§1What this business is
A wheelchair is an assistive device for people who have difficulty walking. In this unit mild steel pipes are cut and bent on CNC bending machines, welded into frames with CO2 and TIG welding, and then fitted with bought-out wheels, rexine seat and back, and fasteners. Each chair is assembled, tested and packed. All raw materials are available in India. The profile was written in June 2020 and plans a large unit making 36,000 wheelchairs a year on two shifts, with most of the money going into materials.
Capacity: 36,000 wheelchairs a year; two shifts (16 hours a day), 300 days, at 80% efficiency.
§2Is it right for you?
Who it is for
A tubular furniture or hospital furniture maker ready to scale up with CNC bending.
Who it is not for
A first-time founder with limited bank limits for raw material.
Advantages
- Hospitals, old-age homes and disability schemes need wheelchairs every year
- All parts and materials are made in India
- The process is non-polluting
- The same bending and welding line can make walkers, commode chairs and stretchers
Drawbacks
- Thin margin of 5.93% on sales
- Working capital is five times the fixed capital
- Two CNC bending machines cost ₹85 lakh
- Government and hospital buyers pay slowly
Skills you need
- CNC pipe bending and programming
- CO2 and TIG welding
- Assembly, fitting and load testing
- Tender and institutional selling
Why difficulty 3/5: Simple fabrication, but a large volume and heavy working capital to manage.
§3Market
Who buys
- Hospitals and nursing homes
- Government disability and health schemes
- NGOs and charitable trusts
- Surgical and medical equipment dealers
How it sells
- Tenders and rate contracts
- Surgical goods distributors and retailers
- Direct supply to hospitals
Good to know
- The profile prices a wheelchair at ₹6,500.
- The raw material quantities above are copied from the profile as printed.
§4Raw material & machinery
| Item | Qty | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| CNC bending machine | 1 | ₹40,00,000 |
| CNC pipe bending machine | 1 | ₹45,00,000 |
| CO2 welding machine | 1 | ₹1,10,000 |
| TIG welding machine | 1 | ₹1,50,000 |
| Office equipment and furniture | — | ₹1,00,000 |
From: MSME-DI Chennai project profile — Wheel Chair (2020)
- Mild steel pipes90 tonnes a month at ₹52,000 a tonne = ₹46,80,000
- Wheels6,000 sets a month at ₹300 a set = ₹18,00,000
- Rexine sheet90,000 sq m a month at ₹110 a sq m = ₹99,00,000
- Fasteners12 bundles a month at ₹33,000 a bundle = ₹3,96,000
- Welding rod900 kg a month at ₹375 a kg = ₹3,37,500
- Packaging material2 tonnes a month at ₹50,000 a tonne = ₹1,00,000
From: MSME-DI Chennai project profile — Wheel Chair (2020)
§5Licences & registration
- Udyam registration
- GST registration
- Factory licence
- Medical device registration or licence under the Medical Devices Rules (check the current class for wheelchairs with CDSCO)
- Trade licence from the local body
Start it in your state
Pick your state: today’s cost, central + state subsidy, raw material, land and help, on one page.
§6Schemes & subsidies
At ₹6.30 crore the project is far above the PMEGP ceiling of ₹50 lakh for manufacturing. CGTMSE can cover a bank loan without collateral, up to ₹10 crore.
§7Money
How the investment is worked out: Fixed capital ₹102.19 L (machinery and equipment ₹92.90 L, pre-operative ₹9.29 L; premises rented) + working capital for 3 months ₹528.23 L = ₹630.42 L.
Working capital: Monthly recurring cost ₹176.08 L, of which ₹172.14 L is raw material (rexine sheet ₹99.00 L, MS pipes ₹46.80 L, wheels ₹18.00 L). The profile takes 3 months: ₹528.23 L.
Prices from 2020 — check current steel, rexine and machine prices.
§8Export potential
Confirm the HS code in the DGFT ITC(HS) lookup before you export
Export council / board: EEPC India
- The profile does not discuss exports.
§9Risks — where people fail
- Steel and rexine prices rising inside a fixed-price tender
- A weld failure injuring a user
- Cheaper imported wheelchairs
- Large payments stuck with government buyers
§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 wheelchair manufacturing 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, GST 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 Wheelchair Manufacturing?
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.