France Offers 2 Quick Scorpenes, DCNS 'Worried' About DRDO's AIP

[HariPrasad]

There are dozens of labs under DRDO, and most of the scientists holds a PhD or currently pursuing it. And still earning a meager salary of 50-60k. My professor worked for DRDO and holds more than 15 patents in the field of Electromagnetism, Antenna and Radar. A person of such caliber could have easily earned 40-50 lakhs a year in the west.
In recent years, there is a trend for Indian scientists to settle for academic jobs in western Universities, which is justified in a way, as India will never learn to appreciate it's scientific talents.

In My company, even diploma holders and engineers (with long experience) have a package in between 25 to 100 lakhs per anum. Lets hope that it will change with arrival of Modi.

 

[Skull and Bones]

In My company, even diploma holders and engineers (with long experience) have a package in between 25 to 100 lakhs per anum. Lets hope that it will change with arrival of Modi.

Modi is just another politician, don't expect drastic improvements under his rule, if any. It's different to rule a state unopposed, and a country where a single move will be mothballed by opposition and judiciary process. On another thought, i still believe Manmohan Singh is better qualified to be a Prime Minister, if the political shackles is removed from his acts.

 

[janon]

Buy assembly line equipment and all related stuff. We should make that inhouse. l& T , Pipavav and other public sectors can build it.

Assembly line has already been set up at MDL, and a few hulls have been made. MDL will start delivering in 2015, if things go well. But buying two off the shelf from france would be a good idea at this stage, since our submarine strength is perilously low, and slated to fall further.

IMO, do away with that P-15I joke, which will take a decade more to arrive, knowing how long it takes to take a decision and make a purchase. Not to mention, they are expected to cost almost as much as a nuclear sub! Instead, go for more scorpenes. It will be cheaper and easier not only to aquire, but also to maintain, since only one class of subs will be needed, and we can standardize on that.

 

[HariPrasad]

Modi is just another politician, don't expect drastic improvements under his rule, if any. It's different to rule a state unopposed, and a country where a single move will be mothballed by opposition and judiciary process. On another thought, i still believe Manmohan Singh is better qualified to be a Prime Minister, if the political shackles is removed from his acts.

See Modi is a politician but very responsive politician. If he is convinced that some thing is going wrong, he will certainly act. The way he removed (Reduced) corruption and made bureaucracy functional is nothing less than a miracle. MM is a dumb. He can stop anything wrong being done in front of him. The way Modi made Gujarat a electricity surplus state and 10 % agriculture growth state (In spite of low rain) is a Miracle. Water crisis is almost wiped out of Gujarat. Center and Gujarat came out with solar policy simultaneously. Within a year, Gujarat constructed Asia's biggest solar plant. Rest of India's Solar energy Put to gather is not a match of Gujarat. Nano and............... List is End less.

Assembly line has already been set up at MDL, and a few hulls have been made. MDL will start delivering in 2015, if things go well. But buying two off the shelf from france would be a good idea at this stage, since our submarine strength is perilously low, and slated to fall further.

IMO, do away with that P-15I joke, which will take a decade more to arrive, knowing how long it takes to take a decision and make a purchase. Not to mention, they are expected to cost almost as much as a nuclear sub! Instead, go for more scorpenes. It will be cheaper and easier not only to aquire, but also to maintain, since only one class of subs will be needed, and we can standardize on that.

I say why not contract L & T instead of France. After all L & T has a rich experience (In Indian context) in building Subs.

 

[janon]

I say why not contract L & T instead of France. After all L & T has a rich experience (In Indian context) in building Subs.

MDL is already building the subs in India, and has set up the required infrastructure and assembly line over the past 5 years. We can't expect L&T (or anybody else) to set up a manufacturing line for just two subs. Also, building an additional manufacturing line is cost prohibitive, and will make the subs twice as expensive. Use the already existing line in france for two additional subs, and make the rest in India as planned.

 

[HariPrasad]

MDL is already building the subs in India, and has set up the required infrastructure and assembly line over the past 5 years. We can't expect L&T (or anybody else) to set up a manufacturing line for just two subs. Also, building an additional manufacturing line is cost prohibitive, and will make the subs twice as expensive. Use the already existing line in france for two additional subs, and make the rest in India as planned.

Arihant 1 was already build by L & T (My friends were in construction). People says that Arihant 2 is also made at L & T. My friend was telling me that cells were prepared and transported to Vizage in a covered ship with a marking of oil tank.

