L&T Valves: Engineering Excellence

In an exclusive interview with Valve World, Vice President and Global Head of Sales, Mr S Venkatesh and Mr Krishna Kumar Rangaswamy, Head of Operations, Kancheepuram Plant from L&T Valves – a leading industrial valve manufacturer with a six-decade legacy – share insights into the company’s remarkable transformation, global expansion and commitment to sustainability.

By Lyndsey Denton-Fray, Valve World

Expanding product offerings

L&T Valves is known as a manufacturer of gate, globe, check and ball valves approved by the global energy majors. They built a reputation as a reliable supplier of valves for oil & gas, refining and thermal power projects and plants across the world. And to address the evolving requirements of its core customers, L&T Valves has been aggressively expanding its product portfolio.

“Triple-offset butterfly valve (TOBV) is a perfect example of how we’re upgrading our products to meet customer demands for more efficient and cost-effective solutions,” Mr Venkatesh explains. L&T Valves’ expertise in TOBV design and manufacturing is recognised across industries, and the company offers custom-engineered solutions for mission-critical services. “We’ve manufactured TOBVs in sizes up to 100 inches, and cryogenic variants for LNG terminals and plants. We are confident we will soon be able to increase our impact and market share in the global butterfly market.”

Another area of innovation is smart automation. “We see an increased demand for automated valves, and we leverage our expertise in system design and integration to offer a comprehensive range of SIL-capable solutions. The automation portfolio includes on-off valves, remote-operated valves, emergency shutdown valves, as well as High Integrity Pressure Protection Systems (HIPPS). By embedding digital and automation technology, L&T Valves is pushing the boundaries of what traditional valves can do,” says Mr Venkatesh.

Fugitive emissions

Fugitive emissions, which are unintended releases of pollutants like methane and Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) during the refining process, are estimated to contribute around 7% of the global Green House Gas (GHG) emissions. “For our customers in the oil & gas and refining industries, meeting emission control norms is vital to their sustainable operation and growth. Our low-emission valves not only address this important functional need but also align perfectly with our deep commitment to the environment. We have developed a wide range of low-emission valves that meet the most stringent industry and customer requirements. I can proudly say that our valves up to 72 inches meet the requirements of fugitive emissions standards, including API 624 and ISO 15848 (Class A and Class B). Recently, we achieved another benchmark in the domain of low-emission valves with a 56-inch bellow-seal valve, perhaps the largest bellow-seal valve in the world,” says Mr Venkatesh.

Green manufacturing and responsible operations

Sustainability is not a buzzword for L&T Valves – it’s a core principle embedded throughout the company’s operations. From energy-efficient manufacturing practices to waste reduction and material recycling, L&T Valves has made significant strides to minimise its environmental footprint while ensuring the highest standards of quality and precision in its products.

At the company’s flagship factory in Kancheepuram, India, L&T Valves has taken bold steps towards green manufacturing. Mr Krishna Kumar, the head of operations, highlights that approximately 50% of the plant’s energy comes from renewable power, a figure the company plans to increase to 100% in the near future.

“We’ve implemented a combination of renewable power, energy-efficient lighting and smarter use of electricity to reduce our energy consumption,” says Mr Krishna Kumar. “We also recycle 100% of the water used in production processes.”

In addition to adopting renewable energy sources, L&T Valves has taken significant steps to instil sustainability practices in its entire supply chain. By sourcing raw materials from responsible suppliers and working with them to ensure their environmental practices meet L&T Valves’ standards, the company is creating a green, circular economy within the valve manufacturing sector.

“We are fully committed to reducing single-use plastics in packaging. Nearly every item that leaves our facilities is packaged using recyclable materials, and we try to make sure that our supply chain partners adhere to the same principles,” Mr Krishna Kumar adds. “We believe this kind of leadership is essential to driving sustainable change in the industry.”

Beyond operations, L&T Valves is also making strides in community engagement. The company has planted more than 3,700 trees in the area, creating a positive environmental impact both on-site and in the surrounding community. “It’s not just about what we do inside our factory walls”, says Mr Krishna Kumar. “We want to give back to the environment. The trees we’ve planted are a small but meaningful way of ensuring that our growth doesn’t come at the expense of nature.”

Reimagining North American strategy: master distributor model and faster delivery

Growth at L&T Valves is powered by new products, new markets and new strategies and North America is a key market for the company. While L&T Valves has been active in the region for a long time, particularly with the major players in oil & gas, one of the company’s key challenges has been optimising logistics and reducing lead times. To serve the market better, L&T Valves is appointing a master distributor, who will be equipped to support major distributors with faster ex-stock deliveries of valves complying with major oil company specifications.

“In the past, we relied on our warehouse in Houston, but we’ve recognised that this wasn’t enough to meet the demands of the market,” Mr Venkatesh shares. This shift will allow L&T Valves the flexibility and scale to meet the growing demand for valves. “Enhancing service levels in the North America market is an integral part of our growth strategy,” Mr Venkatesh explains.

