About the project:

The project Marketability of local vs. national brand of Cement was carried out to determine the availability and regularity cement in the Arunachal Pradesh market and the satisfaction level of customer with the different brands of Cement. This study would also provide an insight into the operations of the different national and local brands of cements in the Arunachal market. Out of various type of Cement our study is cover only OPC. The feedback from the study would be used by the STYAM Group of Industries for their upcoming Cement projects.

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About the Organization (Satyam Group of Industries)The Satyam Group is a well diversified industrial conglomerate having its concentration especially in the north eastern region of India. The promoters of this group made a humble beginning in the year of 1994 with a single company and with few Lacs Rupees worth of assets. The group has achieved a milestone of being one of the Largest Industrial Houses of the North East Region with net worth of around 200 Crores. The Group consists of over 30 Companies & Firms having diversified business activities. The Groups till recently focused in the Core Sectors of Iron and Steel Industry. Satyam Group is very successfully operating Steel Furnaces and rolling mills in the states of Assam, Meghalaya, Arunachal Pradesh and Manipur. Satyam Group has also made forays in the field of Mining and Mineral Industry, Cement Industry, Hotels and Resorts, Real Estate, Transportation etc. The Group has pan India presence and the geographical horizons are touching from Delhi and Jaipur in the North up to Daman in the south. Satyam Ispat (North East) Ltd. One of the constituents of the group bears the credit of being the Largest TMT unit of the North East Region. Groups leading Mining Company- National Mining Company Ltd. incorporated in the year of 2002 has successfully carried out coal mining for Coal India Limited for a long time and has also pioneered Coal Mining in the state of Arunachal Pradesh. Another mining and mineral company of the group- Satyam Mining and Minerals Limited is actively involved in the Mining activities in the state of Manipur having its focus on Chromites and Lime Stone. The Group is gradually diversifying into other vital sectors and has firmed up plans to establish facilities for manufacturing of Cement having a capacity of 1 million tons per annum. The Group has also obtained permission from the Government for setting up of 300 KW thermal power project and 1 Million Ton Capacity Low Ash Metrological Coke in the state of Arunachal Pradesh. Work will soon start on both these projects.

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THE PROMOTORS The group is primarily mentored and monitored by its patriarch Sri Ratan Sharma. Sri Ratan Sharma is a reputed industrialist of North East India. He holds a high level of recognition in the business community of North Eastern states. He has an enviable track record of implementing and running various industrial projects. Sri Ratan Sharma is ably assisted, in fulfilling the groups goals, by his brothers Sri Suresh Sharma, who has experience in Iron and Steel Industry of over a Decade & Sri Kamal Kumar Sharma with similar experience and capabilities. A great visionary Sri Ratan Sharma also has unique qualities of winning over people with his simplistic attitude and charm. He is at ease in working with people and it is because of this quality of his, he has almost 50 partners associated with various businesses across the length and breadth of the country.

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WHAT IS CEMENT?
Cement is a mixture of limestone, Clay, Silica and Gypsum. It is a fine powder which when mixed with water sets to a hard mass as a result of hydration of the constituent compounds. It is the most commonly used construction material. Cement is manufactured by burning a mixture of limestone and Clay at high temperatures in a kiln, and then finely grinding the resulting clinker along with Gypsum. The end product thus obtained is called Ordinary Portland Cement (OPC).

Different Types of Cement

There are different varieties of cement based on different compositions according to specific end uses, namely Ordinary Portland Cement, Portland Pozzolona Cement, Portland Blast Furnace Slag Cement, White Cement and Specialized Cement. The basic difference lies in the percentage of clinker used.

1. Ordinary Portland cement (OPC):

OPC, popularly known as grey cement, has 95% clinker and 5% of Gypsum and other materials. It accounts for 70% of the total consumption. White cement is a variation of OPC and is used for decorative purposes like rendering of walls, flooring etc. It contains a very low proportion of iron oxide. Ordinary Portland cement is the most commonly used cement for a wide range of applications. These applications cover dry-lean mixes, general-purpose readymixes, and even high strength pre-cast and pre-stressed concrete.

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2. Portland Pozzolona Cement (PPC):

Portland pozzolona cement is Ordinary Portland Cement blended with Pozzolanic materials (power-station fly ash, burnt clays, ash from burnt plant material or Siliceous earths), either together or separately. Portland clinker is ground with Gypsum and Pozzolanic materials which, though they do not have cementing properties in themselves, combine chemically with Portland cement in the presence of water to form extra strong cementing material which resists wet cracking, thermal cracking and has a high degree of cohesion and workability in concrete. PPC has 80% clinker, 15% pozzolona and 5% gypsum and accounts for 18% of the total cement consumption. It is cheaply manufactured because it uses fly ash/burnt clay/coal waste as the main ingredient. It has a lower heat of hydration, which helps in preventing cracks where large volumes are being cast.

