Alpha Industries, the premier safety solution provider in Sri Lanka, turns 60 this year.
Alpha Industries operates under the umbrella of Finco group and has been ensuring that Sri Lankans get the best safety solutions possible, for six decades. Apart from providing excellent safety solutions, Alpha Industries has expanded its offerings to include office furniture, interior solutions and a wide range of interior fittings.
Founded in 1963, the company emerged as Sri Lanka’s first manufacturer of steel wardrobes and tables. For 60 years, Alpha Industries has consistently been at the forefront as the leading provider of security solutions, catering to a diverse range of needs, from home storage to bank vaults. Presently, it holds a prominent position as the market leader in security safes. Additionally, Alpha Industries has earned a solid reputation for crafting long-lasting, top-quality, contemporary office furniture in Sri Lanka.
In Alpha Industries’ mission to offer the best to Sri Lankans, it has partnered with the best brands around the world. Some of these include Haworth, Chubbsafes, Bristol and Godrej Interio.
Apart from these services, Alpha Industries introduced its interior design services in 1996. Alpha also has its own equipped state-of-the-art factory that helps cater to its customers’ needs. This means that Alpha Industries possesses the capacity to tailor its products to match customer preferences and deliver them to their location anywhere within the country.
Speaking on this momentous occasion, Alpha Industries Managing Director Priyanjith Weerasooria stated, “We take great pride in commemorating our 60th anniversary, a milestone that owes its achievement to our dedicated team, whose relentless pursuit of excellence has been the driving force behind our growth. Throughout our journey, Alpha Industries has consistently evolved and adapted to meet the dynamic needs of our clients, earning a reputation for innovation and unmatched quality. Looking ahead, we remain committed to pushing the boundaries of innovation, delivering cutting-edge products and solutions to our clients and setting new standards in our industry.”
Alpha Industries CEO Safraz Careem stated, “We are humbled and proud to mark our 60th anniversary, a testament to our unwavering commitment to delivering cutting-edge security solutions, office furniture and interior fit outs. Our journey has been defined by innovation, quality and a passion for transforming spaces and we look forward to shaping the future with even greater impact. We extend our sincere gratitude to our valued customers, for their unwavering trust and loyalty throughout the years. As we celebrate this milestone, we look forward to continuing our legacy of innovation, sustainability, and service excellence in the years ahead.”
The company arranged an awards ceremony to express gratitude to all employees, encompassing both office and factory workers as well as those who have dedicated many years to their service at Alpha.
Investing in people and technology amidst the pandemic, diversifying into allied businesses, keeping a breast of evolving consumer needs and global trends, and building binding relationships with international brands secure Alpha Industries ‘ perch at the top of the furniture market. Safraz Careem, Director and Chief Executive Officer at Alpha Industries, explains.
For over 50 years, Alpha Industries has maintained its market leadership status in the security safes and office furniture space. What was, and continues to be, challenging about that?
Alpha Industries began its journey five decades ago as a steel-furniture manufacturer.
Alpha expanded from “steel-only” to engineered and solid wood furniture and, today we are a total interior solution provider, with auxiliary service segments including project management and consultancy. Transforming the business, any business for that matter, is never easy, and the challenges are many. We thoughtfully developed a people strategy because people come first, committed investments in technology and enhanced our capabilities to keep abreast with consumer tastes and global furniture industry standards.
We have invested in manufacturing plants and technology and built a team of efficient and skilled craftsmen and top interior designers.
This plays a crucial role in the transformation and success of Alpha Industries. We built strong relationships with top global brands like Haworth, Chubbs, Godrej Interiors and Bristol to represent them in Sri Lanka. Working with these brands helped us build expertise, enabling us to cater to the demands of a growing clientele including multinationals operating in the country.
We continue to grapple with the perennial challenges of finding and retaining skilled labour and securing the supply of raw materials. Sri Lanka does not have the raw materials we require, so we source these from India or China. Relying on imports necessitated building deep relationships with suppliers for a robust yet agile supply chain. On top of those, we had to be on our toes to keep abreast with changing consumer behaviour, global standards and designs, and evolving technology.
Right now, the currency crisis has thrown our supply chains in disarray. We cannot open an LC or make payments to our suppliers because of the forex controls. We forecasted the ongoing currency crisis early and managed to build enough inventory. It is increasingly challenging to run a manufacturing business these days, but we remain determined and focused on finding solutions as hard as it may be.
How did the company perform in 2021, or consider the last two years?
