Steelbird lines up Rs 250 crore capex for new plant in Tamil Nadu’s Hosur

Leading helmet maker Steelbird Hi-tech India aims to invest over Rs 250 crore to set up a new manufacturing facility in Hosur, Tamil Nadu, as it looks to scale up capacity to cater to rising demand, according to a top company official.

The company, which has four plants each in Baddi (Himachal Pradesh) and Noida, is looking to roll out over 20,000 units from the Hosur plant in two years time.

In an interaction with PTI, Steelbird MD Rajeev Kapur said the plant has been envisaged to cater to the aftermarket and demand from various OEMs (Original Equipment Manufacturers) based in South India.

“In the initial phase, we are looking to invest Rs 100 crore in the project. The total capex spread over two years would be in the range of Rs 250 crore,” he noted.

The plant is expected to be functional over the next two years, Kapur said.

The company is in the final stages of acquiring the land for the facility, he added.

Steelbird is also expanding its manufacturing capacity at existing plants in Baddi and has earmarked a capex of Rs 105 crore for the same. After the process is over, the company will be able to scale up production to 50,000 units a day from 20,000 units right now.

“The expansion work has already begun and we expect to produce 10 million helmet units this fiscal year,” Kapur said.

By the end of next year, the company plans to expand the overall production to 15 million helmets a year, he added.

Kapur noted that demand for helmets is expected to grow robustly in the domestic market with the government enforcing laws to enforce helmet usage in the country.

Kapur said the company is looking to close the current fiscal with a topline of over Rs 600 crore from around Rs 554 crore in the 2022-23 fiscal.

“By 2026-27, we are eyeing the turnover to touch the Rs 1,300 crore mark,” he added.

Kapur noted that the company is also diversifying into other growing segments like baby care products and toys.