Kabirdass enters electric scooter market

The Chennai-based Kabirdass Motor is all set to enter the two-wheeler market with a range of electric scooters under the brand name K Xite. Initially the company plans to launch four models costing between Rs 26,500 and Rs 29,500.

Of these, two can run up to 80 km on a single charge of six to eight hours, and the other two can run up to 100 km on the same duration of charge. The scooters are already on sale in some areas of Tamil Nadu. Parts for the bike are being sourced from vendors in China and assembled at the company’s plant in Velappanchavadi, about 20 km from Chennai. The assembly line there has a capacity to produce 135 scooters per day on single shift basis.

SHORT GESTATION

“We have received positive signals from the consumers. Based on demand, we can ramp up production by increasing the current workforce of 50 people and adding a second shift,” said director Murali Kabirdass. He said that the idea to assemble electric scooters was conceived in November 2005 and the company was established exactly a year later. Kabirdass Motor has been incorporated by the directors of auto component manufacturer Best Cast IT. The company has invested Rs 25 crore towards this project.

“Our entry (into the two-wheeler market) is a natural progression from what we have been doing for the last 33 years. We sourced the design from a foreign company and the prototype was developed in January this year,” he said. Kabirdass conceded that, at 90 percent, the import content of the scooter was high. But there were plans to reduce it to 70 percent in six months, before finally bringing it down to 50 percent in two years. He added that import content would settle at the 50:50 level.

PHASED ROLL-OUT

At present all the plastic parts are sourced in pre-painted condition and by August the painting will be done locally. The local content includes tyres, mirrors, brake assembly and pads, wiring harnesses, hydraulic hoses and oil, lights, horn and some steel parts. The company plans to concentrate on Tamil Nadu during the first phase launch and has appointed two dealers in Chennai and one each in Cuddalore, Dharmapuri, Erode, Kancheepuram, Madurai and Salem. Following Tamil Nadu, the bikes will be gradually rolled out in other states.

“Our strategy is to penetrate the markets slowly. We plan to introduce a very unique system for customer support, which will be the key driver for our bike,” he said. The scooters are being sold on the “safe, economical, eco-friendly” platform. Safety is derived from the fact the top speed of these bikes is 60 kmph. Economy is taken care of by the fact that the bikes consume only about a kilowatt hour of power to run up to 80 km. Besides this maintenance cost is also low as there is no need for consumables with the batteries having to be replaced only after 15,000 km.

T MURRALI