Indian Engineer, Global Entrepreneur
It is enterprising men like Canada based Paul Ghotra who truly make the Indian diaspora the high-powered community that it is. Born in Chandigarh, India, Paul is a leading global figure in the energy manufacturing industry today.
An engineer par excellence, Paul credits his skill to his late father. His father had a strong desire to educate him so that one day, Paul would lead the engineering world. Unfortunately, Paul’s father passed away while he was still very young. Since then, he has made it his life’s mission to pursue this career as an ode to his father’s love of engineering.
Paul received training in manufacturing engineering, precision mechanics and instrumentation from one of the best technical institutes in India. In 1988, he relocated to Canada and began his career at one of the top high-tech firms in British Columbia. In his 15 years there, the company grew from 10 to 5000 employees, providing invaluable expertise to young Paul.
By the time the new millennium rolled in, the world had begun to take note of climate change and clean energy. At this point, one of the major obstacles standing in the way of a breakthrough in fuel cell technology was its relatively high cost compared to well established fossil-based technologies.
Paul, who by now had championed the use of renewable energy, hydrogen, and fuel cell, stood up to the challenge and founded his global pioneering company in 2006 – CIMtech Mfg., a Canada based Hydrogen fuel cell and electrolyzer manufacturer with supply chain and multi-plant facilities in North America and Asia.
CIMtech’s vision is to accelerate green energy products for the greater good. And the only fuel that has the ability to globally decarbonize the economy is hydrogen. Hydrogen fuel cells are thus gaining support and investment as a potential alternative to electric batteries.
When Paul started CIMtech more than two decades ago, he was also instrumental in educating engineers in high-tech companies on – Design for Manufacturing. The objective was to design economically. Because cost is driven by time, the design must minimize not only the time required to manufacture, but also to optimize development time to reduce time to market. Paul became a pioneer of such high-tech, low-cost manufacturing.
“Countries around the world are setting net zero targets and accelerating the move towards clean energy alternatives in vehicles and equipment. We are proud to be supporting these targets, and this expansion and investment in new, advanced equipment will allow us to continue being a key global supply chain player in this space,” says Paul.
A highly valued global partner, CIMtech manufactured fuel-cells and assemblies are utilized by international players such as Walmart, Amazon and Home Depot for their hydrogen powered forklift equipment. CIMtech components are also utilized in hydrogen fuel-cell powered electric vehicles such as HYVIA delivery vans in Europe (Renault Group), FedEx airport tuggers at Albany International Airport in New York, and hydrogen-fuel cell electric vehicles.
With a successful track record of leading projects from prototyping to global production, CIMtech’s revenue grew 50% year over year, for the last few years. It enjoyed exponential business growth even during the pandemic. Recently, they doubled their footprint in Vancouver, Canada, through an acquisition of a 10,000 sq. ft. advanced manufacturing facility. This will increase their operational capabilities by 200%.
“Our key focus is developing products which enhance people’s lifestyle, with commitment to quality, constant innovation, and respect for the planet. In the long run, fuel cell technology can cause a profound change in quality of life on a global scale,” feels Paul.
Empathetic as well as energising, Paul is as respectful towards his employees as he is towards the planet. Fully committed to supporting a work-life balance for himself and his employees, he feels it encourages a loyal and productive workforce, which in turn becomes a huge asset.
Personally, he is of the opinion that mindfulness exercises, meditation, and spending time with friends are healthy habits essential in today’s fast paced lifestyle. He feels family activities, physical or virtual, fill our soul with deep connections and improve all our relationships.
With a cross continental journey spanning three decades, Paul has proven himself a global leader with a heart of gold. In addition to adulation from the industry, Paul has also received innumerous honours for his exceptional entrepreneurship: Indian Achievers Award 2022 for Business Leadership; Canada’s 10 Best Manufacturing Companies 2021;
30 Innovative Brands of the Year 2022; 10 Smartest Companies to Watch in 2022 (The Chief’s Digest), etc.
