Sandeep Engineer is an Indian Entrepreneur and Industrialist based in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. He is a chemical engineer and the Founder, Chairman & Managing Director of Astral Limited, which is among India’s fastest-growing building materials companies today.
Sandeep Engineer is a first-generation entrepreneur. His professional journey started as a Project Engineer in a Pharmaceuticals company. With the passion to create a business of his own, he left his job and ventured into the distributorship and after that he ventured into manufacturing pharmaceutical remedies.
Sandeep Engineer had a special interest in Polymers right from his graduation days. After 8 years of business in pharmaceutical bulk drugs, he decided to diversify and venture into polymer processing. He established Astral Poly Technik Limited in 1996, intending to manufacture polymer-based plumbing and drainage systems. In 1998, Astral launched CPVC Piping for the first time in India. There were many struggles in the initial few years because the general acceptance of plastic piping was very low due to the prevalence of metal pipes.
Engineer took up the challenge and put serious efforts to educate and develop the market for CPVC pipes & fittings. With slow and steady acceptance in the market, Astral Pipes emerged as a leading player and maintained a commanding presence across markets with its world-class CPVC pipes and fittings. From this point onwards, Astral grew very fast and introduced many products which were instrumental in changing the landscape of the category.
In 2014, Engineer diversified Astral’s business by entering the adhesives and sealants market. Astral acquired Kanpur-based Resinova Chemie Ltd.
In 2020, Mr. Engineer established the plastic storage tanks business through the acquisition of Sarita Water Tanks, an Aurangabad-based company; and also started the production of water tanks with the brand name Astral. Under his leadership, Astral has acquired a controlling stake in Gem Paints and successfully entered the paints category.
Sandeep Engineer has completed a degree program for senior executives (OPM) at Harvard Business School.
| Year of Award | Name of Award | Awarding Organisation |
| 2012 | Enterprising Entrepreneur | Power Brands |
| 2012 | Outstanding Entrepreneur | Atlas Dychem |
| 2013 | Outstanding New Generation Entrepreneur | Indian Plastics Institutes |
| 2016 | Inspiring Business Leader India | The Economic Times |
Kairav Engineer – spearheading Astral Limited from traditional to modern realms and overseeing all-around growth!
Kairav Engineer is currently serving as the Executive Director at Astral Limited, where he holds the responsibility of overseeing multiple divisions including pipes, bathware, water tanks, and brand communications for the Astral Group. With a career spanning over a decade at Astral, Kairav joined the organization in 2011 and has since held various key positions in business development, brand management, product development, and project management.
Kairav Engineer holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering as well as a Bachelor of Science degree in Management from Georgia Tech, Atlanta-USA. This educational background has equipped him with a strong foundation in both technical and management disciplines.
Throughout his tenure, Kairav has demonstrated exceptional leadership skills and a strategic mindset. He has spearheaded successful branding campaigns, actively participated in new product research and launches, overseen investor relations, led projects, and supervised marketing research initiatives. His invaluable contributions have played a pivotal role in bolstering Astral’s brand recognition, driving the company’s growth, and ensuring its continued success.
Under Kairav’s guidance, Astral has experienced remarkable growth and consistently increased its turnover. Driven by a passion for innovation, Kairav has successfully led Astral’s diversification into new business segments and the launch of numerous innovative products. This expansion has allowed Astral to go beyond pipes and venture into multiple verticals such as water tanks, sealants-adhesives, paints, and sanity-ware and faucets. Under Kairav’s visionary leadership, Astral has transformed into a one-stop shop for consumers seeking a comprehensive range of high-quality building materials.
Kairav Engineer’s outstanding achievements have earned him well-deserved recognition, including being named one of the top 40 under 40 Asian Leaders by Asia One and being acknowledged as one of the Tycoons of Tomorrow by Forbes India.
Outside of his professional endeavors, Kairav is described as focused and futurist. He is passionate about wildlife photography and enjoys exploring diverse destinations worldwide. He is also a voracious reader and a frequent moviegoer, always seeking inspiration from various sources.
Saumya Engineer is the Chief Executive Officer for Astral’s Adhesives & Paints Businesses. He holds a Bachelor of Science (BS) in management from Arizona State University – W.P. Carey School of Business.
Immediately after completing his education in the US, Saumya joined Astral in 2014. To learn the industry dynamics, he started his career in the business development domain and since then has spent extensive time understanding the trends and factors that influence the building materials industry both from a macro and micro perspective. His persistent commitment towards building a strong foundation of adhesives business has enabled him to acquire a business leadership position at Astral.
Saumya’s entrepreneurial skills were put to test and further sharpened when he led the integration of Resinova Chemie Limited with Astral Group. Many problems that arose during the acquisition were successfully overcome and today Astral Adhesives boasts of becoming one of the leading players in the Indian adhesives category.
A millennial leader, Saumya recognizes the value people bring to the company. He has been instrumental in building a high performing team of employees to whom he leads, grooms, motivates and empowers by giving them autonomy and providing a collaborative and flexible environment that drives business growth. Millennials are the largest generation in today’s workforce and he is one of them who has the natural flair for managing this generation successfully.
Saumya’s biggest achievement is that he has successfully transformed the company from a traditional sales-driven organization to a market & people-centric organization which has put Astral Adhesives on a fast growth trajectory. With his sharp business acumen and people-centric approach, Saumya Engineer is ready to take Astral to new heights.
