The Hindu Business Line : Toyota Kirloskar Auto plans to raise production

Future plans
Small car project is expected to be finalised in another six months
May go in for expanding capacity with an investment of Rs 40 cr

(From left) Mr Keizo Hara, Chairman and CEO, Kirloskar Toyoda Textile Machinery Pvt Ltd; Mr Vikram Kirloskar, Director and Mentor; and Mr T. Parabrahman, Managing Director and COO, at a press conference in Bangalore on Tuesday. - G.R.N. Somashekar

Bangalore , Sept. 12

Toyota Kirloskar Auto Parts (TKAP) plans to increase production of manual transmission parts to 2.3 lakh units next year and wipe out losses of around Rs 70 crore in another two-three years.

The increase in production to 2.3 lakh units from the existing 1.7 lakh units will also depend on the finalisation of the small car project of Toyota Kirloskar Motor, a company official told Business Line. The small car project is expected to be finalised in another six months, the official said. Another Rs 40 crore may be needed for expanding the existing capacity, the official said.

TKAP is also expected to start making profits this year itself. Currently, TKAP produces 1.7 lakh units of gearboxes utilising 95 per cent of the existing capacity.

Transmission parts

The transmission parts are manufactured at both TKAP as well as at Kirloskar Toyoda Textile Machinery. Toyota has invested around Rs 400 crore in both the plants for manufacturing the transmission parts. The total revenue of TKAP is around Rs 500 crore for 2005-06.

TKAP is a global resource for the International Motor Vehicle project, making and supplying R type manual transmission to seven vehicle assembly plants of Toyota across the world. It is also considered the first Indian auto transmission component maker who will be a global source for a tier 1 component. Toyota Motor Corporation officials had earlier 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.

Other products

Apart from manufacturing manual transmission parts, TKAP also makes propeller shafts and front and rear axles. Toyota Motor Corporation has a 64 per cent stake in the joint venture while Toyota Industries Corporation has a 26 per cent stake. The rest is with Kirloskar Systems.

Earlier at a press conference, Kirloskar Toyoda Textile Machinery Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer, Mr T. Parabrahman, said the company would provide sales and service for a wide range of material handling equipment produced at their Takaham plant in Japan. The joint venture expects 25 per cent increase in revenues to around Rs 220 crore in 2006-07. Mr Parabrahman said the company expects to sell between 800 units and 1,000 units of the newly launched forklifts by 2010.

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