Emerging Entrepreneurs

Lankan efficiency levels low

Harshini Perera

It is natural for a businessman to think of diversification after sometime. But for that one needs an experienced and novel thinking person to head the company. Amil Industries, Managing Director Gihan A. Abeysundara has taken that challenge with blessings of an experienced father and started a new venture into rollerdoors from the construction industry.

He is featured in this column today. Excerpts of the interview.

Q: How did you come up with your enterprise?

A: The company was started by my father until I joined it in 2008 after my studies in the UK. I was given the responsibilities in the company after my return from UK. My father was a Government servant and he started the company 25 years ago. We currently have three companies.

They are Amil Builders, Amil Janitor services and designing of rollerdoors under Amil Industries which was started six months ago.

Q: What were the challenges you faced?

A: I am a Civil Engineer by profession. So working in the construction industry was not that much difficult. When we started the rollerdoor business it was a new industry for me. I did not have the theoretical knowledge of the rollerdoor industry and I had to study it.

The challenge in the rollerdoor business in Sri Lanka is that people pay attention only on price but less attention is given to the long-term investment they are making.

A rollerdoor can be used for about 10 to 15 years. It is not about the short-term saving it does but long-term benefits too. One can decrease the price by using less raw materials or low quality raw materials. We always try to introduce quality products. We have recognized that creating a quality product is hard in Sri Lanka because of the people’s perception.

Q: What are the strengths of the company?

A: The fact that we are a construction company is a strength for the rollerdoor industry. Before venturing into the rollerdoor business we were buying nearly 25 to 50 rollerdoors per year.

We were in the construction industry for 25 years and so recognized what we need rollerdoors for our own construction purposes which is one of the reasons we wanted to start a rollerdoor manufacturing company. The products we have been using for our purposes were not upto the standards as expected.

The human capacity we have is one of the other strengths. There are 250 employees working for the company. There are people who have gathered a lot of experience since the time of my father and they were assets to us when training new people.

There is a history and culture built up from the time my father started the company. I brought in new technology and experience from a developed country. So the combination of the two make a good match.

Q: How do you manage your enterprise?

A: There is a hierarchy maintained by the company and I involve in the management of day today operations of the company whereas decisions are made by my father.

The employees as well as customers can directly approach me for any issue as we practice an open door policy in our company. We take everyone’s support from the lowest level to the top when managing the company. Everyone in the company is committed to accomplish their goals since we are starting the business new.

Q: How did you supply with capital initially?

A: We started as a construction company. To start a construction company, one does not need much capital initially. Recently, we have purchased new machinery for which we invested nearly Rs 50 million.

Q: What are your aspirations?

A: From my childhood I wanted to be an engineer which was my dream. My father wanted to start manufacturing rollerdoors apart from the construction company.

Since we looked for new products, we thought that we could fill the gap in the rollerdoor market by introducing a new and a quality product.

We have been using nearly 60 rollerdoors per year for our own construction purposes.

Q: What are the strategies you adopt to enhance the employee efficiency?

A: I would say the efficiency level of Sri Lankans is really low. There is a huge difference in human efficiency between where I have been working and in Sri Lanka. If a Sri Lankan goes abroad on work his or her efficiency is 90 percent whereas the same employee may show less efficiency in Sri Lanka. I think it is the culture. We try to achieve the efficiency level as much as possible.

Q: What are your goals in business?

A: We need to integrate the designing aspect to the rollerdoor industry which we could not very much see in Sri Lanka before. A gate is not merely for security purposes.

But there should be a design on it. That is why we introduced designer rollerdoors, gates and swing gates. It will also enable women to choose a door of her design without letting the male decide on it.

Q: What are your future plans?

A: There will be more expansions to the company in the future. We will be introducing new products to Sri Lanka. We need to invest in research and development in the rollerdoor business. There will be new technology getting down but we have decided to modify it according to the Sri Lankan context.

Q: What is the support you need from the Government?

A: Since we are importing certain raw materials the taxation is a bit higher. There should be an exemption from tax for industrialists in the construction industry.

Q: What is the support you get from your family members?

A: My father gives me his fullest support and strength in running the business.

He is the policy maker and advisor for the company. My sister too assists me while my wife becomes a supporting figure behind me always.

Young Entrepreneurs in a country are the lifeblood of its economy and are trend setters. Being the vital part of the economy, they inspire other young entrepreneurs who are trying to break ground.

We invite young entrepreneurs in business to send their details to [email protected] or by post to the Business Editor. Suitable applicants will be featured in this column.