EDITOR’S LETTER OPP India Words | Maneesha Chawla
A Model Business Master builders selling houses, just on a smaller scale
Prabhdeep Singh’s models: effective marketing and beautiful to look at
heights of new technology with the use of traditional skills.
O
With the slow down in sales in India, builders have been fi nding innovative ways of demonstrating their product to their buyers. These include the high tech – fancy brochures, 3D walk throughs, sophisticated computer generated graphics – and, increasingly, the use of traditional scale models. Do models still off er developers a useful sales tool? Can they compete with modern computer generated materials?
OPP went to the offi ces of Singh Modelers, a family business based near Delhi, that has been building scale models for leading Indian builders for almost 40 years. Prabhdeep Singh, the face of the third generation of the business, explained what they do and why it is still in demand.
Model making was, initially, a way of checking whether designs were feasible. “We get plans that are at the initial concept stage, long before a product is brought to market, so we end up fi nding fl aws that even the architects might not be aware of,” said Singh.
46
ne of the fascinating things about living in India is the way we combine the
But the reason for producing models goes further. Singh claims that making models creates a better connection between the architect and the product. ‘In Japan there is an architectural school that no longer allows students to learn on CAD because they don’t get a feel for what they are doing and become too reliant on technology”. While model making had its roots in troubleshooting, it has grown into its own industry and makes a
Singh is part inventor, part nutty scientist
) development on display. Despite India’s lower labour costs, models are not cheap. This 1:150 scale model (shown in the image) containing 16 villas and 752 apartments will cost about US$30,000.
very eff ective marketing tool. Singh showed us the mammoth 50-panel model they were working on for one of India’s leading builders. They will have their entire 17 acre (70,000 m2
MANEESHA CHAWLA: OPP India Editor Email:
maneesha@opp.org.in
Yet the models are in demand. They have been air-freighted to customers in Canada, the USA, the Middle East and Africa. Even Colonel Gaddafi was a customer. Plus, of course, they are spread across India. On average they complete about 16 large models and about the same number of smaller ones in a year.
Singh is unique in his approach. He describes himself as part inventor, part nutty scientist and part administrator of a family business. Perhaps surprisingly, the making of these traditional models involves continuous innovation and the use of new technology and new materials. The diff erences are clear to see when you compare current projects with his father’s heritage models such as those of the Humayun’s tomb project in Delhi and the Golden Temple, given to Queen Elizabeth II
For now, the company produces only traditional models. But they see the need to move into the digital age for customers who want to use the latest technology and will soon off er this service. Next comes 3D printing. After that who knows. Singh promises they will still be producing models, in some form or other, in another 40 years’ time.
www.opp-connect.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80