 

[janon]

Arihant 1 was already build by L & T (My friends were in construction). People says that Arihant 2 is also made at L & T. My friend was telling me that cells were prepared and transported to Vizage in a covered ship with a marking of oil tank.

Maybe so, but to make scorpene, a different line would be needed. Different product, different line. Just like we need a separate line to manufacture MKIs and Rafales and LCAs and Jaguars.

 

[HariPrasad]

Maybe so, but to make scorpene, a different line would be needed. Different product, different line. Just like we need a separate line to manufacture MKIs and Rafales and LCAs and Jaguars.

See man there is a difference. Planes are to be manufactured in assembly line since they are mass produced. Here the concept is totally different as single vessel is produced. There is nothing like assembly line here in strict sense. Actually banding of plates and welding is very important. Equipments and instruments are bought at a place of vessel under fabrication and it is manufactured. At any time one vessel is under construction so no assembly line (Though I used it in loose sense).

 

[livingdead]

Though i have many other documents to vividly describe the working principle of AIP, but won't reveal it because of the sensitivity of the documents. And i did my internship with DRDO on nanostructured Zirconium based active surface for hydrolysis of water.

This might give you a fare idea.
http://web.iitd.ac.in/~sbasu/seminar/presentation/3S.R.ChoudhuryNMRL,DRDO mbernath.pdf

It's not a smart move to upgrade it at a later stage, but Indian Navy is optimistic on the AIP developed by DRDO.

I think many like he-man and me are angry at the difference between DRDO's words and what they can actually do.
Because they always overpromise and underdeliver, nobody really cares if what they delivered is beyond their capability.

No wonder forces laugh at DRDO and prefer to buy from outside.

 

[he-man]

yes exactly this point.
just don't leak information on the projects u are working on before completing it.

drdo barks a lot but rarely bites(only in missile department)

 

[akshay gehlot]

we should scrap project 75-I and buy 12-18 more scorpenes and 6 nuclear subs that should be enough for us. scorpenes can be divided as 6 in france, 6 in mdl and 6 by larsen and toubro

 

[Nishan_101]

PARIS, NOV 28: French shipyard DCNS, creators of the Scorpène-class submarine, have offered the Indian Navy two Scorpène submarines off the shelf as a quick stop-gap to stem dwindling force levels, compounded by the recent INS Sindhurakshak tragedy. The company, cleared by the French government to make the offer, has said it can build two Scorpenes and deliver them to coincide with the induction of the first of six Scorpènes being license built at Mazagon Docks in Mumbai.

I had a chance to speak with executives at DCNS who confirmed that the Scorpène build programme was 'on track' after major hiccups for most of the last few years. A review meeting scheduled for next week will take stock of progress, a monthly affair that involves persons from the French DGA, DCNS and French industry.

DCNS, currently committed through an MoU with DRDO to help facilitate the integration of the latter's in-development air independent propulsion system has expressed anxiety about the absence of an official 'Plan B' in case the DRDO project doesn't deliver a workable AIP module for the final two submarines in the license build. DCNS, which has for long tried to convince the Indian Navy to commit to the French MESMA (Module d’Energie Sous-Marine Autonome) AIP system, it now plans to formally suggest to the Indian Navy that they 'formalise' this Plan-B on paper. The MESMA being proposed, sources at DCNS tell me, will be a second generation system where the steam generator involved will be replaced with fuel cell technology.

Officials at DCNS have also suggested that the DRDO system, being developed by the Naval Materials Research Laboratory in Mumbai, is unlikely to meet timelines given that it will need to be ready (developed fully and then tested in dock, at sea and at depth after integration with the submarine) before 2015 -- a "difficult proposition", according to one official. DRDO officials contest this, and insist that the programme is on track and will meet timelines. DCNS plans to recommend to the Indian Navy that the Plan-B be invoked if the DRDO doesn't meet a specified timeline (beyond which, delays would impact the submarine build itself) on the indigenous AIP. It also plans to suggest that the DRDO AIP then be retrofitted on the first four submarines, if the Indian Navy wants that.

Livefist: France Offers 2 Quick Scorpenes, DCNS 'Worried' About DRDO's AIP

I already told you that DCNS will going to do that for IN....

 

[[Bregs]]

Seeing the declining numbers of submarines fleet, India must grab this offer and add these twp scorpenes directly from french

 

[he-man]

yup

good thinking

 

[JohnyD]

Perhaps we can take them on lease to fill the gap..but we should not buy any more standard platform diesel subs...we must build them locally...all new aquisitions must have either AIP or Nuke Reactor..