CHENNAI: One of South Asia’s largest and most advanced trailer and truck body manufacturing facilities has begun operations in Chennai, reinforcing the city’s position as a major hub in India’s commercial vehicle and heavy engineering ecosystem.
The facility, operated by SATRAC Engineering Private Limited, was established under a 2023 memorandum of understanding with Japan’s Kyokuto Kaihatsu Kogyo, in the presence of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin and the state’s investment promotion agency Guidance Tamil Nadu.
Spread across 15 acres, the plant has an initial capacity of over 800 units a month, which is expected to rise to 1,200 units after a full ramp up over the next two years.
Managing director M C Bantwal said the company has invested ₹250 crore so far, with an additional ₹70–80 crore planned to fully automate the facility.
The plant features automated fabrication lines, robotic welding, plasma and laser cutting machines from Germany, press brake equipment from Canada, and in house testing, painting and shot blasting systems.
Bantwal said SATRAC is targeting a 10% share of the ₹30,000 crore truck and tipper body market as demand grows alongside India’s infrastructure push.
Bantwal estimated the truck and tipper body market at around ₹30,000 crore, noting that a large portion of demand is still met by fragmented, unorganised players using scrap metal and lower-quality fabrication.
He said tighter regulation and rising demand for higher specification vehicles, driven by infrastructure and mining activity, would accelerate consolidation, with SATRAC aiming to secure at least a 10% market share in the coming years.
Torsten Schmidt, managing director and chief executive of Daimler India Commercial Vehicles, said SATRAC has been a key partner since the company’s inception and that proximity to Daimler’s manufacturing base would improve turnaround times and collaboration.
SATRAC plans to set up new plants roughly every 30 months, with the next facility planned in Jamshedpur, followed by Pune and Gujarat, as it expands capacity and supports exports in partnership with its Japanese parent.