CIO Talk: Weaving carpets with technology

Vijay Pandey – IT Head, Obeetee Pvt. Ltd, talks on how easy and colorful was the process of weaving technology in a traditional business, and more.

Leveraging video-conferencing (VC) in a carpet industry? How does it fit and does it deliver?

OBEETEE Private Ltd is located in Mirzapur, in the state of Uttar Pradesh. It was founded in 1920, and manufactures and globally distributes exquisite hand-knotted, hand-tufted and flat-woven floor coverings. OBEETEE INC. is a New York-based, wholly-owned subsidiary of OBEETEE Private Ltd, with showrooms in New York and Atlanta.

It employees 1100 workmen in its factory and provides gainful employment to more than 30,000 artisans in the rural areas for carpet weaving and processing.

Our main design hub is in the US while the rest of the design development is in Mirzapur. The process of initial concepts and sketches, pre-production, then samples and then approvals used to take a lot of travel trips for the US team to India, back and forth. VC has definitely helped in connecting both the centers effectively and in real-time.

How much has VC helped in cutting travel trips?

Earlier the US team had to come about seven times a year. Now the initial rounds are covered via VC specially due to hi-definition colour-based delivery. Only the final stages require face-time. Our business of being a carpet exporter, depends on colours. We have now started using it in seven locations and it’s turning out very good and successful.

Is it the first time you have considered the thread of technology? How easy or tough was the broadband part specially, in a not-so-urban region like yours?

No, we have been looking for the best communication methods between India and the US since long. About ten years back we tried VSAT, but the speed was very poor. Internet connection was definitely a big issue. But finally LifeSize came as a good option.

Then we convinced Airtel for bridging the broadband gap. From an initial 250 kbps level it improved to 512 kbps and gradually to 1mbps. Even 512 kbps was a good standard to work with the required video quality, which was a critical factor due to the significance of colours in our business.

How was the vendor-evaluation process and consideration cycle like?

We considered all the options in the market and in fact tested with major names like Polycom too. But while their audio-quality was good, they were not satisfactory on our video-requirements. Then we considered LifeSize, which of course is a relatively new name. We tested it and it worked for us.

Can you share something about the test-phase?

We did the first set of tests in Mirzapur and then in our Hong Kong Office. Next, we tested it in our offices in New York and later at other offices as well. Initial demo period at Mirzapur lasted 15 days and we tested the VC about three times. This phase really helped as VC was a major investment for a company-size like ours.

Can you wrap the exact nature of challenges, expectations and results in brief?

In order to bridge the gap between the US-based customers of OBEETEE Inc. and its greatest asset, OBEETEE Private Ltd, the company wanted buyers to understand the strengths of the latter. This exchange was set to take place from the showroom of Obeetee Inc. located at the Merchandising Mart in Atlanta, Georgia during the carpet trade fair known as the Atlanta Rug Market.

The OBEETEE management team needed to display a large range of products for its programme line and limited editions (one-of-a-kind pieces); a very large space would need to be rented for the showroom in the Atlanta Merchandising Mart. Managers and designers from India needed to travel to the US to interact with customers and live demonstrations of carpet weaving on looms by skilled artisans were to be organized to educate the customers on the realities of handmade carpet weaving.

All of these logistical elements, though necessary, would prove to be prohibitively expensive. A solution would combine the presence of sample merchandise in Atlanta to allow customers to touch and feel the fine quality carpets while providing the opportunity for customer, designer and production executive to interact face-to-face while surveying the extensive line of unique wares on-site in India.

How much investment have you put in so far?

There are two models to use it. One is the one-to-one VC which takes about rupees three lakh, while the multi-conferencing is around rupees seven lakh. We have taken three multi-conferencing units, three one-to-one units and three extra ones. It’s a one-time investment.

How intricate was the logistics element in working everything out?

The point-to-point HD video communications system from LifeSize allowed them to connect directly to their headquarters in Mirzapur, India and simultaneously with their factory and production units while offering a fully immersive high definition experience to the customer in Atlanta.

Simply by using a public Internet connection, readily available at their booth at the trade show in Atlanta, sales executives at OBEETEE were able to give existing and potential customers a truly hands-on experience. With the quality of LifeSize high definition video, colors were vivid and crisp and the detail of the hand-woven masterpieces could be easily examined, even down to the most intricate threading and detail work within each carpet’s unique design.

And the results are worth the effort?

By linking the two sites, OBEETEE was able to address the upscale clientèle at the trade show effectively by allowing buyers to have an intimate, one-on-one experience. Instead of simply looking at pictures in a sample book, buyers were able to discuss color, design, materials and texture with the designers in India who made the works of art thousands of miles away.