Ajax Engineering Ltd — Q3 FY26

Ajax Engineering Ltd Q3 FY2025-26 Earnings Conference Call https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Qw7mmcyAOo Published: 3 months ago

0:00 Ladies and gentlemen, good day and welcome to the Ajax Engineering Limited Q3 9 months FYI26 earnings conference 0:08 8 seconds call. As a reminder, all participant lines will be in the listenon only mode and there will be an opportunity for you 0:16 16 seconds to ask questions after the presentation concludes. Should you need assistance during the conference call, please 0:23 23 seconds signal an operator by pressing star 10 on your touchstone phone. Please note that this conference has been recorded. 0:31 31 seconds Before we begin, I would like to point out that this conference call may contain forward-looking statements about the companies which are based on the 0:39 39 seconds beliefs, opinions and expectations of the company as on date of this call. 0:44 44 seconds These statements are not the guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertaintities that are difficult to predict. I would now like to hand the 0:54 54 seconds conference over to Mr. Shubraata Saha, managing director and CEO of Ajax Engineering Limited. Thank you and over to you sir. 1:04 1 minute, 4 seconds Thank you. Uh good morning everybody and apologies. We've been also on the call for the last 19 minutes but for some glitches purely out of technical reasons. Uh we are joining in late. 1:14 1 minute, 14 seconds Apologies again. Uh thank you so much for joining us on the Q3 and 9 months FI26 earning calls of Ajax Engineering 1:23 1 minute, 23 seconds Limited. Along with me on the call, I have Mr. BJ Ganesh who is our interim CFO, Mr. Tuhin Basu and SJR investor 1:30 1 minute, 30 seconds relations partner. We have uploaded our result and investor presentation on the stock exchanges and our website. I hope 1:37 1 minute, 37 seconds everybody has had an opportunity to go through the same. 1:42 1 minute, 42 seconds After a steady performance in the previous fiscal, the last few quarters have marked a period of transition accompanied by several external challenges. Prolonged mon monsoon 1:51 1 minute, 51 seconds conditions, changes in the emission norms, slow pace of project execution across key markets have created 1:58 1 minute, 58 seconds headwinds and impacted operational momentum. 2:03 2 minutes, 3 seconds In addition, cash flow constraints faced by our customers have further influenced their purchasing decisions, thereby 2:10 2 minutes, 10 seconds affecting demand and overall business performance. 2:15 2 minutes, 15 seconds We responded to these bumps on the road with focus and resilience and in a manner that we believed was the most appropriate. 2:24 2 minutes, 24 seconds Riding on our situational awareness and operational preparedness, we were ready ahead of the curve and launched our new CV5 machines in Q4 of FY25. 2:36 2 minutes, 36 seconds Given the multiple factors that have impacted the industry in the last few quarters, our approach with the new CV5 machines has been to introduce them to 2:44 2 minutes, 44 seconds the market, evaluate real-time performance, gather feedback, and assess customer acceptance. 2:50 2 minutes, 50 seconds Our pricing strategy will be carefully calibrated after taking into account the market response and prevailing industry practices. We've also been steadily 2:59 2 minutes, 59 seconds expanding our dealer network with the objective of deepening our penetration avail and availability and with a clear focus on long-term sustainability. 3:10 3 minutes, 10 seconds While we recognize this will have a temporary impact on our near-term performance, we firmly believe we are on the right course. 3:19 3 minutes, 19 seconds We are steering the business in a manner that safeguards its long-term health and creates a stronger, more resilient 3:28 3 minutes, 28 seconds foundation for sustainable longerterm growth. 3:34 3 minutes, 34 seconds Let me now take you through the financial performance for 9 months period and quarter ended 31st December 2025. 3:43 3 minutes, 43 seconds As we have highlighted in the past, our business is best viewed on an annualized or year-to-ate basis. So, let me start speaking of the 9 months performance. 3:54 3 minutes, 54 seconds The revenue for 9 months FY26 stood at 1345 crores reflecting a modest growth of 2% on a Y basis. 4:05 4 minutes, 5 seconds The SLCM revenue in 9 months FY26 was flattish on a Y basis. The nonSLCM 4:14 4 minutes, 14 seconds revenue grew by 4.5% while the spares and services revenue grew by 14% Y in 9 months FI26. 4:24 4 minutes, 24 seconds We had some one-time marketing and ex promotion expenses in this quarter. 