In 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the “Make in India” initiative. Under this scheme, the Indian government is encouraging the localisation of equipment for future nuclear power projects, with the aim of achieving a capacity of 22,480 MW by 2031 from the current operating capacity of 6,780 MW.
Over the last 25 years, Michell Bearings India LLP has developed into a proven supplier of hydrodynamic bearings and the associated support services to most original equipment manufacturers and end users in the Indian market. A core element of the company strategy is to deliver product solutions for Indian nuclear power projects in line with the Government of India objectives for localisation and Indian manufacturing content.
The Bangalore factory is a modern manufacturing facility with high-end precision machines and uses identical manufacturing processes and quality control measures to those at Michell Bearings UK, from which full technical support is available when required. The company has access to a long established Indian supply chain for materials, components and sub-contract machining when required to supplement in-house manufacturing resources.
Key Indian customers include BHEL Bhopal, BHEL Hyderabad, CG, Kirloskar Brothers Limited, Xylem, Triveni, Jyoti, WILO, Sulzer & KSB. For the last 26 years Michell Bearings India has worked in partnership with Indian original equipment manufacturers and end users resulting in a sound understanding of their requirements. This has enabled Michell Bearings to develop and supply product solutions that have been designed, developed and tested to suit the wider application, in addition to through-life support, from an Indian base.
In the nuclear power sector, Michell Bearings has the capability to design and manufacture hydrodynamic bearings for all applications within a nuclear power plant. This includes bearings for reactor coolant pumps and motors inside the nuclear island and other applications in the conventional island such as bearings for cooling water circulation pumps, condensate extraction pumps, steam turbines and generators. All of these bearing products can be offered to our customers with 100% Indian material and manufacturing content whether to specific Michell designs for the application or on a ‘make to print’ basis. Michell Bearings India can also support all hydrodynamic bearing products in service in India from India in terms of repair, spares supply or onsite service.
Efforts to achieve 100% Indian localisation are not limited to the nuclear power sector. For the last 26 years, numerous equipment has been supplied by Michell Bearings India LLP to other sectors of Indian industry notably thermal power, hydro power, water industry and lift irrigation. The supply of main propulsion bearings for future Indian naval applications is also a core element of the business strategy.
A recent interview was conducted with Steve Dixon, CEO Michell Bearings UK, Geoff Humble, Sales and Marketing Director, Michell Bearings UK and Mr. A.P.Malpani, Managing Director, Michell Bearings India on the recent achievements and localisation activities in the Indian nuclear energy market
A recent interview was conducted with Steve Dixon, CEO Michell Bearings UK, Geoff Humble, Sales and Marketing Director, Michell Bearings UK and Mr. A.P.Malpani, Managing Director, Michell Bearings India on the recent achievements and localisation activities in the Indian nuclear energy market.
About Michell Bearings
Michell Bearings is a world-leading designer and manufacturer of hydrodynamic bearings and is named after Mr A.G.M. Michell, an Australian engineer, who patented the whitemetal lined tilting pad bearing in 1905. The principle of supporting loads on hydrodynamic oil films revolutionised the mechanical engineering industry at the time of the invention resulting in huge cost savings and is now known globally as the ‘Michell Bearing’.
From 1905-1920, Mr A.G.M. Michell licensed his technology to many global equipment manufacturers who manufactured bearings to his specific designs. Many of those manufacturers are now customers of Michell Bearings Limited and Michell Bearings India LLP, companies which are jointly owned by British Engines, a major UK engineering group, and Malpani Holdings LLP of India.
Now employing 179 people at manufacturing sites in the UK and India, as well as a global sales network, the Michell Bearings business originated in Newcastle upon Tyne, UK, in 1920 and celebrated its centenary in 2020. In order to gain better access to the domestic Indian market, Michell Bearings India LLP was established in Bangalore in 1995 and now has 59 employees across various disciplines including manufacturing, quality, production engineering, sales and other business support functions. The quality management systems of both businesses are accredited to ISO 9001:2015 with the environmental and health and safety systems certified to ISO 14001:2015 and ISO 45001:2018 respectively.