Car market down: Maruti to make small trucks

New Delhi: Maruti Suzuki India is faced with a slowing market for cars, like all other car makers in India. So to hedge business risks and diversify its portfolio, it has decided to enter the Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV) market - the Tata Ace category - for good carriage.

'Carry' is a petrol LCV which parent Suzuki Motor Corp already sells in Japan and various other markets. Now, Maruti will develop a diesel version for India in two years.

[caption id="attachment_991075" align="alignleft" width="380"] Image for representation only. Reuters[/caption]

But why would a car maker want to sell a goods carrier? Chaiman RC Bhargava says there is immense potential in the LCV market and Maruti has already got a license from Suzuki for 'Carry'. It is possible that Maruti's cars and Carry are sold from common dealerships but a final decision is yet to be taken.

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Not just diversifying beyond cars, Maruti is also seeking innovative solutions to cut costs and maintain a healthy bottomline, now that sales are falling. It has asked employees for suggestions on cost reduction. Some may think this an insignificant step but sample this: employee suggestions have shaved Rs 350 crore from company's expenditure last fiscal!

Bhargava says individually these suggestions may not count for much and it is a wonder that Indian employees can actually hope to better the renowned cost competitiveness of a Japanese shop floor.

But the company received a mind numbing 3.18 lakh suggestions which were good enough to implement in FY13. With 12,000 total employees, this works out to more than 26 ways each employee suggested to slash costs.