Sundaram-Clayton to invest Rs 750 Cr; to set up plant in US

Sundaram-Clayton Ltd, the flagship company of USD 7 billion TVS Group, has planned to invest Rs 750 crore as part of its plans to expand its facilities in the domestic market besides setting up a greenfield unit inthe United States.
"Sundaram-Clayton plans to invest Rs 400 crore over three years to expand its facilities in India to cater to growth in the Indian market", Sundaram-Clayton Ltd said in a statement.
The city-based company, a manufacturer and supplier of aluminium cast products to global automotive OEMS, would invest an additional USD 50 million (Rs 350 crore) to set up a 50 acre greenfield site in South Carolina's Dorchester County, United States.

Sundaram-Clayton Ltd plans to invest for growth both in India and in the United States along with its subsidiary. With the investment of Rs 400 crore over three years in India, the capacity will increase from 6,000 MTs to 70,000 MTs, it said.
On setting up of the first manufacturing facility in United States with "additional" investment of over USD 50 million (Rs 350 Crore), the statement said, "it will create 10,000 MT of capacity over a period of five years"'.
For setting up the factory in United States, Sundaram-Clayton Ltd acquired 50 acre of land in Dorchester County, South Carolina to "manufacture High Pressure Die Cast and Gravity Cast parts".

Construction set to begin in April 2017 and the first product was likely to be rolled out by end of 2018, it said.

The move to set up a facility in South Carolina, United States was it contributes a "major share" of export revenue to the company.
The unit would also help the customers in the region with "shorter supply chain" and "improved responsiveness" to their requirements.
"Over the last decade, the automotive components industry in India has grown three times in size and exports have grown rapidly as well. I believe there is a bright future for Indian auto component companies both in India and in the export market", Sundaram-Clayton Ltd., Joint Managing Director, Dr Lakshmi Venu said.

Noting that the United States was an "important market" for Sundaram-Clayton, Venu said, "Over the years, we have built strong partnerships with global OEMs in the region and have decided to set up a state-of-the-art facility in the United States to better support our customers there".
The Dorchester County in South Carolina offers certain "strategic business advantages" including proximity to high quality port, a well-rounded transportation network, well-educated diverse workforce and an "excellent" business environment, she said.