Date:15/07/2005 URL: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2005/07/15/stories/2005071501950200.htm

Back BEML plans to produce heavy-duty dumpers

Our Bureau

Bangalore , July 14

BHARAT Earth Movers Ltd (BEML) is contemplating a project to manufacture heavy-duty dumpers in the range of 50 to 250 tonnes for long haul demand. The plan stems from the improved connectivity of highways under the Golden Quadrilateral programme expected increase demand for heavier materials movements across the country.

BEML was in talks with a few parties for a technical collaboration and hoped to freeze a decision by the end of this year said Mr V.R.S. Natarajan, Chairman and Managing Director.

Talking to newspersons on the sidelines of the Indian Institute of Materials Management meeting on Supply Chain Management here on Thursday, Mr Natarajan said the plant was proposed to be located in Mysore.

However, a concrete decision would emerge only after a market study identified the right capacity of the dumpers. No investment parameters have been finalised.

BEML, which recently announced its decision to raise Rs 400 crore through an initial public offering, was also aiming to broad-base its activities by increasingly involving as a turnkey player in the metro rail projects. The IPO, which was subject to statutory clearances, would be aimed at funding capital expansion and for metro rail projects.

BEML manufactures rail coaches for Delhi metro rail project and hopes to utilise the capacity for supplying coaches to other metro projects in the country. BEML was in race for a metro rail project in Mumbai and was a consortium partner along Siemens, L&T and Gammon for the project.

Mr Natarajan stressed on the need for rapid integration of the existing logistics with supply chain management to take a competitive edge in business. With outsourcing of logistics having brought a great cost advantage, companies should increasingly adopt online supply chain management and customer relations management to improve their topline and bottomline.

Earlier Mr K.S. Vishwanathan, Vice-President, Wipro Infotech, underlined the increasing adoption of automation in logistics and said supply chain management played a key role in reducing the financial risks and helped in improving the margins.