MUMBAI, May 19: Hindustan Lever Ltd (HLL) has undertaken a major initiative to knock-off Rs 100 crore over-head costs, said HLL chairman KB Dadiseth at the formal inauguration of its skin care products factory at Silvassa on Monday.The factory is the largest in India and the Unilever world which has been operational since September 1997. The company expects a turnover of around Rs 750 crore in the next two years from this factory towards its personal products business whose turnover is expected to be Rs 1,500 crore (including Lakme and Pond's). HLL's personal products' turnover in 1997 was Rs 884 crore.The new unit will produce skin care products for the Unilever group in India. This includes Fair & Lovely skin cream and lotion, in tubes, bottles, jars and sachets, and also the Pond's and Lakme range, besides shampoos.Dadiseth said that in addition to innovation, quality, technology and safety, cost reduction is necessary to compete. "This year, we undertake this cost cutting initiative. We willanalyse the value and assess its cost," said Dadiseth.The company is making an investment of Rs 40 crore, of which Rs 25 crore has already been invested. Even as there are only 10 such mixing plants in the Unilever world (of which three have been installed at the Silvassa factory), the company said that in due course the factory will emerge as Unilever's lead factory in skin care products. In personal products, the Unilever group in India, comprising HLL, Pond's (to be merged with HLL), Lakme Lever. In the first four months of the current fiscal 1998, the group has already launched and relaunched 11 products.The personal products business has been the key driver for the group with a volumes growth of 63 per cent in 1997.