3. Portland Blast Furnace Slag Cement (PBFSC):

PBFSC consists of 45% clinker, 50% blast furnace slag and 5% Gypsum and accounts for 10% of the total cement consumed. It has a heat of hydration even lower than PPC and is generally used in construction of dams and similar massive constructions. Portland blast-furnace slag cement contains up to 70 per cent of finely ground, granulated blast furnace slag, a nonmetallic product consisting essentially of Silicates and Aluminum-silicates of Calcium. Slag brings with it the advantage of the energy invested in the slag making. Grinding slag for cement replacement takes only 25 per cent of the energy needed to manufacture Portland cement. Using slag cement to replace a portion of Portland cement in a concrete mixture is a useful method to make concrete better and more consistent. Portland blast-furnace slag cement has a lighter color, better concrete workability, easier finish ability, higher compressive and
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flexural strength, lower permeability, improved resistance to aggressive chemicals and more consistent plastic and hardened consistency.

4. White Cement:

White Portland cement has essentially the same properties as gray cement, except for color, which is a very important quality control issue in the industry. It is manufactured using fuel oil (instead of coal) and with iron oxide content below 0.4% to ensure whiteness. Special cooling technique is used. It is used to enhance aesthetic value, in tiles and for flooring. White cement is much more expensive than grey cement. 5. Specialized Cement: Oil Well Cement: is made from clinker with special additives to prevent any porosity. Rapid Hardening Portland cement: It is similar to OPC, except that it is ground much finer, so that on casting, the compressible strength increases rapidly. Water Proof Cement: OPC, with small portion of calcium stearate or nonsaponifibale oil to impart waterproofing properties.

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Current scenario of cement industries in India:

Cement industry in India is on a roll at the moment. Driven by a booming real estate sector, global demand and increased activity in infrastructure development such as state and national highways, the cement industry has witnessed tremendous growth. Production capacity has gone up and top cement companies of the world are vying to enter into the Indian market, thereby sparking off a spate of mergers and acquisition. Indian cement industry is currently ranked second in the world. The Indian cement industry with the total installed capacity of 219 million tons (MT) is the second largest market after the china with the 140 major cement plants and 365 mini cement plants. Despite the fact the Indian cement industry has clocked the production of more than 100 million tons for the last five years, registering an average growth rate of 10 percent. The per capita consumption of around 150kgs compares poorly with the world average of 260kgs and more than 450kgs in china. This, more than anything underlines the tremendous scope for growth in the Indian cement industry in the long term. Although consolidation has taken place in the Indian cement industry with the top six players controlling almost 50% of the capacity the balance capacity still remains pretty fragmented. Cement, being a bulk commodity, is a freight intensive industry and transporting over long distance can prove to be uneconomical. This has resulted in cement being largely a regional play with the industries divided into five main regions viz. north, south, west, east and central region. While the southern region has always excess capacity in the past owing to abundant availability of limestone, the western and northern region are the most lucrative markets on account of higher income levels. However, with capacity addition taking place at a slower rate as compared to growth in demand, the demand supply parity has been restored to some extent in the southern region for the medium term. Considering the pace at which
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infrastructural activity is taking place in different regions, the players have lined up expansion plans accordingly. Cement industry in India has also made tremendous strides in technological up gradation and assimilations of latest technology. Presently 93% of the total capacity in the industry based on modern and environment friendly dry process technology. The induction of advanced technology has helped the industry immensely to conserve energy and fuel to save materials substantially.

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Objective of the study:

The project is divided in two stagesStage1:- Interaction with Wholesaler and retailer Stage2:- Interaction with End User of Cement. Objective of Stage 1- Study the Cement market of Arunachal Pradesh. Objective of Stage2-Study the customer view towards available cement brands of Arunachal Pradesh.

Research Methodology:

Source of Data: Stage 1- In this stage we cover 9 dealers & 16 retailers in distinct city of Arunachal Pradesh as follows

City Banderdewa

No. of Wholesaler 5

No. of Retailer 0

Nirjuli Naharlagun Itanagar

1 2 1

3 6 7

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Stage2-In this stage I interact with end user (Institutional & personal) followsof cement in distinct place of Arunachal Pradesh as

Place Banderdewa Nirjuli Naharlagun Itanagar

Personal 3 5 9 9

Institutional 0 0 4 5

Sampling Size:Total number interviewed=63 Total number of Shopkeeper interviewed=28 Total number of end user interviewed =35

Sampling Procedure: This is the most important step in the research process. This is gives outline to the researcher as to who should be considered for data collection, the number and the back ground etc, as the entire population study is tedious, time consuming and non-economical. Hence alternative method of sampling is used for the research which is representation of entire population. In stage 1, I have covered all retailers and the wholesalers from Banderdewa to Itanagar and in the stage 2, I have chosen Personal as well as Institutional customer randomly.

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Geographical area covered:-Banderdewa, Nirjuli, Naharlagun and Itanagar.

