The Rs 40 crore Metexim (Sourcing) based in Chennai will soon begin driveshaft exports for starter motors to Valeo in Mexico. Prototypes have already been sent and the company hopes to get the nod for commercial production in a few months. Initial volumes will be around 2,000 to 4,000 pieces a day and will be supplied on just-in-time basis. Founder-director Sailesh R Mehta said that they would grow over a period of time.
Metexim has also sent some varieties of a similar component to Valeo for validation and has supplied samples for 12 models of wiper motor shafts.
The company already caters to Valeo plants in France and Poland and also meets the needs of low-volume, niche automotive and non-automotive players in France, Spain, Japan, Poland, the UK and US. It exports 50 components to Poclain Hydraulics in France, over 200 to Fairfield in the US and a reasonable number of parts to GE and Stanley Bostitch in the US and Sauer Danfoss Daiken in Japan.
Director Ashish Mehta said Metexim is exploring the option of equity participation with component-makers. The idea is to leverage the strengths of both partners and give a fillip to the component manufacture and marketing.
The company, which has gained expertise in making parts and sub-assemblies like instrumentation valves used in the petrochemical industry, has now set up its own manufacturing facility in Chennai.
Set up in 1991, Metexin has been acting as an extended arm for foreign auto and engineering companies looking to source components and aggregates from India. It has also been supporting SMEs which do not have the appropriate knowledge network for exports despite having the capability to make quality products.
RANGE OF SERVICES
After beginning as a trading operation, Metexim now offers a host of services including end-to-end supply chain planning, vendor assessment, vendor qualification, price negotiation, raw material sourcing, process planning, monitoring development/production, inspection and quality audit, pre-shipment inspection and warehousing/logistics.
The company caters to a variety of end users, a list that includes appliances, automotive, construction and earthmoving equipment, lawn/garden equipment, gears and drives, hydraulic motors, industrial/instrumentation vales and power tools. However, over 60 percent of its business comes from the automotive segment. Metexim offers a combination of offshore buying benefits that include world-class quality, competitive pricing, quick response, rapid development and on-time delivery.
In order to source components, it is looking at technical excellence, understanding the export business in terms of awareness on line stoppage and product liability and willingness to participate in collaborative product development. Metexim is examining the option of sourcing low volume high variety components including fuel injection, turbochargers and electrical components for exports.