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Executive Summary
Executive Summary
The company should take proper control over the finished goods inventory and in the
transfer of tubes and flaps from company’s own subsidiary tube plant and other suppliers so as to
avoid the excess inventory. The tyres are being produced based on the monthly production plan
which is given from the Head Office. The possible combinations of tubes and flaps for the tyres
produced were analyzed and the actual stock of tubes and flaps stored in the company were
observed. Based on the monthly production plan the actual requirement of tubes and flaps are
known. The disparity in the level of inventory stored and actual required level were found out.
An information system can help to overcome this problem. Information system is created
using Excel and by entering the tyre stock detail the system will displays the actual requirement
of tubes and flaps. Managers or the person who operates the system can take a decision about the
number of tubes and flaps required to be stored in order to opitmise the finished goods inventory.
Inventory for any manufacturing or business firm is an important part that needs
attention. The actual reason why people keep inventory is to protect themselves from the day to
day fluctuations in the market. The uncertainty of the future is the fear that makes people to hold
on or save something for the future. The concept of inventory in any industry is also the same. So
it is like higher the inventory, the less chance of noticing any of the fluctuations. So it actually
means keeping an inventory avoids from any of the fluctuations from being any kind of
immediate problem for the company or firm.
Inventory helps the firm to sail smoothly and continue with the day to day activities. It is
similar to boat sailing in high tide instead of low tide. In high tide the rocks in the water won’t be
seen and the sailor can sail smoothly. In low tide the rocks are visible and if the sailor is not
careful he may end up in sinking his boat.
According to Motorola’s Six Sigma the very concept of inventory is waste. Why do they
consider so? Since keeping a higher inventory will always help in smoothening the company’s
activities; why inventory is considered to be waste? The reason is simple. Stocking of Raw
materials for predetermined period involves investment. That much money of the firm is being
locked in those materials. So the same money that could be used in other productive purposes is
being used to store materials as safety for emergencies that may happen for future. Keeping a
high inventory is blocking the firm’s working capital. It is due to this reason inventory is
considered to be a waste. It is based on this concept that systems like Just-in-time have arisen;
where materials arrive in the right moment, when it is needed for production.
International Scenario
The world tyre industry is worth around US$ 85 billion. The industry is marked by the
presence of around half a dozen major players who together occupy 70% of the world market
share.
Michelin 20.1%
Bridgestone 18.4%
Goodyear 16.9%
Pirelli 10.1%
Continental 04.9%
Sumitomo 03.9%
Yokohama 03.5%
Kumho 01.7%
Others 20.5%
Source: CRISIL
The Indian tyre industry dates back to 1930 when multinationals like first one Goodyear
and Dunlop entered the market. MRF, Premier and CEAT at various locations in the country
carried out the domestic production of the tyres.
The tyre industries were classified under three heads. The first generation industries viz,
Dunlop and firestone (new Bombay tyre international limited) were setup in the last 30’s and
early 40’s. The second generation companies then come up in 60’s are MRF Tyres, CEAT,
Goodyear Tyres and Premier Tyers. The third generation companies that were setup in 70’s are
JK Tyres, Vikrant Tyres, Apollo Tyres and Modi Rubber.
The first Indian company Dunlop Rubber company was incorporated in 1926. The tyre
industry is growing rapidly and today its turnover is 1, 50,000 million and earning an income of
Rs.3500 crore per annum for exports. If you consider the total cars that exist in the market and
the new cars that arrive in India; you can see that there exists a vast potential for tyre industry in
India. But the tyre industry is highly sensitive to market fluctuations. Most of the raw material
involved in the production of tyres like rubber and other petrochemicals etc have highly
fluctuating prices. The raw materials constitute 70% of the cost of production. So tyre industry
has to adapt itself to these volatile fluctuations.
The tyre industry has witnessed a CAGR of 11% over the last decade mainly fuelled by
the strong growth in the domestic auto industry. The tyre industry’s growth is dependent on
many factors like agricultural and industrial performance of the economy, the transportation
needs and the production of vehicles. The tyres produced consist of a combination of natural
rubber and synthetic rubber. The combination of both generally in terms of natural rubber to
synthetic worldwide is 30:70, but in Indian context it is 80:20. That’s why natural rubber
constitutes 25% of the total raw material cost of the tyres.
