SMSeLINK - SMS Limited

VOL.1 | ISSUE 16 | 1 NOV 2013
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Chairman’s Message
Dear Readers,
Last month saw some very drastic changes that had substantial effect on
the Indian economy. The first information report (FIR) filed by CBI on a
coal block allocation case threatens to trigger a collapse of India's economic revival efforts by undermining a series of measures aimed at improving the investment climate, freeing up projects stuck over approvals
and raising resources through asset sales.
In these turbulent times, the practice of managing and/or reducing expenses can serve as a lease of fresh life for the economy. Cost controls
start by the businesses identifying what their costs are then evaluating
whether those costs are reasonable and affordable. Then, if necessary,
they can look for ways to cut costs through methods such as cutting back,
moving to a less expensive plan or changing service providers.
Other than the economic downturn, last month also saw the pompous and
joyful celebration of Dussehra across India with festivities crossing over
regions and religions. This festival traces its origin to Lord Rama, who
killed the demon Ravana on this day and since then, people have been
symbolizing that victory by celebrating this festival. Importance of
Dussehra lies in the fact that the festival marks the ‘victory of good over
evil’.
Just next to Dussehra celebrations, the current month beholds Diwali
celebration. It's the festival of lights that is marked by five days of celebration, which literally illuminates the country with its brilliance, and
dazzles all with its joy.
I would like to wish the entire SMS family a very happy and peaceful
Diwali on behalf of all the Board of Directors and pray that may goddess
Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth in her most benevolent mood, fulfill
the wishes of all her devotees.
Abhay Sancheti
Chairman
VOL.1 | ISSUE 16 | 1 NOV 2013
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Editorial
INSIDE THIS ISSUE :
Chairman’s Message. . . . . . . . . 1
Editorial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
Cover Story . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Our Business Edges

Road, Rail, Irrigation. . . . . . 4

Electrical . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Environment. . . . . . . . . . . 6-7

