The Directorate of Entrepreneurship and Innovation is organising its first start-up visit to Fopple Drone Tech Pvt Ltd, a revolutionary agricultural machinery manufacturer in Andhra Pradesh. The programme is scheduled on September 20, 2022, under the leadership of the student community – Industree Owl. The visit will be flagged off by the honourable registrar Dr R Premkumar.
Industrial visit is an integral component of the active learning pedagogy offering students practical exposure in their field of studies. Observing the working culture of an industry from close quarters will help students keep abreast of the latest technologies, corporate strategies, and current trends, being followed in leading companies.
Fopple Drone Technologies, founded by Mr Ambula Gopi Raja, gave rise to the nation’s first agriculture drone. These drones spray fertilizers in a perfect manner as designed by the innovator. They can cover up to fifty acres of land in a single day. With a smaller number of farming labour available in the rural areas, such innovative accessories play a vital role in the sustenance of this dwindling tribe of farmers. In addition, they also save time and spray uniformly unlike humans. The business model of this start-up is unique.
The Directorate of Entrepreneurship and Innovation spares no effort in connecting students with industrial networks. Industrial visits are excellent opportunities to interact with business professionals and experts that may help them in building necessary leadership qualities and management skills.
Industree Owl is one of the student communities operating as part of the Home of Leaders, managed by the Entrepreneurship directorate. The community works with corporates and provides a platform to check the industry readiness of students via events like competitions, conferences, and hackathons. The tentative outcomes of the scheduled industrial visit are as follows.
- Practical exposure to a startup and the challenges – narration from the founder.
- Meeting the founder, his team and learning more about the assembling unit and the research lab.
- Experience the latest drone technology and the various applications in the industry.
- Opportunity to start a Drone Centre of Excellence at SRMAP
- Experience the real customers and the scope of the technology in India in the next 3-5 years
- Meeting the farmers on the field and understanding the true meaning of a “problem statement”.
- Design a solution and inspiration to start a project/ venture in the same domain.