Concrete

Organised retailer

Published

5 years ago

March 5, 2021

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Shankara Building Products is a leading organised retailer of home improvement and building products in India, operating under the brand name ??hankara Buildpro?? It runs 100+ stores spread across Karnataka, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh and Puducherry. It started in 1995, and is headquartered in Bengaluru. It is listed on NSE and BSE with a turnover of Rs 2,640 crore.

It sells over 30,000+ SKUs across the entire home construction and renovation lifecycle through its retail stores. The products are spread across categories of construction materials, plumbing and sanitary ware, flooring, electrical, interior-exterior finishing and Irrigation. It has a tie up with leading brands across categories. The products are also available its website: Buildpro Store.

The list of customers include homeowners as well as professional customers like architects, interior designers, contractors, developers, plumbers, electricians, tile layers, masons, carpenters, painters, etc. as well as small enterprises. The customers are spread across tier 1, 2 and 3 locations.

In addition to the retail segment, it has two other legacy business segments ??enterprise and channel. In the enterprise segment, it caters to requirements of large end-users, contractors and OEMs. In the channel segment, it caters to dealers and other retailers through its branch network. The common theme across all segments is the customer-centric approach to business.

Back-end operations

The back-end operations provide support to its front-end business segments. It has its own steel processing facilities, which help to provide customised, in-time solutions. It has its own supply chain capabilities with owned warehousing and vehicles to provide efficient and speedy delivery to the customers. Its presence across the value chain of processing, channel, enterprise, retail, and supply chain gives it a lot of strength and unique advantages.

Processing unit

It has a processing unit for steel pipes and tubes (including precision tubes and galvanized pipes), color coated roofing sheets, galvanised strips and cold rolled strips. The units are 12 in number and are located near key demand centres. These are Hyderabad (3), Bengaluru (4), Hubli, Chennai, Coimbatore, Pune and Vijaywada. It has an installed capacity of approximately 325,000 tonne per annum.

The processing units carry key certifications like ISO 9001:2008, ISO 14001:2015, OHSAS 18001:2007 and BIS. The product specifications adhere to international standards and the facilities are approved by a number of prestigious clients. It processes a number of steel based products based on the requirements of our customers.

Pipes and tubes

The company produces CRCA, GI, GP and HR pipes and tubes. It is equipped with advanced mills for precision quality products in tube processing. In CRCA, it processes materials conforming to IS 3074 and automotive requirements (HSLA) series materials. In HR, it has certifications conforming to standards viz. IS 1239; IS 1161; IS 3601 and IS 4923.

Roofing Sheets

The company makes a wide range of roofing, cladding and rainwater systems. The products are designed to provide flexibility to suit any construction need, be it home, office, business or factory. It provides attractive colours and the products are made from high quality raw materials to ensure low maintenance and resistance to extremities of weather. Over and above the products are environmentally friendly and fireproof.

Supply chain

Efficient storage and movement of goods are critical to business operations. The company has over +6 lakh sq ft of warehousing space, a large part of it is owned by them. It has +75-owned trucks to ensure efficient movement of goods. In addition, it has a large number of independent vehicles wholly aligned to serve the logistics needs. It keeps building the supply chain infrastructure to ensure a strong foundation to scale the business.

The enterprise hub of Shankara

In addition to sales from retail stores, the products are sold directly to enterprises for their end users. In this segment, it caters to the requirements of large end users, contractors, and OEMs. The enterprise segment is closely linked with its processing units. This helps to serve the bespoke requirements of customers depending on specifications, quality and delivery timelines. It also offers kit based, cut-to-size, ready-to-use products as well for customers. The range of products include frames for airports, metro stations and malls, city skywalks, airport tubular structures, and road dividers.

Concrete

Lokesh Lays Stone For Rs 31 Billion Cement Unit In Kadapa

Line-2 expansion to make Kadapa a major cement hub

Published

5 days ago

July 20, 2026

admin

Andhra Pradesh Education and IT Minister Nara Lokesh on Wednesday laid the foundation stone for the Line-2 expansion of Dalmia Bharat Cement at Chinnakomerla village in Mylavaram Mandal in Kadapa district. The project carries an investment of Rs 31 billion (bn) and is slated for completion by the third quarter of the financial year 2028. The expansion is intended to boost industrial growth and employment generation across the Rayalaseema region.

Once commissioned, the Kadapa facility will become Dalmia Bharat’s largest integrated cement manufacturing ecosystem in southern India, creating over 1,000 direct and indirect jobs and opening new business avenues for regional micro, small and medium enterprises and transport operators. Lokesh said the expansion signalled growing corporate confidence in the state and reflected the practical ease of doing business that secured repeat investment.

