Escorts plans up to 3 new tractor models in next 6 months

Farm equipment and engineering goods maker Escorts today said it plans to launch up to three new tractor models in the next six months, besides expanding its portfolio in the railway business division.
    
"We have introduced two new tractors of high-horsepower range over last two months and our target is to launch another 2-3 products during the remaining part of the fiscal," Escorts Joint Managing Director Nikhil Nanda told PTI.
    
He said the new models will be across various horse power segments and are intended to augment its existing base.
    
Escorts currently has 14 tractor models -- ranging from 30 to 90 horsepower engines -- under the brands of Farmtrac, Powertrac and Escort.
    
"We expect growth to continue. The met (meteorological department) has predicted good monsoon and the April-September period is the best one for the tractor market," he said.
    
The company sold 14,630 tractors during the second quarter ended March 31, a jump of 51.23 per cent over the sales of 9,670 units during the same period of 2008-09.
    
Nanda said Escorts is also planning to augment its railway division with focus on increasing footprint in the mono rail and metro locomotive segments.
    
Work is progressing on expanding rolling stock of vestibules, couplers, shock absorbers and other components to the metro and mono rail categories, he said.
    
"The process has already started. We want to cover the entire spectrum of railway, from high speed freight corridors to locomotives for metros," he said.
    
The company had reported an over five-fold jump in its net profit for the second quarter ended March at Rs 41.47 crore and Nanda said it expects the momentum to continue during the remaining six months of the October-September financial year.