Economy & Market

Ranking Brands

Published

10 years ago

October 31, 2016

admin

Growing brand value to drive business performance offers a cost-effective way to gaining a better understanding of a company’s position against competitors.

Ranking a brand is not a simple activity. Worldwide, there are many institutes and forums which carry out the exercise of ranking various brands. Today, with the popularity of social media, it has become relatively fast and easy to carry out surveys on brand rankings. Brands can be rated on different criteria, with the help of consumers, key stakeholders and experts. Brands can continuously improve in comparison to similar products, learn from best practices and take good notice of relevant developments and requirements. Therefore, the standards on which they are rated will get higher over time.

Building BlocksHere are a few ways in which powerful brands can be leveraged:
1. Creating a large international movement and a well-designed tool to be used by and for consumers. Stakeholders can assess and compare policies and performance of brands on sustainability and social responsibility, and evaluate commitments about the products or service.
2. Creating pressure on brands through consumers, media and competitors to continuously improve their policies and performance on the parameters decided and to do it in a completely transparent way.
3. Increasing awareness among consumers of their responsibility and influence on brands, value as perceived of the brand.Cement Brands on the World Map
Brand Finance’s Brand Value Report provides a complete breakdown of the assumptions, data sources and calculations used to arrive at a brand’s value. Each report includes expert recommendations for growing brand value to drive business performance and offers a cost-effective way to gaining a better understanding of a company’s position against competitors.Brand Finance also studies the following areas:
Brand Valuation Summary: Overview of the brand valuation including executive summary, explanation of changes in brand value and historic and peer group comparisons.Brand Strength Index: A breakdown of how the brand performed on various metrics of brand strength, benchmarked against competitor brands in a balanced scorecard framework.Royalty Rates: Analysis of competitor royalty rates, industry royalty rate ranges and margin analysis used to determine brand specific royalty rate.Cost of Capital: A breakdown of the cost of capital calculation, including risk-free rates, brand debt risk premiums and the cost of equity through CAPM.Trademark Audit: Analysis of the current level of protection for the brand’s word marks and trademark iconography, highlighting areas where the marks are in need of protection.
The report of the firm for the year 2015 included Holcim (378), Lafarge (404) and CEMEX (494) in the list of 500 brands (the figure in the bracket shows at which number these companies stand in the brand hierarchy).
The other popular global ranking firm is Interbrand. It is a global brand agency, and publisher of the highly influential annual Best Global Brands and Breakthrough Brands reports. Interbrand is part of the Omnicom Group Inc network of agencies. Cement companies do not appear in its list.
Interbrand publishes the Best Global Brands report on an annual basis. The report identifies the world’s 100 most valuable brands. Interbrand’s methodology is also the first of its kind to be ISO certified. To develop the report, Interbrand examines three key aspects that contribute to a brand’s value:

The financial performance of the branded products or service
The role the brand plays in influencing consumer choice
The strength the brand has to command a premium price, or secure earnings for the company.

The third reputed agency is Forbes. It is an American business magazine, with reports on related subjects such as technology, communications, science, and law. The magazine is well known for its lists and rankings, including its lists of the richest Americans (the Forbes 400) and rankings of the world’s top companies (the Forbes Global 2000). However, its list does not include cement companies.

Concrete

Wonder Cement appoints Mahesh Singh as VP Corporate Brand Communication

Published

1 week ago

October 9, 2026

admin

Singh brings 20+ years of brand and marketing experience, and will lead integrated corporate brand communication initiatives at Wonder Cement

New Delhi

Wonder Cement, a leading cement manufacturer, has appointed Mahesh Singh as Vice President – Corporate Brand Communication. In his new role, he will oversee corporate brand strategy and communication, including digital and performance marketing, public relations, trade, events, exhibitions, sports and experiential marketing.

Singh brings over two decades of experience across marketing and communications, with roles spanning the automotive industry, agencies and entrepreneurship. He spent more than a decade with Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India, working across integrated communication, media, digital, retail and consumer engagement. His stint also included helping build the company’s digital marketing capabilities.

He moved to dentsu X India as Vice President – Strategy & Planning, working across categories such as automotive, auto components, electric vehicles, FMCG, consumer electronics, BFSI, apparel and brand consulting. His responsibilities included media and marketing strategy, product launches, content, performance marketing and consumer activations.

Singh subsequently took an entrepreneurial route with Radiant Brands before joining Shriram Ltd (SPR Autotech) as Head – Marketing & Communications. There, his remit included brand and corporate strategy, communications, PR and ORM, retail identity, loyalty programmes and events.

At Wonder Cement, Singh will be responsible for bringing together the company’s corporate brand communication initiatives across digital, performance marketing, PR, trade, sports and experiential platforms. The role will focus on creating an integrated approach to communication across consumers, trade partners and other key stakeholders.

The appointment brings to Wonder Cement a marketer whose career has spanned the brand, agency and entrepreneurial sides of the communications ecosystem.

Wonder Cement, part of the RK Group, is a cement manufacturer with roots in Rajasthan and a focus on quality, trust and transparency. The company has grown to six manufacturing plants, and a cement capacity of 21.5 MTPA. With more than 2,000 employees and a network of over 5,000 dealers, its operations span manufacturing, distribution and customer engagement, with a focus on consistent product quality and efficient execution.

