Ashim Chugh




"The scope in fenestration market is huge and sooner we bring in regulations for standardizing doors and windows in India, the better it will be for the industry as well as for the end users," avers Mr. Ashim Chugh, Director, LGF SYSMAC.



Giving an overview of the industry, he said that the fenestration industry has witnessed a leap in the 90s and since then there is incredible growth in terms of demand of doors and windows. With Housing for all by 2022 and 100 smart cities initiative being launched by the Prime Minister, all industries linked to the real estate ecosystem will get a boost. Hence, there is a big potential for fenestration industry as well in the years ahead.

As estimated by the Planning Commission of India, there are 20 million new houses to be built in the next 10 years. So if you consider a decade long horizon, the fenestration industry will witness a phenomenal growth. At this moment, there's no doubt that the sector has hit a slowdown which is temporary. Remember that real estate capex accounts for 10-15% of the Indian GDP and that over the past ten years, one in three non-agri jobs in India has come from this sector. You can't really instil growth without taking on certain infrastructure and development projects. But in due course, when the initiatives taken by the government pick up momentum, the real estate sector is going to bounce back. And when that happens, there's going to be a significant uptick in the door and windows industry.

Orion CNC Machine Centre
CNC Machining Centre

Moving head, he said, currently, the most dominating fenestration material in India is aluminium which as of now takes a chunk of business which is close to 45% followed by wood at about 25%. Finally, both steel and UPVC hold a 15% market share each. As far as UPVC is concerned, an influx has been witnessed in the last seven years. It started off in a big way in India and has picked up at a fast pace. Extrusion companies have also set up base in the country for extruding UPVC profiles whereas aluminium and wood have always remained the dominant materials for the fenestration industry until date.

Multi-point Locking Handle for Windows
Multi-point Locking Handle for Windows
Explaining the reason on aluminium being the most preferred choice as of now, he said that India has a warm climate for most of the time of the year; therefore it is understandable why aluminium has been the preferred and significant contributor to the fenestration industry over the years. Nonetheless, UPVC doors & windows have made a steady start in India and are able to reduce energy loss upto 90%. Aluminium on the other hand is light weight and is weather resistant. Thermal break aluminium windows can reduce energy loss to a large extent. Moreover, aluminium windows have the option of colors (powder coating / anodozing) which is economical and easy as compared to foiling in UPVC. The introduction of architectural paints for UPVC is an upcoming phenomenon which will not only give many options and effects of coloring in UPVC but will also be economical as compared to powder coating in aluminium. As of now, aluminium windows are considered to be more economical than UPVC ones.

Expatiating on the subject he added that though UPVC enjoys a global popularity over many years, it has not yet started getting adequate attention in India and the biggest bottleneck in the way of its development is industry standardization. As of now, it is extremely easy and economical to set up a UPVC door & window manufacturing unit involving low capital investment and the availability of low quality equipment and machineries. This intentionally or un-intentionally leads to manufacturing of sub-standard products which are not sustainable in the long run. "In my opinion, the government and authorities should lay core emphasis on defining standards for manufacturing doors and windows to uplift and value adds to this industry."

Actuator for Motorized Window Operations
Actuator for Motorized Window Operations
While talking on the major challenges faced by the suppliers and dealers of uPVC/ Aluminium/steel and wooden windows in India, he opined that the biggest challenge is a lack of standardization of doors and windows. The sector is pretty disorganized, so there are not enough standards for architectural hardware. Every building has the liberty to incorporate a window/door system implying no control on the performance, durability and efficiency of the door / window so installed. With the recent influx of façade and window consultants growing in the country, we are positive that the industry will mature and quality will prevail over cheapstick run of the mill products.

He further stated that one of the other shortcomings of our industry is that the specifications that go on the design blueprints generally do not make it, as is, to the construction phase. So for suppliers, it's impossible to go into mass production till the construction of a project actually commences. "This has a crippling effect on everyone because despite the limitations imposed by lack of standardization, we have a task to deliver on time. We, at LGF SYSMAC are addressing this challenge head on with a PAN India sales & distribution network ensuring product availability and delivery on an immediate basis."

In his concluding remarks, he averred, "Though the scope in this industry is huge but the only take for this is that the sooner we bring in regulations for standardizing doors and windows in India, the better it will be for the industry as well as for the end users. At the end of the day, the person who is actually moving into a new house or premise needs to be comfortable in operating and getting the sustainable value of the doors and windows so installed. End users have put in their hard earned money buying a new house and it is expected that the doors & windows so installed are durable and nuance free. Delivering high quality products will be possible once standardisation and regulations are set for manufacturing. I only hope that this will happen soon. Moreover, with our GDP growing at over 7% per annum and development projects being put into motion by the government, I think the fenestration industry has no dearth of growth in the next five years."