India Pistons Ltd. (IPL), the first auto component manufacturing company and the oldest indigenous brand in the country, was established by the late S. Anantharamakrishnan in 1949. IPL, the flagship company of the renowned Amalgamations Group, has been delivering quality engineering solutions for over 60 years and is currently one of the largest manufacturers of pistons, piston rings, cylinder liners and allied components.
The company is now working on strengthening the customer base and enhancing its product capabilities, in addition to its aggressive moves on the aftermarket side. We talk to Mr. Gautam Venkataramani, IPL Whole Time Director, in a tete-a-tete to get details of the sustained expansion strategy.
In the mid-1950s, in the absence of domestic manufacturing in the country, automobile companies had to completely rely on imported components. Anticipating an auto component revolution, IPL became the first exclusive auto ancillary production house in India. With a view to maintaining its first-mover advantage, the company has been working in close collaboration with its OEM customers, catering to their changing needs and also helping them have a firm footing in engine development initiatives.
IPL has in fact been working for long with major vehicle manufacturers like Tata Motors, Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai, among others, by being an integral part of all their flagship projects. This has added to its credibility and recognition in the domestic market.
IPL is a 100 per cent supplier of its range of products to Simpsons and TAFE and has strong ties with M&M too. The company has been a preferred supplier for leading commercial as well as passenger vehicle players in the country for many years. “IPL has been very closely associated with the likes of Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland, Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and a few others for decades. We are committed to providing world-class quality products and solutions to our OEM customers, with whom we have grown and evolved over the years”, says Mr. Gautam Venkataramani.
The company has its mother manufacturing plant at Sembium near Chennai built over a sprawling 200-acre land and has similar facilities at three locations in Tamil Nadu – Maraimalai Nagar, Hosur and Sengundram – apart from another plant at Rudrapur, Uttarakhand. While IPL has been a pioneer in piston manufacturing, its sister concern, India Piston Rings (IP Rings), provides the most comprehensive range of piston ring solutions in the country. The steel rings come with a range of surface treatments or coatings like chrome moly, chrome ceramic, frame sprayed coatings, chrome plating and granoliting which are all of international standard.
IPL’s Sembium facility has a monthly production capacity of four lakh pistons and 1.8 million rings, which help cater to a wide range of domestic and export customers. The company has a joint venture with leading German brand Mahle for manufacture of pistons for advanced applications in passenger cars, UVs, CVs and diesel engines, complying with stringent emission norms of Euro III and above.
As part of its expansion drive, IPL is strengthening its cylinder liner capabilities and is in the process of shifting its power intensive manufacturing projects to a new facility. “A lot of synergies are happening in the new facility which has a manufacturing capacity of 60,000 liners per month, apart from other intermediate products. We have also acquired a 20-acre land at Ankleshwar in Gujarat for capacity expansion”, adds Mr. Gautam Venkataramani.
A key contributing factor to IPL’s consistent growth and strong performance over the years has been its focus on R&D and innovation. It has the oldest R&D facility in the country, recognized by the Department of Science and Technology. It offers great value to its customers through innovation and sustained research in enhancing product performance.
IPL is closely involved in new engine development programs in the Indian automotive and off-highway segments, with new products being engineered for Euro III, Euro IV and Euro VI emission standards. Its focus on advanced technology has seen its products being accepted by automotive and off-highway OEMs all over the world, including the UK, Europe and North America.
Online aftermarket
IPL Powerpack, the company’s popular aftermarket brand, has been in existence for over four decades, providing a wide variety of engine and transmission components. The products are designed and manufactured to meet the exact specifications of vehicle manufacturers, keeping in mind the various aftermarket requirements as well. The components undergo stringent quality control tests to ensure maintenance of product quality.
Further leveraging on its technological strengths and aftermarket capabilities, IPL is now foraying into a private-branded range of parts and has started marketing components like valves, crankshafts, gaskets and filters, along with its original range of products, with a view to offering complete system solution to its customers.
With developments in the IT field making waves across the globe, IPL has embarked on an aggressive online campaign as well by introducing a comprehensive IT system with a database of over 20,000 auto component dealers and mechanics across the country. As a result of its recent initiatives, the company’s sales through online enquiries and transactions have doubled in the last five years and are likely to further double in the next three years.
Another significant part of IPL’s technology upgradation drive is the launch of its online portal service, the ‘IPL store’, designed indigenously to serve as a one-stop online access point for its customers. The portal enables customers to view the company’s range of products, inclusive of detailed information on technical aspects, and subsequently place orders online.
Despite tough market conditions, IPL achieved a turnover of Rs. 400 crores out of the parent group’s turnover of over Rs. 750 crores. With an investment of around Rs. 200 crores, which includes acquisitions and expansion of its subsidiaries, the company is gearing up to build its capabilities on all fronts – the domestic OEM market, aftermarket and export aftermarket – to further strengthen its position in the auto component industry, both in India and overseas.