Page 48 - RB-72-15-1

INDIA RUBBER EXPO
Neel Muthana of TVS Tread (centre)
M Ramesh Reddy (middle), Chairman, K V Sanna, Director (Operation) & J S Chadha, GM (Marketing North India)
Tolins stand
Vamshi to Triple Tread Production
Hyderabad based Vamshi Rubber Limited is gearing up to expand its tread making capacity. Currently, the Vamshi plant produces 400 tonnes per month and it plans to almost triple the capacity this year. “We are adding 700-800 tones capacity to
time,” Reddy believes.
In order to give the required push to the export effort, Vamshi is participating at overseas Expos also. “We are participating at the Singapore Tyre Expo and also planning to visit European and American shows to
bring total production capacity to 1,200 tonnes by the end of 2013,” informed M Ramesh Reddy, Chairman, Vamshi Rubber Limited at the India Rubber Expo 2015 at New Delhi. The firm is investing around INR 30-40 crore (about US$ 5 – 6.5 million) in expanding the capacity. Interestingly, Vamshi has recently started manufacturing precure tread for OTR tyres. “We started making precure tread last month for sizes 14/25, 18/25 & 18/35,” Reddy confided.
The company plans to enter the overseas market in a major way, having already exported to the markets of Africa and Middle East in recent years. “We are now planning to open the European market and have appointed a new team to give major thrust to the export efforts in Europe,” he said.
Vamshi ships on an average one container every month and says it is looking for Dollar stability due to the weakening Rupee, with the fluctuating Dollar affecting export shipments. “With the new government already in power in Delhi, the greenback will likely stabilise again in due course of
boost export business,” Reddy stated. Despite the overall slowdown in the market, the company is going ahead with its expansion plans with hopes of improving conditions in the near future. “The market is slow and growth has not been there for the last 2-3 months. Sales are almost stagnant, although have managed to maintain our sales levels,” Reddy stated. The company hopes the situation will improve by the beginning of next year.
The industry also feels that the new government should lower excise and interest rates to boost the overall business scenario in the country. “The new government has to take steps to bring a positive mood in the market,” Reddy believes.
Vamshi has also called for improving retreading standards in the country with the entry of international auto and tyre brands. “The government is allowing all kinds of foreign brands into the country in the automobile and tyre sectors but not doing anything to improve retreading standards in the industry as there are no BIS like standards in the Indian retreading industry,” he stressed.
markets,” said Muthana. The company says it will commence exports on a regular basis to some of the identified markets by the third quarter of 2015-16 fiscal.
The company’s main target markets are in the Middle East and Africa. “We are a big group with a wide range of interests and we already have a sizeable presence in these markets,” he stated. TVS Tread has exported to the Middle East and Australia in the past.
The company also has 21 retreading plants in the Southern part of India, retreading over 45,000 tyres per month. “The tread manufactured by us is for consumption by our retreading factories,” said Muthana.
It is interesting to note that TVS Tread also has a joint venture with Michelin to retread tyres by the Recamic process at the company’s own retreading plants. 12 of the 21 retreading plants owned by TVS are
already Michelin certified. “We offer a joint retread platform with Michelin,” clarified Muthana. “Our idea is to consolidate in the domestic market first and get Michelin certification for all plants before jumping into any kind of expansion.”
TVS Tread is a 75 year old company, regarded as a pioneer of retreading in India. It opened its first retreading plant way back in 1943 for retreading tyres for the Indian Army during the Second World War.
Explaining the running of the joint TVS and Michelin processes from the same retread outlet, Muthana said, “Our brand is not at any disadvantage as both the brands have inherent strengths in the market. Michelin operates in the super premium brand segment and we are also in the premium segment. Therefore, our retread shops offers premium as well as super premium brands.”
Tolins: Focus on Northern India – Dubai Expansion Planned
Due to the ongoing recession in the international market Tolins has shifted its focus onto the domestic market. The Cochin based tyre and tread maker believes that India still has lot of potential yet to be tapped as there are markets inside the country where the company’s product has low
visibility.
The South Indian company says it is now focusing on untapped markets in the North Indian belt such as Delhi, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Haryana. “In the past we have focussed predominantly on the Southern part of the country, but now
TVS Tread to Expand Capacity and Exports
Chennai based TVS Tread, part of Sundaram Industries Ltd, has finally got the green light to increase its tread making capacity and expand in the overseas market. “Our management has decided to increase tread production to 1,000 tonnes per month by 2017-18,” informed Neel
Muthana of TVS Tread. Currently, the company is manufacturing around 800 tonnes per month of precured tread, camelback and repair patches. The company also plans to give a boost to its exports and has identified several target markets. “We are targeting emerging and developing
48 Retreading Business