Limitations:-

1) Arunachal Pradesh is geographically wide spread and it was no possible to cover entire state in such short time frame. Thats why the survey was conducted in limited area Banderdewa, Nirjuli, Naharlagun and Itanagar. 2) While collecting the primary data some of the respondents are not able or willing to give information. Same way they are sometime busy so the information given by them may not be accurate. 3) Time constraint.

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Data Analysis and Interpretation: Analysis the data collect by market study in the stage 11) Brands available in ARUNACHAL PRADESH Table no-3.1.1 Local Vinay Pendant Druk Lakhitop Manufacturing unit Assam(Bokajan) Bhutan Bhutan Bhutan National Ambuja Birla gold Zuari Lafarge Manufacturing unit West Bengal Raipur, baikunth Chennai Westbengal Dist: Bankura Dr. U. N. Brahmachari street, Kolkata Chennai Tamilnadu District: Tirunelveli Buland Shaktiman Top cem Best Nagaon(lanka) Guwahati Jaintia hills, Meghalaya Meghalaya Star Jaintia hills, Meghalaya

Prithvi

BAMUNGAON, LANKA

Ultratech

(ASSAM) Zambu shakti J.k. cement Kamrup(changsari) Barnyhat Coremandal king India cement

From the above chart we come to know the various available Local as well as National brands of Cement in Arunachal Pradesh as well as nearest manufacturing unit of those Brands of Cement.
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2) Price of Cement
Table no-3.1.2 Retailer Buying (Rs.)/Bag* Vinay cement Best Cement Topcem Pandant Druck J.K. Cement Shaktiman Bulland Zambu Shakti Prithvi Lakhitop 328.75 340 360 350 325 350 315 330 337.5 330 330

Local Brand

Wholesaler Buying (Rs.) /Bag* 310 330 345 330 310 330 305 310 325 310 315

*Current price

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Table no-3.1.3 National Brand Retailer Buying (Rs.)/Bag* Wholesaler Buying (Rs.) /Bag*

Birla Gold

365 360

355 350

Ultratech Cement Ambuja Star Cement Lafarge

350 355 370

345 345 360 320 *Current price

Coremandal king 330

From the above chart we have found that the Retailer buying price of national brand cement is 5.65% higher than local brand Cement and Wholesaler buying price of national brand cement is 8.13% higher than local brand Cement.

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3)

Distribution channel (Wholesaler) Table no-3.1.4 Transpor Qty t Train up 180bag/truck(6w) to 300bag/truck(10w) Harmoti and then Truck

Brands A

Buying From Manufacturin g

Freight up to Harmoti paid by company and Harmoti to Banderdewa Rs.3/bag

Manufacturin By truck 180bag/truck(6w) g upto 300bag/truck(10w) Banderde wa

Upto Banderdewa paid by company

Distribution channel (retailer) Buying Transport Freight From All brands Banderdewa By Truck 180bag/truck From To Rs. wholesaler (6w) Banderdewa Nirjuli 11 300bag/truck (10W) Do Naharlagun 13 Do Itanagar 16 Brands Table no-3.1.5 Qty

From the above two chart we have seen the distribution channel as well as transport facility starting from manufacturing to end users and their freight.
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4) Dull period of the year Due to rainy season starting from June to August the demand of cement is lower than the other period. But in the month of March the demand is high due to end of Financial Year.

5) Term & condition of sales of the company-

Term&conditions of Sale
64%

36%

Credit

Cash

Figure-A

From the above graph we have seen that out of total 25 respondents 64% business enterprise run their business in cash and 36% enjoy the facility of credit system.

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6) Top brands in the market

Table no-3.1.6

Rank 1 2 3 4 5

Brand *Star Cement *Birla Gold *Topcem Vinay Cement Prithvi Cement

Reason Fast setting, Black color and Fresh product due to nearest manufacturing unit. National Brand, Fast setting. Fast setting, Black color and Fresh product due to nearest manufacturing unit. Grade -53,low price Grade -43,low price

*These brands are prescribed by A.P. Govt. for government construction.

From the above chart we have seen that most demandable brand in Arunachal Pradesh is Star Cement. According to the respondents second most demandable brand is Birla Gold, third Topcem, fourth Vinay cement and fifth Prithvi cement. Star, Birla gold and Top Cem are the brands prescribed by the Arunachal Government for Government construction. Its the main reason of having more demand of these three products.

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7) Average Profit MarginTable no-3.1.7 Wholesaler Max Rs. 8 6 Min Rs. Retailer Max Rs. 13 8 Min Rs.

From the above chart we come to know the average Profit margin of the Retailers and Wholesalers of cement business in Arunachal Pradesh.

