Maruti rolls out millionth car this year

Maruti Suzuki India on Tuesday rolled out the millionth car of the year, a first for the company since inception, and announced plans to double production of K-Series engines within a year.Suzuki Motor Corp on Tuesday rolled out its millionth baby, a dazzling red Swift from its plant in Manesar near Delhi. 

The feat comes shortly after the company overtook its Japanese parent Suzuki in terms of sales.

"In 1982, we came and collaborated with the government led by Indira Gandhi. . . it has been a long journey since then. Cumulatively, we have produced over 8.8 million cars in India," Suzuki Motor Corp Chairman Osamu Suzuki said in New Delhi.

Toyota, General Motors, Volkswagen, Ford, Honda, Renault, Hyundai, Suzuki and Nissan are among those who boast of production of a million units or more every year.

Coinciding with the roll-out of the millionth car -- a red coloured Swift -- Suzuki announced further investments by MSI.

"We will be putting resources in R&D and engine expansion. We plan to invest 50 billion Yen (about Rs 2,500 crore) for R&D and expanding our engine capacity," he said.

The company had last year announced an investment of Rs 1,000-1,500 crore (Rs 10-15 billion) for setting up a R&D centre at Rohtak and the new investments will be for doubling capacity of the Gurgaon plant to produce 500,000 K series engines annually.

Maruti Suzuki India (MSI), the Indian subsidiary of Suzuki Motor Corp, has a total engine capacity of 10 lakh (1 million) units annually, of which the share of K-Series engines is 2.5 lakh (250,000) units.

"We are already in the process of setting up one new plant with an investment of 33 billion Yen (about Rs 1,750 crore)," Suzuki said, referring to the announcement made by the company last year to expand the capacity of the Manesar facility by 2.5 lakh units.

The foundation for expansion was laid today in the

presence of Suzuki. He said the going may well get tough for the company in the future.

"At present, all world class manufacturers are entering India and we are facing severe competition here. Today we achieved 1 million units, but to achieve 2 million production in a year will be a tough journey," he said.

Commenting on the occasion, MSI chairman R C Bhargava said, "When we started our operations in Gurgaon, the area was surrounded by monkeys and weeds. Sceptics were proved wrong because of the vision and determination of Indira Gandhi. It was Osamu Suzuki's leadership, far-sightedness and ability to see the potential in India," he said.

Currently, around 50 per cent of global vehicle production of Suzuki is contributed by MSI.

"I hope the work culture in the company will continue and ensure that the future of the company is a bright one," Bhargava added.

The first 'Maruti 800' was rolled-out from Maruti's Gurgaon plant in December 14, 1983.

In its first year of commercial operations (December-March 1983-84), Maruti had produced 840 cars and in the following fiscal, production had touched a little over 22,000 units.

Over the past 26 years, MSI has contributed about Rs 55,000 crore (Rs 550 billion) to the national exchequer. The company has committed itself to over Rs 12,000 crore (Rs 120 billion) of investment since 2007 that includes setting up the facility at Manesar, increasing capacity of the Gurgaon plant and the R&D centre and capacity expansion announced last year.

In this period, the company has also seen internal changes. From being a joint venture -- Maruti Udyog Ltd -- between the government and Japan's Suzuki Motor Corp with the latter holding a minority stake of 26 per cent, it is now controlled by the Japanese firm. With it, its name has also been changed to Maruti Suzuki India.

Currently, it enjoys a formidable over 54 per cent share of the domestic passenger car market with presence in over 450 towns and cities through a network of 681 sales outlets.