Sandvik Coromant India and its authorised distributor V&M Toolings brought together customers, resellers and manufacturing leaders from across Kolhapur at Hotel Sayaji Kolhapur on 8th September 2026, for an evening themed Shaping the Future of Manufacturing Together. Positioned as a top management programme, it drew owners and senior management from established Kolhapur businesses alongside the next generation of entrepreneurs now steering them.
The region’s shop floors are seeing steady investment across automotive, aerospace, and oil and gas work, and the evening was built around that growth and what it means for tooling and productivity choices going forward.
Vitthal Pol, Director of V&M Toolings, opened his remarks by tracing the relationship back to 1999, when his company first took on the Sandvik distributorship for the region. Pol described how the partnership grew alongside the industry it served, with V&M Toolings building its own capabilities as customer requirements became more complex. He said the idea behind the evening was straightforward: take the message of what Sandvik Coromant can deliver directly to the top management of Kolhapur’s manufacturing companies, and open a conversation on supporting their growth in a sustainable and profitable way.
The technical programme brought four Sandvik Coromant speakers to the floor, each covering a different layer of the customer relationship. Sunil Joshi, President of Sandvik Coromant India, opened with Shaping the Future of Manufacturing, placing the growth of Indian manufacturing within the wider global picture and outlining where the company sees the region heading. Jagadish Patil, General Manager, Asia, followed with how engineering project support is applied to production requirements on the shop floor. Ravindra Londhe, Product Specialist, India, presented Innovative Product Solutions, taking attendees through the tooling developments aimed at the machining challenges manufacturers face today. Hrishikesh Kale, General Manager, Sales Central Region, closed the series with the Sandvik Coromant Service Offer, covering the support the company extends to customers beyond the tool itself.
The showcase area centred on the CoroPlus Tool Supply vending machine, which was demonstrated live to attendees. The system tracks and dispenses inserts and other carbide tools, and gave visitors a direct look at how inventory monitoring can work on their own shop floors. For several attendees, that demonstration was the point where the digital conversation became practical.
Customer feedback described a programme that went beyond a product showcase. Attendees saw Sandvik Coromant stepping past its role as a tool and tooling supplier towards a partnership with component manufacturers, and valued the view of the global scenario shared through the evening after two to three demanding years for the industry. The discussions on innovation, customer partnership and the recycling of used tools were called an eye-opener, and the range of AI-enabled technology presented under one roof was received well. The manufacture of Coromant drills and tool holders in Pune added to that confidence, with customers seeing considerable scope in the local base. Those with a longer association, close to five years in some cases, pointed to the holistic approach of the team and the discussion on where the industry is heading. With machining criticalities on the rise, customers felt that the right tools and solutions from Sandvik Coromant would help them meet what comes next, and described the evening as a new beginning for the company as it moves into 2026 and 2027.
The evening moved into an open floor, with attendees putting questions to the visiting Sandvik Coromant team on productivity, tool life and how the newer solutions could fit into their own operations. Pol called the outcome encouraging, adding that gatherings of this kind are exactly what Shaping the Future of Manufacturing Together is meant to describe.
The programme ended with networking and dinner. For V&M Toolings, which has been Sandvik Coromant’s distributor in Kolhapur since 1999, and for the manufacturers in the room, the evening showed what working together looks like in practice: Sandvik Coromant, its distributor and their customers planning the next stage of Kolhapur’s growth side by side.