4:30 4 minutes, 30 seconds Some of you may have visited the exhibition in Bangalore at IMA organized 4:37 4 minutes, 37 seconds by Isma. Adjusted for that the IITa for 9 months FYI26 4:44 4 minutes, 44 seconds stood at 154 crores versus 207 crores for 9 months FI25. 4:50 4 minutes, 50 seconds IITA margin for the 9 months FI26 comes to 11.5%. 4:57 4 minutes, 57 seconds The impact on IBITa has been on account of the hit at the gross margin level which was on the back of increased cost of production and product mix change. 5:07 5 minutes, 7 seconds We had sales of slip form pavers last year which is not there this year. 5:13 5 minutes, 13 seconds Pavers as you know are a high ticket size and higher margin product. 5:19 5 minutes, 19 seconds Despite the impact on profitability and the ongoing capex on a new manufacturing facility, we continue to maintain strong 5:27 5 minutes, 27 seconds financial discipline and efficient capital allocation. 5:31 5 minutes, 31 seconds Our return ratios continue to be strong with healthy cash balance. 5:37 5 minutes, 37 seconds The recent budget announcements clearly highlight the government's strong emphasis on capital expenditure and 5:45 5 minutes, 45 seconds infrastructure development. We expect this continued infrastructure push to stimulate demand and support steady volume growth. 5:56 5 minutes, 56 seconds Along with the operating leverage coming from the volume growth, we also anticipate some price adjustments which will further aid the profitability from FY27. 6:08 6 minutes, 8 seconds Let's come to the quarter performance. Now revenue for Q3 FI26 stood at 434 crores versus 548 crores in Q3 FI25. 6:21 6 minutes, 21 seconds During the quarter, SLCM volume and revenue declined on YI basis largely on account of the strong base or a higher base in the corresponding quarter last 6:30 6 minutes, 30 seconds year due to relatively muted sales in Q2 of FY25. 6:36 6 minutes, 36 seconds Encouragingly though, secondary sales remained healthy throughout the quarter, indicating sustained underlying demand. 6:46 6 minutes, 46 seconds NonSLCM revenue grew by 13% YI while the spares and services revenue grew by 11% Y during Q3 FY26. 6:57 6 minutes, 57 seconds ITA for Q3 FI26 adjusted for one-time marketing costs stood at 48 crores versus 88 crores in Q3 FI25. 7:09 7 minutes, 9 seconds IBIT margin declined by around 510 basis points and comes to 11%. 7:15 7 minutes, 15 seconds The impact on IBIT on Y basis in Q3 is partly on account of the fall in gross margin and partly due to one-time 7:23 7 minutes, 23 seconds expenses relating to marketing and promotion activities that were undertaken during this quarter. 7:30 7 minutes, 30 seconds Short-term headwinds that we currently find ourselves in are cyclical and characteristic of our industry. Over its 7:38 7 minutes, 38 seconds more than three decade journey, Ajax has repeatedly proven its resilience and adaptability to navigate such 7:45 7 minutes, 45 seconds challenging phases. From structural disruptions such as demonetization and the implementation of GST to the coid9 7:52 7 minutes, 52 seconds pandemic, central and state election cycles, evolving emission regulations and inherent secular sector cyclicality, 8:01 8 minutes, 1 second we have successfully steered through periods of uncertainty and challenge. 8:07 8 minutes, 7 seconds Over the past decade, this resilience has translated into steady growth 8:13 8 minutes, 13 seconds trajectory, delivering an impressive 18% revenue ga. This sustained performance 8:20 8 minutes, 20 seconds is a testament to our unwavering focus on operational readiness, disciplined execution and prudent financial 8:28 8 minutes, 28 seconds management. These are principles that not only define Ajax but also position 8:36 8 minutes, 36 seconds us to emerge from every cycle stronger, more agile and better prepared for the opportunities ahead. 8:45 8 minutes, 45 seconds Structurally, we remain fully confident in the long-term growth prospects of our business. 8:51 8 minutes, 51 seconds India continues to require significant infrastructure development which is reflected in the approximately 11% 8:59 8 minutes, 59 seconds increase in budget allocation for government capital expenditure to about 12.2 lakh crores for FY27. 9:08 9 minutes, 8 seconds Key end use sectors such as railways, roads and real estate have also received higher budgetary allocations in the latest budget. 9:18 9 minutes, 18 seconds The government's strong and consistent focus on infrastructure development along with continuing transition towards mechanized construction and concreting 9:26 9 minutes, 26 seconds equipment is expected to drive steady demand positioning Ajax well for sustained growth. Our long-term outlook 9:35 9 minutes, 35 seconds on growth and profitability remains firmly intact. 