Speaking with TechGraph, RG Shende, Chairman and Managing Director of Shree Refrigerations Ltd., discussed how private sector participation under the Make in India and Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiatives is becoming increasingly important to faster defence deliveries, and how the company’s early entry into naval programmes helped it build a strong position in the naval HVAC market alongside established multinational and Indian players.
Shende also spoke about how the company is expanding its in-house manufacturing capabilities through a new 50,000 sq. ft. facility to reduce supply chain delays and have greater control over production, while also exploring AI within controlled environments and looking to take its experience in mission-critical cooling into merchant marine and land-based applications as India moves towards its Amrit Kaal vision for 2047.
Read the interview in detail:
TechGraph: In mission-critical environments like naval platforms, where systems run continuously under extreme conditions, reliability becomes non-negotiable. From your experience, what does it take to build that level of trust within maritime defence programmes where failure has direct operational consequences?
RG Shende: A national security sector like defence manufacturing demands a thorough understanding of all the nitty-gritty at every level. This is sacrosanct in our business. The Design process requires every new product to be rigorously TYPE TESTed to highly demanding military-grade specifications. Hence, quality and reliability are built in at the design stage itself. Subsequent manufacturing is done under strict vigilance of Quality Inspectors from the Naval QA Directorate and Private Inspection Agencies like the Indian Registrar of Shipping.
After undergoing various inspection stages, [as per the approved Quality Acceptance Plan (QAP)], such as Raw Material and In-Process Inspection (a careful document trail is maintained with traceability), the Final Testing in Factory is done as per the approved FAT (Factory Acceptance Testing) Protocol.
The entire process forms part of a Reliability Doctrine and ensures performance in the most demanding operational environment.
TechGraph: Defence manufacturing leaves very little room for iteration once systems are deployed, especially in maritime settings. How does this reality influence the way Shree Refrigerations approaches long-term investments and strategic decisions as a leader?
RG Shende: At the design stage, choosing components for their reliability is a critical element. You cannot make a good system with suboptimal components. The components are selected for their performance, reliability, and serviceability, with assured Life Cycle support from the OEM. We cannot have a component that becomes obsolete in the near future.
The equipment is assured to deliver the performance over 25+ years. Same goes with manufacturing reliability. Once installed and proven, the equipment must perform with utmost reliability and minimum downtime.
TechGraph: Working within naval and strategic defence programmes involves engaging with a tightly structured ecosystem of shipyards, public sector units, and regulatory bodies. How do you see the role of private players like Shree Refrigerations evolving within this landscape?
RG Shende: Under the latest doctrine of Make-in-India and Aatmanirbhar Bharat, participation of the private sector is a critical part of defence manufacturing. Private players, at all tiers of the supply chain, are waking up to the Defense Manufacturing Business potential and are building capacities (like our new 50,000 Sq. Ft. Expansion – Shree Ref. Unit-2).
Building capacities also need to be matched with necessary Registrations with respective Directorates and a Service Team that will enable the equipment to continue performing.
Government support and awareness that participation of private sector is critical for expeditious delivery of much needed equipment has also been appreciated by PSUs and other agencies.
Special drives are being conducted to identify and establish a supply chain in private players. Institutes like Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce Industries and Agriculture (MCCIA) periodically conduct vendor meets for Army-Navy-Airforce authorities.
Shree Refrigerations identified this opportunity way back in 2013-14, and with a single-minded focus undertook a journey to seek registrations with multiple Professional Directorates and Shipyards offering indigenous equipment.
Developing capacity, Man-Machine-Infra and Quality without any assurance of business needed commitment, focus and intense action. This investment has enabled Shree Refrigerations to move from a Start-up to a Market Leader in the naval HVAC marketplace, replacing various MNCs and large Indian companies in the process.
TechGraph: Your systems are expected to perform consistently over extended deployments rather than controlled cycles. As predictive technologies and AI begin to enter maintenance and monitoring workflows, where do you see their practical value in enhancing reliability?
RG Shende: AI is the sunrise technology, and by and large it has impacted the way of operations in different sectors, including defence manufacturing. At Shree Refrigerations too, we are working to integrate it into our equipment. Having said that, we are ensuring Data confidentiality, as no sensitive data can be uploaded to the cloud for any analysis. The Internet of Things (IOT), per se, is a No-No in this segment. However, a limited Agentic AI can find allocations when operated carefully in a controlled domain.
TechGraph: As defence platforms become more integrated, supporting systems like cooling and control are no longer isolated components but part of a larger operational framework. How has this changed the way you position your capabilities within complex defence programmes?
RG Shende: Since we offer customised Turnkey, End-to-End solutions and not just cooling equipment, we understand the application and design a system that seamlessly integrates with related equipment. Our systems are designed for local and remote control and operation. Hence, we need a team of Ex-Naval Personnel who understand the entire system from installation to maintenance of the equipment.
TechGraph: With your new manufacturing facility now operational, how are you looking at scaling up in a sector where growth must remain tightly aligned with precision and consistency?
RG Shende: Our latest expansion is about backward integration. Basically, reducing dependence on the supply chain where our jobs get queued up after major OEMs and get delayed. Defence Manufacturing is about quality, not quantity! Earlier, we used to come across situations where a small outsourced job costing a few lakhs would delay a Multi-crore Equipment waiting on the shop floor over one critical component.
In order to improve throughput and crunch delivery timelines, our new expansion has all the Modern Equipment like CNC Laser Cutting, Heavy Duty 4 Mtr X 600 Ton CNC Bending, and Liquid Painting to support our present CNC Turret Punching and CNC Bending capacity.
Doing things in-house improves all the pillars of QCD (Quality-Cost-Delivery). Reduced third-party inspection touchpoints also enhance productivity and help us shorten the Cash Cycle significantly. This enables us to process more and diverse Orders in a short time span.
TechGraph: Looking ahead, as defence requirements evolve alongside maritime and technological shifts, where do you see Shree Refrigerations creating the most long-term impact?
RG Shende: Beyond financial growth, the larger aspiration is to build a globally respected Indian engineering company that stands for reliability and innovation. A key part of that vision is to strengthen India’s capability in critical cooling technologies, especially in defence applications where indigenous solutions are strategically important, and reduce dependence on foreign vendors. We want to demonstrate that high-quality engineering products can be designed and manufactured in India and compete globally.
In the long term, we see lateral application of Defence Tech on equally mission-critical Merchant Marine and land-based applications like Data Centre Chillers. We wish to see Shree Refrigerations as a reliable partner for developing cooling solutions for mission-critical applications – Naval and land-based. Shree Refrigerations is at the right position to play an active role in the Amrit Kal (2047) vision of Hon. Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
