Problems of plenty

Having turned around the ailing engineering business at Jessop Co, Pawan Ruia cannot stop smiling at the ringing cash registers. With the ...

Having turned around the ailing engineering business at Jessop 038; Co, Pawan Ruia cannot stop smiling at the ringing cash registers. With the Indian Railways doing well in recent times, his order books for wagons appear to be having a problem of plenty! He has received orders for a record 809 wagons, a long way off from last year8217;s low of 305. He is also hoping for a substantial orders hike for coaches as well. But Ruia is having some problems in the supply of bogies and couplers to meet demand. Sensing that there are only a few Railways8217; approved manufacturers of such components, who find it difficult to meet the sudden upsurge in demand, Ruia had last year acquired the closed bogie and coupler making facility of Mukund Industries. But despite Ruia8217;s best efforts, the facility cannot commence production before next fiscal. So the tycoon is worried about his delivery schedules. As a way out, he has teamed with a few other wagon manufacturers to approach the Railways to include bogie and couplers in the list of free supplies to enable them to get over the problem. He is hopeful that the Railways will give in. Else he will be another tycoon suffering from the 8216;problem of plenty8217;.

Paper money

Gautam Thapar, after ruling the bulk paper industry for quite some time, has now turned his attention to the domestic tissue paper segment, which is valued at Rs 600 crore per annum. He has introduced a premium brand named 8216;Etiquette8217; in the segment, which is still largely dominated by unorganized offerings. The brand will straddle face tissues, serviettes, handkerchiefs, towels and bathroom tissues. It will initially be distributed in the Delhi NCR region. He also plans to explore the economy segment soon, knowing fully well that it still accounts for 70-80 per cent of the business. Thapar, however, has modest expectations from the business in the initial years and expects a turnover of Rs 100 crore over five years 8212; too small a figure compared to the value of his bulk paper business. But sensing that 8216;speciality paper8217; comprising of stationary, where he is already present copier and tissue is likely to grow big soon, the tycoon has big expectations from the segment and thinks it to contribute about 25 per cent of his turnover in three years. He will be outsourcing his tissue products and will focus on brand building and distribution, and to leverage his reputation as the premier paper player in the country.

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