The Hindu Business Line : Ecoboard chalks out roadmap for 3 years

Ecoboard Industries, manufacturer of particle board from agro waste, has chalked out its roadmap for the next three years. The company has also become debt free, Mr V.S. Raju, Chairman and Managing Director, said here on Thursday.

Talking to presspersons, he said the company has posted a turnover of Rs 45 crore last year, and is targeting turnover of Rs 60 crore for the current year. He said it would be registering a 30 per cent increase.

Commenting on the fact that Ecoboard had not been in the limelight since 1999, Mr Raju said the company had faced certain financial problems during the period. During the past three years, it had entered into negotiated settlements of its term liabilities with financial institutions and banks that included interest and partial principal waivers to the tune of Rs 37.8 crore. The company, he said, had cleared all its debts by March 2007. He added that now the company was focussing on developing its markets and touch a turnover of Rs 100 crore by 2010.

Capacity utilisation

Asked how the company was going to achieve these targets, Mr Raju pointed out that its two facilities, Islampur and Pandharpur, both in Maharashtra, has been utilising only 45 per cent of its capacity. Both the facilities put together have a capacity of 51 lakh sq mt. During 2006, it had manufactured only 23 lakh sq mt of particle board, and during 2007, the target was 30 lakh sq mt.

“When the capacities are utilised fully, we should be able to reach the target. After three years, the facilities would be expanded,” he said.

Mr Raju said it was planning to improve the logistics and distribution system by setting up nodal service centres at strategic locations in the country. It would be a swift delivery module (three-day delivery) by maintaining stock of finished boards at these centres.

More Stories on : Outlook | Paper | rd & Newsprint

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page