One of the largest aluminium producers in the country with a market share of more than 30 per cent, Balco is poised to play a significant role in the context of globalisation. The company has achieved a dramatic surge in productivity and profit within a short span of five years from 2001when Sterilite took over the PSU. Its strategy since privatisation has been to leverage its size and vertical integration to expand and seize market opportunities. Balco has its own bauxite mines, alumina refinery, smelter and captive power plants. It would be no exaggeration to say that Balco is destined to play an active role in reshaping the market dynamics in the coming years. The rapid increase in primary production capacity has been largely due to the expansion with state-of-the-art technology. Since becoming a private limited company, Balco undertook a massive expansion project to step up aluminium production froml lakh tonne per annum to 3.45 lakh and alumina production to 2.5 lakh. To enhance productive capacity while keeping costs low, the company installed an additional 540MW captive power plant pushing the captive power capacity to 810MW. Balco has signed MoU with the Chhattisgarh government for the installation of a 1200MW power plant. With these plans in the pipeline, the day is not far when Balco will become the single largest private producer of aluminium and power in the country. Balco has also made substantial progress in the development of downstream fabrication capabilities. Output of ingots, wire rods, hot rolled coils, strips and plates, cold-rolled sheets and thin-rolled products have shown an impressive growth that is geared towards catering to the needs of construction, power, automotive, aviation, slug manufacturing, insulation and foil manufacturing industries. Another feather in Balco's cap is its breakthrough in successfully producing a high grade of alloy, AA 7075, which has a huge global demand because of its use in defence and space technology equipment. Balco has become the sole producer of this grade alloy in the country. Balco's turnaround since going private has been significant and dramatic. Aluminium production and captive power production have trebled while power consumption per unit of aluminium production has reduced significantly due to the adoption of innovative technology. Excess power fed to the national grid has also increased. Balco is the highest tax payer in the private sector in Chhattisgarh. Management realises that a happy and motivated workforce is also a productive workforce. 'Retrenchment' has never been a part of privatised Balco. There were some vacancies due to VRS but these were filled with new employees who were selected from the pool of local talent, and wards and relatives of employees. Balco believes in providing equal opportunities for women. A good number of women engineers work in areas that were considered male domain. " Benefits of rising productivity have been passed on to the employees not only in terms of larger pay packets, but also in terms of work incentives, performance bonus, regular award schemes including monthly production incentive scheme, milestone-based rewards, employees of the month award, etc. Balco provides enhanced facilities for children's education, housing, health care and recreation. Above all, a transparent style of functioning keeps employees motivated as they are in the know of corporate success and feel a sense of pride in being associated with the organisation. 'Brand' Balco has become the inspiring force for its employees translating the company's vision into their own vision. Ample scope for growth, both in monetary terms and rising in the cadres of the corporate ladder, keeps employees excited about working in Balco. The company has initiated several development-oriented programmes which encourage the employees to look for advancement opportunities within Balco instead of attempting career moves outside of it. In keeping with their current skills and future goals, employees are constantly provided every opportunity to upgrade their skills with on-the-job training, in-house career development workshops and seminars on team building and leadership. Consultants and experts in the field of Total Quality Management (TQM), Six Sigma, Pragati and Nav Chetana, have been visiting Balco at regular intervals to ensure training of manpower on a continuous basis. Nav Chetana, a development programme focused on self-improvement, has covered almost 2,000 employees. Physical health of employees is as important as their emotional and psychological well being. The new management has given Balco's hospital a facelift. The ICU and trauma care units have been upgraded with state-of-the-art diagnostic equipment. The 100-bed hospital caters to the health and medical needs and emergencies, not only of Balconians, but also of the communities surrounding Balco. The hospital, on account of its facilities, attracts specialists from outside the district, and state. As a result, routine and even some major surgeries are performed at the hospital itself. Another important aspect of Balco's overall growth has been the significant reduction in factory accidents. The new management has been strict on improving safety measures. Health, occupational safety and environment indexes are checked every month. Actions are taken when these measures are ignored. Safety awareness programmes are conducted at specific intervals. Balco has been certified ISO 9001 and IS014001 for environment protection and OHSA's 18001 for safety. In the field of health and safety, the company has won several awards