He placed the project within the government’s wider economic targets and recalled the Yuvagalam padayatra commitment to generate two million (mn) jobs within five years, noting that the state would cultivate talent while industry created opportunities. Lokesh highlighted Andhra Pradesh’s competitive pursuit of major manufacturing accounts, mentioning past successes and a personal initiative to engage global investors when persuading them to anchor expansion in the state.

The plant will leverage Kadapa’s abundant limestone reserves to scale production and sustainability. Clinker capacity is planned to rise from two point five million tonnes per annum (mn tpa) to six point one mn tpa, while overall cement output will increase from three point six mn tpa to nine point six mn tpa. The unit is designed to operate on over eighty per cent renewable energy and deploy waste heat recovery, zero liquid discharge, water recycling and advanced AI systems to optimise efficiency. Industries Minister TG Bharat, BC Welfare Minister S. Savitha and Jammalamadugu MLA C. Adinarayana Reddy attended the ceremony.

Concrete

Cement Prices to Stay Flat in Q2 FY27 as Costs Squeeze Margins

HDFC Securities warns monsoon slowdown and higher fuel costs

Published

1 week ago

July 17, 2026

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HDFC Securities has said the cement industry is unlikely to register a sequential increase in prices in Q2 FY27 as monsoon-related demand moderation coincides with rising fuel and packaging costs that will squeeze margins. The brokerage observed that price gains remained modest, with increases of two to three per cent quarter-on-quarter across regions, and noted subdued offtake in May with improvement in June as a delayed monsoon supported construction activity. The brokerage added that modest pricing gains so far have been insufficient to offset the input cost escalation.

The report stated that input cost pressures intensified in Q1 FY27 owing to the West Asia conflict, which pushed up coal and pet coke prices and is expected to keep fuel costs elevated, with a likely peak in Q2 FY27. It assessed that total variable costs, including packing, could rise by around Rs 150 per t quarter-on-quarter and that lower offtake and seasonal operating deleverage could further raise operating expenditure by about Rs 50 per t quarter-on-quarter.

Overall, cement prices were estimated to remain flat in Q2 FY27 as monsoon-led demand weakness offsets limited upside in realisation, and rising fuel costs alongside seasonal deleverage were expected to compress industry margins by over Rs 100 per t quarter-on-quarter to below Rs 880 per t. The brokerage indicated that the combined impact of energy inflation and higher packing expenditure would be the principal drivers of margin contraction in the near term. HDFC Securities projected a recovery in margins in H2 FY27 should the West Asia turmoil subside and energy and packing costs cool off.

The brokerage expressed optimism on long-term demand fundamentals and said improving realisation together with an anticipated cost cool-off should support a margin rebound from H2 FY27 onward, underpinning favourable industry prospects over the medium term. Its outlook rests on monsoon normalisation and a decline in imported fuel prices in the second half of the fiscal year.

Concrete

Dalmia Bharat Begins Rs 31 Bn Green Cement Unit in Kadapa

New Andhra Pradesh plant to add 9.6 MTPA cement capacity by FY28

Published

1 week ago

July 16, 2026

admin

Dalmia Bharat Limited recently laid the foundation stone for its second manufacturing unit at Kadapa in Andhra Pradesh. The company will invest Rs 31 billion in developing the next-generation integrated cement manufacturing facility.

The foundation-laying ceremony was attended by Nara Lokesh, Andhra Pradesh Minister for Information Technology, Electronics and Communications, Real-Time Governance and Human Resources Development, along with Puneet Dalmia, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Dalmia Bharat, senior government officials and company representatives.

Scheduled to be commissioned by the third quarter of FY28, the Kadapa unit will become Dalmia Bharat’s largest integrated manufacturing facility in southern India. It will have a clinker production capacity of 6.1 million tonnes per annum and a cement manufacturing capacity of 9.6 million tonnes per annum.

The facility is designed to produce what the company describes as one of the world’s greenest cements. It is also expected to generate approximately 1,000 direct and indirect employment opportunities while supporting local MSMEs, transporters, contractors and service providers.

Lokesh said the investment reflected Dalmia Bharat’s confidence in Andhra Pradesh and aligned with the state’s objective of promoting sustainable industrialisation, job creation and technology-led economic growth.

Puneet Dalmia said the project represented the company’s long-term vision of developing low-carbon cement manufacturing assets. He added that the facility would establish new benchmarks in operational efficiency and sustainability while supporting India’s infrastructure and environmental goals.

Dalmia Bharat will also expand its regional community development programmes in education, healthcare, skill development and welfare through its DIKSHa and Gram Parivartan initiatives.

The company currently has an installed cement manufacturing capacity of 54.7 million tonnes across 19 manufacturing units in 12 states. It is also the first cement company globally to commit to the RE100, EP100 and EV100 initiatives.