8) Regularity of cement-

During my market study I have come to know that demand of cement in Arunachal Pradesh is very high but the Cement brands are not regular in this area for following reasonTable no-3.1.8 Brand Reason 1)Transportation Almost all brand 2) Payment system 3) High demand ,low production 4)Manufacturing unit out of North East 5) Wholesaler weakness

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Transportation:-Government restricted to carry more than 180 bags by six wheel truck. Thats why transporters are not interested to carry cement at the previous rate. Payment system:-When a brand creates demand in the market the company change the policy from credit system to advance draft system. High demand, low production:-Cement demand of any brand is very high but the production capacity is very low. Manufacturing unit out of North East:-Maximum national brand manufacturing unit out of north east, its the reason that the brands are not reach at time and some time cement become stone due to long distance. Wholesaler weakness:-Due to advance payment system unable to pay money to place order. wholesaler

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9) Promotional strategy of the brandsHimali Cement -Representative for every district Pandant Cement -T-shirt Ambuja Cement -Key ring, Pen Vinay Cement - 1000 bag in a month =Refrigerator 1500 bag in a month =LCD TV 2000 bag in a month =LCD +DVD 2500 bag in a month =PC 3000 bag in a month =Bike

Topcem Cement-5000MT/Month=Tour to Gangtok -50000MT/Month=Tour to Singapore Star Cement-Coupon Pack (Cement Bag, Umbrella, Bike Etc) Other Brands-Shutter print, hoardings, Yearly diary, wall print etc. From the above data we have seen the various promotional strategies to attract the customer and motivate the shopkeepers to sale more quantity of Cement.

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Analysis the data collected by End User interview in the stage 2:Question no1: How do you find the supply of cement in Arunachal Pradesh? The idea behind this question is to find how the common man in the city feels having Cement. This would give an estimate of the peoples liking or disliking Cement. The responses of the respondents are shown below: Table no-3.2.1 Table no3.1.5SL.No. 1 2 3 4 OPINION Very Good Good Average Bad No. RESPONDENTS 3 16 12 4

Supply
Very Good Good 11% 9% Average Bad

34% 46%

Figure-B

Interpretation: It is observed from the table that the no. of people liking Cement in the city is very large. Of the total responses registered 9% of them find it very good to have Cement; a large majority, 46% find it good; 34% of them find it just average to have Cement. While the study revealed that 11% of the respondents finds it bad.
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Question no 2: How do you decide to buy cement? Table no-3.2.2 SL.No. 1 2 3 4 OPINION Brand name Price Quality Others No. RESPONDENTS 8 5 16 6

This question will help to know about the factors consider by the customer before buying Cement.

Factors Consider Before Buying

Others 17%

Brand name 23%

Price 14% Quality 46%

Figure-C

Interpretation: The survey reveal that the main factor consider by the end user before buying Cement is Quality of the Cement .From the above graph we have seen that 46% customer decide a brand by their quality, where 23% customer believe in the brand name of the Cement.14% customer decide a brand depending upon their price of the Cement.
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Question no 3: Which brand do you prefer for use? This question will help to find out customer most favorite brand of Cement. Number of respondent against the brands of Cement given belowTable no-3.2.3 Sl. No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 OPINION Star Cement Birla Gold Topcem Vinay Cement Prithvi Cement Any other No. RESPONDENTS 11 8 6 4 3 3

PREFERED BRAND
35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 5% 0% Star Cement Birla Gold Topcem Vinay Prithvi Cement Cement Any other 31% 23% 17% 11% 9% 9%

Figure-D

Interpretation:Through this question we can come to know the customer most favorable brand of Cement. From the above graph we have found that 31% customer prefer Star Cement, where 23% customers favorite brand is Birla Gold, Topcem another local brand preferred by 17% customer.11% and 9% respondents preferred Vinay and Prithvi Cement respectively. Finally we can say that Star Cement is the most demandable brand in Arunachal Pradesh.
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Question no 4: How do you come to know about the brand of the cement? This question help to know about the Cement companies promotional strategy to reach the customer. During the survey we have found the following respondsSL.No. 1 2 3 4 5 Table no-3.2.4 OPINION No. RESPONDENTS T.V 4 Hoardings 10 Newspaper 2 Dealer 11 recommendation Others 8

Figure-E

Interpretation: After survey we have seen that Dealer Recommendation is the most influencing way to motivate a customer to go with a particular brand of Cement. From the above graph it is clear that 31% customer prefer a brand of Cement by the recommend of shopkeeper, 29% customer come to know a brand of Cement from the hoardings.23% customer come to know about a brand of Cement from other source like offer given by the company (pen, diary, umbrella.etc), recommend of contractor /workers etc, where 11% and 9% customer come to know about a brand of Cement from T.V. and Newspaper respectively.

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Question no 5: Have you ever got any offer with Cement? This question help to find out the percentage of people enjoying the offer provide by the Cement companies in Arunachal Pradesh. Table no-3.2.5 OPINION Yes No No. RESPONDENTS 3 32

Figure-F

Interpretation: The surveys revealed that 91% customer never receive any offer with Cement, where only 9% customer enjoy offer given with Cement. Again survey reveal that Local brand provide more offer than any national brand of Cement.

