Based in Haridwar’s Sidcul industrial area, Om Tech Containers began as a corrugation firm named Om Packaging in 2003. In 2016, the company entered the plastic packaging segment by forming Om Tech Containers – operating in Injection molding and blow molding.
A Haridwar native, founder Ashwani Khurana chose the location due to its rapid expansion in the packaging industry. In 2003, industrial areas came up in Uttarakahnd and Himachal Pradesh, promising benefits to startups. “I was from Haridwar and had just completed post graduation in 2001. So, I decided to start Om Packaging as a paper corrugation unit,” he said.
Om Tech Containers supplies customized caps and closures to Patanjali & many other national and multinational brands. Usually not many changes are needed in caps and closures, but when they happen, they can be capital intensive, Khurana, a first-generation entrepreneur, told Packaging South Asia during our recent visit to Haridwar.
The company uses five Milacron machines for injection molding of 100-150-200 tons as the production cost depends hugely on the tonnage of the machine, he said. For smaller products, they use smaller machines while the heavier machines are for large products and bigger lots.
In caps and closures, the company manufactures flip-top, regular, CTC, screw and lock break caps, he said. The caps are designed according to the usage of the product and as per design provided by the customer.
Om Tech containers manufactures HDPE/PP containers through blow molding on five CMP machines, from 1 liter to 5 litres, manufactured in India. Its HDPE/PP bottles are recyclable.
“The plastic molding industry is creative. You can change and develop the design according to requirement. Everyone wants a rich aesthetic design to attract customers,” he said.
The company supplies caps, closures and HDPE/PP containers to Delhi-NCR, Himachal and Gujarat as well as within Uttarakhand. The plastic molding unit is spread across several floors with an working area of 22,000 square feet.
“We source our raw material from Reliance, HPCL, GAIL, and Indian Oil. The prices of raw material in the plastic industry mostly depend on the price of crude oil and the demand-supply ratio,” he added.
Corrugation plants for loyal customers
Om Packaging has one manual and one automatic plant for corrugation in Haridwar, where it makes 1500 tons of corrugated cartons per month, Khurana said.
Its corrugation customers include Patanjali, ITC, Prince Pipes and Fittings, Fena and Ghadi detergent powders and Panasonic. “Most of our customers are from the FMCG, cosmetic and elecrical segments and a few from pharma. We have a loyal customer base,” Khurana said.
The company sends corrugated boxes to Delhi-NCR, Baddi in Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand. “We don’t supply corrugated cartons beyond 400-500 kms because the freight cost gets higher as it is a volumetric product,” he said.
“We have a good turnover and adding more customers. India’s packaging industry is competitive, we are looking to grow in the segments where we are already working. Quality and on-time delivery are of prime importance in the packaging industry,” Khurana said.
The company plans to make PET bottles as there is a huge demand in pharma units, he said. By the end of this year, it plans to add more blow molding and injection molding machines, he concluded.
This article was slightly modified by the author on 3 September 2024
