Hyderabad-based Jarsh keeps industrial workers cool with air-conditioned helmets

Jarsh Kepi 2.0 is the world’s first air-conditioned helmet for industrial use. It is built on proprietary cooling technology. The light helmet can provide both cooling and heating capabilities and runs on a rechargeable battery.

At a glance

Startup: Jarsh Innovations

Founders: Kausthub Kaundinya, Sreekanth Kommula and Anand Kumar

Year it was founded: 2016

Where it is based: Hyderabad

The problem it solves: Makes air-conditioned industrial helmets

Sector: Industrial safety

Funding: Undisclosed angel funding

Kausthub Kaundinya, Sreekanth Kommula and Anand Kumar, co-inventors and co-founders of Jarsh Innovations, started the company while still in college to help create a better work environment for industrial workers.

They sought to develop products that would help improve the working conditions of people at the bottom of the pyramid. Kausthub was educated in the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad, and Sreekanth and Anand are Mechanical Engineers with a passion for innovation. The three worked together on innovative projects in their college days, and have won various student competitions which gave them the confidence to solve real world problems.

"Jarsh was born to improve the industrial productivity. During one of my industrial visits to the TATA OEM factory, I noticed that the production manager was upset because during summers, the productivity in the factory was low and there were other production issues at the shop floor," says Kausthub.

"I was concerned and then I realised people are generally irritated during summers and that has multiple implications on the shop floor. I did a lot of research and realised that cooler head gear would solve a lot of problems. I decided to come out with an AC helmet that not only is sturdy and strong but also can help the employees keep their head cool and improve productivity," he adds.

Jarsh team with K.T. Rama Rao, the I.T. minister of Telangana

Jarsh was named after Jarvis from Iron Man, he says, and means "Just A Rather Safe Helmet".

Jarsh’s industrial helmet comes in two specifications -

Kepi 2.0 E – Premium model for senior level officials

2 Hours Battery Life

Rechargeable Battery

Unbreakable Visor

On-Board Battery

Kepi 2.0 S – Heavy Duty model for skilled workers and technicians

8 Hours Battery Life

Rechargeable Battery

Unbreakable Visor

Body Mounted Battery

"We launched in the year 2016. And today, our helmet has generated interest from the Indian Navy to Indian Railways in the government sector to Tata, DS Group, Adani group and Daikin in the private sector. Negotiations are on with at least 50 companies for pilots. In fact, the market demand is much more than what can be met. We don’t manufacture helmets for bikers; it’s in R&D stage. We are right now focused on the production and delivery of industrial helmets. We will be coming up with commercial version of the biker helmet by April 2019," adds Kausthub.

Jarsh has a manufacturing capacity of 4,000 helmets per month. The helmets are priced at Rs 7,500.

"We are getting positive response from the market. The reason for such huge demand is the productivity improvement at the factories where our helmets are deployed. We are setting up our manufacturing facility to meet demand. It’s hard to believe that even before we could commission our first production line, we realised we need bigger manufacturing facility to meet the growing demand," Kausthub says.

He adds that the company’s facility at Hyderabad with capacity to manufacture 4000 helmets per month will be in place by April. The company already has orders for the next six months.

"I don’t want to divulge much at this stage, but Jarsh being an innovation driven company, you can expect more products in industrial safety and productivity improvement domain. We are innovators by heart, and always will be. We are touched by people’s gesture and comfort when they use our product. My company will be always dedicated in improving lives of people across globe," he concludes.

An Engineer from Telangana’s premier Engineering college, Vignan Jyoti, and trained by the Indian School of Business, Kausthub loves developing products and drives the vision of the company.