This is an exclusive success narrative of a family-owned business that was set up by the ‘Mehta family’ in 1964. When Element came in 2014, the company was taken over and since then, it has been working under its service umbrella. Yes, we are talking about Metallurgical Services which is known as Element Mumbai- a leading player in Testing, Inspection and Certification segment- heavily into the material and water testing as a laboratory establishment. We are in an exclusive conversation with the leadership panel of the company- Prajakta Desai (HSEQ lead and Operations lead for Chemistry and Microbiology), Preetish Desilva (Technical Head and Operations lead for Mechanical and Corrosion), Neel Thakkar (Sales lead of India) and Abhay Salve (Finance Lead) where we are illuminated with different aspects of this state-of-the-art facility.
The intro
An independent material testing laboratory that is well-acclaimed for its quality and integrity. So far, its laboratory facility is established in 10,000 sq ft of area with over 80 skilled professionals that are dedicated to offering a full spectrum of material testing services. With their extensive network of over 250+ laboratories all across the globe, they are the ones that prove to be the ultimate solution providers to their customers in any sort of need. Their customers can heavily rely on them to deliver the most technically demanding assignments. The service portfolio proposed by them includes Mechanical Testing including Tensile, FTT, Creep, CTOD, Impact, and Corrosion, such as IGC, SSC and HIC and Chemical Testing such as Wet chemical, Spectro Chemical, Gas analysis, XRF, ICP and NDT.
What makes them stand out?
The most considerable factor making the company stand out from its peers thriving in the industry is the integrity and quality infused in its business operations. Today, they have incorporated a whole network of over 250+ labs across the world where one can perform incessant testing in the field of Energy, Infrastructure, Environmental, Lifesciences, Food, Transportation, Aerospace and Connected Technologies which is quite difficult to copy. When it comes to their strong culture, HSEQ is yet another factor that cannot be copied at any cost. A few more considerable highlights in this regard are-
- There are clear SOPs for every process in the organization
- Monthly quality audits by the HSEQ lead and quarterly audits by the Central team from Dubai
- Regular training for employees
- Work-life balance to generate more efficiencies
- Listening and working on feedback from Customers
This is the crucial reason why several major IOCs & NOCs have come under their clientele admiring the company’s integrity as well as quality.
Investing in technology and R&D
To stay ahead of the curve, working as per the upgraded market trends is essential. Whenever and wherever required, they are investing in upgrading their infrastructure to cope with the present-day tech advancements- be it buying new upgraded equipment or upgraded software.
R&D has been implying the need of upgrading as per the present scenario and requirements from the industry that helps them to invest in their services that could become essential in upcoming years like the introduction of Hydrogen fuel.
Mantras to hit the bull’s eye
To make the solutions extremely impeccable and productive to yield the expected outcomes, they thrive on following processes-
- Continuous improvement in processes, skills and competencies
- Efficiency to be built into everything we do
- Listening to Customer needs and developing solutions accordingly
- Be with Customers when they need us the most in technically challenging situations
- Keeping pace with market trends
Work culture promoting holistic growth
What may fascinate our global readership is the fact that positive employee engagement is the most important aspect of Element. For them, a happy and content workforce is the core behind the success of an organization. They believe employee feedback helps to establish a better and collaborative work environment and the company head pays intense attention to what his employees have to say. Be it rewards and recognition, they have all considered the hygienic factors of the management. Ensuring each individual with upward professional growth is under their mission too. From regular events that are cultural and developmental – they ensure the end-clients with better mental and psychological care. Above all, they firmly believe that employee voice matters a lot.
Achievements so far
The company takes immense pride in its phenomenal journey so far. For them, the following highlights are the most considerable points representing their resounding success-
- The only lab in India that has state of the art facility for corrosion testing keeping in mind health and safety.
- They have executed one of the biggest projects of testing in India for Corrosion that is for the O&G industry with Full ring testing capability in the UAE and the UK
- After the Government of India, they are the only ones to have 8 creep testing frames to cater to customer needs.
Soon, in the near future, they are about to create a proper roadmap to expand their future capabilities. A special team of corporate professionals has been set up for this purpose only that would boost their business operations for sure. Moreover, they are constantly planning to expand their wings across different geographies where newer avenues would help them scale their growth trajectory in the coming years.
The pearls of wisdom by the luminaries
“We can say from our experience that the following things should always be kept under consideration to fly in the abundant sky of success. A good entrepreneur is daring, humble and curious to learn new things. When you are first starting, it can be tempting to pretend you know everything. Keep things Simple. Plan out Every Day. Get a Mentor. Grow your Network. Seize Opportunities. Accept Feedback. Understand your value proposition. Know your customer.”
