There is more to the grand opening of a tire plant than the pomp and circumstance surrounding it. What about the weeks, months and years that lead up to it?
It wasn't all fun and games for Balkrishna Industries Ltd. (BKT) when, in 2010, it decided to build a fourth off-highway tire plant. The $300 million company believed it was necessary to spend $375 million on the state-of-the-art facility because it needed to grow. It was arguably a huge gamble, perhaps the biggest the company will ever make.
As part of the 2015 "Game Changer Conference" hosted by BKT Dec. 4-5, close to 600 dealers, suppliers and journalists were invited to visit the plant (pictured), which is located in the state of Gujarat and the city of Bhuj. Modern Tire Dealer Editor Bob Ulrich was one of them.
He wrote a four-part Web series on the event (he had a lot of time on the flight back from India to write them), ending with his latest blog, "BKT Overcame Huge Obstacles to Get Its State-of-the-Art Plant Built."
Check out the blog -- and the links to the other three news reports -- then let us know what you think by leaving a comment!
