Leyland Deere launches Backhoe Loader in AP

Leyland Deere, a 50:50 joint venture between Ashok Leyland and US-based agriculture machinery maker John Deere, is planning to launch its first product -- 435 Backhoe Loader -- pan-India in the next financial year.

The company on Tuesday launched the Backhoe Loader in Andhra Pradesh. This was first launched in Tamil Nadu in November last year. “South is a major market for us, so we will expand aggressively in the southern states in the first phase. By next financial year, we will go pan-India,” Ravishankar, chief executive of Ashok Leyland John Deere Construction Equipment Company, said while launching the product.

The Centre’s plan to allocate $1 trillion in the 12th Five Year Plan for infrastructure development, he said, would hugely benefit the construction industry and construction equipment makers. “Leyland Deere hopes to largely benefit from this proposal and expects its sales to increase during the time, as the demand for backhoe loader and other equipment is expected to increase.”

The backhoe loader market in India will be 30,000-33,000 units per annum, and the market size in terms of value will be Rs 6,000 crore, according to him. The construction equipment market is growing at 15-20 per cent per annum.

The backhoe loader, manufactured at Ashok Leyland's plant in Gummidipoondi near Chennai, would also have more cabin space for the operator and better safety features.