In an upfront interaction Shiv Kumar, Managing Director at Bollhoff Fastenings Pvt. Ltd. spoke of the company being invested for sustainable growth in the long term.
Interview by: Ashish Bhatia
Q. How is Bollhoff Fastenings Pvt. Ltd. negotiating the headwinds and the tailwinds faced by the automotive sector?
Yes, the market is volatile. However, it is also true that companies invested in India are in the game for the long term and are confident of growth. Even though we have seen a correction take place in markets like Germany, we are confident of sustaining growth in India. The future of mobility holds a lot of promise for us. Be it compliance of vehicles with the Euro6 or the BSVI emission standards or pertaining to the lightweight applications.
Q. Which are the latest innovations in line with these trends?
We are especially buoyant on the fastening solutions which help in weight reduction measures. We are also closely watching the developments in electrification where this could be a boon. We are also testing fastening solutions with a wide range of materials. For instance, aluminium, steel and plastic are some of the materials where we have options in basic customer needs.
Q. Are these innovations an outcome of regulatory changes?
In our case, at the group level, we are ready to meet these demands talking about our current readiness levels. Especially to meet the demands of electrification. There have been major developments in processes and innovations in markets like Germany and China. This backup is readily available to us for the India operations and will be put to use once the market opens up. It will, however, take time for the market to mature.
Q. Any new technical or financial JVs in this era of collaboration?
We strongly endorse the business model of being financed with 100 per cent equity across the board.
Q. Going forward, your challenge and growth areas for the foreseeable future?
The change in technology is a challenge. Driven by trends like Euro6 and electrification are big growth areas that the company is focussed on. With it, we expect the requirement of the fastening solutions to grow. In the next four to five years we should be able to double or even triple our sales volumes. ACI
