 In what would be simply termed as drive-by-wire, an electronic throttle control es-sentially makes away with the mechanical link between the throttle body and the accelerator pedal. In modern automobiles with electronic engine management, the accelerator pedal is linked to a throttle pedal position sensor, which communicates with the ECU and the throttle body actuator to initiate the desired throttle opening in consultation with the various sensors, which are connected with the ECU.
What looks like a simple arrangement is actually complex and consists of various precision components. From a technological point of view, the electronic throttle control (pedal) contains two potentiometers attached to it, achieving the accuracy required from the pedal’s movement. Pune-based Pushkaraj Engineering Enterprises is into the supply of electronic throttle controls. The company has picked up a stake in the Indian operations of William Controls – a US-based manufacturer of electronic throttle controls for commercial vehicles. “Over the years, Pushkaraj Engineering Enterprises established for itself a niche position in terms of sourcing components for the growing auto industry of India from across the globe,” says Shailendra Goswami, who founded Pushkaraj Engineering Engineering in the year 1992. “My loyalty is not to products but to my clients. As such, given a drawing, I can source any component from any part of the world that can give my client a huge price advantage and also measure up to the benchmarks of quality,” he adds. Having sourced mechanical and electronic components below the target price set by clients from locations like Japan, Singapore, China, Italy, Germany, Korea, Taiwan, USA, UK, Spain, UAE and Thailand for auto manufacturers like Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland and others, the company has come to shift its focus from the engineering sector to the automotive sector.
“Earlier our focus was on the engineering industry but we shifted our attention to the auto sector when we realised that India, and especially Pune, was going to emerge as the biggest hub of its kind in the world. Today, we can source any component for commercial vehicles, passenger cars or even off-road equipment from an engine assembly to a digital clock or a crankshaft to a reading lamp,” states Goswami.
 The networking prowess of the company, and its ability to obtain components and assemblies at the lowest prices has not only helped build the company’s reputation across India but has now led to putting the business on a new platform. Avers Shailendra Goswami, “We have been chosen as a stakeholder in the soon-to-start India operations of Williams Controls that will manufacture its entire range of pedals in Pune to supply to Tata Motors’ World Trucks which have been developed jointly with Tata Daewoo Commercial Vehicles of South Korea”. The Tata World Truck range, termed as the Prima range, is equipped with higher power, speed and carrying capacity. The range, including 10 to 75-tonne trucks comes with a power rating of between 150 to 560hp with powertrain solutions and components sourced from world-class suppliers like Cummins, Fiat Powertrain Technology, Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz, Taco Group and others.
Tracing the journey of Pushkaraj Engineering Enterprises through the years, Shailendra Goswami reveals that he was having a comfortable job in a blue-chip company until he decided to take the plunge. “ I was working with Kirloskar Oil Engines where I graduated from a junior manager to heading the diesel engines marketing division. My primary job function was to solve problems. In a way, it taught me the basics of entrepreneurial skills,” he explains. A graduate from the College of Engineering, Pune, with a Postgraduate Diploma in Management from the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, Goswami joined Kirloskar Oil Engines in 1978 and worked there for 14 years before branching off on his own. With a core experience in diesel engines, Pushkaraj Engineering Enterprises started with three consultancy contracts, one of which was offered by Sanjay Kirloskar of Pune-based Kirloskar Brothers. The company then moved into the domain of agency sales and later, exports. Remarks Shailendra Goswami, “The best period began in the 1990s with the WTO agreement and liberalisation because that provided me with a new opportunity – one of sourcing components for engineering units that would help reduce the cost of products. I began to expand my networking across the world and moved into sectors such as oil and gas, process manufacturing and then automobiles.”
Shailendra Goswami is today supported by his son Pushkar who holds a degree in production engineering and a postgraduate diploma in business management. Touching upon the connection with Williams Controls, Goswami says that this company was founded in 1937 at Portland, Oregon. Williams Controls introduced its first pneumatic throttle control system in 1962 that was designed to replace long, complex mechanical linkages. Its pneumatic-controlled throttle assemblies then became standard in the domestic bus market and the company expanded this product line, developing a hydraulic throttle control system for heavy off-highway equipment. In the mid-80s, Detroit Diesel introduced the first electronically controlled diesel engine with increased efficiency and lower emissions. Williams Controls, working closely with both engine and vehicle manufacturers, designed the electronic throttle control in 1987.
 The company quickly became the world leader in the design and manufacture of electronic throttle controls for trucks and buses. In 2003, the company licensed the automotive adjustable pedal technology. This enabled it to offer complete adjustable pedal systems to its customers in the medium and heavy vehicle markets. “Some of the products that will be manufactured at its Pune plant from December 2010 will include the WM526 Series Electronic Foot Pedal Assembly, the WM540 Series Electronic Suspended Pedal Assembly and the WM528 Series Electronic Foot Pedal,” informs Goswami. The connection with William Controls will pave Pushkaraj's way into manufacturing with the commissioning of the Pune facility.
Involving daughter Manasi and her husband Amit Karmarkar, Goswami set up another company called Coherent Networking Solutions in 2001 to primarily focus on the sourcing of electronic assemblies and components for the auto and engineering sectors. The synergies between the two companies – Pushkaraj and Coherent Networking Solutions – enables the provision of technological solutions keeping in mind the emission requirements set down by Euro III, IV and V. Says Goswami, “A big advantage for us is the entry of foreign auto manufacturers in India. They may have the technical inputs from their principals, their need to source properly priced components is as high as that of the Indian manufacturers.”
Employing a simple business model that involves the supply of drawings and technical specifications by the client in addition to stating the quantity required and the price point, Pushkaraj Engineering Enterprises source the component from its vast network of manufacturers across the world. Not only does Pushkaraj help into the development of prototypes and carry out tests, once the supplier is decided upon, the company gets a certain percentage of the total sales while the client is not charged anything. Highly transparent according to Goswami, this business model has helped the company build credibility and reputation in the market.
With the amount of experience the company has come to gather, the focus is now on emerging technologies. Technologies like hybrid engines innovative electrification processes and even solar-powered components. “Our expertise now is on providing end-to-end solutions. For example, we provided a crankshaft prototype that took just 26 weeks from the design to the production stage,” asserts Goswami. Touching upon the importance of price point he concludes, “What I can say is that it has been a great learning curve and now our theories on pricing have been proved absolutely right.”
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