Keeping up the strong momentum of the last fiscal, Tractors and Farm Equipment Limited (TAFE) has reported a record sale of 80001 tractors in the fiscal year 2006-07. When TAFE acquired Eicher’s tractor business in June 2005, TAFE’s director Ms Mallika Srinivasan announced plans to reach this figure in 2007. TAFE’s tractor group has successfully achieved this landmark figure with confidence. With turnover touching Rs. 3750 crores for the fiscal, TAFE seems all set to breach the US $ 1 Billion in the coming fiscal.

According to Ms. Srinivasan, the key to this achievement has been the company leveraging the benefits of synergy after acquiring Eicher, the extensive product development and sales effort and the tireless effort of the entire team at TAFE which has resulted in a growth of … % in sales volumes. TAFE’s exports have also contributed significantly.” Today one in every nine tractors made by TAFE’s tractor group is exported and in the coming years, TAFE hopes to take this to one in every six tractors being exported. Tractor exports have grown by close to … % in volume and …% in nos this year while exports of aggregates and components of tractors has also seen a growth of … % in value.

The bulk of the domestic tractor growth has come from the non- traditional markets of the south that have witnessed exponential volume growths these past two years. In the case of the north, a combination of a slow down in retail lending and the adverse climactic conditions in the UP belt in the months of February and March have resulted in sales for these areas stagnating at the same levels as previous year.

Commenting on plans for the coming years, Ms Srinivasan said, “TAFE’s tractor group will continue on its growth plans by leveraging its close ties with its collaborator, AGCO Corporation, to garner a larger slice of the global market for tractors. Apart from this, TAFE is looking towards expanding the domestic market with innovative products that will address not just the farming needs but even the emerging needs in logistics, material handling and other related areas where mobile power is needed.”

TAFE’s other divisions have also reported substantial growth. Its Engineering Plastics division at Bangalore has achieved a growth of … % over the previous year. The Batteries, Hydraulic pumps, Panel Instruments, and passenger vehicle franchises have also shown sizeable increases in sales in the fiscal.