KSPG Automotive India’s new plant near Pune to be ready by end-2015

The Plain Bearings business unit of KSPG Automotive India is setting up a new plant at Supa, 75km to the east of Pune, for production of raw materials used in the manufacture of plain bearings.

The need for a new plant has been necessitated by the fact that the company’s lease for the existing production site in Ahmednagar expires in 2016. The new plant premises, spread across 40,000 square metres, are scheduled for completion by the end of 2015.

The ground-breaking ceremony was held earlier this year by Sascha Putz, president, BU Bearings, and Ratan Mohapatra, managing director of KSPG India, in the presence of senior executives and Works Council members.

"The new building is an important step in our efforts to strengthen our activities in the Indian market and a commitment to the future of our company," says Putz. The new facilities will be chiefly used for producing the upstream materials that go into the plain bearings.

The previous production in Ahmednagar will be split: the equipment for making the engine bearing shells will be transferred to KSPG's location in Takwe near Pune, where a large share of the production facilities is already located.

Supa will be the home of upstream materials production and include the sintering equipment for making the bronze materials as well as the casting and roll/cladding plant for manufacturing the aluminium-based materials.

KSPG Automotive India currently has two plain bearing production locations, in Takwe and Ahmednagar. The product range comprises engine bearing shells, bushes and thrust washers for cars and trucks, for agricultural machinery and rail vehicles.

The company’s clientele includes Maruti Suzuki India, Mahindra & Mahindra, Tata Motors, Honda, Cummins and Kirloskar Oil Engines. The company also supplies the aftermarket. Besides the plain bearings for IC engines, the product line-up includes slide elements for other assemblies such as transmissions and brakes. The Takwe plant also manufactures oil, coolant, vacuum pumps and EGR valves.