Luman Industries has inked an alliance with Hengst SE & Co.KG, a leading manufacturer of automotive filters in Germany. The merger aims to strengthen its business with Indian OEMs in India and Daimler India Commercial Vehicles is its first beneficiary in this regard.

The agreement was signed by A S Sethi, managing director, Luman Industries, and his German counterpart Dr Robert Stoesser, CEO of Hengst SE & Co.KG.

According to Sethi, director, Luman Industries, “To support  the government’s Make-in-India campaign, we will cater to the passenger cars and commercial vehicles market with world-class, eco-friendly filtration technology. The expected investment in this JV over five years will be Rs 300 crore. Hensgt-Luman will allocate two to three production facilities for this venture.”

Dr Robert Stoesser, CEO, Hengst SE & Co.KG, said: “We supply our products to leading automotive customers around the globe.”

Founded in 1978 by Avtar Singh Sethi, the firm's principal investor, Luman Auto is one of largest exporters of automotive headlamps and subsequently began catering to Indian companies. Luman Auto Light, manufacturer of Luman brand filters, currently has four plants including one in the tax-free zone of Uttaranchal. Luman Automotive Systems’ clientele includes Ashok Leyland, Tata Motors, International Tractors, JCB  Vehicle Factory Jabalpur, TAFE, Bharat Earth Movers, Greaves Ltd, Brakes India, SML-Isuzu, Standard Tractors and International Tractors Ltd. It also supplies products for defence vehicles used by India and other military forces around the world.