Maruti setting up stockyards to speed up delivery

Chennai:The country`s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki India is in the process of setting up stockyards across the nation to enhance its marketing and distribution efficiency, a senior company official said today.

The stockyards would help the company reduce the time-frame in distributing the vehicles to the dealers and bring in more efficiency, Maruti Suzuki India General Manager and Commercial Business Head (South) Manohar Bhat told reporters here.

"It is a spare-parts and vehicle stock-yard. Currently, it is partially operational. The first stockyard has been set up in Bangalore," he said unveiling the upgraded premium hatchback "Swift" in Tamil Nadu market.

"This stockyard is for the southern region...Currently, it is serving the Karnataka market alone.. Once it becomes fully operational it will be serving the four southern states."

Bhat said at present it took at least 10-12 days to send vehicles from either Gurgaon or Manesar plant for a dealer in Chennai. But with the setting up of the stockyards, it would increase the distribution efficiency significantly reducing the time-frame in vehicle delivery.

The stockyards would have a capacity to stock 10,000 vehicles, he added.

Maruti also plans to set up similar stockyards in eastern and central market, a company spokesperson told PTI.

Already Maruti Suzuki has a stockyard in Gurgaon serving the northern region.

He said the company has earmarked Rs 1,000 crore as investments for marketing-distribution alone.

The official also said that the company was holding discussions with the Railways to transport the vehicles to the stockyards increase the operating efficiency.

"Normally we send atleast eight-10 cars in a trailer. It consumes time and energy. But, by using railways we will be able to send at least 300 vehicles to the stock-yards from the manufacturing facilities," he said.

He said they were also planning to set up exclusive company owned "brand centres" across 15-16 locations. "At present, there is one in New Delhi. We are planning to set up in 15-16 places. It will have space for display of 30 cars which would help the customer to choose a vehicle," he said.

On the new Swift which costs Rs 13,000 higher than the previous version, Bhat said the base Lxi model (petrol) costs Rs 4.39 lakh (ex-showroom Chennai), while the top model costs Rs 5.64 lakh (ex-showroom Chennai).

The diesel variant is priced between Rs 5.26 lakh (ex-showroom Chennai) for the base model, while the top variant Zdi is priced at Rs 6.48 lakh