The Bangalore-based Hexagon Engineers Ltd (HEL) has embarked on a Rs 5.85-crore expansion cum diversification programme to provide professional engineering consultancy, turnkey engineering construction services and manufacture of engineering products.

For this purpose, HEL has divided its operations into three division namely -- consultancy, projects and products. It is headed by B M Sundaram.

Briefing newsmen here on Wednesday, on the eve of the company's forthcoming public issue, he said the company has also obtained approval from Fujairah Free Zone Authority to set up on lease basis a manufacturing unit and warehousing facilities for the manufacture of storage tanks, pressure vessels, heat exchangers and trading in UAE. ``Our aim is to achieve a sales income of Rs 100 crore by 2001 through a three pronged strategy.''

According to him, the consultancy division will provide professional engineering consultancy by way of designing plan layout, process charts etc for setting up any manufacturing unit. Projects division will provide turnkey engineering construction services like fabrications, erection and commissioning of plants using the machineries and manpower.

The products division will engaged in manufacture of standard and made to order engineering products like pressure vessels used in oil, petroleum refineries, food and other processing units etc. In addition to this, it will also be a source of input to the consultancy and project division in terms of supplying the made to order customer specific requirements.

HEL is setting up its product division at Pondicherry and plans to start commercial production by June 97, while the consultancy division will be housed in Bangalore and Chennai.

The project division has already executed pilot projects in Karnataka and consultancy division has already commenced works.

Sundaram said that they have entered into an agency agreement with Encoal Cincinnati for development of cogeneration power in India. As per the agreement, Encoal will be exclusively working with Hexagon for one year.

It has also appointed Salcon Pte Singapore for two projects — GMR Vasavi Power Corporation and KPC.

To part finance the project cost, HEL is entering the capital market on May 19 with a public issue of 30 lakh equity shares of Rs 10 each for cash at par aggregating Rs 3 crore. The promoters stake after the public offer will be 42.85 per cent, of which 25 per cent will be locked in for a period of five years. The shares are to be listed only on Madras and Bangalore stock exchanges.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.