Balkrishna Industries Limited (BKT) is an Indian multinational tyre manufacturing company based in

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...

, India. Balkrishna Industries manufactures off-highway tyres used in specialist segments like

mining Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the Earth, usually from an ore body, lode, vein, seam, reef, or placer deposit. The exploitation of these deposits for raw material is based on the economic via ...

earthmoving Earthworks are engineering works created through the processing of parts of the earth's surface involving quantities of soil or unformed rock (geology), rock. Shoring structures An incomplete list of possible temporary or permanent geotechnical ...

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

, and

gardening Gardening is the practice of growing and cultivating plants as part of horticulture. In gardens, ornamental plants are often grown for their flowers, foliage, or overall appearance; useful plants, such as root vegetables, leaf vegetables, fruits ...

in five factories located in

Aurangabad Aurangabad ( is a city in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the administrative headquarters of Aurangabad district and is the largest city in the Marathwada region. Located on a hilly upland terrain in the Deccan Traps, Aurangabad is th ...

Bhiwadi Bhiwadi is a planned city located, just 85 km from Alwar City in Alwar district of the Indian state of Rajasthan, India. It is situated in Rajasthan-Haryana Border. It is the most polluted city in the World. Geography Bhiwadi is situated at 2 ...

, Chopanki,

Dombivali Dombivli (Pronunciation: �oːmbiʋliː is a city in Thane district of Maharashtra, India. It is part of Mumbai Metropolitan Region. Geography Dombivli is located at . It has an average elevation of 13.534 meters (44.403 feet). The land here ...

, and

Bhuj Bhuj () is a Municipality and District Headquarters of Kutch District in the state of Gujarat, India. Etymology According to legend, Kutch was ruled by the Nāga chieftains in the past. Sagai, a queen of Sheshapattana, who was married to Kin ...

. In 2013, it was ranked 41st among the world’s tyre makers.

History

Balkrishna Industries began operations in the year 1987 with the inauguration of its first off-highway tyre manufacturing facility in

. Subsequent growth in business allowed the company to open new facilities in Bhiwadi (2002) and Chopanaki (2006). It also diversified its product line by introducing tyres for ATV, earthmoving and gardening vehicles.

Operations

Balkrishna Industries is currently an

OEM An original equipment manufacturer (OEM) is generally perceived as a company that produces non-aftermarket parts and equipment that may be marketed by another manufacturer. It is a common industry term recognized and used by many professional or ...

vendor for

heavy equipment Heavy equipment or heavy machinery refers to heavy-duty vehicles specially designed to execute construction tasks, most frequently involving earthwork operations or other large construction tasks. ''Heavy equipment'' usually comprises five e ...

manufacturers like JCB,

John Deere Deere & Company, doing business as John Deere (), is an American corporation that manufactures agricultural machinery, heavy equipment, forestry machinery, diesel engines, drivetrains (axles, transmissions, gearboxes) used in heavy equipment, ...

, and

CNH Industrial CNH Industrial N.V. is an Italian-American multinational corporation with global headquarters in Basildon, United Kingdom, but controlled and mostly owned by the multinational investment company Exor, which in turn is controlled by the Agnelli ...

. In 2014, BKT held a 8%

market share Market share is the percentage of the total revenue or sales in a market that a company's business makes up. For example, if there are 50,000 units sold per year in a given industry, a company whose sales were 5,000 of those units would have a ...

of the global off-the-road tyre segment. Balkrishna Industries predominantly caters to the replacement market in North America and Europe. Its North American office is located in

Akron, Ohio Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County, Ohio, Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 C ...

, with one warehouse in

Wando, South Carolina Mount Pleasant is a large suburban town in Charleston County, South Carolina, United States. In the Low Country, it is the fourth largest municipality and largest town in South Carolina, and for several years was one of the state's fastest-growin ...

. About 80 percent of Balkrishna Industries' business in the United States is in the farm market.

Sponsorships

BKT Tires has been the official and exclusive tyre sponsor for

Monster Jam Monster Jam is a live motorsport event tour operated by Feld Entertainment. The series began in 1992, and is sanctioned under the umbrella of the United States Hot Rod Association. Events are primarily held in North America, with some additional ...

since 2014. In July 2018, BKT purchased naming rights for Italian football's second division, Serie B for three years, with the league being known as Serie BKT under the agreement. On 15 January 2020, BKT signed an agreement with LFP to rename the French football second division as Ligue 2 BKT for four years. On 2 September 2022, BKT were announced as northern hemisphere title sponsorship for the

United Rugby Championship The United Rugby Championship (URC) is an annual rugby union competition involving professional teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales. The current name was adopted in 2021 when the league expanded to include four South Afr ...

for three years.

References

Tyre manufacturers of India Manufacturing companies based in Mumbai Indian companies established in 1987 Automotive companies of India Indian brands 1987 establishments in Maharashtra Manufacturing companies established in 1987 Companies listed on the National Stock Exchange of India Companies listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange {{India-company-stub