CEAT Kelani wins ‘hat trick’ of awards in one week

Monday, 2 December 2013 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Awarded twice at National Business Excellence Awards and takes Gold at People Development Awards

CEAT Kelani Holdings has won three noteworthy awards in the space of a week, claiming two at the National Business Excellence Award (NBEA) and the top award at the 2013 People Development Awards presented by the Sri Lanka Institute of Training and Development (SLITAD). The three latest awards – two for business performance and one for human resources development – cap a year of extraordinary achievement for the company that supplies half of Sri Lanka’s pneumatic tyre requirements.

In September this year, CEAT Kelani received a Merit Award at the Ceylon National Chamber of Industries (CNCI) ‘Achiever’ Awards and followed it up with the 2013 National Quality Award in the ‘Manufacturing – Large’ category from the Sri Lanka Standards Institution (SLSI) in October. At The National Business Excellence Award presented by the National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka (NCCSL) on Wednesday 27 November, CEAT Kelani was the winner of the Sector Award in the ‘Exports’ category and was adjudged runner-up for the Criteria Award for ‘Excellence in Business and Financial Results.’ The Gold Award in the ‘extra-large’ category at the 2013 People Development Awards received on Friday 22 November acknowledges the adoption of a systematic approach towards training and development of employees, and initiatives by the human resource team at CEAT Sri Lanka to enhance their talents. Quest for continuous improvement “We are naturally exhilarated to win these prestigious and coveted awards,” CEAT Kelani Managing Director and CEO Raman Rajagopalan said. “The stringent independent audits that precede the selection of winners by eminent judges and the benchmarking that results from these awards help the company in its quest for continuous improvement, and encourage the team,” he said. “Winning at the National Business Excellence Awards four years in a row also speaks to the consistency of the company’s performance even in changing conditions,” Rajagopalan said. “We have also leveraged the best practices implemented by CEAT India with the support of our HR team.” Winners of National Business Excellence Awards are assessed among others for global reach, knowledge integration, technological investment, capacity building, performance management, corporate governance and corporate social responsibility. The People Development Award is judged on multiple aspects such as business strategy, learning and development strategy, people management strategy, leadership and management strategy, management effectiveness, rewards and recognition, involvement and empowerment, learning and development, performance measurement and continuous improvement. Dominant player A 50:50 Joint Venture between CEAT Ltd. India (part of the RPG Group) and Kelani Tyres PLC of Sri Lanka, CEAT-Kelani Holdings reported sales of Rs. 10 billion in 2012-13. In the second quarter of the current financial year, the company’s sales in the domestic market crossed 2,900 tons, accounting for half of Sri Lanka’s tyre requirements for the period. The dominant player in the domestic tyre market, CEAT enjoys market shares of 57% in the Truck/Light Truck category, 32% in radials, 46% in 3-Wheeler, 19% in motorcycle and 73% in the agricultural segments. A global tyre brand present in 110 countries and now headquartered in India, CEAT is an acronym that stands for Cavi Electrici Affini Torino, or Electrical Cables & Allied Products of Turin, with origins that date back to 1924 in Italy. The company operates three manufacturing units manufacturing truck, light truck, radial, motorcycle, 3-wheeler and agricultural tyres and employs a workforce of 1,000 people.