The Hindu Business Line : Toyota Kirloskar Auto may notch Rs 400-cr sales in first year

The Union Finance Minister, Mr P. Chidambaram, inaugurating the Transmission Unit of Toyota Kirloskar Auto Parts in Bidadi near Bangalore on Tuesday. Also seen are Mr Vikram Kirloskar, Vice-Chairman, Toyota Kirloskar Auto Parts; and Mr Akio Toyoda, Senior MD, Toyota Motor Corporation. - Bhagya Prakash

Bangalore , Aug 3

TOYOTA Kirloskar Auto Parts (TKAP) is expected to notch up revenues of Rs 350 crore to Rs 400 crore in its first year of operations making it one among the top three auto components exporters in the country.

A top official of the company told BusinessLine that in the first year, the factory, which employs around 550 people, will produce 45,000 units of R type automobile transmission parts. The plant has a total capacity of 1.6 lakh units.

Toyota Motor Corporation said that India could turn out to be its lowest cost manufacturing centre in the world because of its competitive cost of manufacture, abundant engineering talent and strong tooling industry.

After the inauguration of the Rs 250-crore auto parts' facility, Mr Akio Toyoda, the Senior Managing Director of Toyota Motor Corporation, said Toyota's know-how and culture of cost reduction coupled with India's vast resources could make the country the company's lowest cost manufacturing centre in the world.

"India has the potential to become a global competitor among the top tier one suppliers," Mr Toyoda said.

Mr Toyoda later told newspersons that the transmission parts produced out of this factory would be exported to ASEAN nations where the company is building an international innovative multi-purpose vehicle (IMV) platform.

"This fact signifies that Toyota's Indian operations is formally integrated into our global operations," M Toyoda said. He said the component manufacturing bases of Toyota around the globe would help create a basic infrastructure for the automobile industry and contribute to the economic and social development of the nations involved.

"In this sense, India will occupy an extremely important position," he said. On the issue of manufacturing a small car for India, Mr Toyoda said the decision would be based on customers' preference.

TKAP's Vice-Chairman, Mr Vikram Kirloskar, whose company, Kirloskar Systems has a 10 per cent stake in the venture, said the transmission facility marked the emergence of India as a major hub for global sourcing of auto components.

"The fact that the world's finest automobile manufacturer has put faith in an Indian joint venture for a critical component will act as a beacon for other auto component manufacturers," Mr Kirloskar said.

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