Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz Ltd. Inaugurated Its World Class Passenger Car Steel Wheel Rim Manufacturing Plant

Pune, Maharashtra -- (ReleaseWire) -- 12/03/2010 -- Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz Ltd, (KHLL) a joint venture between Hayes Lemmerz International, Inc., (world’s largest producer of wheels) & the Kalyani group, India’s premier automotive component supplier today officially Inaugurated their Passenger Car Steel Wheel Plant in Pune.

The Plant was inaugurated in the presence of officials from Hayes Lemmerz International Inc and from the Kalyani Group.

KHLL has a presence in India since 1996 in the Commercial Vehicle Steel Wheels segment and serving major Domestic OE’s like TATA,VECV,VOLVO,MERCEDEZ, SWARAJ ISUZU, Mahindra Navistar, KAMAZ, Vehicle Factory-Jabalpur along with Global OE’s such as Daimler Germany/Brazil, VOLVO-Sweden, IVECO-Italy with a capacity of 1 million annually.

Out of the two million annual capacity of Passenger Car wheel rims, 1.7 million is already booked for major Domestic & International Car OE’s like FIAT, Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, VW-India, VW-USA, VW-Mexico, VW-China, Ford India, and Renault Nissan India.

India’s most advanced & fastest Car Wheel Rim manufacturing plant was formally inaugurated today by
• Mr. Baba Kalyani (Chairman – Kalyani Group Of Companies, Pune) ;
• Mr. Curtis J. Clawson (President, CEO & Chairman of the Board – Hayes Lemmerz Int. Inc. ,USA);
• Mr. Fred Bentley ( COO & President – Global Wheel Group – Hayes Lemmerz Int. Inc., USA) &
• Mr. Pieter Klinkers (President – Europe, Africa, Asia-Pacific – Hayes Lemmerz Int. Inc., Germany).

Top executives of various Domestic & International automotive OEM’s were also present to grace this occasion.

Addressing the august gathering, Mr. Baba Kalyani said,” The automotive market in India is growing at a rapid pace & Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz is addressing this market with product leadership & high technology to meet requirements of the Domestic & International customers.”

Speaking on this occasion, Mr. Clawson (President, CEO of Hayes Lemmerz) spoke about the overview & future strategies of Hayes Lemmerz group. He mentioned that India is an important part of these strategies & KHLL has a great future ahead.

Mr. Fred Bentley (COO & President – Global Wheel group of Hayes Lemmerz) is looking towards India as a big opportunity & expressed his confidence that, Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz will grow with the booming Domestic automotive market. He assured the representatives of the automotive OEM’s about advanced technology and highest quality products from their brand new facility.

Mr. Pieter Klinkers (President – EAAP, Hayes Lemmerz) proudly announced that Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz will expand its Passenger Car wheel facility from their current 2 million annual capacity to 4 million in the near future as 1.7 million capacity is already booked.

Lastly Mr. Prakash Kodlikeri presented the milestones in KHLL’s journey & expressed his sincere thanks to all its stakeholders.

About Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz Ltd.
“Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz” is a joint venture between Hayes Lemmerz International, Inc., and the Kalyani Group. Hayes Lemmerz International, Inc., is the world’s largest wheel manufacturer, catering to both the steel and alloy wheel sectors. Hayes Lemmerz is headquartered in Northville, Michigan, USA and has 17 Manufacturing locations worldwide. The Kalyani Group is one of the fastest growing automotive component manufacturers in India. Bharat Forge the world’s largest forging company, is the flagship company of The Kalyani Group. Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz began its operations in 1996, opening a manufacturing plant capable of producing one million commercial vehicle wheel rims. The Company’s initial customer was Tata Motors Ltd., to whom the company sold wheels for its trucks and buses. The Company received technological back-up from Hayes Lemmerz Werke Germany from the beginning and continues to enjoy this support for state-of-the-art and most modern technology.

After establishing itself in the domestic sector, Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz entered into the export market by developing tubeless wheel rims for the East Asian markets, particularly Korea and Taiwan. The Company was the pioneer in developing tubeless wheel rims for the commercial vehicle market in India. Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz continued its foray into the export market by developing specialized wheel rims for commercial vehicle giants like Daimler Benz, Germany;, Volvo Trucks, Sweden and; Iveco, Spain. The Company extended its product range from 16-inch to 24-inch wheels, and currently is the producer of the largest wheel rims in the Indian Market (for 24-inch). Throughout its history, Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz has operated according to- the Hayes Lemmerz International, Inc. corporate vision:

• Be a Premier Automotive Supplier
• Grow by Satisfying Customers
• Be a Low Cost Producer
• Have the Best People

The Company’s success in adhering to this vision is demonstrated by the world-class global customers served by the Company in the commercial vehicle wheel rim market. Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz is now proudly launching its new passenger car wheel plant, which, like the Company’s commercial wheel plant, also receives technological support from Hayes Lemmerz International. Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz has developed passenger car wheels for the domestic programs of Punto and Linea by FIAT;,Polo by VW India, and Sumo & Tatamobile by Tata Motors. The Company also supplies customers outside India, exporting to VW USA, VW Mexico and VW China. The Company has booked 1.7 million of its 2 million wheel capacity to meet orders from FIAT, Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, VW India, VW USA, VW Mexico, VW China, Ford India, and Renault Nissan India. With a highly competent management team at its disposal, technological support from Hayes Lemmerz International and guidance from The Kalyani Group, Kalyani Hayes Lemmerz is positioned to reach even greater heights on the new journey upon which it has embarked. The Company looks forward to a successful future in providing world-class products and customer service, as well as competitive pricing, to its global customers.

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