The industry is highly capital intensive, as it requires around Rs 4 billion to setup a radial
tyre plant with a capacity of 1.5 million tyres and around Rs 1.5-2 billion for a cross ply tyre
plant of a capacity to manufacture 1.5 million tyres.
The industry is dominated by four players viz MRF, Apollo Tyres, JK Indutries and
CEAT and enjoys more than 70% of the total market share. The fortunes of the industry are
linked to the trend in the domestic auto industry, rethreading, trend in road transportation and
spending on road infrastructure. The companies have lined up further expansion plans to meet
the increasing demand.
The major segments are Truck, Bus and Car tyres. Value share of truck and bus segment
is about 73%. Replacement market forms largest segment about 58%, OEM is about 22% and
export market for about 5%.
Indian Scenario
Indian tyre industry comprises 12 major companies, 13 minor companies and 34 minor
plants manufacturing low technology products such as small tubes and flaps. There are top
players in this field having 69% of market share.
Source: CRISIL
Sector Trends
Cross ply tyres has been used in India for several decades. In these tyres, the ply cords
run across each other or diagonally to the outer surface of the tyre and nylon tyre cords are used
as the reinforcing medium. These tyres can be rethreaded twice during their life time and are
hence preferred by Indian transport operators who normally overloaded with double the capacity.
Moreover one also has to content with suspensions and bad road conditions. No wonder, 95% of
the tyre used in India is cross plies.
Radial tyres have their cords running rapidly from bead at 90 degrees angles to the rim or
along the outer surface of the tyre. The reinforcing mediums used in these are polyester, nylon,
fiberglass and steel. Hence these tyres are 40% more expensive than cross plies. But they have a
longer life and provide lower fuel consumption. The unhealthy condition of the Indian roads has
resulted in radial tyre accounting for only 5% of the tyre industry as against a global trend of
60% with two-third of all major tyre manufacturers being reserved for radials, this is a real cause
for concern.
Outlook
Globally the OEM segment contributes only 30% of the tyre exports and the balance
from the replacement market. In India, the scenario is quite different. Nearly 85% of the total
tyre demanded in the country is for replacement. This has placed the re-traders in a better
position than the tyre manufacturers. Re-trading is booming over the tyre industry as a colossal
threat.
The exports and the average exports prices of bus, truck and LCV tyres from India are
under threat from the cheaper Chinese exports. The improved performance of Chinese tyres
coupled with 40-50% lower prices is threatening the market share of Indian companies in the
export market. The industry is also facing severe threat of dumping of cheap tyres from South
Korea. Another threat to the industry is the price of its raw materials. Most of which are
petroleum by products. Carbon, synthetic rubber and nylon tyre cord are offshoots of
petrochemicals. Thus the future of the industry will swing with the supply of crude oil.
The biggest threat will be from global majors like Bridgestone and Michelin, which
control 36% of the global tyre market. The vast growth potential of the Indian market is
becoming them towards India. The industry is driven more by volume than by margins and each
of the big five in the global tyre industry; Continental, Michelin, Goodyear, Pirelli and
Bridgestone generate an annual tyre production equivalent to the total demand of the Indian
market. These MNC have deep pockets and can easily withstand losses for 2-3 years; there
financial muscles also permit them to invest in R&D, which is beyond the average Indian tyre
manufacturer.
MRF
A leading company in the tyre industry, MRF Ltd. boasts of an enviable track record. The
company has continued in the same vein and has been posting excellent results, notwithstanding
the winds of recession blowing across the economy. Performance of the company has been
commendable in light of the fact that the user industry is facing a slowdown. The company has
benefited from better productivity and operational efficiency. The company caters to a host of
impressive clients. It has signed on to be the sole supplier for auto giants like General Motors,
Fiat and Ford in India. The company is also renowned for its exports, which have also been
CEAT
Being the second largest selling brand in India with a market share of 16%, CEAT caters
primarily to the replacement market. Due to the strong growth in the OEM sector, the share of
the replacement market in the total revenue of the company has fallen. However, the production
growth in the automobile sector over the past few years should provide a boost to the
replacement market in the coming years and CEAT could be a major beneficiary thereof. With
the advent of multinationals like Goodyear, Michelin, Bridgestone and Continental, a major
shakeout in the industry is imminent and the same could result in CEAT, which is already
operating on thin margins, being hived off as a joint venture with Goodyear, in collaboration
with which CEAT has already promoted South Asia Tyres for manufacturing radial tyres in
India. With a modest track record on the financial front, the forthcoming may not be
encouraging.
