Futurepump factory – Rajkot, India

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Our Mission & Vision

Our Mission

Futurepump’s mission is to displace the use of fossil fuel powered pumps, reduce the need for tiring manual irrigation and provide a sustainable solution for small-scale irrigation.

Our Vision

Quality

Durability and quality form the base of the Futurepump brand. Our market-leading 10 year warranty and after-sales support demonstrates our commitment to our customers. We want to bring positive change to the industry and have challenged others to match our warranty promise.

Informative

Whether a customer has an engineering/agricultural background or not, all communications from Futurepump will remain accessible, understandable and encourage conversation. We pride ourselves in responding to every comment, question or query we get in through our website – get in touch here.

‘Green’

Not just the colour of our pump! Our vision is to ‘green’ agriculture and incorporate a sustainability mindset into all that we do.

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Our History

The history of solar pump engineering is a tale of thousands of years and is briefly covered in our solar pump guide. It is from these same principles that Dutch Engineer (and Futurepump’s Technical Director), Gert Jan Bom has developed the solar pumps we manufacture today.

Futurepump has grown as a company to scale the manufacture and distribution of modern day solar pumps. A fundamental part of this has been developing our manufacturing skills and capabilities in India.

In 2014 we set up our first factory in Pune, Maharashtra, then as we quickly expanded to supplying distributors in bulk, we relocated to Rajkot, Gujarat. This move enabled us to be closer to our suppliers and improve our shipping logistics. From Rajkot it is quick to access the port of Mundra which enables us to fulfil global orders quickly and efficiently.

In 2020 we were proud to move into a brand new, bespoke manufacturing facility situated on two acres of land in Chibhda near Rajkot. The Futurepump Chibhda Factory includes over 1000 sqm of purpose-built buildings, including shop floors, R&D centre, offices, canteen and on-site accommodation. This move means increased manufacturing capacity and the ability to bring more component manufacturing in-house for improved quality and reliability of supply.

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Our Facilities

Our manufacturing facility has been specially designed for solar pump manufacture and testing.

R&D Department

We pride ourselves in the continuous improvement of our products. Our dedicated Research and Development (R&D) team takes customer feedback and market insights and turns them into new and improved pumps. Our R&D facilities include:

Endurance test rigs

A test unit of every pump version we manufacture runs 24/7 on our endurance rig. This allows us to simulate years of usage and learn the expected life span of each part. An automatic control panel is set at a specified amperage, if this changes the pump automatically shuts off and our team can inspect which parts have caused the failure.

Part development testing or failure investigation

When a part failure is reported, or we want to improve a part, we go through an iterative design process. We start by designing, making and intensively testing prototype replacement parts. If successful, we make a small batch of machined parts to test again. Once satisfied, we develop the method for mass production. The first production pieces must then be tested for 300 to 1000 hours (dependent on the complexity of the part) before they are fully taken up in production.

Batch testing

Certain parts are batch tested as their failure points cannot be checked through visual or stress testing. When a new batch of parts comes in, they are placed on the pump and run for a minimum of 120 hours.

Administration & Store

When an order reaches our factory, it is our administration team who will make sure that it is processed efficiently. They work with each area of the factory to schedule in the build, testing and dispatch. They ensure that our materials store remains stocked so we are able to quickly and efficiently assemble pumps ready for dispatch.

Machine Shop

Here many core components of our pumps are cut, fabricated and finished ready for assembly. All staff in the machine shop are multi-skilled and able to operate a range of machines including milling machines, grinders, lathes, and drilling machines.

Assembly

Our dedicated assembly team are responsible for building each Futurepump by hand. Starting with the pump frame the team add the post, pump body, flywheel, air vessels and switch box as it moves down the production line. It is this team’s attention to detail ensures that every solar pump we manufacture meets our quality expectations.

Final QA and testing

Every single pump produced at our factory is run on our test rig for 15 minutes to ensure that it meets the required flow rate threshold for a given voltage, current and lift. Once it passes, and the results are recorded, the pump is packed and ready for dispatch.

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Quality Policy

At Futurepump we are committed to ensuring that every product we manufacture is of the highest quality. This is achieved through close partnerships with suppliers, rigorous inbound quality control, and by our team taking immense pride, and collective responsibility, towards the quality of every unit leaving the factory. We use an ISO 9001:2015-certified quality management system which guides our factory operations and strive for continuous improvement throughout all our products and processes.

Quality Objectives

• Zero quality control issues reported by customers
• Timely and efficient dispatch and delivery of product
• 1% inbound part rejection
• <5% final QA outbound (testing) rejection

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Beyond Manufacturing

Since moving to our Chibhda factory site we have been working hard to turn the previously barren plot into a haven for wildlife. This is important for us because, beyond manufacturing, we want to make a positive environmental impact where we can.

Climate change is very real for all of us, not least our small-scale farming customers. With high global temperatures, changes in rainfall patterns and drought and flooding becoming more and more common, everyone must play their part. We see it as our responsibility to do what we can to give a better future to the next generation.

How we are improving the biodiversity on our factory site:

• 800+ trees planted around the site boundary and along the roadsides
• The planting of hundreds of flowering shrubs
• A small farm plot has been established where crops are grown to supplement the staff canteen
• Two cows to provide fertilizer for the farm and fresh milk for the canteen and staff
• Landscaping around the seasonal lake in front of the factory

Future plans

• To bring in more cows to graze the land
• Introduce bees to help with pollination
• Continue developing the landscaping around the lake

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Distribution Network

We sell our products through a growing network of distributors globally. If you are interested in accessing our best volume pricing by signing up as a distributor, please complete the form at futurepump.com/distribute

Why join our distribution network:

• We build pumps that last – designed in the Netherlands and rigorously tested around the world we stand behind our products with a market leading 10 year warranty
• You will receive bespoke technical and sales training when your first container arrives
• We will support your in-country marketing efforts and generate sales leads for you

Apart from the great service, fantastic warranty and terrific products that are so easy to use and maintain, one of the best things about being a Distributor for Futurepump is seeing the improvements to our customers lives and businesses after purchasing a pump.

Jon Pittar – Solar Solutions, PNG

If you have any questions about our manufacturing facilities or our range of solar pumps, please get in touch at hello@futurepump.com. You can also find out more about buying pumps from us, becoming a distributor and what’s included in our 10 year warranty by clicking the links below.