1. MRO-Tel Ltd

With a total business of Rs 124.86 crore during 2000-01, MRO-Tek has emerged as the largest value-added distributor of networking products in the country. This company, which has also the distinction of being the first networking and access solutions company in the country to get listed on Indian bourses, is simply the Indian digital modem king. Only MRO-Tek, over digital modem, has the kind of dominance that Cisco has over routers. However, it also took major strides in segments like multiplexers, Layer 3 switching, security/VPN, ISDN routing and laser communications being the latest. Global partners include RAD, which alone accounts for almost 90 percent of its revenue, Extreme Networks, Zyxel, Breezecom, RADGurard and Cobalt among others. Unlike other distributors, who depend on logistics expertise and partnership management, MRO-Tek puts more emphasis on value adding through its manufacturing experience and engineering prowess. Not that it is weaker on trading side—it is clearly responsible for the brand recall that RAD, today, enjoys in India. However, MRO-Tek wants to leverage more on its intrinsic technology skills by getting more aggressive on manufacturing. With more aggressive expansion of its manufacturing unit in Bangalore, it wants to change its traded products, manufactured product business mix from 60:40 to the other way round. MRO-Tek is one company that has earned its right place as the flag holder for the Indian networking companies’ bandwagon.