JCB Pune plant to be ready by year end

Construction equipment major JCB Bamford Excavators (JCB) has plans to manufacture tracked excavators, wheeled loaders and compaction equipment in India.

The $30-million greenfield plant at Talegaon near Pune will be completed by the end of this year.

JCB's managing director and CEO John Patterson said the equipment manufactured at the new plant will be diverted for both exports and the Indian market.

"We see a great opportunity in India's infrastructure sector as a number of roads, ports and airports are being planned," Patterson said, adding the company also sees the SEZ boom as a trigger for a spurt in demand for equipment.

The plant will export compaction equipment to the Saarc region as well.

Patterson was speaking after the inauguration of a fully export-oriented components plant set up by JCB Manufacturing, a wholly owned subsidiary of JCB UK.The plant has been set up at Rs 130 crore to make components for JCB's plants worldwide, especially Germany, US and China, he said.

Without putting any numbers on the value or volume of components the plant will export, Patterson said the plant would make components using 3,500 tonne of material per month and this consumption will be increased to 5,000 tonne per month over the next few months.

Patterson said the company was in the process of creating a centre of excellence for engineering for the group's global needs in engineering, design and research and development.

"The engineering centre will be operational by the end of this year and will, at its full capacity, employ 100 engineers," he said.

JCB is present in India for the last 30 years through its subsidiary, JCB India Limited, which manufactures backhoe loaders and other equipment at Ballabhgarh in Haryana.