Mr. Roshan Gunatilake |
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Soar Technology (Pvt.) Ltd., is a part of the Soar Group of Companies and is a power generating, transmission and distribution specialist that provides expert services right from consultation advice to the final handing over of the system and its maintenance. The company is the only one in Sri Lanka which is ISO 9001:2001 certified for the assembly and manufacturing of power generators.
The company's core products are electrical switch board fabrications and power generators. Apart from this Soar Technology provides superior after sales services for these products for which the company has a fully fledged and equip workshop providing facilities that caters to all generators and electrical switch boards. The company has been in existence for the past 14 years, and was incorporated as a limited liability company in the year 1995. Soar Technology is the brain child of Mr. Roshan Gunatilake, who is the company's Chairman and Managing Director. Having started off from very humble beginnings the company today has taken giant strides and today stands in the forefront of the engineering industry. The Sunday Times spoke to Mr. Gunatilake to find out more about its operations.
"We have an electrical and electronic test laboratory through which we conduct energy audits, through which we are able to accurately monitor an organizations energy consumption and wastage. Through these types of audits we have the expertise to advise our customers on how to effectively and efficiently save energy in their organizations. Today energy saving has become one the key factors that contribute towards the progress of any organization. In a time of global recession we have to be very competitive in the market and with the escalating energy costs rising daily energy saving will play a vital role with regards to the progress of any business", says Mr. Gunatilake.
A majority of generators available in Sri Lanka have been manufactured in the European countries and therefore they have been produced to suit their environments and temperatures. The Sri Lankan temperatures and environments however are very different to that of the European nations and due to this the control system of the generator is directly affected. Taking this into consideration Soar Technology has been successful in manufacturing generators better suited for the Sri Lankan industrial requirements and this has been the main reason why the company's products are unique.
"A generator comprises of three main components which are the engine, alternator and the control panel. At present there are no engine manufacturers for the entire region, and therefore the engine component of the generator is always imported from countries such as USA, UK or China. The control panel however is entirely manufactured by us out of which a few materials are imported. We also manufacture the electronic control cards at our workshop where some of these card designs are exported to Europe", further stated Mr. Gunatilake.
The company has over the years built up a client base which comprises of a chain of reputed clientele such as People's Bank, Ceylon Electricity Board, Dialog, DFCC Bank, Nations Trust Bank and Colombo Hilton to name a few. The company's after sales services expand to that of the outstation areas of the country as well and to better provide these services a special team has been appointed and trained by Soar Technology. In Colombo any after sales service is attended to within four hours and the suburbs it is attended to within twelve hours and for some distant locations the company is able to reach customers within 24 hours.
Commenting on the country's current position as a developing industrial nation, Mr. Gunatilake said, "I personally believe that if the country is to develop and move forward we as Sri Lankans should always give priority to our locally manufactured products. The growth of any country is measured by its GDP (Gross Domestic Production). Therefore increasing our country's GDP is of paramount importance. Being an agricultural country we have to focus heavily on improving this particular sector and start increasing its manufacture.
With the country's war nearing its final stages I believe that we can truly benefit from this outcome if we as a nation work in one direction. Apart from fuel, Sri Lanka is a country with abundant resources some of which we have not as yet put into good use, therefore we should not depend on foreign countries for our products and services. It is unfortunate to see that our country is becoming a trading nation. Priority must always be given to gear our country towards becoming a manufacturing nation and in order for this to happen the government also has to grant certain concessions for the relevant industrial sectors".
The latest addition to the Soar Group of Companies is Soar Automobile Engineering (Pvt.) Ltd.
It has always been one of Mr. Gunatilake's childhood dreams to one day own his own automobile workshop and Soar Automobile Engineering has been the outcome of realizing this childhood dream. At present this company provides services that cover the entire scope of automobile repairs, and plans are already underway to expand this service throughout the country. Soar Computronics specializes in developing software solutions and is also the agent for SAGE software.
The company has also signed a recent agreement with a solar energy company with the intention of introducing solar integrated energy systems in the future as it believes that solar will be the energy of the future due to the rising energy costs.
Soar Technology's current position in the industry is mainly due to the guidance and innovative ideas of its Chairman and Managing Director, Mr. Gunatilake. Speared by its vision to lead the nation towards innovative, reliable and economical engineering solutions for power generation, distribution and control system, the company is progressing steadily towards achieving its goals and objectives and will no doubt be in the forefront of the industry setting standards for others to follow. |
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