Apollo Tyres Ltd is incorporated and registered in the year 1972. The commercial
production process started on March 1977. The corporate office of Apollo Tyres Ltd situated in
Gurgaon, Haryana and the registered office at Cochin, Kerala.
During the first stage, it had faced losses. But since 1982, the controlling power came to
Onkar S Kanvar, son of Raunaq Singh. A team under Onkar worked hard and their strategic
policies helped Apollo Tyres to reach this position. Since 1982 Apollo Tyres has been started to
making profit. Now Apollo Tyres is the market leader in the truck tyre segment, with 30%
market share.
The Perambra unit has the production capacity of 308 tonnes per day in 2010. The
Perambra plant provides employment to 2500 regular workers and around 1500 contract
workers. The growth rate of last 5 year has been 29%. The main competitors of Apollo Tyres Ltd
are MRF, CEAT, JK Tyres. Apollo Tyres had acquired Dunlop Tyres International Ltd, South
Africa in 2006. The first tyre introduced in India was Dunlop Tyres. It is one of the pioneering
tyre manufactures in the world.
The revenues of the company have gone up from Rs.903.26 crore in Q3FY09 to Rs.1323.43
crore in Q3FY10 showing an increase of 46.52%. The operating profits also increased by 289%
from Rs.52.66 crore same quarter last year to Rs.205.10 crore in Q3FY10. The net profit of the
company increased from Rs.5.51 crore in Q3FY09 to Rs.102.03 crore in Q3FY10 showing a
growth of 1751%. Operating profit margin increased from 5.83% in Q3FY09 to 15.50% in
Q3FY10 and the Net Profit Margin increased from 0.61% to 7.71% in Q3FY10. The EPS of the
company rose from Rs 0.11 in the same quarter last year to Rs.2.02 in Q3FY10, Rs.6.85 (TTM
standalone).
Apollo Tyres Ltd was registered and incorporated in 1972. The license was first given to
ruby rubber works to start a tyre factory at changanassery. In 1975 Raunaq group of companies
under chairmanship of Mr.Raunaq Singh purchased the license from Ruby Rubber works. It is
one of the flagship companies of the Raunaq Group. The unit at Perambra in Thrissur has been
enjoying the status of mother plant of Apollo Tyres Ltd. A new milestone of Apollo tyres laid
down by the collaboration with Michelin Company as Michelin Apollo Tyres Ltd in pune.
The company has started its operation in 1977 with commercial production of tyres, tubes
and flaps with licensed capacity of 4 lakhs tyres and an initial outlay of Rs 36 crores. At the
initial stage there was repeated lockouts and labour unrest. These problems were solved by
changing work force, introduction of new machineries and reducing man power. Trade unions
contribute a lot for solving problems related to production. The Govt. of India ministry of power
recognized in energy conservation and management on 14th December 2003 at New Delhi by the
honorable Union minister for power.
Vision
By giving total satisfaction to the customers and increasing share value, acquire a
predominant position in the Indian tyre industry, and to become a well known player in the
International Tyre manufacturing industry.
www.apollotyres.com
TCIL- Kolkata
Stallion- Hyderabad
Tyres are basically of two types – cross-ply and radial. In cross-ply tyres, nylon or rayon
tyre cords are arranged diagonally across. In radial tyres, polyester, nylon, fiberglass or steel
cords are arranged perpendicular to the circumference. Radial technology is an improvement
over cross ply. Radial tyres are long lasting and have lower incidence of flats. Radial tyres are
10-15% costlier compared to the cross-ply ones. They can be differentiated on the type of belt
used – fiberglass, steel and nylon. Worldwide, steel belted radials are most popular owing to
their supervisor performance. Radial tyres provide certain advantages like better vehicles control
and road holding, longer life and lower fuel consumption. Within the tyre industry the trucks and
buses ( T & B) segment, which accounts for more than 70% of sales is most critical.
