JCB India eyeing 25% increase in sales

The 'construction' boom in India has given a further uplift to JCB India, a leading construction and earthmoving equipment manufacturing company, which is aiming to increasing sales turnover by 25 per cent for the next few years.

In 2005, the company witnessed a turnover of 7600 machines and is reaching for 10,000 mark this year. "In India, our sales turnover is estimated to be Rs 1500 crore for 2005 and we are looking for a 25 per cent increase this year," said Amit Gossain, GM Marketing, JCB India.

"India has witnessed a construction boom since the past few years and the construction equipments sold in the country is only 25 per cent that of China. This means that the boom in construction should keep rising for the next few years," he added.

The range of products offered by JCB India includes backhoe loaders, wheeled loaders, excavators and skid steer loaders. The company is in an expansion mode of the existing manufacturing unit at Ballabgarh in Haryana. "We are investing Rs 100 crore for modernisation and expansion of the Haryana unit. We have already pumped in Rs 50 crore," he said.

The company is also setting up a new plant in Pune with an estimated investment of Rs 250 crore. The unit will initially produce backhoe loaders the capacity of which is still being worked out.

"Backhoe loaders are the largest selling construction equipments in the world. In 14 months, we have managed to sell 10,000 backhoe loaders," Gossain said. About 80 per cent of the company's overall turnover in India comes from backhoe loaders.

The company held a roadshow in Ahmedabad showcasing its range of heavy line machines which includes JS80, JS130, JS200, JS210, and 430Z. JCB's recently launched JS200 excavator was also exhibited.

Following the launch of JS200, JCB has completed its range of excavators from 8 tonne to 33 tonne, catering to various types of construction needs, he added. The 20 tonne excavator JS200 is designed to fulfill the rural requirement.

Gujarat, according to Gossain, contributes 9 per cent of JCB India's share. Tamil Nadu is currently the largest market with 10-12 per cent, he added.

Reliance Industries has ordered 60 heavy equipments from JCB-the single largest order by the company in this segment till date, according to Daman Thakor, dealer of JCB India in Ahmedabad.

"Reliance has ordered 30 backhoe loaders and 430 Z wheeled loaders for its Jamnagar SEZ," he said. The cost of one backhoe is about Rs 19.5 lakh whereas for 430 Z it is Rs 25 lakh per equipment, he added.