Articles by Jairaj Kapadia

oriented unit for manufacturing customised hi-tech industrial gears and gear boxes at Bahadurgarh, Haryana, in collaboration with Quebec Gear Works (QGWL), Canada, is the only project of its kind in the Asian subcontinent. QGWI. which is providing comprehensive support to the company by way of transfer of technology and know-how, supply of plant and machinery on deferred credit and equity participation to the extent of 15.42 per cent of the company's issued capital, has also entered into an arrangement with the company to buy back Canadian $ 25 million worth of goods or 75 per cent of the production per annum whichever is less. According to the company's CEO, Pankaj Khera, in Canada the labour cost comes to 40 per cent of the total production cost, while in India labour cost does not exceed 8 to 9 per cent of production cost. The plant and machinery has been supplied from Canada on a five-year deferred credit basis. Installation and trial runs which will be done under the supervision of QGWL technicians is to commence shortly. The project costing Rs 14,62 crore has been co-promoted by Haryana State Industrial Development Corporation with 10 per cent (Rs 65 lakh) participation in the Rs 7 crore post-issue equity. To part finance the project the company will enter the capital market on September 6 with a public issue of 38,37,000 equity shares of "Rs 10 each for cash at par. The projections made by the company place turnover at Rs 525 lakh, Rs 1,080 lakh and Rs 1,260 lakh and net profit at Rs 205 lakh, Rs 424 lakh and 1995-96 respectively. The company expects

Import-Substitution Jairaj Kapadia TITAN Witches, with a 60 per cent market share in quartz analog watches established for itself, has witnessed its profits slide in the face of increased sales turnover. Sales during the year to March 1993, expanded 23 per cent from Rs 15,501 lakh to Rs 19,121 lakh. But gross profit showed a marginal rise of Rs 26 lakh from Rs 1,784 lakh at Rs 1,810 lakh, while as a ratio to sales it declined more than two percentage points from 12.76 in the previous year to 10.51. Profit after depreciation and without a tax provision required to be made registered a decline from Rs 1,110 lakh at Rs 1,067 lakh. Since the company converted part B of the debentures issued in 1989 and also issued rights shares, the paid-up share capital increased sharply from Rs 2,684 lakh to Rs 4,228 lakh.

Better Times Ahead Jairaj Kapadia SPURRED by competition and driven by survival instinct but also helped by the tax concessions announced in this year's budget, automobile manufacturers are gearing to regain their lost position in the market due to demand recession and cost escalation.

Prospering in Changed Fertiliser Scenario Jairaj Kapadia GUJARAT NARMADA VALLEY FERTILISERS COMPANY (GNFC), Bharuch, has, recorded improved sales turnover and excellent production and capacity utilisation in 1992-93. This has been achieved despite annual shutdown of 27 days. Almost all products have contributed to increase in the sales turnover. GNFC has achieved a rare feat in the production of ammonium nitro- phosphate (ANP) during the year. In the second year of its commercial operation, the ANP plant has been run full steam with a capacity utilisation of nearly 100 per cent. This rare accomplishment has enabled GNFC to meet the challenge of providing phosphatic fertilisers to farmers, despite The Week's Companies market odds, thus ensuring essential balanced application of fertilisers.

Gains of Liberalisation OUTSTANDING performance has become customary for high profile Hindustan Lever, holding its sway in personal products and soaps and detergents and having diversified into chemicals (fluid cracking catalysts and functionalised biopolymers)and agriproducts (fertilisers and seeds). Its directors simply put the results for 1992 as 'satisfactory'. However, these illustrate the meeting of growth and profit targets by all sections of the company's business. Between them, in net sales, processed triglycerides accounted for Rs 121,927 lakh (Rs 105,407 lakh in 1991), chemicals and agriproducts for Rs 23,567 lakh (Rs 21,230 lakh) and exports, personal products and others for Rs 30,209 lakh (Rs 24,124 lakh) in the aggregate figure of Rs 175,703 lakh (Rs 150,761 lakh).