Concrete

JSW Cement commissions additional 1 MTPA grinding unit at Nagaur

Published

1 week ago

October 8, 2026

admin

With this commissioning, JSW Cement’s total cement grinding capacity has increased to 25.10 MTPA,
Mumbai

JSW Cement, one of India’s leading green cement producers and part of the diversified JSW Group, today announced the successful commissioning of an additional 1.00 MTPA cement grinding unit at Nagaur, Rajasthan. The commissioning marks another significant milestone in the Company’s growth strategy.

With this commissioning, JSW Cement’s total cement grinding capacity has increased to 25.10 MTPA, while its total clinker manufacturing capacity, including clinker capacity at its joint venture, JSW Cement FZC, stands at 9.74 MTPA.

JSW Cement had commenced operations in North India in March 2026 with the Nagaur Integrated Plant, comprising a 3.30 MTPA clinkerisation unit and 2.50 MTPA cement grinding unit. With the commissioning of the additional 1.00 MTPA cement grinding unit, the plant’s total cement grinding capacity has increased to 3.50 MTPA, enhancing the company’s ability to cater to the growing cement demand across Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and the National Capital Region (NCR). The expansion has been funded through a strategic mix of equity and long-term debt.

During the quarter ended 30th September 2026, JSW Cement has also commissioned the Alternate Fuel Handling System and the Waste Heat Recovery system (WHRS) at the Nagaur Integrated Plant.

Nilesh Narwekar, CEO, JSW Cement, said: “The commissioning of additional 1.00 MTPA grinding capacity at Nagaur is a key strategic priority for us and will accelerate JSW Cement’s expansion into North India. We look forward to servicing the growing needs of the region and contributing to the economic growth of Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab and the NCR area. I am delighted to share that the company has commissioned this grinding unit within the expected timeline, showcasing our project execution capabilities. Further, the Alternate Fuel Handling System and the Waste Heat Recovery system (WHRS) are expected to substantially reduce our production costs going forward.”

Concrete

UltraTech becomes first Indian cement firm to cross 2 GW green energy

Published

2 weeks ago

October 7, 2026

admin

UltraTech Cement has crossed 2 GW of captive green energy capacity, with renewables and waste heat recovery meeting 48 per cent of its power needs.

Mumbai

UltraTech Cement Limited has surpassed 2 GW of installed green energy capacity for captive use, becoming the first cement company in India to achieve the milestone. The Aditya Birla Group company commissioned 116.55 MW of wind capacity at its Inter-State Transmission System-connected wind-solar hybrid project in Barmer, Rajasthan, along with 10 MW of Waste Heat Recovery System capacity at Sarlanagar Cement Works in Karnataka.

With these additions, UltraTech’s cumulative installed green energy capacity has reached 2,024 MW. This includes 1,580 MW of renewable energy capacity and 444 MW of waste heat recovery capacity, together meeting around 48 per cent of the company’s current power requirements.

The company said the milestone reflects the progress of its long-term energy transition strategy. In FY27 so far, nearly one-third of UltraTech’s 76 manufacturing units in India have maintained green energy utilisation above 50 per cent of their electricity requirements, while five units have crossed 95 per cent.

K C Jhanwar, Managing Director, UltraTech Cement Limited, said, “Crossing the 2 GW green energy milestone is the result of a strategy we have pursued consistently over the past decade. Cement is an energy-intensive, hard-to-abate sector, and showing that reliability and growth can go hand in hand with a rapid shift to green energy sets a benchmark for the industry. With nearly half of our power needs now met through green energy, we are significantly less exposed to fossil fuel supply constraints and power price volatility. As we scale up renewables, waste heat recovery and battery storage across our operations, we are building an energy foundation for stable, long-term growth.”

UltraTech commissioned 430 MW of green energy capacity in FY26 and continues to expand its renewable energy and waste heat recovery portfolio.

The company is also progressively integrating Battery Energy Storage Systems across its operations to improve renewable energy utilisation and supply reliability.

In 2025, UltraTech operationalised what it described as India’s first on-site hybrid round-the-clock renewable energy project at Sewagram Cement Works in Gujarat. The project combines solar, wind and battery storage.

As part of its decarbonisation strategy, UltraTech said it has not invested in new captive thermal power capacity for either greenfield projects or brownfield expansions at its integrated units for more than a decade.

The company said its expanding green energy portfolio is helping reduce dependence on conventional grid electricity and fossil fuel-based power, while lowering exposure to fluctuations in coal and electricity prices.

UltraTech aims to increase green energy’s share in its total power mix to 85 per cent by 2030. As a member of RE100, it has also committed to meeting 100 per cent of its electricity requirement through renewable sources by 2050.

UltraTech Cement, the cement flagship of the Aditya Birla Group, has a total grey cement capacity of 210.1 MTPA and white cement and putty capacity of 3.5 MTPA. The company is also a signatory to the GCCA Climate Ambition 2050 and has committed to the GCCA Net Zero Concrete roadmap.