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INDIA
Supertreads Awaiting
New Government Projects
to handle specialised projects, we have created our own market and people come to us,” stated Sood. Supertreads is positive about the future of retreading with bigger global players entering into the Indian
market. “These global companies know that the market for quality products is maturing here in India and it is the right time to make a space for their products,” Sood thinks.
to Kick-Start
About 350 km from Delhi on the way to picturesque Shimla, the capital of the Northern Indian State of Himachal Pradesh, Treadsdirect organised a visit to one of their top franchisees in the state. “We have two units in the states, one situated at a place called Taradevi about 7 km from Shimla set up in end 1990 and second about 56 km from Shimla at a location called Darla Ghat started in 1996,” informed dynamic Sanjay Sood, MD, Supertreads.
The Shimla plant retreads 550 tyres in a month and Darla Ghat unit 300 tyres every month. Industrial houses Jaypee and Ambuja have two cement plants at Darla Ghat and both are clients of the company. Jaypee also owned a hydro electric plant at Darla Ghat earlier but recently sold to Reliance Industries.
Himachal Pradesh is a hilly state and it has four major industries – hydroelectric power generation, mineral based industries, horticulture and tourism. The retreading firm is upbeat about new hydroelectric projects coming shortly in various parts of the state.
In the past dams were made to produce hydroelectricity but now tunnels are made to flow water at high speed to produce hydroelectricity. “Making tunnels in the hills involves mining and lots of truck movement. Moreover, the state government is also expanding highways and all that means good business for the retreading sector in the years to come,” explained Sood.
The government has also announced the construction of four lane highways in various parts of the state, and infrastructure developments also bring lots of business to the retreading industry. “Making tunnels and the expansion of highways involves muck deposits which would only be cleared by trucks, which is good for our retreading business,” said Sood.
The firm has many firsts to its credit. It opened the first retreading unit in the northern part of the state in Shimla and Kinnaur region, was the first to start radial tyre retreading and the first to sell radial tyres in the region. It is also the first to retread mini OTR tyres ranging from 12/24, 13/24, 14/24 and 14/25 by the precure process in the northern part of Himachal Pradesh.
Currently, there is a lull in the business as earlier hydroelectric projects are now over and few more are in the pipeline. “Once the new projects announced recently start, the growth will be 100 per cent. Around 1,000 trucks are required in the project and peak time would start,” Sood stated. The project is likely to kick-start sometime in 2015. The Shimla plant retreads truck tyres and has two autoclaves of two tyres each,
while the Darla Ghat unit retreads truck as well mini OTRs and has one two-tyre and one five-tyre chamber. Supertreads also sells new tyres from Apollo, JK, Michelin and Bridgestone, etc. as an extension of business to offer new tyres as well as retreading at the same point. “We cater to niche markets and do not compromise the quality at any point. Some of customers have been with us for 15 years,” said Sood. Despite competition from low cost retreading units, Supertread thinks they do not pose any threat. “Darla Ghat has around 30 small and fringe players, but they don’t have the capacity and expertise
Sanjay Sood, MD, Supertreads