India’s manufacturing ambition is no longer limited to producing more. The bigger challenge is producing goods that can compete for attention, trust and value in global markets.

That distinction matters for India’s micro, small and medium enterprises. According to the Economic Survey 2025–26, MSMEs contribute 35.4% of India’s manufacturing output and 48.58% of exports. As Indian manufacturers become more deeply integrated into global supply chains, product quality is increasingly judged not only by what a product does, but by how consistently it is finished and delivered.

For Suyash Singhal, Director of Surface Paints Pvt. Ltd., this is where an overlooked manufacturing conversation begins.

The Surface Is Part of the Product

A well-engineered product can still create a weak first impression.

Uneven texture, inconsistent colour, visible coating defects or a finish that looks cheaper than the product’s build quality can influence how a buyer perceives the entire item. For an MSME competing against an established international brand, that perception gap can become commercially expensive.

Singhal’s work in industrial coatings has led him to frame surface finish not simply as an aesthetic issue, but as part of manufacturing performance.

Lucknow-based Surface Paints Pvt. Ltd. manufactures powder coatings, wood coatings, industrial coatings and surfacers. Its stated approach centres on customised development, technical responsiveness, testing and commercially practical coating solutions.

A coating sits at the final visible layer of a much larger manufacturing system. Its outcome can depend on substrate preparation, pretreatment, application, curing and process discipline. Focusing only on the material being applied can therefore miss the real source of a finishing problem.

From ‘Made in India’ to ‘Made for the World’

The shift is becoming more important as India pushes MSMEs toward global competitiveness. Government initiatives in 2026 have placed greater emphasis on manufacturing capacity, technology adoption, productivity and export readiness.

Yet export competitiveness is not created by capacity alone.

International buyers expect repeatability. The finish approved on a sample has to remain dependable across batches. Colour, texture, protection and overall appearance need to support the same product promise repeatedly.

For smaller manufacturers, this can matter even more because they may not have the brand recognition that gives a larger company the benefit of the doubt. The product often has to establish credibility before the company behind it does.

This is the territory Singhal describes through his positioning as “The MSME Finish Advocate”: helping Indian manufacturers improve the look, life and market value of what they make, while keeping solutions practical for real MSME production environments.

Beyond Price Per Kilogram

One obstacle is the way industrial coatings are frequently evaluated.

Procurement naturally focuses on input cost, but the lowest price per kilogram does not automatically produce the lowest cost per accepted finished component. Coverage, rejection, rework, line performance, batch variation and complaints can change the economics considerably.

Singhal advocates looking at the finished-component outcome rather than isolating coating price from the production process.

His perspective comes from having worked across sales, production, dispatch, accounts and deliveries while rebuilding the family business.

“I have seen business from the drawing room and from the delivery vehicle. That is why I never judge a coating only in a laboratory—or a customer only by the size of his order,” Singhal says.

The point is practical: smaller manufacturers do not necessarily need the most expensive material or a specification copied from a multinational company. They need the right coating and process for their substrate, application conditions, end use and customer expectation.

The Next Phase of Indian Manufacturing

For MSMEs seeking stronger export opportunities, product finish cannot compensate for weak engineering, poor quality systems or inadequate compliance. But when the underlying product is strong, an inconsistent finish can prevent that strength from being fully perceived.

That is the opportunity Suyash Singhal wants manufacturers to recognise.

“Made in India” establishes where a product comes from. Increasingly, Indian manufacturers must also ensure that when the product reaches a buyer anywhere in the world, its finish, consistency and presentation communicate the standard they want the market to associate with Indian manufacturing.