Production standard
Apollo Tyres Ltd was following QS 9000 till 2006. Presently Apollo Tyres Ltd has been
following TS 16949, an internationally accepted standard.
Objectives
Strong brand equity
High volume, high market share, cost effectiveness in all segments
High quality technologically superior products
Competitive advantage
Consistent production through harmonious industrial relation
Achievement of customer delight through bench marketing global practices by efficient
parameters
Quick response for market needs
Become market or business focused through forward looking agents.
High consumer loyalty
Strengthen supply chain management
To enhance companies shareholders value
Core values
The one word that symbolizes all that company believe is, CREATE
C – Care for Customers
R – Respect for Associates
E – Excellent through Team work
A – Always Learning
T – Trust Mutually
E – Ethical Practices
The company provides safety and health for its workers. For this it facilitates Full time
doctor, Ambulance, Dispensary, Medical checkup etc. the company also provides eco friendly
surroundings and a free work practice.
Products Brands
Apollo
Loadstar Super Hercules Champion
Loadstar Super Champion DXL
Loadstar Super Gold Champion Gold
XT 7 Amar
XT 7 Haulug Amar Deluxe
XT7 Gold Amar Gold
XT-9 Amar AT-Rib
Truck XT-9 Gold
Kaizen
50 L 27 L
36 L 77 R
Commando 99 R Plus
XDT
Car Radials
Tube Type (Amazer XL Tubeless Radials
Quantum)
4x4 Radials
Hawkz Amazer XL
Storm
Farm
Mixed Application Bias Segment
Krishak Premium
Apollo Tyres Ltd is a public limited company and the study focuses on the tyre
manufacturing plant of the Perambra unit. As the part of globalization, modernization and
liberalization, the present market becomes more competitive. Due to this every organization tries
to reduce its cost and to increase its quality to acquire market. But Apollo Tyres Ltd, Perambra
has been facing a problem with the finished goods inventory. There has been a lot of difference
in the numbers of tubes and flaps stored in the Finished Goods Stores when compared with the
tyres. This study has been carried out to look into this problem.
The inventory system which is being followed in Apollo Tyres Ltd is a fairly robust one.
The problem in the warehouse due to excess inventory leads to increase various costs. The
company should take proper control over the finished goods of the company and in the transfer
of tubes and flaps from the company’s own subsidiary tube plant. There is a scope of reducing
the excess inventory and there by handling cost by developing an efficient management
information system.
Title
Primary Objectives
The study was conducted in Apollo Tyres Ltd, Perambra which is called as the Mother
plant. The time frame of the project was from 05th April 2010 to 31st May 2010. The study has
been strictly concentrated on the operations of the store. In this the main area of study was on
Finished Goods Stores and the problems faced by them.
Research Design
The type of research is exploratory.
Primary sources
Primary data was collected from management and staff of Finished Goods Stores
department by direct interview and observation.
Secondary sources
Secondary data were collected from company profile, annual report for five years and
internet.
Limitations
1) The study was that it was restricted to the finished goods stores alone.
2) The information system generated was in Microsoft Excel. However there is a possibility
of generating the information system by using separate software.
3) The information system is built on the basis of monthly production plan which is called
as ‘ticket’. Little modification is required in the information system for every month as
the ‘ticket’ may change for each month.
4) Some of the information pertained to the project was available only at the Head Office.
Apollo Tyres Ltd, Perambra has a well functioned finished goods store department to
effectively de-link operations from marketing so that operational efficiencies are maximized
without causing any sales opportunity loss.
Division Head-Commercial
Figure 9
For the FIFO system to be implemented, finished goods store is split into small zones.
Each zone is provided with location number. The different zone is based on fast moving, slow
moving and non moving items. Each zone is having a cost allocated to it for the tyres to stack or
unstuck. Fast moving tyres are stored in front. Slow moving tyres are taken to rear zones.
Separate areas are provided for tubes, flaps, small tyres and OE tyres. By doing this size wise,
location wise, month wise analysis and report generation is possible at ease.
