to tap into.
The industry itself is nascent, with only a few noteworthy companies. But this generation of entrepreneurs, recognizing the need for a dedicated and robust local supply chain, is working to develop vendors who can either co-create with them or at least supply the high-quality raw materials they need. They are laying the groundwork for future hardware entrepreneurs to build on.
The results are beginning to show, with a small number of vendors willing to make a leap and open their doors and resources for startups. Many of these vendors aren’t seeking immediate profits but rather betting on long-term potential.
“We have worked with a couple of vendors and the response has been very good,” said Navakanta Bhat, Co-Founder of Pathshodh, a maker of portable diagnostics devices. “Mainly because this was a new technology and they have not done a product of this sort. Perhaps from their point of view the perception is that if this succeeds, going forward it will add to their portfolio.”
With the ecosystem still in its infancy, finding and convincing small and medium vendors is a task. Ask Gandharv Bakshi, CEO of Lumos, a maker of custom backpacks for cyclists.
“We had to pay in advance. Rajan Anandan (head of Google in India and Southeast Asia) had invested in us. We had got publicity. We had to show them these clippings and say someone from Google had invested in us,” said Bakshi.
Not just that. “All (vendors) are used to reducing cost, they do not look at premium products. It is a cultural thing.”
Saran and his team had to travel from Ambala in Haryana to Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu to find the right vendors. “In these places, unbelievable talent can be found. The ecosystem is changing, but discovery is still difficult.”
Established vendors, too, are becoming more accepting of hardware startups, hoping to reap benefits from a mostly symbiotic relationship. “We are keen to work with startups that have some new ideas,” said Umesh Balani, CEO of Rotomotive Powerdrives India, a supplier of solar pumps and motors.
“This way, new energy and ideas are generated within our organisation. Our teams understand what new is happening in the world instead of doing the same job again and again… You are investing for the future.”
Big or small, a vendor-startup relationship can be built only on complete trust. Vendors want openness from startups, and the companies want vendors to respect their intellectual property.
“One thing about any vendor-startup relationship is that there is a certain cost of building that relationship. Because both parties have to invest time and effort,” said Dhananjay Dendukuri, CEO of Achira Labs, a maker of microfluidics diagnostic tools.
“For intellectual property, you need to sign non-disclosures. It supports you to some extent, but then it is trust that is more important than anything else.”
Once trust is established, vendors tend to go a long way in helping startups. From assigning dedicated teams and working for free on the initial prototypes to setting up a product line to cater to a startup’s specific demands, a vendor can literally transform a product.
“We had to align our technology to their requirement,” said Sethumadhavan Inchora, CEO of Kaynes Interconnection Systems, which handles electronics manufacturing and wire harness for Altigreen. “We tested (HyPixi) on a few cars and understood that some changes were required. So learning and patience are required. The (vendor) should not be counting effort versus return; it might not happen the first two years. It will eventually come.”
Building products locally, as opposed to manufacturing overseas, might be slow initially but affords advantages in terms of prototyping and process control that entrepreneurs expect will now be available to future startups.
“It makes logical sense to work with Indian vendors. They know local conditions much better,” said Arun Vinayak Chief Product Officer at Ather Energy, which is in the process of launching its smart electric scooter, S340.
“The mindset here is changing. Many manufacturing facilities are family-run. A lot of vendors are young. They want to collaborate, they see a lot of positivity from startups.”
The next generation of hardware entrepreneurs should potentially be able find all that they require right in India. The groundwork being done “is definitely going to make a difference.
It will not only help startups, it will also bring in startups who can potentially become vendors, said K Chandrasekhar, CEO of Forus Health.
The thinking becomes different. Niche area talent and niche ecosystems will get developed. You don’t have to hire everybody. (New vendors) will have specialised skills. That will help us create more products.
Source: Economic Times