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Question no 6: Do you decide on your purchase based on the offers given by the cement companies? Through this question we have tried to find out the percentage of customer motivated by the companies offer with Cement. Table no-3.2.6 OPINION Yes No No. RESPONDENTS 5 30

No

86%

Yes

14%

Figure-G

Interpretation: The result of this question reveals that in case of Cement its very difficult to motivate customer by the offer given with the Cement. Customer always prefers a good quality Cement .The above graph mention that 86% customer not prefer a brand only for the offer if the quality of Cement is not satisfactory.

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Question no 7: Are you satisfied with the available brands of the Cement in the market? This question will help to find out customer satisfaction level with the existing varieties brands of Cement in the market. Table no-3.2.7 SL.No. 1 2 3 4 5 OPINION Extremely Satisfied Satisfied Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied Dis-satisfied Extremely dissatisfied
46% 40%

No. RESPONDENTS 1 16 14 4 0

50% 45% 40% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 10% 5% 0%

11% 3% 0% Satisfied Neither Dis-satisfied Extremely satisfied nor dissatisfied dissatisfied

Extremely Satisfied

Figure-H

Interpretation: After putting the value in the bar graph we have seen that 46% customer satisfied with the existing brands of Cement .Again 40% customer neither satisfied nor dissatisfied, it means to some extent the customers are happy with existing brands where as from some point of view customer also disappoint with
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the existing brands of Cement. But the survey also reveals that 0% customer extremely dissatisfied where 3% extremely satisfied with the available brands of Cement in the market.

So finally we can say that end user of Cement in Arunachal Pradesh are satisfied with available brands of Cement in the market.

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Question no 8: What are the reasons of using particular type of cement?

As we know that there is various type of Cement, among that most popular type of Cement is OPC. This question will help to find out the reason of using particular type of Cement-

Sl. No. 1 2 3 4 5 6

Table no-3.2.8 OPINION No. RESPONDENTS Good workability 9 Setting time Good 7 finishing High 2 early strength 8 Crack Resistance 4 Others 5

26% 23% 20%

Figure-I
14% 11% 6%

Good Setting time workability

Good finishing

High early strength

Crack Resistance

Others

Figure-I

26% of the customers said Good workability is the reason of using particular type of Cement,

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 23% of the customers said High Early strength is the reason of using particular type of Cement, 20% of the customers said setting time is the reason of using particular type of Cement. Finally we can say that the reason of choosing a particular type of Cement is God workability and Early strength with good setting time.

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Question no 9: Are you satisfied with the regularity of the brands? This question will help to find out the satisfaction level of the customer with the regularity of Cement brandTable no-3.2.9 SL.No. 1 2 3 4 5 OPINION Extremely Satisfied Satisfied Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied Dis-satisfied Extremely dissatisfied No. RESPONDENTS 0 9 12 10 4

REGULARITY
26% 34% 29%

0% Extremely Satisfied

11% Satisfied

Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied

Dis-satisfied

Extremely dissatisfied

Figure-J

Although the demand of Cement is very high ,no one brand is regular in the market .By the survey we come to know that 11% people are extremely dissatisfied where 0% people extremely satisfied with the regularity of Cement in the market. The survey also reveals that 26% customer satisfied, 34% customer neither satisfied nor dissatisfied and 29% customer dissatisfied with the regularity of Cement in the market.

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Question no 10: Are you satisfied with the price of the cement? This question will define the customer satisfaction level with the price of cement Table no-3.2.10 SL.No. 1 2 3 4 5 OPINION Extremely Satisfied Satisfied Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied Dis-satisfied Extremely dissatisfied No. RESPONDENTS 0 3 8 16 8

PRICE
46% 23% 0% Extremely Satisfied 8% 23%

Satisfied

Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied

Dis-satisfied

Extremely dissatisfied

Figure-K

One more reason of customer dissatisfaction with the Cement is price, which is varying frequently with time and place. From the survey report it is clearly define that 46% customer are dissatisfied with the price of the Cement where 23% extremely dissatisfied. The survey also reveals that 0% customer extremely satisfied, only 8% customer satisfied and 23% customer neither satisfied nor dissatisfied with the price of the Cement in the Arunachal Pradesh market.

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Question no 11: How interested would you be to use a new brand of cement?

SL.No. 1 2 3 4 5

Table no-3.2.11 OPINION No. RESPONDENTS Very interested 4 Interested 16 Neither interested nor 12 disinterested Disinterested 2 Very disinterested 1

Figure-L

After having more than 30 Cement brand (including National and Local Brand) in Arunachal Pradesh market still people are interested to use new brand of Cement. During the survey we have come to know that End users are not happy with the existing brand due to various reasons (mention below).Thats why most of the customer interested to use a good quality new brand of Cement. From the above chart we have seen that 11% customer very interested, 46% customer interested to use a new brand of Cement where as only 6% customer disinterested and 3% very disinterested to use a new brand of Cement.

