After 3 consecutive years of contraction, Thermax (TMX) reported a sharp jump in order inflows (up 45% YoY) in FY18, but management guides for a cautiously optimistic outlook amid rising interest rates and the run up to the 2019 elections. Key takeaways from TMX's FY18 annual report are: a) a cautious outlook on order inflows, to be driven largely by 2 sectors: consumer-led industries (food, beverage, textiles, tyres and automobiles) and emission norm-related capex (power and oil & gas); b) expanding its manufacturing footprint through new facilities in Indonesia, Dahej and the acquisition of assets in Poland to counter cyclicality in sales; c) margin decline being restricted to 70bps in FY18 as projects' improved...