Spicer India opens all-new plant in Lucknow

Lucknow, November 15, 2013: Spicer India has inaugurated its new facility, in Lucknow, its sixth plant. The new unit will provide just-in-time suppliers of propeller shafts to Tata Motors’ Lucknow plant.

M Venkatram, senior vice-president, Purchasing and Supply Chain, Tata Motors, who was the chief guest for the occasion, lit the lamp along with other dignitaries including, Mrs Anjali Singh, chairperson, Anand Supervisory Board, Robert Pyle, president, Asia Pacific, DANA Holding Corporation; Deepak Chopra, CEO, Anand Automotive; and Arul Kumar, chief operating officer, Spicer India.

The new plant will supply propeller shafts to Tata Motors’ Lucknow and Jamshedpur plants. The set-up of this dedicated facility is in line with the expansion of Tata Motors’ Lucknow plant. Spicer India currently supplies drive shafts for buses and trucks produced by Tata Motors’ Lucknow and Jamshedpur, from its Satara plant. The new plant will help reduce transportation costs and other logistics involved, which Spicer India says are being passed back to the customer.

“Due to the current recessionary market, Spicer India has limited the capacity of the plant to just half of the intended capacity. Even with this, it can service twice the current requirement of both the Lucknow and Jamshedpur plants of Tata Motors. Further, with a minimal investment, the capacity can be expanded to 180,000 shafts per year (50 percent more) in a short span of time, still leaving a possibility of further expansion to 250,000 shafts.

“Dana and the Anand Group firmly believe in partnering with their customers. We would like to be not only where the customers are today but also be present where the customers are likely to be tomorrow, in terms of technology, capacity and location”, said Arul Kumar, chief operating officer, Spicer India.

Spicer India will also replace its existing drive shaft models to a more advanced ‘Compact’" models, which will deliver a better torque-to-weight ratio with also a price advantage to Tata Motors from the new Lucknow plant.

“The new plant set up by Spicer at Lucknow would ensure delivery of our products on ‘Just In Time’ basis to Tata Motors Lucknow plant and at the same time maintaining high quality levels and incorporating new technology”, said Mrs Anjali Singh, chairperson, Anand Supervisory Board.

Robert Pyle, president, Asia Pacific, DANA Holding Corporation, commented: “The opening of Lucknow plant marks another milestone in our collaboration with the Anand Group and will help Spicer India enhance its reputation as a supplier that is committed to investing and growing to support the needs of its customers. I am confident that this plant will become a benchmark for driveshaft manufacturing in India.”