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Question no 12: What type of specific advantage do you expect from a brand of cement? (Give Ranks) By this question we have tried to know factors required for a brand of Cement which can satisfy all needs of the end user-

Option

High Strength Early Setting time Fast work Low price

Table no-3.2.12 No. No. Respondents Respondents (Rank-1) (Rank-2) 15 7 6 8

No. No. Respondents Respondents (Rank-3) (Rank-4) 10 3 13 8

7 7

12 9

6 5

10 14

Figure-M

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 43% customer given responds for 1st rank to High strength, 17% customer for early setting time, 20% for fast work and 20% for low price. 34% customer given responds for 2nd rank to Fast work, 26% customer for Low price, 23% for Early setting time and 20% for High strength.

37% customer given responds for 3rd rank to Early setting time, 29% customer for High strength, 17% for fast work and 14% for low price.

40% customer given responds for 4th rank to Low price, 29% customer for fast work, 23% for Early setting time and 9% for High strength.

After the above analysis we have come to know that first thing customer seek in a brand of Cement is High strength, Second factor is fast work, third Early setting time and lastly Low Price of the Cement.

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Question no 13: What are your suggestions to improve the sales? Our intention of this question was to collect recommendations from end users to improve sale of a brand of Cement. The responds of the end users was as followsTable no-3.2.13 SL.No. 1 2 3 4 OPINION Improve Price Structure Improve product quality Improve Advertisement Policy Improve the distribution chain No. RESPONDENTS 13 12 3 7

Figure-N

When we ask suggestion to the end user to improve sale, 37% people suggest for improve price structure, 34% people suggest to improve the quality of Cement, 20% customer suggest to improve distribution channel and 6% customer suggest for improve advertisement policy.
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Question no 14: What is the Quantity use per year? (Only for Institutional customer) By this question we have tried to assess the potential of institutional customer in Arunachal Pradesh. To interpret the data we have made the following benchmarkTable no-3.2.14 Sl.No. 1 2 3 4 Opinion 1000 To 5000bag 5000 To 10000bag 10000 To 20000bag More Than 20000bag No. Respondents 2 2 2 3 Benchmark Small Medium Large Very Large

Quantity
40% 30% 20% 10% 0% 1000 to 5000bag 5000 to 10000bag 22% 22% 34% 22%

10000 to 20000bag

More than 20000 bag

Figure-O

After analysis the data we can conclude with following interpretations There are 34% Very Large institutional customer, There are 22% Large institutional customer, There are 22% Medium institutional customer and There are 22% Small institutional customer.
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Question no 15: Are you bound by government rules and regulations for procurement of Cement? (Only for Institutional customer) This question will help to find out how many institutional customer bound by government rules and regulations for procurement of Cement in Arunachal PradeshTable no-3.2.15 OPINION Yes No No. RESPONDENTS 4 5

Yes 44% No 56%

Figure-P

From the above pie chart we have seen that 56% institutional customer bound by government rules and regulation for procurement of Cement. Where 44% institutional buyers can choose according to their preference.

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Question no 16: What is the procedure of procurement of cement? This question would be help to find the most preferable way of the institutional customer for procurement of Cement in Arunachal Pradesh Table no-3.2.16 SL.No. 1 2 3 4 OPINION Tender Quotation Direct buying Other No. RESPONDENTS 2 3 3 1

procedure of Procurement
Other 12%

Tender 22%

Direct buying 33% Quotation 33%

Figure-Q

From the above pie chart we can conclude with following interpretations 33% institutional customer procure Cement by quotation , 33% institutional customer procure Cement Directly from the Wholesalers or retailers, 22% institutional customer use tender to procure Cement and 12% institutional customer uses other way to procure Cement.
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Question no 17: What type of problems are you facing with your current brand (if any):

In our questionnaire we have provided a space to reveal End user problems regarding Cement. During the survey we have found the following problems Workers skin problem due to use of more chemical in Cement , Due to more demand of Cement often Cement in the name of popular brand, The brands of the Cement is not available all time in the market, Rate of price rise of Cement is extremely high, Some time the buyers find the weight less than the original weight of the Cement bag due to extract a amount of Cement from the bag by the seller, There is no fix price of the Cement ,which is vary time to time and place to place, High price with low quality, Easily damage if expose the Cement for a small period of time, Cement convert to stone within a very short period of time, Brands of Cement are not regular in the market. miscreants sale duplicate

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Findings:
The major findings that come up from the research study are as follows: 1) There is almost 60% Local brands in the market of Arunachal Pradesh where as only 40% brands belongs to National and Imported brands .

2) The Cement users of Arunachal Pradesh are not satisfied with the Price of the Cement which is varying with every footstep.

3) Distribution channel of Cement is deteriorated due to regulation imposed by the India Government to carry not more than 180 bags of Cement by six wheeler truck and 300 bags by 10 wheeler truck.

4) Due to rainy season starting from June to August the demand of cement is lower than the other period. But in the month of March the demand is high due to end of Financial Year. 5) Most of the Customer preferred Local brand among which Star Cement is the most demandable brand in the Arunachal Pradesh.

6) Almost all brands of the Cement in the Arunachal Pradesh are irregular in the market due to various reasons which are already mentioned above.