Finished goods stores have got a storage policy to keep the finished product clean and
safe. As per the storage policy smaller tyres (passenger and light truck) should be stored in the
inner area due to security reasons. Rear tractor and export tyres should be stacked in the outer
temporary shed. When stock exceeds storage capacity, first rear tractor and then unpacked tyres
to be removed to open areas. Tyres with highest waiting time is to be stored in high cost zones.
Fast moving tyres (waiting time less) to be stored in low cost zones. Tyres which are six months
and more old must be segregated and kept in separate storage zones.
Warehouse Cage
Counting
of Tyres
If Tractor,
Export, If OE
OE, Yes Tyre Yes
Passenger
Tyres
No
No
OE Tyre
Light and Inspection
Heavy
Truck
Tyres
Packing
Tube and Flap
Storage
Packing
Figure 10
The original copy of the transfer- note will be issued to the central excise wing after entering
the details in stock statement, duplicate will be given back to production as their file copy and
triplicate will be issued to production planning. One staff each from production and FGS/TTF
will separately verify the quantity, size ply rating of the finished goods and compare against the
entry in transfer-note.
Tubes are mainly supplied by company’s own subsidiary tube plant and sometimes from
outside suppliers. Flaps are supplied by outside suppliers. The suppliers of tubes are:
Classic Auto Tubes, Pune
Excel Rubbers Ltd, Hyderabad
Agarwal Tubes Ltd, Ahmadabad
The suppliers of flaps are:
Vilas Polymers, Hyderabad
Bhagavati Ltd , Ahmadabad
Nagappa Rubber Factory, Coimbatore
FGS on receiving the material will first prepare GR (Goods Receipt). For tubes supplied
by Pune plant material will get directly updated in stock on preparation of GR. For tubes and
flaps supplied by outside suppliers after GR preparation stock will appear in Quality Inspection
till it is cleared in SAP by QA. On acceptance by QA stock will get updated.
Packing
HDPE ( High Density Ply Ethylene) bags containing tubes and flaps shall be identified
with the month of production. Tyre, tube and flaps shall be packed as a set, as per the
specification applicable for domestic supply.
Procedure
Clean the inside of the tyre properly and insert the tube and flap inside the tyre. Inflate
the tube carefully up to the pressure just sufficient to hold the tube inside the tyre. Ensure that the
tube does not come out from the assembly.
The technical department plays a very crucial role in the organization. It is basically an
R&T (Research and Technology) department. Technical department is mainly concerned with
improving quality of tyres by methods like reduction in curing cycles, reducing tyre shape
problems etc. Technical coordination meeting take place once in every 5 months. The technical
coordination committee will consist of members from marketing field also.
It is sufficient to store the tubes and flaps required for the number of tyres. But after
studying the finished goods inventory, it is found that there has been facing excess storage in the
number of tubes and flaps when compare with the tyres. Since the Apollo tube plant has been
facing space constraints in the warehouse, they need to supply it to the other plants immediately
after the production. Also the tube plant is supplying to few domestic customers, the plant need
to utilize its warehouse for anticipating the domestic market. Tubes from the Classic Auto Tubes
are stored in the Perambra unit which leads to excess inventory and this created the problem in
the warehouse.
The records of the details of stocks with the production, planning and control department
were analyzed and were able to observe excess stock levels of tubes and flaps. The tyres are
counted once they are manufactured and the transfer note is handed over to FGS staff. The tubes
and flaps are counted immediately after the delivery from the suppliers. Once they are counted
and verified goods receipt note are prepared and recorded by the FGS staff.