Toll. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

CSR. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Experience Sharing. . . .. . .10
The onset of the November month is marked by
the celebration of Festival of Light and Sparkle and Illumination all around which spreads joy, prosperity,
growth, Momentum and Happiness everywhere. Lets
all celebrate this Diwali festival with mirth and joy.
Celebration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
Crossword puzzle solution. . . . .12
CS Team Photo . . . . . . . . . . . .13
EDITORIAL BOARD
Mr. Anand Aurangabadkar
Mr. Chandrakant Waikar
Mr. Dheeraj Telrandhe
Mr. Pranav Kumar
Dr. Preeti kasliwal
Mr. Siba Prasad Chakravorthi
Mr. Sudhir Sharma
Ms.Sweta Mor
Compiled by -Preeti Kasliwal
EDITORIAL TEAM
Pravin Umathe
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Cover Story-Ethiopia
KEYAFER-TURMI ROAD PROJECT
In the year 2006 SMS Infrastructure Ltd established it’s office in
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and started bidding for road projects. The
company was successful in its bid for Contract 3 of the Keyafer
Turmi Road Construction Project and the work order was issued
on 30th January 2007.
This project is situated in the Southern People Nations and Nationalities Region (SPNNR) state of Ethiopia. It starts at the outskirts
of Keyafer town on the Arba Minch - Jinka road at a distance of
700 Km. from Addis Ababa the capital, main commercial and industrial center of Ethiopia. The termination point of the project is Turmi, a small town situated in the
Hamer Woreda(District) named after the Hamer, a people who are still clinging to their ancient traditions
because of which they attract a lot of tourists from Europe.
The total length of this Gravel Wearing Course (GWC) road is 80.00 Km. The project site is in one of the
remotest areas of Ethiopia and although it was termed as an upgrading project about 45 Km length is absolutely new alignment through forest land, as the old track was through the flood plains of the Kaske
river. There were no existing cross drainage or crossing structures over any of the streams and rivers
which made access very difficult during the rainy season.
Contractor’s camp was set up at Km 52, near Dimeka, a small
village with population of about 800. We had to make our own
arrangements for power and water supply as there were no existing systems. The sense of adventure was multiplied by the total
absence of Mobile telephone network and existence of a single
satellite phone that was used by all inhabitants in the area. The
distance and remoteness of site also adversely affected availability of skilled staff and hired plant and machinery.
The non availability of important raw materials such as water and natural gravel at a reasonable distance
was a major factor in time and cost escalation. The sandy nature of the soil over the whole length of the
project adversely affected the durability of the Dozer and Grader blades. This led to frequent replacement
of blades, cost of which could not be envisaged during initial process.
Overcoming all the difficulties the project was handed over after a lot of hard work put in by everyone. It
has definitely tested and proved the resolve of SMS Infrastructure Ltd. to complete a project successfully
regardless of harsh physical and financial conditions. No doubt the people physically present at site were
a major factor in finishing the assigned task but their efforts would have gone in vain without unending
and timely support from the top management of our company.
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Road, Rail, Irrigation
POT- PTFE BEARINGS USED IN BRIDGES
The POT- PTFE bearing consists of circular, non-reinforced natural rubber or elastomer
pad, totally enclosed in a steel pot with the load applied to the elastomer via a piston attached to
the upper bearing plate. A seal is used to prevent rubber extruding between piston & pot. As the
elastomer is fully confined within a metal cylinder, it provides a load carrying medium whilst at
the same time providing the bearing with a multidirectional rotational capacity.
By themselves, pot bearings do not permit translation. In order to permit translational
movement in addition to rotation, plain sliding arrangement is provided over the top plate of pot
bearing. PTFE (Poly tetrafluroethylene) which is having very low coefficient of friction is generally used with stainless steel to design this sliding arrangement. The weight of POT-PTFE bearing is about 50% of the weight of conventional rocker & roller bearing for the same span. Due to
its less weight and due to almost no maintenance, it is desired to provide POT-PTFE bearings
instead of conventional rocker-roller bearings. However, due to certain design constraints these
bearings cannot be designed for all type of spans.
Karan Singi,
Jr Engineer -Irrigation
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Electrical
Are our Projects suffering from increasing material prices ?
This year, exceptionally high price increases of construction materials have caused serious problems for
the construction industry.
Basic economics tell us that, in an open market place, prices will rise when demand increases or when
supply decreases. Demand has been increasing exponentially all over the world.
Some of the highest price increases have occurred with steel, Aluminum, copper etc. while cement has
been in short supply.
The construction industry has seen the demand for these items increase and the supply decrease simultaneously. Other factors such as high energy costs, high transportation costs resulting from increased fuel
costs, the weak value of the Rupee against US dollar are all contributing to the increased prices directly
affecting construction costs. All types of steel have increased in price over the past twelve months.
Challenging Times for Contractors
Because most contracts are based on material prices estimated at the beginning of the project, the contractor can be adversely affected when material prices surge unexpectedly. Material prices can rise unexpectedly at any time, potentially wiping out profits or even driving the contractor into the red. In addition to rising prices, another major problem is the delayed delivery of materials to contractors due to material shortages. Material delivery delays are generally beyond the control of the contractors, and they
can delay the entire project. Such delays can put contractors at risk of liquidated damages due to missed
project deadlines.
Possible Solutions
The following list highlights possible solutions to the increased material prices and material shortages
dilemma:
Incorporate price protection clauses into contracts.
Lock in on material prices.
Buy materials early in the project to ensure availability.
Work together with other Contractors to obtain group discounts on material purchases.
