Ashok P Chhajer, Sr. General Manager – OE Sales, BKT
Today we are a global player in the Off-Highway tire industry. BKT has successfully focused on specialist segments such as agricultural, construction and industrial as well as earthmoving, port and mining, ATV, and gardening applications. Our Distributor network is in 160 countries worldwide to reach you with quality products at every corner.
- What is the future tech for the OTR segment?
In the Indian OTR segment, radialisation is still at a nascent stage, whereas, in the automobile industry, car tires are 100 percent radialised; truck tires are also swiftly catching up. However, in case of the earthmover and industrial construction tires, they are yet to be radialised. So, the radialisation process must occur as that is the future technology.
- What makes BKT tires special for OEMs around the globe?
Our products are not standard products; each and every tire is a specialized tire. We design and develop products that withstand all kinds of terrains. So, in terms of execution, every tire at various stages of production has to undergo 500 quality checks, which results in durable tires with very high quality.
R&D is the backbone of BKT. Qualified and experienced engineers along with our state-of-the-art infrastructure give us the edge. We have our in-house testing track, world-class labs, and equipment with a stringent quality control process that is followed before any product is introduced to the market. We introduce on an average 80- 90 new products every year. These are all based on in-depth market research, market analysis, and our R&D.
- BKT sells products in 160 countries worldwide through a network of national distributors. How is the growth scenario?
We offer an extensive product range of over 3,200 high-performance specialist tires which are exported to 160 countries and are working on expanding to newer geographies and broadening our product offerings.
Exports account for 83% of our sales out of which 54% is Europe, 17% is the US and the rest of the world is 12%. The remaining 17% is domestic sales. We continued to remain the preferred choice of our customers and we further aim at maintaining leadership in product quality, delivery reliability, and technical expertise.
- Which sectors are driving growth for your company’s offerings in India?
We see demand growing from the mining, construction, and agriculture sectors.
The mining & construction segment contributes to more than half of off-highway tire sales in India, in addition, agriculture is another biggest segment for off-highway tires. So the entire tire industry is witnessing a spurt in domestic demand and a rapid boost in trade ties within the country.
- The Indian market is very price centric compared to an export market where they are focused on quality things, but India is very price centered. How do you fight back from the CE industry’s point of view?
As per our experience – India is both prices as well as quality sensitive. Also, in this same Indian market, you have customers who are interested in durability. They want equipment without any unplanned downtime. So it’s a combination in the Indian market.
There are corporate customers, who are not looking at the cost but at the safety features. They’re looking at the durability of the machine, or any have unplanned downtime and are ready to follow maintenance guidelines. On the other hand, there are customers from the hiring sector for whom these machines are the bread-earning machines and they are the ones who are more price sensitive.
At BKT, we are into higher focus on product quality.
- What are the challenges you face in the industry?
Like other industries, we are also facing challenges. RM cost, inbound and outbound logistics cost, and availability of the raw material. We are a part of the industry and all these challenges are witnessed by each and every industry with rising fuel cost.
