New Holland Tractors India, the 100 per cent subsidiary of the UK-based New Holland NV, plans to introduce its farm implements into the Indian market through local manufacturers mainly to supplement its Ford tractor sales scheduled for launch in April-May 1998.
The company also intends to introduce in the next 3 years New Holland's manufacturing and construction products such as backhoe loaders, skid-steer loaders, excavators, wheel and crawler loaders, dozers, graders and scrapers.
"The new generation 75 horsepower Ford tractor of New Holland will be initially launched in North Indian and Maharashtra and later to other parts of Maharashtra," said Palani Kumar, managing director of New Holland Tractors India.
More From This Section
The company is investing Rs 175 crore as part of its first phase production of tractors at Greater Noida in Utter Pradesh.
The farm implements will be introduced through the supply of designs and know-how to the existing small scale industries.
The company has already tied up with eight SSI firms for the manufacture of farm implements. The entire production and marketing responsibility of the farm implements will be taken up by the small units.
The company plans to price its 75 HP tractor at around Rs six lakh each and will be at a premium of up to 10 per cent as against the competition. New Holland plans to manufacture 18,000 tractors per annum in the first phase and the output will be gradually hiked to 35,000 units in the fifth year.
Kumar said the company hopes to ride on the fast growing high range tractor segment and also eat into the competitors market share to sustain a high sales growth rate.
Last year, the tractor market in the country grew by 17 per cent.
Out of the 2.21 lakh tractors sold last year, 21 per cent of the sales came from the large horsepower range where New Holland plans to focus. Besides the 75 HP tractor, New Holland plans to launch two new models of 55 HP and 35 HP within the next two years.
Although the company plans to sell its tractors initially through the CKD imported units, by the year-end it hopes to indigenise its product to the extent of 50 per cent.
The company has targeted to indigenise its tractor manufacturing at a level of 90 per cent within two years time.
To meet the large components requirement, the company has already finalised 150 vendors for the supply of components and sub-assemblies.
The tractor project of the company will provide direct employment to over 1,200 skilled workers besides another five-fold indirect employment will be generated through the ancillary units linked to the tractor manufacturing facility.
Jonathan Walsh, director of New Holland India announced plans to launch its balers, the machinery that helps in baling farm residue like paddy, wheat straw and sugarcane trash. These balers convert straw to easy-to-handle bales that are used as fuel and feed.