Strategic expansion: the Saudi Arabia facility

The establishment of a manufacturing facility in Saudi Arabia, which was formally inaugurated on 5 May 2024, was another major strategic initiative for L&T Valves. The decision aligns with Saudi Aramco’s iktva (In-Kingdom Total Value Add) programme and the Saudi government’s Vision 2030.

The Saudi Arabia facility is designed to mirror L&T Valves’ Kancheepuram operations, ensuring that the company can provide the same high-quality valves that customers trust globally. The facility produces a range of valves, including gate, globe, check and ball valves – products that have long been integral to L&T Valves’ offering.

“We started working on this factory in 2021 as part of the iktva programme of Saudi Aramco,” explains Mr Venkatesh. “In addition to addressing the need for localisation, the manufacturing facility in Saudi Arabia provides faster delivery times and more competitive pricing.
The move to Saudi Arabia is also about building closer relationships with key clients in the region. This initiative not only helps us meet the needs of customers such as Saudi Aramco, but also resonates with the country’s vision for long-term economic growth and diversification.”
“We decided to go in with a 100% owned factory in Saudi Arabia because we then have better control over the manufacturing aspects as well as on decisions about expansions, market access, etc.,” Mr Venkatesh notes. “The factory doesn’t depend on the India factory and has its own independent supply chain management team”.

While maintaining the same quality standards, the Saudi Arabia facility has incorporated learnings from the Indian operations. “Leveraging the advancements we made over the last 60 years, we have also been able to build a leaner operation at the Saudi plant,” explains Mr Venkatesh.

Doubling capacity through strategic consolidation

One of the most significant achievements for L&T Valves in recent years has been the successful consolidation of two manufacturing facilities in India into a single, optimised plant whose combined output exceeds that of the standalone units. “Growth was our mantra when we moved in the direction of consolidation,” explains Mr Krishna Kumar. “While we anticipated quite a lot of challenges, the consolidation turned out to be smooth and incident-free.” The company approached this consolidation as an opportunity to completely reimagine its manufacturing process. It hired third-party consultants who conducted comprehensive ‘brown paper mapping’ exercises, engaging employees across all organisational levels to identify pain points, non-value-added activities and opportunities for improvement.

“In the whole process, we had the primary objective of enhancing the capacity and the initiative was named ‘Doubling the Speed’. In other words, doubling the speed, doubling the capacity, doubling customer delight,” says Mr Krishna Kumar.

This ambitious transformation went beyond simple consolidation. The company implemented several key changes, including the lean flow line concept and new digitalisation initiatives. The entire plant was reorganised around the lean flow line concept, with a centralised machine shop equipped with the latest 5-axis machining centres and CNC machines that feed into the flow lines. This systematic approach to reengineering helped address waste at every point in the process.

Digitalisation

Digitalisation has been central to L&T Valves’ capacity expansion, as all components are now barcoded and tracked throughout the entire manufacturing process. The company has also digitalised its documentation process, which is crucial when dealing with industries like oil & gas that require extensive certification and traceability. Another improvement is that L&T Valves has converted its test benches into ‘smart’ test benches where outputs are digitised and connected to their ERP system. “The test settings are drawn from the server, and test data is digitally recorded, and this saves time and avoids errors,” adds Mr Krishna Kumar.

A vision for the future

Investing in people
People remain the core focus at L&T Valves. “At L&T, we believe our people are the prime movers. We really value people,” states Mr Krishna Kumar. Last year, the company hired its largest-ever cohort of graduate engineering trainees as part of its growth strategy. The company provides systematic training to build expertise while ensuring that the motivation remains high.

Gender diversity
“An area where we have made a conscious effort is gender diversity within our plant,” says Mr Krishna Kumar. The company has many women engineers, including department heads. Mr Krishna Kumar adds, “We have a women’s forum called Bharathi, to build a supportive community for career development and growth opportunities.”

Sustainable growth
In total, about 65% of L&T Valves’ business is international, reflecting the company’s successful global reach. With sales offices in key cities like Houston, Paris, Kuala Lumpur and across the Middle East, as well as a vast distributor network, L&T Valves is very clearly a global player. Yet despite its expansion, Mr Venkatesh emphasises that the company’s commitment to engineering excellence and customer satisfaction remains unwavering.

“We’re not just expanding for the sake of growth. Our goal is to continue to build a reputation for quality, reliability and performance, regardless of where we operate,” says Mr Venkatesh. “We’re working hard to be the partner of choice for industries that require the highest quality flow solutions – whether that’s in energy, chemicals or infrastructure.”

As L&T Valves prepares for the next phase of its journey, sustainability, digital transformation, and international expansion will remain at the forefront of its strategy. By integrating cutting-edge technology, implementing green manufacturing practices and growing its presence in key global markets, the company is positioning itself as a leader in the evolving world of flow control solutions.

“At the end of the day, we’re a company built on trust, engineering excellence and a relentless drive to innovate,” Mr Venkatesh concludes. “As we look to the future, we’re confident that our growth will be both sustainable and profitable, for us and for our customers.”