“NAPCO’s Prime Focus is on Serving Customers Better and Attaining Maximum Customer Satisfaction with Superior Quality Products and Services”

By: ALI AL SHAMSHI, Napco

NAPCO Prime Focus is on Serving Customers Better and Attaining Maximum Customer Satisfaction with Superior Quality Products and Services

Can you provide an overview of NAPCO’s journey since its establishment in 1984?

Ever since NAPCO’s establishment in 1984, we have been the only extruder and exporter of aluminium profiles in the Sultanate of Oman. We are one of the leading extruders of aluminium profiles in the GCC market, located in the capital of the Sultanate of Oman. NAPCO has started the journey with one 8“ extrusion line and is now housing four state-of-the-art extrusion lines from Europe aiding us to supply our quality products around the globe. The company’s commitment to quality has made it the first extrusion company in the Gulf to receive ISO certifications followed by international product quality certifications.

Could you elaborate on the manufacturing processes of your products and capability?

In NAPCO, we choose high-quality primary billets for our extrusion. The blueprints are extruded by meeting all the aspects of our customer requirements with quality assured at each stage of its production. We have 4 stat- of-the-art extrusion presses from Europe equipped with automated handling systems and is complemented by one anodizing line, two powder coating lines (vertical & horizontal), two wood finish lines and a crimping & fabrication facility.

NAPCO offers a wide range of over 6500 profiles sizing of a max 305mm CCD (indicative).

Could you tell us about the specific industries or applications where NAPCO’s aluminium profiles are most commonly used?

NAPCO’s profiles are being widely used in sectors like architecture, automobile, renewable energy, industrial and manufacturing industries. Architectural applications comprise facades, doors, windows, railings, curtainwalls, shop fronts, and louvers.

What are the distinctive features of NAPCO’s aluminium profile finishes?

Our finishing lines are certified by Qualicoat and Qualanod which guarantees the quality of our product in line with international requirements. Our Powder coating line is Sea Side- Certified and we have Powder on Powder technology for our natural wood coating line. This technology enables us to warranty our coated products even for marine applications which is not occasionally being found in the industry.

Could you discuss the advantages and versatility that anodizing and powder coating finishing options bring to your product offerings?

Anodizing is usually classified as class 1 and class 2. Class 1 with a minimum oxidized layer thickness of 10 microns, which will provide 10 years of warranty and is generally used for indoor applications. Class 2 will have a minimum oxidized layer thickness of 18 microns, which will provide 15 years of warranty and is generally used for outdoor applications. The colour consistency in anodizing cannot be guaranteed as anodizing is batch-to-batch processing and colour will also vary from batch to batch.

Powder coating is provided with a minimum 60 microns coating thickness with a 10-year warranty for PEF powders, a 25-year warranty for SDF powders, and a 30-year warranty for Hyper-durable powders for both internal and external applications. Colour consistency is also guaranteed in powder coating and is compared with a single colour panel without minimum and maximum limits.

Can you share insights into the sustainability and environmental practices NAPCO follows?

NAPCO’s facility is certified by ISO 14001:2015 – Environment Management System by UKAS which initiates our commitment to a greener and sustainable environment. With years of extensive research in billets & profiles, NAPCO ECO-GREEN Billets are the future for green buildings. Re-melting aluminium and processing it into new alloys, NAPCO contributes to a greener environment by reducing its carbon footprint.

How do you see the Indian market for your business?

The Indian aluminium extrusion market size reached 982,980.4 Tons in 2022. Looking forward, we expect the market to reach 1,288,202.3 Tons by 2028, exhibiting a minimum growth rate (CAGR) of 4.49% during 2023-2028 with a clear dominance of 6000 series alloys. This clearly shows the increasing demand for aluminium profiles in the Indian market which makes it one of our prime targets in the upcoming years. We are already equipped with all the finishes and services being demanded by the Indian market with some specialised products which we have already established in the Indian Market.

Could you elaborate on the company’s commitment to innovative design and how you adapt to changing customer demands?

We have a team of enthusiast solution providers who analyse and provide innovative solutions and ideas in developing new designs along with close interaction with our customers and making sure that our customers’ demands are met in all aspects of our product. Our team is so versatile that we easily adapt to the changes being demanded by the day-to-day changing market. We work hand in hand with our suppliers and customers through which we always ensure that our customers’ demands are put in the first priority.

Please share the plans of NAPCO to maintain its position as a market leader.

NAPCO’s strategy always has its prime focus on serving our customers better and attaining maximum customer satisfaction with superior quality in our products and services. We have already introduced strategic plans to improve our operational efficiency through lean practices to reduce our operational wastes, strengthen our portfolios, digitalisation, and automation of our operations, and adopt emerging technologies, diversifying our supply sources and cost optimisations from which our customers can directly benefit and can help us sustain as the market leaders.

What is your vision for 2030?

Our vision is to be the first choice for customers and employees through operational excellence, integrity, and sustainability. We always strive to develop sensible business models to generate sustained growth and excel in the worldwide market. We are looking forward to penetrating worldwide in different segments of aluminium extruded products.