Three decades ago, when most Indians were just witnessing the dawn of a technological revolution in the global industrial sector, one company–Cybernetik Technologies–took upon itself the mantle to bring the marvel of automation to the Indian industrial shores. The year was 1989 when Cybernetik was conceptualized by the legendary team of Co-founders and Directors: Mahesh Wagle, Dr Nirav Desai, Dr Tara Maithreyan, and Dr Dipti Desai.
Mahesh describes Cybernetik as a trailblazing industrial automation company that seamlessly integrates experience with innovation to design, build, and implement solutions that enhance manufacturing processes and outputs. “With over three decades of experience, we have executed some of the largest projects in the world and consistently pushed the boundaries of automation, setting benchmarks in every industry we operate in,” he states.
Mahesh adds, “As one of the leading robotics automation companies in India, Cybernetik delivers cutting-edge solutions with the latest automation technologies. Headquartered in Pune, with one design office and four manufacturing plants, we provide automation and robotics solutions to tackle complex industrial challenges for a global clientele through innovation and advanced technologies. We are also among the top packaging automation companies in India, offering comprehensive primary, secondary and tertiary packaging automation solutions to companies globally.”
Cybernetik’s Expertise Across Divisions
Diverse Divisional Reach: Cybernetik operates through multiple divisions and subsidiaries, each specializing in automation solutions tailored to a range of industries.
Cybernetik Process Automation: This division offers advanced powder and liquid handling and processing solutions, which are widely used in the pharmaceutical, chemical, food, and agro-processing industries.
Cybernetik Packaging Automation: It delivers innovative primary, secondary, and tertiary automation solutions across the chemical, food, beverage, FMCG, adhesives, and other manufacturing sectors. “We provide both robotic and non-robotic solutions for bag filling, case packing, palletizing, and conveying applications,” Mahesh highlights.
Cybernetik Cleantech: Focused on renewable energy, sustainability, and zero-emission manufacturing, this division caters to companies producing electric vehicle battery packs, catalytic converters, wind turbines, and more.
Cybernetik Labs: As the company’s R&D arm, this division develops customized automation solutions for the most complex challenges. “We undertake proof-of-concept projects across diverse sectors like defence, aerospace, special-purpose machines, and autonomous vehicles. Our collaborations with startups and R&D teams enable the launch of innovative and disruptive products,” Mahesh shares.
When Cybernetik Began the Indian Automation Age
Reflecting on their journey, Mahesh says Cybernetik started operating over three decades ago when automation was at an elementary stage in the Indian industrial sector. During the initial days, it focused on the pharmaceutical industry as there was a demand for good quality equipment and basic automation. The Indian pharmaceutical industry had significant potential but also tremendous gaps in the availability of knowledge and technology, says Mahesh. Cybernetik was founded with the objective of bringing positive advancement to this industry by boosting the productivity, accuracy, efficiency, and safety of industrial processes. That was the stepping stone for Cybernetik. “And we have now emerged as a leader in automation across pharmaceutical, chemical, food, and other manufacturing industries,” says Mahesh proudly.
Pushing the Boundaries of Possibilities
Cybernetik has always pushed the boundaries of automation regardless of what industry it is working for. Many of its projects have been ahead of their time, or in some cases, it is the only system integrator that could actually solve the technical challenge.
Cybernetik believes in organically linking the strong fundamentals of its accomplished technical teams with the broader understanding of market trends and developments of its sales and marketing teams. The firm makes it a point to participate regularly in trade shows and conferences of significance. The teams representing both technical and non-technical executives interact with a cross-section of industry players to get a sense of which direction the market is headed. Regular formal and informal communication between all the related teams ensures a vibrant, two-way information exchange for proactive planning.
A Free Thinking Leadership
Recognized as a driving force behind Cybernetik’s achievements, Mahesh’s leadership style is commendable. He says, “Innovation necessitates a free-thinking approach. The focus of our leadership is to nurture teams that are capable of coming up with fresh ideas and executing those in practice.” To this end, they provide a fairly wide degree of operational autonomy to their teams and encourage them to maintain coordinated communication lines with all the relevant stakeholders. Through all this, they promote a culture of collective responsibility while maintaining an open-door policy for anyone who has genuine doubts.
Executing Excellence
The essence of automation lies in seamless operations and enhancing the security ecosystem and digital efficiency. To strike a balance between operational proficiency and client expectations, Mahesh says that capturing the client’s requirements is often the first, all-important stage in the execution of a project. “This holds even greater importance for a company like ours that delivers innovative solutions to unique challenges. Therefore, we make it a point to understand the client requirements thoroughly,” he adds. But while pushing back the restrictions, he and his team keep an eye open for the limitations and communicate the same categorically to the client. Such limitations make their presence felt during various stages such as design, virtual operations such as simulations, or real operations such as factory acceptance testing (FAT).
An AutomaTech Impetus
In the realm of automation, technology plays a pivotal role in enhancing efficiency. Cybernetik optimizes its services to stay ahead in the digital age. Mahesh shares that being an engineering company at heart, they also ensure they hire engineers who are curious enough to solve the most technical problems. “Curiosity is what ensures our engineers are always scouting for the best technology.” Cybernetik regularly participates in industry events to gain insights into market trends and possible future developments. “Coupled with the technical competence of our teams, we are able to proactively harness the merits of technology,” he informs.
Constant Team Empowerment
Believing that the workforce is the cornerstone of any successful organization, Cybernetik promotes practices such as self-learning and on-the-job learning. A vast collection of engineering-related books is available to any interested employee. For the empowerment bit, it promotes work practices for taking up responsibility and taking them to their logical conclusion. This includes being open to out-of-the-box thinking and related suggestions. “That apart, we treat with leniency any bona fide errors made when putting such ideas into practice. We believe this makes a great empowering experience so long as we learn the right lessons and apply them effectively,” says Mahesh.
Resiliently Overcoming Challenges
As a leader in India’s automation sector, Cybernetik faced its share of challenges. Citing an instance, Mahesh says that in a recent and complex project, there was a requirement for a standard six-axis industrial robot to go beyond its capabilities. “Many of us are familiar with 6-axis robots and their limitations.” To meet the customer’s requirements, Cybernetik successfully integrated and utilized the 7th axis of an industrial robot. To take this a step further, the Cybernetik team, in collaboration with the ABB team, even integrated the 8th axis on the robot by getting access to the root operating system.
An Apt Advice
With his rich experience in automation, Mahesh, being a stalwart, advises budding entrepreneurs aspiring to venture into the automation niche with a pragmatic message. “Look ahead and build a capability-based approach. One wherein the level of your past achievements does not fetter you. But one that is based on an honest assessment of what you can do. This will help you keep yourself on the toes and evolve into a state of mind that explores possibilities. Next, build a strong team that shares your vision for advancing the country to the next stage of development. Nurture them with challenges, resources, and empowerment. Above all, foster a culture of mutual respect and openness to suggestions.”
Adding Customizability to Productivity and Accuracy
Finally, envisioning a technovative future ahead, Mahesh says that India’s automation landscape has advanced substantially over the recent past as the two primary USPs of automation – productivity and accuracy– demonstrate their worth repeatedly. Cybernetik looks to continue adding another – customizability. Not to mention the safety, efficiency, and ergonomics ingrained in it.
Policymakers have realized the value of industrial manufacturing as a creator of wealth and employment. Cybernetik aspires to harness the merits of automation to take industrial manufacturing to the next level.
