Handling cargo

Q. When was Tippermann India established and what are the core areas of the operation of the company?

A. With 15 years of experience in transport related equipment, superstructures and city cleaning equipment, the production line of Tippermann India in Bangalore was started. Our core areas of operations include fitting material handling equipment on trucks like hydraulic tailgates, railgates, truck mounted cranes, aerial platforms, recovery vehicles, wreckers, special purpose truck bodies, fitments and car carriers. Over the next six months, we are planning to launch city cleaning equipment like refuse compactors, vacuum and jetting tanks, skip loaders, hook loaders, and stationary compactors. We are also looking at civil and defence special purpose vehicles and refrigerated vehicles among others.

Q. How does Tipperman India differentiate itself from competition?

A. Truck-mounted material handling equipment sector is a virgin sector in India. We have developed hydraulic tailgates and railgates for various applications using modern and unique design techniques and technology. The imported tailgates are not robust, lack in technology and are expensive. Tippermann tailgates at the other end are user-friendly, offer the latest in technology, and are commercially viable as well as affordable.

Q. What is the contribution of hydraulic tailgates and railgates in volume and value terms?

A. Hydraulic tailgates and railgates are the biggest contributors to the company business. We have supplied more than 600 units all over India.

Q. What are the growth drivers for the material handling segment in India?

A. Material handling in the transport sector is a major hurdle, and the one that is widely spoken about. With India’s transportation sector undergoing a transformation, the next five years seem very interesting. At Tippermann we are looking to consolidate our market presence, and to create an efficient dealer and service network all over India. Over the next five years, we want to be one of the leading brands in material handling equipment.

Q. What is the manufacturing capacity that you have?

A. We do about 5000 units per year of the hydraulic tailgate, railgate and hydraulic platforms. Our upcoming products will include a garbage compactor, vacuum and jetting tanks, skip and hook loaders, stationary compactors with a production volume of 300 to 500 units per year.

Q. What are the volumes of special purpose and refrigerated vehicles?

A. We produce about 100 units of special purpose bodies, customised semi-trailers and truck fitments. In case of the refrigerated vehicles, the volumes are about 300 to 500 units per year.

Q. What is the manufacturing infrastructure that you have?

A. We have a well-established shop floor for fabrication. In addition to the shop floor, the tool room has cutting edge design tools that are operated by a highly qualified design and application team. We make use of all kinds of modern machinery for fabrication and machining support.

Q. How advanced is your design capability? Is the custom built range validated for safety compliances?

A. Design and development are key for the industry we operate in. We credit ourselves with good domain knowledge when it comes to designing customised and special purpose vehicles. For instance, our flagship product, hydraulic railgate, is fully automatic which is very unique, user-friendly, and we are the first company to develop such a design. We are also making a fully-automatic semi-trailer stage keeping in mind political campaign and concerts. We consider it to be a very big milestone attained in the special purpose segment. We offer Lloyd’s safety certificates for all the lifting equipment.

Q. Any milestone customisation that you may have carried out for a client and would like to share with us?

A. We built a semi-trailer fitted with the most advanced technology-driven instant stage. It has all the amenities and safety features designed keeping in mind the needs of a political party.

Q. Who are your major clients? Are you active beyond Karnataka in other states?

A. Our major clientele includes industrial gas transport companies, general and refrigerated cargo companies, and city cleaning companies among others. We have a pan India presence and have already supplied to multiple states.

Q. What is the scale of your aftersales network?

A. We offer excellent aftersales support to all our customers, with the dealer and service network being on the verge of being scaled to pan India presence.

Q. Do you cater to exports?

A. We are exporting to the Middle East, North and West Africa, and all SAARC countries. We are looking to export 20-30 per cent of the overall production.

Q. What is your exposure in the defence segment?

A. We are working in the defence sector for special purpose heavy-duty truck mounted lifters among other such Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs).

Q. Does Tipperman India have an arrangement with any company in terms of technology partnership or any other kind?

A. The company has no joint ventures and partners so far. All developments are indigenous under a highly motivated R&D team headed by the founder of the company. We are eager to take up challenging projects in the future.

Q. Global trends that you foresee?

A. No.

Q. What is the market share for the company across segments?

A. As far as products like hydraulic tailgates, hydraulic railgates, hydraulic liftgates for various applications are concerned, we rank number one in India with 90 per cent market share.

Q. Any negative impact on volumes post the implementation of GST?

A. We were not impacted negatively by GST.

Q. What are the growth opportunities and challenges?

A. We expect to witness tremendous growth over the next 10 years. Our biggest challenge would be to cater to the demand.

“Material handling in the transport sector is a major hurdle, and the one that is widely spoken about”.