From a turnover of $2 billion in 2011-12, Apollo Tyres is moving forward with a target of $6 billion by 2016.

Apollo has a strong range of OTR tyres with products in both small and the large OTR segment. Apollo offers the best in category tyres for backhoe loader with Y-LON in 16.9-28 size and Xtrax in 14.00-25 size; and also offers grader tyres in both 13.00-24 and 14.00-24 sizes. Recently, the company has introduced road compactor tyres and 4WD backhoe loader tyres.

In the large OTR segment, Apollo has the best- in- class bias range with sizes starting from 35? to 51 inches. ?We will be soon introducing the ultra large sizes 33.00-51 & 40.00-57 in Indian and international market,? says an official. According to him, Apollo offers a wide range of choice in line with its core philosophy of fit-to-application. They offer customised solutions to the customer through six variants of compounds tailor- made for diverse mining conditions and application challenges.

OTR tyres have huge potential but current economic conditions indicate a moderate growth this year. The small OTR segment (25? and below sizes) is expected to see a better growth in view of the growing construction activity in the country. From the long-term perspective, OTR tyres have strong potential in store, riding upon the ever growing energy demand and infrastructure development.

As per inputs from Apollo Tyres, a major player in the segment, the current demand-supply scenario is balanced and there is no major crunch on supplies, but a spurt is anticipated and Apollo is geared up meet the rise in demand. There is no capex plan beyond addition of new sizes and patterns.

In a cost-intensive industry like tyres, rising cost is always a very big challenge. Any fluctuation in the raw material cost has a potential to disrupt all the projections. At the same time, the situation has put pressure on the industry to innovate and find alternative solutions. But in the current scenario, high input costs with the increased excise duty, has wiped out the margins from the business. The rupee devaluation though, provides some advantage in export markets and puts pressure on imports as well but gets balanced out due to impact on the raw material costs.

The ambiguity in the mining sector due to lack of clear policy environment, is affecting the sector in a big way. In spite of the potential in the mining sector, the demand currently is diminished for the large tyres due to the regulatory issues in the sector.
Apollo offers a high-value proposition of customised solutions backed by dedicated service levels through its highly competent technical team. The technical team adds a great value to its product offering through continuous monitoring of product performance, professional advice and regular trainings and workshops with the customers.

The company has a world-class manufacturing unit at Limda, Baroda, and has started its journey in export market last year. Apollo commands a strong equity in the replacement market through its high quality product offering and working closely with the customers and currently, they are exporting to South East Asian countries.