Visit to the Hyundai Factory

Westerly
Weekly bulletin of the Rotary Club of Madras West
R.I. Dist. 3230
Club No: 15866
Char No: 25-10-1965
Vol
XLX
Issue: 29
Date: 12-2-2015
Visit to the Hyundai Factory
At a regular Thursday meeting last month, Dr.Pijush
Mitra, Director, Vocational Services, announced
that he had made arrangements for the Rotarians
and families to visit the Hyundai factory at SIPCOT,
Irungattukottai near Sriperumbudur on 28th January, 2015. The scheduled day being a working one,
I hadn’t considered going. However, quite suddenly,
only the day prior, I decided that I too would make
the trip. Wow, and what a good decision that was!!
Early on 28th morning, we all assembled in MRC
grounds where our bus was waiting to take us
to the factory. Rotarians Dr. Pijush, Chandramohan, Kishalaya,Ramesh, Ramani, Ramprasad, Saee
prasad, Mohan, and Sashi; Anns Swapna, Banu, Pravanthi, jayanthi, Tirumala and myself; and Annets
Saranya and Srinath were part of this group.
We arrived at the Hyundai complex at 9:30 a.m.
and to all our shock, we were made to deposit our
mobile phones at the entrance for security reasons.
We all, half-heartedly parted with our mobiles
(what, three hours without mobiles? Impossible!)
and our bus took us inside - better said, that we
were actually transported to a different world!
The whole complex was so silent, neat, green, so
well organised…that we wondered how they managed to manufacture cars here.
We were received by our tour guide, Mr. Sai Ganesh, who led us through an AV presentation of the origin and
functioning details of the factory, which sort of prepared us for what was in store.
The facts that awed us were
1. That it took just 17 months from the acquisition of the premises to start of full-fledged production;
R.I. Pres. Rtn. Gary C.K. Huang
Pres. Rtn. Ramaprasad Sreenivasan
Dist. Gov. Rtn. I S A K Nazar
Sec. Rtn. S.V. Vasudevan
Editor Ann Swapna Giridhar
write to us at [email protected]
2. The HYUNDAI plant is the largest
in India. It uses the best and most
eco-friendly manufacturing practices to conserve resources and
reduce consumption to the maximum;
3. The plant is a zero discharge unit
which means that it recycles 100%
of the waste water;
4. Four ponds collect a total of 2.75
lakh kilo litres of water through
Rain water harvesting;
5. Out of the 5 acres provided for the
plant, 56 acres are a green belt
with lawn and flowering shrubs
along with innumerable trees;
6. Even the wood that comes as packaging material
is reused as desks and chairs and gifted to all the
government schools around the plant;
7. The plant works three shifts and around 22000
meals are prepared every day for the staff; and
8. Hyundai has also formed Hyundai Motor India
Foundation (HMIF) in 2006 to initiate Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) activities in the
areas of health care, educational and vocational
training, environment, road safety, art, science,
technology, etc. The activities of HMIF include
Happy Move, Hyundai Traffic Squad, Educational and Vocational Training Program, Medical Camps and Hyundai Driving School. HMIF
is funded directly from HMIL’s earnings with a
contribution of Rs.100 for every car sold in the
Indian market.
9. There is absolutely no difference in production
for the local and export market. In fact, they are
both made on the same flexible assembly line.
We first visited the BODY SHOP where all the panels
of the car after being pressed into shape are welded
together, mostly controlled by robots with very little
human intervention to ensure consistent build quality. This whole unit was well-lit with natural light.
Next, we were shown the exterior of the PAINT
SHOP; it was a fully sealed unit with no windows. We
were not allowed inside as even a little dirt or light
would have an effect on the colour. All the paints
are environment-friendly water-based and even the
paint wastes are processed and sent to cement industries for co-processing.
We were then guided to the ASSEMBLY SHOP, where
all the painted bodies are brought and the engine
and suspension parts are fitted and sent on the final
line. After all the parts are fitted, the cars go to the
chassis line where the roll and brake testing is done.
All the cars go through a compulsory real road test.
The car goes through the showers afterwards and
sent to the Final Inspection line.
Even though we are already proud owners of HYUNDAI i20 car, this factory visit, has entirely changed
the way we see a HYUNDAI car on the road. It was
a great experience watching rows and rows of men
and robots working in meticulous precision to roll
out more than 2300 cars per day…
We were highly impressed by this Korea-based company which operates at such high standards and on
Calendar for the Month
Date
15.2.2015
Day
Sunday
Event
ANNS DAY @ Shyamala gardens, ECR Road, at 10.00 am
top of it, taking good care of their employees. Since
photography was not allowed inside, we clicked a
few pictures of ourselves outside the gate before returning.
On behalf of the team, I thank Dr.Pijush Mitra for taking efforts to organise this HYUNDAI FACTORY VISIT
- Ann Sudha Chandramohan
International family fellowship
Tour to Langkawi
RCMW Rotarians decided to enjoy this year’s Pongal
holidays in a different style and adifferent location
with their families. After much deliberation, the location chosen was LANGKAWI, Malaysia. The happy
group included Dr. Pratap, Dr. Rajiv, Bala, Sivamuthu
kumar, Sivadasan, Chandramohan, Ravi Kesavan and
their respective families. In addition, two prospective members Dr. Vijay and Dr. Radhakrishnan also
joined along with their families.