The onset of the pandemic was disastrous for Alpha Industries. The lockdowns halted production, and when we resumed once the lockdown lifted, we found the market had shrunk and the supplier network even more so. The restrictions on imports proved to be a blessing in disguise. As a local manufacturer, we reported considerable growth as sales rocketed due to the lack of supplies in the market. We achieved considerable growth in the last six months of 2021.
Talking about strategy, how do you maintain your market-leading status and grow during a global economic crisis?
We remain market leaders for safes, and our diversification strategy into allied businesses is paying rich dividends and helping us navigate the unfolding economic challenges.
Earlier, a client would get one company to design an office, contract another company to supply or manufacture the furniture and fittings and engage another for installations and maintenance. There was a need for a one-stop solution in the market, and we ventured into filling this gap. Our partnerships with global brands helped us develop total turnkey solutions and brought us immense benefits. From a strategic point of view, it is a great value proposition that we have and it is an advantage over our competitors. We are now expanding our corporate solutions to include carpeting, ceilings, lighting, and everything else under one roof.
Post-pandemic, everyone is concerned about health, safety and wellbeing, and demand for ergonomic furniture is growing, opening new opportunities for us. We are gearing to expand our offerings of ergonomic furniture, including height-adjustable electronic tables. Consumers care about their posture when they work at a desk, and they have evolved sophisticated demands centred around wellbeing. Our ability to identify these needs and cater to them has been another reason we continue to enjoy market recognition for over five decades.
I believe Covid itself has evolved. People are treating it more like the common flu. The work environment has changed from workfrom-home to a hybrid model, and now back to the office with the hybrid elements still at play. Driving efficiency improvements and investing in technology have emerged as solutions for a quick recovery from the ill effects of Covid-19.
We have invested more in the past 12 months than in the last decade. To some, this may sound crazy, but it was the best time to invest. The pandemic will not last forever. We are preparing for when the floodgates open once the economy recovers and projects in the Colombo Port City begin to materialise. Focusing on the future during a crisis is critical for any business.
For those demanding the highest in quality, security and convenience, the Alpha Industries range of safes has always been sure to please.
Alpha Industries is the first and top-most manufacturer of high-security luxury safes and vaults in Sri Lanka, who offer a wide range of standard safes and also lead the industry in custom-built security solutions, whether for home use or bank vaults.
The company recently tied up with Singer Sri Lanka, the local retail giant, in a strategic move to make available its range of domestic safes to consumers islandwide. With its vast network of showrooms, strong reputation for trust, quality and reliability and recognition as one of Sri Lanka’s most loved brands, Singer will now be instrumental in offering Sri Lankan consumers the country’s best solution in domestic safes as well. The Alpha Industries domestic safes portfolio includes home safes, hotel safes, wall safes and cash boxes.
“Each one of our safes are meticulously crafted using the most advanced engineering and manufacturing processes. For us, quality is key. Singer Sri Lanka has a strong reputation for the quality of brands they distribute within their network and we are proud to now be part of their repertoire,” said Alpha Industries Chief Executive Officer/Director Safraz Careem.
“What’s more, we, at Alpha, believe that being close to our customers is imperative for our growth and Singer Sri Lanka’s vast footprint of showrooms around the country will help us achieve this goal. This partnership therefore creates significant synergy for both organisations as we continue to serve our local market with the best quality brands at the widest reach,” he added.
With over 59 years of history, Alpha Industries is the manufacturing business of the privately-owned FINCO Group, a diversified conglomerate with businesses in various sectors, including manufacturing, information technology solutions, leisure sector, consulting and trading.
Singer is the market leader in Sri Lanka’s consumer durables industry, with an unmatched reach to millions of customers and a penetration across the country through its 430 outlets.
Excellency in Manufacturing – Safraz Careem, Director and Chief Operating Officer of Alpha Industries Pvt Ltd is exclusively featured in our June 2021 Coffee Table Edition. Out now!
There is plenty of noise in the business world, but the best spaces have the capacity to cut through it all and say something meaningful – something that inspires people to pause, gather, connect and refresh. Safraz Careem –Director/ COO explains how Alpha Industries retains its market leadership in a competitive industry.
Over a half century of market leadership is a remarkable achievement for any business. Retaining its market leadership in an aggressively competitive industry, dictated by global demands, is a testament to the commitment of Alpha Industries. It is clear that only a company who stays well-informed with the changing market trends could survive over 50 years retaining its market leadership. Alpha’s main aim was to evolve with the fast-changing demands for office furniture. The range has now expanded to solid wood, and engineered wood like melamine, to cater to current demands and creating workspaces with a nostalgic look and feel, that supports a holistic state of well-being!
