Agritechnica – Hannover, November 12 – 18, 2017 – It happened in the year 1954, a few years after India had become independent starting to lay the foundations for its economy on the path to emerging as one of the major economic powers worldwide. As a response to the increasing demand for mobility in his country, Mr. Mahabirprasad Poddar, a young textile entrepreneur, decided to set up a new manufacturing line: bicycle tires. Following this first bold initiative, in a few decade the industrial group Balkrishna Industries Limited (BKT) has taken shape and evolved: today, the group counts over 7,000 employees in India, Europe and North America, five production plants in India and one of the largest tire lineups on the market including more than 2,400 products that are exported in over 160 countries worldwide.
In 1987 the first production plant for 2-3-wheeled motor vehicles opened in Aurangabad, Western India, taking the company in a short time to the first ranks on the Indian market. However, the decisive change for BKT´s core business occurred in 1994, when the strategic decision to launch the production of Off-Highway tires was taken after an in-depth analysis of international markets.
The second BKT plant was set up in Bhiwadi, Northern India, in 2002 as a response to both the increasing market needs in India and above all the strong demand from foreign markets for radial and conventional agricultural tires, but also in the earthmoving and industrial segment. Two years later, BKT launched the radial agricultural tires “Agrimax”, which ensured the company the establishment on the farming market.
Still in 2004, BKT started its own production of tire molds by setting up a modern factory in Dombivali, which has reached today the remarkable capacity of 300 molds a year. The forth plant was then opened in the year 2006 in Chopanki (Northern India) for the production of All Steel radial tires for the industrial and OTR sectors.
Yet, BKT´s latest and most prestigious production site in Bhuj, in the state of Gujarat, extending over an area of more than 120 hectares, was officially inaugurated in December 2015. The Bhuj plant, which cost more than 500 million US dollars, boasts state-of-the-art production machinery and structures that are powered by an internal thermoelectric power plant. It is situated in a strategic position at a short distance from the commercial port of Mundra, which has already been an important logistic hub for BKT´s exportations - ideal for favoring the company´s mid-and-long-term export plans. Bhuj deserved the attribute and byname “The Game Changer” not only for the cutting-edge technology of its production lines, but also for the dedicated infrastructures for employees and their safety: a big village with modern apartments for 406 families, a medical center, a fire brigade station, a large sport center, and a school.
The backbone of BKT´s working philosophy is social and environmental responsibility; short and sweet: “We care” is the motto included in the logo of the BKT Foundation. The Foundation promotes several social initiatives: from the supply of chirurgical and sanitary instruments to the hospitals in Aurangabad and Mumbai, to financing the education of 800 girls in a school in Rajasthan for free and the academic education of brilliant Indian students in their home country. Besides, the BKT Foundation actually sustains the Akshaya Patra Foundation in its programs for children nutrition and education of the less well-off, aiding over 1.4 million children in poverty and malnutrition in 10,000 schools in India.
“Sustainability at BKT”, Ms. Lucia Salmaso, MD of BKT Europe affirms, “originates from our firm intention to play an active role in improving everybody´s living conditions. A working philosophy, which starts from the manufacturing process with reduced environmental impact, involving then both the working community and the social society up to becoming a concrete support to activities of humanitarian nature.”
Not least thanks to these concrete initiatives, BKT has proved to be a brand of strong and deeply rooted values, the symbol of an increasingly modern, dynamic and solid company, committed to continuous research and development. Evidence is given by the fact that every year the company introduces from 60 to 80 new products and new tire sizes on the market.
All production plants and tire engineering and design processes have obtained the ISO 9001: 2000 quality certification. Besides, BKT adheres to the strictest international standards in terms of production and quality control in full compliance with pertinent environmental regulations including the European Directive “REACH” and the ISO 14001:2004 certification. Having set up wind power plants and having chosen to use energy from renewable sources (more than 40% of the need) confirm BKT´s commitment to climate and environmental protection.
Presently, BKT´s global market share in the Off-Highway tire segment is esteemed to be about 6%, a result obtained thanks to the excellent quality-price ratio of its products, an area-wide reliable customer-service as well as an effective sales and marketing organization.
Last year, BKT achieved a turnover of more than 815 million US dollars split into 65% in the agricultural sector, 14% in the industrial sector, 13% in OTR and the remaining 8% spread over other specialist segments the company operates in.
The trend is growing steadily, and BKT continuously invests into research and development (approx. 4.5% of sales), since it aims at improving existing products' performance and finding new solutions to cater for final users' needs. Traditionally, the company aims at flying high and intends in the near future to further increase both turnover and its market share in Off-Highway tires, following a philosophy, which Mr. Arvind Poddar, Chairman and Managing Director of BKT recaps in a few words:
“We are committed to growth. Looking ahead is our continuous goal. A company that cannot look bravely at its own future is like a person unable to dream”.