Langkawi, off the North-western shore of Malaysia is
an archipelago of 104 islands in the Andaman Sea.
Situated just where the Indian Ocean narrows down
into the Straits of Melaka, it was once a haven for pirates. Today it serves as a retreat for visitors from
near and far. We all stayed at the DAYANG BAY RESORTS in Kuah town. It was an awesome property on
the beachfront with a beautiful swimming pool, well
laid out lawns overlooking the sea.
During the 4-day trip, we had 2 full days to explore the place; we were very choosy in selecting
places of interest giving due importance
to the demands of
the kids. We went on
the Island Hopping
Tour, which included
Eagle watching, Dayang Bunting Marble
Geoforest Park where we spotted
monkeys, monitor
lizards, kingfishers,
and other wildlife
- and the white
water lake and the
Lake of the pregnant maiden. We also went on the
cable car ride - one of the world’s steepest - and observed at close range the unique geological formations of the island and the western sea coast. The
journey included the world’s longest free span for a
single rope cable car at 950 metres. The mangroves
and the bat caves were a delight to watch.
We were very disappointed that the famous Langkawi Sky Bridge was closed for public due to maintenance. But we had a glimpse of it from the cable car.
Water scooter rides, speed boat rides, snorkelling,
swimming, ATV rides et al…..All of us enjoyed every
activity as much as the kids did.
We did not miss the night market where we were astonished to find Indian food like string hopper which
was called Indian pop! Indeed the world is small and
round!
Beautifully unspoilt, Langkawi’s rugged beauty and
turquoise seas offered us an irresistible combination
of cultural and natural attractions, sights and experiences.
- Ann Sudha Chandramohan
Club of Madras West
Of Projects and More: an
update from the Anns of RCMW
The Anns of the Rotary club of Madras West are a vivacious and enterprising bunch! Our year, so far, has been
busy and fulfilling with both fellowship and service playing their part.
The event we all look forward to is the day we meet the
ladies ......our coffee morning! Like clockwork, we meet every month at a new location, with novel games, exciting
gifts, jolly company and great food.
What do we do at our coffee mornings? Well, until a few
years ago, it was all about getting together at lunch for
some Tambola and discussions on some small contributions to a needy few. The paper money collection was
minimal and restricted to the dozen or so who attended
regularly.
The years 2010-12 brought about a sea change in the format of coffee mornings at Madras West. Firstly, we formalized Saturday as the day for coffee mornings. With
this attendance increased. Then during the tenure of Ann
Shobhana Ravi as First Lady, we wondered why the paper
money contribution should not be increased to Rs.1000/and the amount so collected to be used to fund a deserving cause. After a lot of brainstorming the Anns felt that
a long-term on-going project would be a good idea. But
what could we do?
It was then that Ann Banu Mohan suggested an institution which was in need our help. This institution was BAL
VIHAR a home for physically and mentally challenged orphans. The few Anns who visited the home were touched
by the poor condition of the children housed there, despite the evident commitment of the staff and management. It was a unanimous decision to support Bal Vihar
as a lifetime project of the Anns of Madras West.
After discussion with the authorities of the home a beginning was made with a supply of sanitary napkins for the
use of girl inmates of the home. On subsequent visits requests were made for household cleaners to maintain the
wash-rooms. Thanks to the collection drive and the generosity of the Anns who contributed the request was met.
Initially Anns Banu Mohan, Kalpana Subbu , Shobana Ravi
and Sunitha Sekar, and others got the ball rolling. One
would call the home for the requirements, another would
pick-up the items, and a third would deliver the items to
the home. For the last couple of months Anns sudha Chandramohan, Revathy Jagan, Gurbir Lot, Rajshree Giridhar
and Usha ramani have been co-ordinating to meet the requirements of the home. By taking turns we actually get a
feel of the project we have undertaken.
The success of this project and the satisfaction the Anns
have achieved from the contributions to Bal Vihar has
made it a stepping stone for bigger projects in the future.
The Anns of RCMW also do one one-time project every
year. In the previous years, the General Hospital, Chennai
and a Home for the Aged at Nazarethpet have been recipients. Thanks to the generosity of a major donor Ann
Neela Venkatesh we are looking at a one-time project this
year too in the next couple of months.
The RCMW Anns’ contribution to the Rotary Movement
has been considerable. Besides our own projects, we have
steadfastly supported the Rotarians and the Annets in
their roles in the Rotary and in the community. Our homes
and our hearts have been open to receive exchange students, and Rotarians from other countries. Rotaractors
and Interactors have enjoyed our support and hospitality,
and we delight in their learning and motivation.
So put your hands together for the Anns of the West
family. Cheers!!
- Ann Usha Ramani
birthdays & anniversaries
Name
Date
Occasion
Rajshree Giridhar
5 Feb
Birthday
Srividya Ramachandran Raman
7 Feb
Birthday
Giridhar Chorattur / Rajshree Giridhar
Veena Sashi
Akshya Giridhar Chorattur
R. Radhakrishnan
th
6 Feb
th
6th Feb
th
7th Feb
10 Feb
th
W.A.
Birthday
Birthday
Birthday