MBA ENTREPRENEURS (2)...Bhupesh Sharma

MBA ENTREPRENEURS (2)...Bhupesh Sharma

B-schools turn ordinary graduates into well-rounded managers who go on to make their employers a pile of money. This fetches them (some of them, at least) fat salaries, ESOPs, club memberships, etc. But that is only half the picture. There are some who emerge from B-school as risk takers, with an appetite for trying their hand at businesses that are out of the ordinary. They shun the routine, the mundane... in short, the safe option. They are the ones who go out on a limb and do what they really want to 

Wind Beneath Their Wings

Bhupesh Sharma, 23, was always keen on wind turbines. He wanted to make economical turbines without compromising on efficiency or performance. Currently pursuing his MBA from Welingkar Institute of Management, Development and Research in Mumbai, after doing his engineering, Sharma has a two-year-old start-up called Breson, which designs, manufactures and customises small windmills and turbines.

“There was no eureka moment as such, because it was not a frugal innovation but a planned and a significant combination of design and need,” says Sharma, who invested Rs 30 lakh to start the venture in December 2010 together with his partners Uday Nair, Vikal Chaurasia and Amar Pathak. 

Breson works on designs for vertical axis turbines, which are suitable for cities where the direction of the wind is constantly changing, and have maximum efficiency at low wind speeds.  

After finishing 7-8 pilot projects,  the company has revamped its business model. Its aim now is to make more economical wind turbines rather than stick to a niche category. Its patented technology is in the final phase of production at its Mumbai facility, and it has already completed three pilot projects in Maharashtra. These have helped Sharma earn Rs 20-25 lakh, with a profit of Rs 7-8 lakh. Breson, which can produce about 50 turbines a month, is currently working on a project in Amli village, Maharashtra. 

The company’s wind turbines are in the 100-5,000 watt range. A 100 watt turbine can be used for a street lighting system and a 1,000 watt one can be used for a bunglow or a building, says Sharma. Those above 1,000 watt are purely for use in commercial settings.

“We are working on the social motto of ‘power for all’. The approximate cost of a 1,000 watt turbine, which can light up 50-90 tubelights for 12 hours, is about Rs 2 lakh. We are working to further bring down this cost,” informs Sharma.
 

Sharma got the idea when he was trying to develop a self-sustainable house for his uncle. He wanted to develop something that would be cheaper than other renewable energy sources, would require less space, be maintenance free and work effectively for most of the time. “Solar energy is high on maintenance costs, requires a large space and works effectively only for six hours of the day.” 

Breson has orders from public and private sector companies, and is targeting small and medium commercial and agricultural set-ups. 

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