Looking Back at 2020
The year 2020-21 witnessed a massive impact on the Indian automotive industry. With BS-VI being enforced and the pandemic bringing the global economy to a halt, there was turmoil with regards to what would happen next. Business in the commercial vehicle (CV) industry was very low and this held true for Lamilux India too. However, Q4 results for FY 2020-21 have shown an improvement and there are signs of a surge in business and demand. A ray of hope has emerged in the last quarter but at the same there is now a gap between demand and supply which has enlarged and caused problems in the availability of raw materials. The government’s call on the scrappage policy will also impact the industry. It will affect the current prices of commodities and basic materials required for manufacturing. Overall, it was an unpredictable year.
Takeaways and Positives
The biggest takeaway in such a challenging year was the family support I received. They all stood by me and believed that I would successfully challenge the odds and deliver. This year also made us realise the true value of family and how it is so important to give them the time they deserve. We always tend to forget those small moments which matter the most. This was my personal takeaway. Officially, the company showcased its strength by keeping us occupied and every single employee was engaged in various activities like webinars, discussions, etc. This gave us lot of time to think out of the box and work on various activities and even opportunities which we never had thought of. Keeping everyone motivated and in the best of their mental health could have been a challenge but we have a wonderful team which is ever-ready to explore new options and is ready to give their best in any situation.
PLI Scheme, Scrappage Policy
The PLI scheme is a good approach by the government to incentivise small and large-scale electronic manufacturing units at various percentages ranging between 3-6% at various intervals of years to come. The scrappage policy had been under discussion for so many years and now we finally have it inching towards implementation. If done properly in stages it will definitely boost the automotive industry and help towards creating a green and clean environment. This will also allow people to start using new BS-VI vehicles which will reduce CO2 emission and also obtain better millage which would be beneficial in times of rising fuel prices. Starting 2021 I am sure the automotive industry will have a good run for the next 2-3 years. I also foresee metal prices surging up in the coming months.
Current Year Plans
We do have aggressive plans for 2021-22 for India. We have couple of new people coming on board which will spur fresh ideas and out of the box thinking, which is the need for the hour. At the moment we are running at our full capacity and all the plants are functional. The new business development team is working on new opportunities and focusing on fresh prospects and segments that we could venture into. We also have some new products lined up for launches and are working on the final stages which will be very beneficial for the coming years for the Indian market.
FY 2022 Outlook There is a saying, “If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail.” We at Lamilux India have planned a good roadmap about what we want to do differently and where we want to be by the year end. However, the challenge lies in the possibility of a second wave of the pandemic in India and how this will affect the economy once again. Our major growth drivers will be the diversified fields which we will be working on as a team. Our dynamic, highly motivated new business development team is completely focussed on new developments and innovative solutions for various segments like bus, cold chain, mobile or portable applications, construction, etc. This will be one of the key differentiators for the roadmap which we as a team have planned. Our team focusing on the CV sector is on the job to provide necessary and reliable solutions. The reefer industry in India will definitely will see huge growth and developments and may experience more than 60-70% growth as compared to 2019-20.