7) Quality is the main factor consider by the end user of cement in the Arunachal Pradesh.

8) Dealer recommendation plays a vital role to promote a brand of Cement in Arunachal Pradesh.

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9) There is very big scope for a new brand of Cement to capture the market of Arunachal Pradesh due to very fast infrastructure growth of this region. Survey report reveal that 11% customer very interested, 46% customer interested to use a new brand of Cement where as only 6% customer disinterested and 3% very disinterested to use a new brand of Cement.

10) After having more than thirty Local and National brand still Cement market unable to fulfill the demand of the Arunachal Pradesh.

11) Some miscreants are taking the advantage of huge demand of Cement in Arunachal Pradesh by selling duplicate brand.

12) Star, Birla Gold and Topcem are the brands prescribed by the Arunachal Government for Government construction.

13) Customer generally like to prefer Local brand of Cement which is people believe fresh due to nearest manufacturing unit.

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Suggestions:I have spent near about 50 days to work on Cement market in Arunachal Pradesh. The survey helped me to learn insight the Cement market and to provide following Suggestions1) Due to a tremendous demand of Cement in Arunachal Pradesh some miscreants selling duplicate brand. To prevent this evil activity company should concern towards this matter and should monitor the market now and again. Apart from this company also can communicate with the end user to aware about the duplicate brand. 2) There should be wholesale distributer for each and every district so that Cement is available to all parts of the state including rural area. 3) Company should also take appropriate steps for the consistent supply of the cement. To maintain this regularity company can introduce own transport to carry Cement bag, provide credit facility to the seller, enhance production capacity as per requirement of the market etc. 4) There should be a regulation to maintain the price and quality of the Cement. 5) Producer should maintain the chemical in the Cement so that workers can work with this Cement without affected their skin by the chemical. 6) National brand like Birla Gold, Lafarge, Ambuja etc can set up their manufacturing unit in nearby state so that it can perform with fresh and regularity in the market. 7) Newspaper, Regional T.V. channel are the platform through which a brand can promote in this region where a few number of brand use this promotional strategy. Apart from this sales promotion is another one promotional strategy to enhance the sales of the Cement like, Coupon pack, Pack in Premium, Self Liquidator etc.

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ConclusionsThe theme of my project is Marketability of Local vs. National brand of Cement. There is two stage in my project stage 1 and stage 2.In the stage1 I have interact with wholesaler and retailer to study the Cement market. In stage 2 I have interacted with end user of Cement. Graphic and findings show that among various brand the Local brand is more preferable than National brand. The brand which is most demandable in the market is Star Cement which is available various counters due to nearly production or its plant is situated near by state Meghalaya. All cement having two grades OPC & PPC generally the OPC cement is more preferred by End user. However, in the case of final customer very few customers are having knowledge about OPC & PPC. The various factors that affect the demand of cement as well as particular brand sales are like quality, prices, season, promotion strategy of company or competitors, relationship with suppliers, discounts and supply position because all these helps to create demand of cement. However, the quality is the factor, which is considered by most of customers. This is reason that all cement companys emphasis on quality in their advertising. Price is the second consideration factor because the price difference among various brands is generally very less. There is no price elasticity of demand as cement is essential commodity its demand is not influenced with increases or decreases prices in case of final consumer. However, wholesaler and retailer are slightly influenced by prices. There is no seasonal impact on demand but generally June, July and August are considered as a dull period due to rainy season.

Promotional strategies of company or competitors have a crucial role in positioning the brand image as it is clear that quality is most important factor, so
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advertisement mainly emphasis on quality as instance, Ambuja- Virat compressive strength, Star-Solid Setting and for Bangur:- sasta nahi sabse achcha.)

The cement business has been very steady for two decades with a cumulative annual growth rate (CAGR) of over 8%. It is now 1.3 times of the GDP. Cement is a very strategic fit for the group, which has huge interest in power and infrastructure. Fly ash generated from power plants and power will be the key strategic advantage for cement, apart from huge captive demand for all the thermal/hydro power plants and infra projects.

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Annexure I
(a) Bibliography

1) Marketing Management, Kotler Philip, Keller Lane Kevin, Koshy Abraham, Jha Mithileshwar. - Thirteenth Edition (Published by Dorling Kindersley (India) Pvt. Ltd., licenses of Pearson Education in South Asia.) 2) Marketing Management, Sontakki C.N. - Third Revised and Enlarged Edition 2006, Reprinted 2007 (Kalyani Publishers) 3) Research Methodology Methods and Techniques, Kothari C.R. - (Published by New Age International (P) Ltd., Reprint version 2007)

(b)Webliography:

1) http://www.coolavenues.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12881 2) http://www.mbaguys.net/t1698/ 3) http://www.docstoc.com/docs/DownloadDoc.aspx?doc_id=44243747

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Appendix II: Questionnaire

Shopkeeper Response Form:

Shop NameOwner NamePlace1) Availability of brand

(Wholesaler/Retailer)

National

Local

2) Price of the CEMENTS

Brands

Wholesaler Buying Selling

Retailer Buying Selling

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3)

Distribution Channel

Brands

Buying From Wholesaler Retailer

Transport

Qty

Freight

4) Dull period of the year-

5) Terms & conditions of sales of the companies

Brand

Cash/Credit

Credit period

Max. Credit(Rs.)

