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SRI LANKA
Ananda Caldera, Director Manufacturing, Associated Motorways (Private) Limited (AMW)
AMW to Revive Kandy Unit
for all-round expansion at its mother plant in Kalutara. The plant also houses a custom mixing department. AMW started custom mixing in 1992 and supplying compounds to the solid waste tyre industry including Loadstar Pvt Ltd. The company has hiked the capacity of its custom mixing unit recently as part of the group's expansion plans. “We have raised the capacity from 1,750 tonnes to 2,500 tonnes per month to meet increasing demand,” claimed Ananda. AMW also exports compound to Continental of Germany and to some Indian companies.
It is interesting to point out that AMW is investing a lot of money into increasing tyre making capacity. The company has invested 60 million Sri Lankan Rupees for the expansion of its 2- 3 wheeler pneumatic tyre capacity to cater for the domestic and export markets. “The expansion has just been completed. The 3 wheeler tyres will be manufactured for duty free export to the Indian market under the Indo-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement (FTA),” Ananda explained.
The two wheeler tyres would be a licensed production for Indian tyre major Ceat. AMW invested about 15 million Sri Lankan Rupees to build the capacity. "We could also hike production of two wheeler tyres by almost 50 per cent," added Ananda.
AMW has also finalised an investment of 350 million Sri Lankan Rupees to set up a line for manufacturing 100,000 motorcycle tyres. "This is a 100 per cent export oriented project. The motorcycle tyres are shipped to India under the FTA. The shipment will commence in January 2012,’ Ananda said. AMW was founded by Sir Cyril de Zoysa (1896 to 1978), a dominant figure in the commercial scene for over 30 years, commencing in the late forties, when Associated Motorways PLC was established in 1949. He conceived the idea of tyre rebuilding and the manufacture of rubber goods. The thought that was uppermost in his mind was that Sri Lanka's natural rubber should not merely be exported and imported back into the country in various forms
but instead he felt that the maximum use should be made of this raw material through indigenous manufacture. Zoysa formed a group of industries and the Associated Motorways Group of Companies soon came into existence: Associated Rubber Industries Limited became a pioneer bicycle tyre manufacturer: The company was also the first (and only) giant off- the-road tyre rebuilder: Associated Batteries Company Limited began the manufacture of "Yuasa" Automotive Batteries and Associated Cables Limited was a pioneer cable manufacturer - this Company is now functioning as an independent entity. The Associated Electrical Corporation Limited started the manufacture of the Sisil Refrigerator. Today, AMW has dealerships of international brands like Nissan, Maruti, Yamaha, Renault, Piaggio, Eicher, Gizmo, Goodyear, BP and Castrol. Foreign collaboration in industry had been unknown in this country until the Associated Motorways Group introduced this concept. The Inoue Rubber Co. Ltd. of Japan participated in the production of Lotus Brand bicycle tyres and tubes. Vacu-Lug Co. Ltd. of England helped to rebuild tractor and other heavy duty earthmover tyres while the Yuasa Battery Co. Ltd. of Japan joined hands for the manufacture of automotive batteries.
Richard Pieris Opens Fifth Plant in North Colombo
Sri Lanka’s biggest conglomerate Richard Pieris has further consolidated its number one position by opening its fifth retreading plant in Colombo. The group has just started production at the new plant. The new unit is located in the Gampaha district in the Western Province in the North of Colombo. “The new unit has the capacity to retread 5,000- 6,000 tyres per month and it will cater for the Colombo market,” said Mr Pradeep Samarathunga, General Manager, (Tyre Sector – Retreading Business), Richard
The Sri Lankan retreading industry is expanding, with the market leaders either reviving their closed facilities or setting up new plants to further strengthen as well as consolidate their market share. Kalutara based Associated Motorways (Private) Limited based at Kalutara, about 50 kms from the capital Colombo, has various retreading, tread making, compound mixing and tyre making units lined-up in a vast complex. The second largest retreading company is in the midst of reviving its Gambala unit in Kandy. “We are likely to commence production at the third plant by December 2011,” said Ananda Caldera, Director Manufacturing, Associated Motorways (Private) Limited (AMW). The facility was closed previously and AMW is reviving it to consolidate its position in the Sri Lankan market. “The Kandy unit will cater to the local market as well as help us to increase our market share in the domestic retreading industry,” said Caldera, the most visible face of the Sri Lankan retreading industry, regularly representing the industry at the Indian Rubber Show.
Currently, AMW retreads between 16,000 and 18,000 tyres in a month at two plants – the mother plant at Kalutara and another in the North Central
region at Anuradhapura. AMW was set up in 1950 and is regarded one of the oldest OTR retread companies in Sri Lanka. “We used to do OTR in the eighties as a franchisee of the UK based Vacu-lug Tyres. We used to do up to rim size 35inch by the Vacu-lug process,” Ananda recalled. Currently, the company retreads around 350 – 400 OTR tyres per month.
AMW plans to retread 3,000 tyres per month at the Kandy plant. The production is likely to be raised to 5,000 tyres by the end of 2012. “We are planning to raise production to around 20,000 tyres per month from all three AMW plants,” he emphasized. AMW also manufactures tread at the mother plant at Kalutara. "We manufacture around 150 tonnes per month and it could be raised to 250 tonnes a month depending upon the requirement. We have enough capacity to cater for the increase at the Kandy plant," Ananda stressed. Besides catering to the group unit in Kalutara and Anuradhapura, it also sells a small quantity in the open market domestically. “We also export some part of our production to the markets of Bangladesh and Jordan,” Ananda revealed.
Meanwhile, the company has chalked out an ambitious plan
30 Retreading Business