May 6, 2013: Pondicherry-based garage equipment manufacturer Manatec has announced that it aims to more than triple its sales revenue from the current Rs 65 crore to Rs 200 crore by 2015. The company plans to achieve this by increasing exports. At present, its domestic business accounts for around 70 percent of the company's sales; the new plan is to increase exports' contribution up to 60 percent by 2015.
Manatec celebrated its 25th anniversary on May 5 and as a sign of things to come, the company's managing director and one of the founders, R Mananathan, gave up his role to take up a more of a backseat role as the company's newly appointed chairman. As chairman, he will head the R&D division with the other functions taken care of by his son, Kalaiichelvan Mananathan, who was named as the new managing director.
Kalaiichelvan Mananathan outlined some of the company's future strategies by stating that the initial objective would be to hone employee skills. "We will strengthen our export and service teams. We have a two-member team now, but increasing that is definitely on the cards," Mananathan said.
"Diversification is another strategy. We will concentrate on the B2C segment in a major way," he added.
Manatec initiated its TQM process early last year, setting itself an objective of winning the prestigious Deming prize in 2015. Asked about the progress over the last 12 months, Mananathan said that it has given a noticeable boost to quality. "In our new facility near Pondicherry, we have concentrated on making manufacturing a core competence," he said.
KARTHIK H
Photograph: A long-serving employee of Manatec's R&D division presenting chairman R Mananathan with an anniversary plaque in the presence of Pondicherry chief minister N Rangaswamy and Vijayaraghavan, director - domestic business.