Alpha is a knowledge partner with research into the latest workplace trends. Alpha partners with the clients to improve their understanding of organizational culture, to improve engagement among the workforce, and to furnish spaces with inspiring furniture pieces from two of their very own state-of-the-art factories with a total floor area of 150,000 square feet which is equipped with technically advanced machinery.
The equipment for manufacture of steel safes and furniture consists of hydraulic press brakes machines, shearing machines, mechanical guillotines, power presses, tube cutters and automatic tube benders, pretreatment plant and stove enameling plant together with powder coating plant for finishing. Director/ COO, Safraz Careem explains “that our customers have built their confidence on our brand based on our commitment to the industry. We have invested in manufacturing plants, a team of efficient and skilled craftsman, top interior designers and partnerships with world renowned furniture brands, and most importantly, we are able to cope up with the market trends in order to give out the best to our clients.”
Alpha Industries launched in 1963, is a family owned business, started by N.E. Weerasooriya the brother of our current chairman, Mr. Sarath Weerasooriya and the uncle of our vice chairman, Mr. Priyanjith Weerasooriya, of Finco Holdings who is also currently MD of Alpha Industries (Pvt) Ltd. Alpha is a subsidiary of the multi-disciplined Finco Holdings which has many businesses in the group including hotels, IT companies, consultancies, travel and trading. Safraz explains, “With over 50 years of experience, Alpha Industries has grown its way from providing security office furniture and interior solutions. Carving out a historical landmark in the annals of Sri Lanka, Alpha Industries pioneered the manufacturing of the country’s first ever Security Equipment and Light Metal Office Furniture products in 1963, which remains one of our biggest markets. Alpha has a widespread showroom network along with island-wide distribution and service network.”
Safraz adds, “our range of safes includes high-security bank and personal safes, document safes, fireproof cupboards, anti-hold up safes, vault doors, strong doors, safe deposit lockers, and custom-designed strongboxes, and remains the largest supplier of safes to the banking sector.” One important lesson the company learned right from the start was to evolve with the rapidly shifting demands for office furniture. Safraz emphasizes that, “We have served our clients for the past 50 years and built an excellent after-sales service reputation over the years. Our customers have built trust and confidence in the quality of our after sales service, which operates 24 hours island wide as much as the quality of our furniture”.
The company is committed to sustainability. Even their clients now request for more environmentally friendly material for their solutions. “We now use low emissions E1 boards for our furniture,” reveals Safraz. “We are also planning to eliminate plastic from our production process.” As a manufacturer, Alpha has witnessed the employer concern towards their employees’ comfort and wellbeing and creating a healthy environment. “We have witnessed paradigm shifts in office interiors and at present and have accumulated a wealth of expertise and experience in offering Interior Solutions from design to build as per customer requirement.”
Safraz Careem Director/ COO at Alpha Industries
Workplace design is in a constant state of flux. The work we do and the ways we do it will always be evolving. Safraz states, “the most important thing to remember is to keep your eyes and ears open. Seek out new trends in work styles and spaces, solicit ongoing feedback from your clients and be flexible and ready to change. The trend today is more of an open office for maximum flexibility
and work/life integration. Within office environments, social spaces empower people to choose destinations to work, gather, socialize or just recharge. Companies also consider outdoor patios and terraces too. People love nature, and research has shown that just being outside offers a whole host of well-being benefits and promotes creativity. With the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, Alpha Industries saw a change in how employers considered the spaces their employees worked in and we have been able to adjust to the client requirement and cater to their needs accordingly.”
Alpha Industries plans for 2021 includes growing the business in the healthcare furniture segment and its interior solution segment. “We want to be known as a one-stop-shop for all office furniture solutions, from flooring, lighting and ceiling to entire work stations. Alpha Industries is the ideal investment, if you are looking for authenticity and locally manufactured security, office furniture and interior solutions that are being sought. Its satisfied clientele which encompasses leading banks, airlines, retail stores, home appliance stores, hospitals and hotels etc. will attest to its commitment to delivering its promises. You can see some of our standout projects on our website alpha-staging.saberion.org/.”
Safraz also mentions that “Alpha Industries also exports to the Maldives and India and is looking to expand to the African region as well. But our aim is to keep our prime focus predominately in Sri Lanka.” Alpha Industries is a dominant force in Sri Lanka’s office furniture solutions industry. With their unparalleled quality, these industry giants are here to stay. “Why settle for sub-par solutions, when ‘Alpha’ is just one call away? Alpha Office Furniture Collection is all about creating high- impression and social spaces that speaks to people, impacting not only how they feel and connect, but also how they remember your brands,” concludes Safraz.
