Sabarinath decided to fill the gap and came up with a startup idea called Skillveri, a Chennai based company that offers hands-on training using deep tech. It addresses the gap in sectors like welding, spray painting, HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning) maintenance and solar panel installation. A small idea founded in an IITM incubator cell has now transformed into a large training solution that provides its services to 100 educational institutions across North America and collaborated with Meta and the Directorate General of Training (DGT) to set up five Centers of Excellence in India.
Aura- The Game Changer
Sabarinath wanted to create something that would measure and give real-time feedback for vocational skills. “Knowledge is measured through exams. But how can skill be measured?” he pondered. That is when Skillveri’s simulators come in handy. Their flagship product is called AURA, a welding training simulator that provides real factory setting to be handled virtually. This helps in setting correct angle, speed and proportions. Trainees use virtual replicas of actual industrial tools, from welding torches to spray guns, allowing them to build muscle memory and precision.
The company also offers simulators according to each sector’s specific needs. “If painting is a skill, it varies vastly across automotive painting, marine coating or industrial spray. Our products are fine-tuned accordingly” he explains.
Betting on quality, not just numbers
Started with Rs 25 lakh, now the company generates revenue of around Rs 10 crore. Skillveri has always preferred consistency and patient growth. As a result, it now reaches over 150 Indian institutions and more than 100 international partners, including schools in the US and training centers in Africa and southeast Asia.
“Business must be self-sustaining. Profits will be reinvested again,” points outs Sabarinath. He gave an example about their client Maruti Suzuki, which started with a single simulator. Once they saw the return on investments such as sustainability, less material waste, quick learning and training, they soon increased the orders. “We don’t show up, sell and disappear. We build partnerships through our meticulous work, and our trusted partners scale it for us,” highlights Sabarinath.
Pivoted role of Covid
Covid brought in a huge challenge. Students were unable to reach labs for training, and it was difficult to ship hardware-intensive simulators. Skillveri gave birth to a new concept called VR-based training using Oculus Quest. Through this, labs reached students, and training was made accessible everywhere. In countries such as North America, subscription-based VR models became the new norm.
Trainers are irreplaceable. “It is always human plus machines for us and not human versus machine. Our simulators will only amplify them,” stresses Sabarinath with conviction. Skillveri follows train-the-trainers model, thus empowering the instructors too.
With rapid changes in technology, Skillveri is working on making their modules even more analytical to give a personalised training experience and adding additional skill modules. In the upcoming years, Skillveri focuses on expanding its footprint in more than 1000 ITIs across India and 1000-plus schools in the USA.