Risk and reward

Cross-country connections can take many forms, but the most enduring remains infrastructure. From road and rail to power transmission, these arterial viaducts stitch regions together and ultimately form the seams of nations.

Once the initial stitchwork is done, however, there’s maintenance to consider – especially with a country’s cohesion at stake. All this and more is the remit of Transrail Lighting, one of India’s leading infrastructure solutions providers.

Big shoes to fill, but Randeep Narang, Transrail’s Managing Director and CEO, says the company’s growth is built on a firm foundation.

“When I was offered a leadership position at Transrail, I was excited,” Narang tells The CEO Magazine. “Here was a company with all the ingredients of great success put in place by our Chairman, Digambar Bagde.

“It was a very well-integrated company with great manufacturing facilities and a great team of people, and I had a clear mandate to deliver customer delight on time.”

Still, Narang could see room for improvement, especially as he joined the company at the tail end of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Executing growth

“I had a strong base to build the teams further, giving them more focus on what we call execution excellence,” he says. “Our revenue has grown threefold since then.”

Chief among Narang’s reforms was a change in the way Transrail managed its order book.

“We looked at a very clear, selective process,” he says. “We sorted by order, geography, risk matrix and how we could further escalate and elevate the bidding, business development and tendering process. I’m happy to say that our order book today is close to almost US$2 billion and growing.”

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While a dynamic culture was already in place, Narang says he merely adapted to it and further developed a winning team.

“Everything must be done with a focus on profitable growth,” he says. “We’re not just looking at revenue growth. You can win any tender B2B, but the margin profile, sustainable post-execution of a job and cash flow management are key.

“I think they’re the basic elements of an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) company, so that’s what we’ve pursued. We reject maybe five out of 10 jobs that come our way.”

By being more selective, Transrail is able to pour the full might of its considerable resources into the projects it takes on. Narang says this starts with a localization effort.

Strong partners & global reach

“We create a hub, we work with the community just as much as with the client and the consultant, and we work within the local environment. We want to believe that managing the ground reality is the key to our success,” he says.

“If you want to complete on time, you must support your team to do so.”

Relationships with stakeholders in and around the regions in which Transrail operates have afforded the company much greater reach and better results. Although headquartered in India, Transrail has a footprint in 60 countries as a result of these lasting partnerships.

“We work with global digital logistics-enabled partners because we supply all over the world,” he says.

“Our supply chain is very much integrated, but we’re looking at AI tools and other digital solutions to improve our productivity and further customer satisfaction.”

And as the global need for EPC grows, Transrail is strengthening and building upon its partnerships to improve its reputation as a reliable global EPC partner.

“We’re talking about transmission, substations, rural electrifications, solar, bridges, elevated roads and lighting. We have a complete spectrum of play,” he says.

“We’re happy to partner with global EPC players or supply chain partners for a win–win, and trust, credibility and reliability are the lifeblood there.

“Our allies, from global original equipment manufacturers to top-in-class local operators, such as our high-voltage transmission line partner Mosdorfer India, go out of their way to support us. Every stakeholder has, by definition, a stake in the game, and we want to satisfy them all through our execution and investment management.”

Leading the way

This attention to detail starts at the top. Narang himself reviews all projects each week and personally steps in to guide the team.

“We should know what’s happening, right or wrong,” he says. “It’s about being there for the team, standing behind them and making sure that even if they’ve made a mistake, they’re supported. We’re in it together, and we’ll deliver together.”

That team is made up of 2,200 staff across 22 countries, all of whom are dedicated to the Transrail commitment of jobs done on time.

“Our engineering team is very strong. Engineering and procurement are both sound functions at Transrail,” he says. “And when you have very renowned and experienced professionals on your team, you want to harness their energy and grow them.”

Narang says his experience in the EPC space has helped him become a better manager of people.

“I worked at Goodyear, an American company. I worked at a Japanese company called NEC. I was with the RPG Group for 13 years and three years as Managing Director of CH Sri Lanka Tyres. Along the way, I learned to adapt to company culture instead of coming in and saying, ‘I’m the culture,’” Narang explains.

These diversified business experiences all had people management and leadership at the core; Narang believes excellence comes from the lessons learned.

“You walk the talk and you deliver with the team,” he adds.

And in the EPC sector, walking the talk is everything, particularly when bidding for a new tender.

“You bid a wrong job in the wrong manner, and your company faces the consequences. Your risk matrix and your quality of bidding are very important, and I’d like to leave a legacy at Transrail of having defined what is right for the company,” Narang says.

“Quality of relationships, quality of bidding and quality of execution are the three pillars which will make a company successful.”