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6) Quantity sale

Brand

Qty(Bag)

7) Factors consider by the customer

8) Customer most preference brand

Brand

Reason

9) Profit Margin

Brand

Wholesaler Max Min

Retailer Max Min

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10) Any offer from company-

11) Unavailability of Cement/Regular

Brand

Period

Demand

Available

Reason

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Questionnaire for End user

Questionnaire (Institutional) NamePlace1) How do you find the supply of cement in Arunachal Pradesh?

a) Very good

b) Good

c) Average

d) Bad

2) What is the Quantity use per year?

a) 1000 to 5000bag than 20000 bag

b) 5000 to 10000bag c) 10000 to 20000bag d) More

3) Are you bound by government rules and regulations for procurement

of Cement? a) Yes b) No

4) What is the procedure of procurement of cement?

a) Tender b) Quotation c) Direct buying d) Other

5) How do you decide to buy cement?

a) Brand name b) Price

c) Quality

d) others

6) Which brand do you prefer for use?

a) Star Cement b)Birla Gold C)Topcem d) Vinay Cement e) Prithvi Cement f) any other

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7)

How do you come to know about the brand of the cement? a)T.V b)Hoardings c) Newspaper d) Dealer recommendation e)Others

8) Have you ever get any offer with Cement?

a) Yes

b) No

9) Do you decide on your purchase based on the offers given by the

cement companies? a) Yes b) No

10) Are you satisfied with the available brands of the Cement in the

market? a) Extremely Satisfied b) Satisfied c) Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied d) Dissatisfied

11) What are the reasons of using particular type of Cement

a)Good workability b)Setting time Good c)finishing d)High early strength e) Crack Resistance f) Others

12) Are you satisfied with the regularity of the brands?

a) Extremely Satisfied b) satisfied c) Neither Satisfied nor Dissatisfied d) Dissatisfied e) Extremely dissatisfied.

13) Are you satisfied with the price of the cement?

a) Extremely Satisfied b) Satisfied c) Neither Satisfied nor Dissatisfied d) Dissatisfied e) Extremely dissatisfied

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14) How interested would you be to use a new brand of cement?

a) Very interested b) Interested c) Neither interested nor disinterested d) Disinterested e) Very disinterested

15) What type of specific advantage do you expect from a brand of

cement? (Give Ranks) a) High Strength b) Early setting time c) Fast work d) Low price

16) What are your suggestions to improve the sales?

a) Improve Price Structure b) Improve product quality c) Improve advertisement Policy d) Improve the distribution chain

17) What type of problems are you facing with your current brand (if

any): __________________________________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

18) Useful comments: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _____________________________

Thank You

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Questionnaire (Personal)
NamePlace-

1) How do you find the supply of cement in Arunachal Pradesh?

a) Very good

b) Good

c) Average

d) Bad

2) How do you decide to buy cement?

a) Brand name b) Price

c) Quality

d) others

3) Which brand do you prefer for use?

a) Star Cement b) Birla Gold C) Topcem d) Vinay Cement e) Prithvi Cement f) any other

4) How do you come to know about the brand of the cement?

a) T.V b)Hoardings c) Newspaper d) Dealer recommendation e)Others

5) Have you ever get any offer with Cement?

a) Yes

b) No

6) Do you decide on your purchase based on the offers given by the

cement companies?
a)

Yes

b) No

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7) Are you satisfied with the available brands of the Cement in the

market? a) Extremely Satisfied b) Satisfied c) Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied d) Dissatisfied

8) What are the reasons of using particular type of cement?

a)Good workability b)Setting time Good c)finishing d)High early strength e)Crack Resistance f) Others

9) Are you satisfied with the regularity of the brands?

a) Extremely Satisfied b) Satisfied c) Neither Satisfied nor Dissatisfied d) Dissatisfied e) Extremely dissatisfied.

10) Are you satisfied with the price of the cement?

a) Extremely Satisfied b) Satisfied c) Neither Satisfied nor Dissatisfied d) Dissatisfied e) Extremely dissatisfied

11) How interested would you be to use a new brand of cement?

a) Very interested b) Interested c) Neither interested nor disinterested d) Disinterested e) Very disinterested

12) What type of specific advantage do you expect from a brand of

cement? (Give Ranks) a) High Strength b) Early Setting time c) Fast work d) Low price

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13) What are your suggestions to improve the sales?

a) Improve Price Structure b) Improve product quality c) Improve Advertisement Policy d) Improve the distribution chain

14) What type of problems are you facing with your current brand (if

any): __________________________________ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

15) Useful comments: _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _____________________________

Thank You

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