Cutting Costs, Building Bridges: Servotech's RISE From MSME TO MARKET LEADER

Prem Prakash of INCHARZ (Servotech EV Infra Pvt Ltd) outlines the company's journey from a micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) to a leading manufacturer and deployer of electric vehicle (EV) chargers in India. He highlights growth strategies, the influence of innovation and indigenisation, and the critical role of partnerships with other MSMEs.

- PREM PRAKASH

You have grown from the ranks of an msme to being counted among the country’s best ev charger manufacturers and deployers. What is the secret behind servotech’s success?

Well, I am not sure if there is a secret sauce—or even a sauce at all! However, we have focused on making cost-effective and affordable products without compromising on technology. Indian brains—our engineers and scientists—are some of the best in the world regarding innovation, not just in the EV charging ecosystem but across various spheres.

The only difference was that we were highly dependent on imports. The government was only occasionally inclined to provide incentives to MSMEs like us. Every year, we set a target to produce about 10% more components in-house within India, leveraging the capabilities of other MSMEs. This has helped us create robust products and continuously innovate—upgrading our products every three months.

For instance, we have reduced the costs of our chargers by more than 40% in the last two years by using indigenously built components. We are also involving MSMEs in setting up our charging stations. We believe in partnering with small players hungry for growth and want to build on each other’s strengths.

When you decided to bring down the cost of the chargers and realised it was possible, how did you develop that backward integration in India?

We broke down the target of reducing costs by focusing on different components and leveraging our expertise. For example, we used to import the entire chassis of an EV charger. We realised that designing and manufacturing the chassis—with the required quality and strength—was entirely possible in India and at a fraction of the cost.