Employ value engineering to help reduce costs.
Renegotiate contracts to accommodate price increases and/or industry shortages.
Purchase materials in bulk to receive discounts.
Maintain a good relationship with material suppliers.
Conclusion
Contractors must be careful to protect their own interests in a market that is shifting an increased amount
of risk onto contractors. Protection from material price increases is just one of the considerations contractors must keep in mind. Owners must also be aware that current material shortages can delay projects
and increase their costs.
Sudhir Sharma
Sr. Manager – Electrical
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Environment
SMS Envocare Limited, Indore
Before the festival of Lights, Customs and Traditions Our SMS Envocare Indore office has successfully completed the Project for Rajasthan Technical University at Kota. The project Title is
"Renovation for 0.5 MLD Sewage Treatment Plant at RTU, Kota". The project covered revamping
of Clarifier, aeration tank, Grit chamber, sludge drying bed, treatment line, TET pump, collection tank, Effluent transfer pump and all sewerage line.
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Environment
Communication and Capacity Development Unit
Consultancy wing was awarded new project from Water Supply and Sanitation Department, Government of Rajasthan through SMS Infrastructure Limited for the works
“Establishment and running of block level Water Testing Laboratories including Collection of
Water Samples, Chemical and Bacteriological Analysis of Water Samples in Bikaner and Jodhpur region under National Rural Drinking Water Programmed (NRDWP)” with value of project
of Rs 11.48 Crores and project is valid up to 31.09.2014.
This project will be benefiting the good quality of water to public health. In this project
water quality shall be monitored in 71 blocks of Bikaner and Jodhpur PHE region by establishing 71 No’s of water testing laboratories. In these laboratories water quality shall be tested for
chemical and bacteriological characteristics.
We are looking such projects for our consultancy wing which is much and more beneficial for public health also in other cities of India.
Coverage in Times of India
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Toll
The bridge over the sacred sarayu river at Ayodhya is maintained By AGSTPL. You can
view the ghats of Ayodhya from the bridge.
View of locations between Ayodhya to Gorakhpur on NH 28 maintained by us.
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CSR
CSR Activity by SMS Group for HIV Positive Orphans
Under CARE (Child Adoption for Rehabilitation & Education), SMS group supports HIV positive orphans. The orphanage that is home for these children is situated at
Wadi. A total of 17 children reside there. As a part of CSR activity, the entire expenses
of lodging, boarding, education & medication of these children is borne by SMS group.
This month, last year’s expenses of Rs.2.85 lakh spent on these children was reimbursed by SMS Group.
HR
Transition – Challenging Trend
Professional Transitions are critical. The first few days in a new position are critical because small differences in your actions can have a huge impact on long-term results Infact; most agree that moving into a new role is the biggest challenge for any individual to face. While transitions offer a chance to start fresh and make needed changes
in an organization, they also place individual performers in a position of acute vulnerability. No matter where you are in your career, transition is expected to happen.Leadership, organization, policy or system transitions are common.
Here organizations HRs are guide providing with tools and strategies like selfassessments, career management system, employee enhancement& branding etc. so
that each one is prepared to unlearn, learn and re-learn the organization systems and
adapt to the culture more easily.
Monica De
Sr. Executive – HR
SMS Group |20, IT Park | Parsodi |
Nagpur |Maharashtra | India
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Experience Sharing
Born in a Jalgaon District on 12thDecember 1957, I travelled to
Nashik,Baroda, Amravati and Nagpur for Education. Immediately after
completing B.E. (Civil) in 1979, I joined MSEB and while in job continued
Higher Education and completed M.Tech (Hydraulics) from VNIT in 1988
and LLB in 1992. During Leave period of three years from 2002 to 2005
joined SMSIL and was a part of team for successful completion of two projects - Katraj Ghat and Bembla Dam. Despite many hurdles the Katraj ghat
project was successfully completed by us. Katraj Ghat was a unique project with 1.2 Km length
three lane twin tunnel and S shaped viaduct on 45 mt high hollow piers from ground. Even
Bembla project in Maharashtra was awarded the best performance Award in 2004.
From 2005 to 2007 joined back in MSEB. Then in 2009 took voluntary retirement as Executive
Engineer and immediately joined SMSIL as Vice President, Civil Construction.
Currently International project Ethiopia is successfully completed. Ethiopia is unique project
with 80 Km. Road construction in backward region of Africa. Long started Tirunelvelli project
is completed and moreover we got approval to the additional claims of 115 crores from DRB.
Khandwa Railway Siding project was initiated after my joining and is completed successfully.
Durg BOT project was delayed due to approval of drawings however overcoming this difficulty
the project is rolling in full swing.
For project of Tunnel at Chaurai in Chhindwara Dist. I was involved since initial Design, Estimation and Drawing of the work. This work is bagged by us at reasonably good price. Initial
persuasion from Design and Estimation stage of this project proved to be very worth.
RVNL railway siding work is in Naxalite area of Chattisgarh which was attacked by Naxalite
twice and yet our team is working hard on site and the project is rolling in full swing.
Suhas Nemade,
VP, Civil Construction
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Celebration
Navratri Celebration in HO
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Congratulation
Book Release: A to Z of Entrepreneurship by Mr Hemant Lodha
We congratulate Mr. Hemant Lodha on his recent book
release on A to Z of Entrepreneurship at Butibori Manufacturers Association on Sunday, 27th of October 2013.The book is a
great resource for budding entrepreneurs and serves as a
guideline for any indvidual who wishes to learn the entrepreneurial traits.
Quiz
Crossword Puzzle Solution
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HR
HO CS Department Team
First Row Left to Right CS. Gaurav Shrimankar, CS . Smita Agarkar, HOD
CS. S.K. Bhantia, CS . Shyamla Vibhute , MS. Pooja Wadhwani
Second Row CS Trainees - MR. Sachin Kanojiya, Mr.Rizwan Ali, Mr. Likhit
kumar Masram and Mr. Pawan Didhate (Office Boy)
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