Allison Transmission has started work on a new factory in India to cope with growing demand
The global economy may be struggling, but Allison Transmission has defied the trend and started work on a new factory in Chennai, India, to cope with growing demand.
The new building, with more than 203,000 sq-ft of floorspace, will serve as a factory, customisation section and warehouse, as well as being the regional headquarters of Allison Transmission India with executive, marketing, and sales offices.
Allison Transmission Chairman and Chief Executive Lawrence Dewey says it is important the company strengthens its presence in India to support the growth in operations in recent years.
Although it has been providing equipment for gold and oil mining companies in India for over 40 years, the first office opened in 2007, chasing growth opportunities in the on-highway market.
Allison Transmission’s growth in India has been propelled by fitting automatics into low-floor CNG and diesel buses in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Nagpur and other Indian cities.
In addition, nearly 1,000 on-highway trucks and buses operate in India fitted with Allison transmissions.
Major OEM customers include Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland, JCBL and Lexia Motors, with Allison recently agreeing to supply Tata Motors with fully automatic transmissions for low-floor, state-of-the-art, CNG-propelled buses to serve Delhi Transport Corporation.