The total number of different types of tyres to be produced in a month is readily available
from the ticket where as the daily production rate for each type of tyres and the number of tubes
and flaps have to be obtained from the goods receipt note. In order to obtain the stock levels of
tubes and flaps for each month for the last one year, the goods receipt notes for the entire one
year were analyzed. Goods receipt note will consist of details such as material code, batch,
quantity and material type for different types of tyres. The tubes and flaps are intended for
different categories of tyres such as truck type, rear tractor type, light commercial vehicle type
and passenger and car type and in goods receipt note they are recorded accordingly. The sum of
tubes and flaps for all the categories will give the total stock for a day and similarly month wise
So it is very well clear that in all the months, the number of tubes and flaps is
substantially more than the number of tyres and the company is unnecessarily wasting a lot of
space for the tubes and flaps storage. The project is based on the excess inventory problem and
finds a solution to it. An information system can help to overcome this problem. Managers or the
The management information system was developed in Microsoft Excel. The company
deals with more than 48 different types of tyres, 23 different types of tubes and 8 different types
of flaps. The possible combination of tyres, tubes and flaps were analyzed first. Here the tyre,
tube, flap combination are given below.
10.00-20 KAIZEN TUBE 4.6 -D 10.00-20 18PR KZ - 50L 20 N KZN TSP FLAP
Based on the tyre, tube and flap combination, separate worksheets have been created for
tubes and flaps and corresponding tyres have entered in the worksheets. A separate worksheet for
monthly production plan have been created which is given by the head office at Gurgaon and
commonly known by Ticket. Ticket gives the information about the number of different types of
tyres to be manufactured for a particular month. Then a separate worksheet for tyre, tube and flap
stock position have generated so that the information system can be updated each day by simply
posting the stock statement for that particular day. The stock statement for tyres, tubes and flaps
are prepared by the FGS staff and it will be posted in SAP immediately after the handover of
transfer note from the final inspection to FGS. Separate spreadsheets are created to display the
results for Tube Summary and Flap Summary which would describe the disparity between the
optimum stock and actual stock. The front end of the information system is given below
Excess stock is calculated by subtracting actual stock from optimum stock. If found to be
negative, the manager can ask to expedite the order and if there is a large amount of excess stock,
he can tell the vendors to hold back the supply for some days.
The functions used for the design of Management Information System are
i. VLOOKUP
This function will copy the required item quantity from specified spreadsheet to
the required sheet otherwise it becomes tedious to look for individual item
quantities.
ii. CONCATENATE
This function merges the tyre code and batch code into one cell.
1. There has been a lot of difference in the numbers of tubes and flaps stored in the
Finished Goods Stores when compared with the tyres.
2. Though the quality is an important aspect, the tubes and flaps are not rechecked for the
quality once they are stored.
3. It has been found that the stocks of tubes are greater than flaps. This is due to the space
constraints in the tube plant; the company stores its tubes in the Perambra unit.
4. In Apollo Tyres Ltd, 15 days stock is kept as safety stock against unexpected events.
Some suggestions for the further improvement of inventory management are given below:-
1. Apollo tyres can optimise tubes and flaps inventory with that of tyres by operating an
efficient management information system.
2. Since the monthly production plan for tyres is given by the Head Office, the company
can convey the requirement of tubes and flaps in advance for optimising the finished
goods inventory by looking at the information system.
3. The execution of information system needs to be closely observed at the initial phase for
any error. Since the information system has the ease of operating by any personnel as it
is built with the simple functions which is incorporated in Excel.
4. The huge inventory of tubes and flaps can be minimized by increasing the capacity of the
warehouse in the tube plant of Apollo. Since the tube plant need to utilize its warehouse
for anticipating the domestic market, they have to transfer the tubes and flaps to
Perambra unit and this lead to huge inventory.
Based on the information system if followed, Apollo Tyres can reduce the disparity
among tyres, tubes and flaps. Since the FGS staff prepares stock statement daily and our
information system needs only the prepared stock statement as input, the developed information
system will be very useful. The information system is designed with the simple function that is
incorporated in the Microsoft Excel. This makes the information system unique as it can be
operated by any personnel.
By looking at the information system the manager can ask to expedite the order and if
there is a large amount of excess stock, he can tell the vendors to hold back the supply for some
days. Hence Apollo Tyres can maintain a satisfactory level of inventory by following the
information system.
2) Agarwal, Krishna Kumar (1993), Inventory Management Concept and Dynamics, Kanishka
Publishers, Delhi.
Websites
www.apollotyres.com/corporate/corporate.aspx
www.apollotyres.com/corporate/human-resource.aspx
www.apollotyres.com/corporate/manufacturing-process.aspx
www.apollotyres.com/investor-relations.aspx