§1What this business is
Every room circuit in a building needs a switch board that holds the switches, sockets, fuses or MCBs. This small workshop takes plywood, acrylic or PVC boards and enclosures, marks them to the wiring layout, and cuts, drills and grinds the slots for each switch and socket. The electrician then fits the bought-out switches and wires the board. The profile treats the unit as a service: it charges ₹20 for each switch slot, and a board has 4 to 12 slots, so the average bill is ₹120 a board. It needs one owner-operator and a helper.
Capacity: 25 switch boards a day, 25 days a month — 7,500 boards a year, giving ₹9.00 L at ₹120 a board. The cover page of the profile prints 750, but its working uses 7,500.
§2Is it right for you?
Who it is for
An electrician or carpenter in a market town who wants a small workshop of their own.
Who it is not for
Someone who wants a business that can grow large without adding products.
Advantages
- Very small investment of about ₹2.6 lakh
- No stock of switches or boards to hold
- Every new house and shop wiring job needs boards
- The owner draws a salary as well as the profit
Drawbacks
- Income is capped by how many boards two people can cut
- Break-even is close to full capacity
- Modular plates and ready-made boxes reduce cutting work
- Any carpenter with a jigsaw is a competitor
Skills you need
- Reading a wiring layout
- Accurate marking, cutting and drilling
- Safe use of cutters and grinders
- Dealing with electricians and contractors
Why difficulty 1/5: Few machines and a simple job, though the income is small.
§3Market
Who buys
- Electricians and wiring contractors
- Builders and house owners
- Electrical shops that sell fitted boards
How it sells
- Walk-in job work at the workshop
- Regular work from electrical contractors and shops
Good to know
- The profile charges ₹20 per switch slot, an average of ₹120 a board.
- Its cover page prints a capacity of 750 boards a year while the calculation uses 7,500.
§4Raw material & machinery
| Item | Qty | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Bench drilling machine, 20 mm | 1 | ₹15,500 |
| Table grinding machine, 200 mm | 1 | ₹1,20,000 |
| Hand grinding machine | 1 | ₹3,500 |
| Cutting machine for plywood and PVC | 1 | ₹32,000 |
| Bench vice and table | 1 | ₹5,000 |
| Hand tools | — | ₹2,000 |
| Office table with 3 chairs and an almirah | — | ₹20,000 |
From: MSME-DI Chennai project profile — Switch Boxes (2020)
- Cutting tools (consumables)₹2,000 a month; boards are supplied by the customer
From: MSME-DI Chennai project profile — Switch Boxes (2020)
§5Licences & registration
- Udyam registration
- Shop and establishment registration
- Trade licence from the local body
- GST registration once turnover crosses the limit
Start it in your state
Pick your state: today’s cost, central + state subsidy, raw material, land and help, on one page.
§6Schemes & subsidies
A ₹2.60 lakh service unit fits a MUDRA loan and is well within the PMEGP ceiling of ₹20 lakh for services.
§7Money
How the investment is worked out: Fixed capital ₹2.08 L (machines ₹1.76 L, hand tools ₹0.02 L, furniture ₹0.20 L, electrification ₹0.05 L, pre-operative ₹0.05 L; building rented) + working capital for 1 month ₹0.524 L = ₹2.604 L.
Working capital: One month of running cost, ₹52,400. The profile says one month is enough because this is a service unit; customers bring the boards.
Prices from 2020 — check current machine prices and local cutting rates.
§8Export potential
A local job-work service; there is no export in this business.
§9Risks — where people fail
- Too few orders to cover rent and wages
- Hand and eye injuries from cutting tools
- Spoiling a customer's board with a wrong cut
- Local rates falling below ₹20 a slot
§1030 / 60 / 90-day plan
A general plan that applies to any business. A plan for this business will be added after research.
- Days 1–30: Visit a working switch board cutting and fabrication (job work) unit, ask 10 buyers about price and quantity, and get quotations from 3 suppliers.
- Days 31–60: Udyam and the licences you need (Udyam registration, Shop and establishment registration), a project report (DPR), and the scheme or loan file.
- Days 61–90: Space and machines, trial production, and first deliveries to 10 customers.
§11Who to connect with
§12Watch
There is no episode on this business yet. Shows are coming soon on the Podcast page.
Want to start Switch Board Cutting and Fabrication (Job Work)?
DPR, loan file or registration — ask us on WhatsApp.
¶Sources
Data review: 6 October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Report it. For information only — not legal or financial advice.