9:40 9 minutes, 40 seconds We remain committed to maintaining our leadership position in the SLCM segment while also building strong capabilities 9:46 9 minutes, 46 seconds in the nonSLCM space. In line with that, we believe it is prudent to commission 9:54 9 minutes, 54 seconds our fifth manufacturing facility in Q1 of FY27. 9:59 9 minutes, 59 seconds Operational excellence and financial discipline remain central to our strategy. We continue to have a robust 10:06 10 minutes, 6 seconds cash position ensuring considerable financial muscle to pursue our growth ambitions. 10:13 10 minutes, 13 seconds With this I would like to open the floor for questions. Thank you. 10:20 10 minutes, 20 seconds Thank you very much. We will now begin the question and answer session. Anyone who wishes to ask a question may press 10:27 10 minutes, 27 seconds star in one on their touchstone telephone. If you wish to remove yourself from the question queue, you may press star and two. Participants are 10:37 10 minutes, 37 seconds requested to use handsets while asking a question. Ladies and gentlemen, we will wait for a moment while the question assembles. 10:49 10 minutes, 49 seconds We take the first question from the line of Ragu Nandan from Noama Research. Please proceed. 10:56 10 minutes, 56 seconds Uh good morning sir. Thank you for the opportunity. Uh firstly uh you know it's good to see budget infralay being higher 11:04 11 minutes, 4 seconds and recently cement prices are increasing due to better demand. Uh would you say that from FI27 onwards uh 11:12 11 minutes, 12 seconds you would revert to the 15 to 18% growth trajectory for SLCMS? 11:20 11 minutes, 20 seconds Um thanks Rau for uh the question. Um I think we need to recognize uh two 11:27 11 minutes, 27 seconds aspects which are important. I think we are witnessing certain demand drivers in specific states for the moment and there 11:34 11 minutes, 34 seconds are certain states where there is likely to be pent-up demand because there is current existing demand challenges. Now the demand drivers that we are seeing is 11:42 11 minutes, 42 seconds essentially arising out of solar in Gujarat Rajasthan irrigation and CG irrigation and roads in Udista and let 11:50 11 minutes, 50 seconds us say PWD largely smaller roads in Uttar Pradesh. These are some of the core drivers of the business at this stage. We do anticipate that this will 11:59 11 minutes, 59 seconds continue as we move forward into the next fiscal as well. Now there are states which obviously are challenged at this point in time. These include the 12:08 12 minutes, 8 seconds states of Karnataka, Maharashtra, Telangana, Rajasthan and MP where while the projects may be on the 12:17 12 minutes, 17 seconds anvil, the contractors are not or let's say delaying the acceptance of work orders due to the cash flow challenges in some of these states. 12:28 12 minutes, 28 seconds We believe that selectively going forward the cash flow challenges in some of these states will alter and there is 12:36 12 minutes, 36 seconds a need for those projects to be completed. Hence there is a mood upswing 12:44 12 minutes, 44 seconds in potentially some of those numbers that you have alluded to to come back to life. I think some of the indications of 12:53 12 minutes, 53 seconds this that we are seeing in the fourth quarter as you would know the fourth quarter is a heavy quarter for uh the 12:59 12 minutes, 59 seconds industry and also for us. I think we've seen a sharp movement both in terms of retail as also in terms of the 13:08 13 minutes, 8 seconds wholesales in the first month of this quarter. We do see a positivity for the ensuing two months as well. So I hope 13:16 13 minutes, 16 seconds that that momentum will help us carry through into the next year as we speak. 13:25 13 minutes, 25 seconds Uh thanks for the detailed answer sir very helpful. Uh on price hikes uh uh it depends on the competition. Can you 13:34 13 minutes, 34 seconds speak about the current environment and whether the next one or two quarters would allow you to take a price hike? 13:41 13 minutes, 41 seconds Yeah, I think it's a fair question Rau. 13:44 13 minutes, 44 seconds I will first say this that u if we look at our performance uh between October, November, December and January and most 13:52 13 minutes, 52 seconds of you do track uh the market share numbers and if you observe our market share from October 82%, November 78%, 14:02 14 minutes, 2 seconds December 80% and January 78% is at significantly higher than the weight the 14:09 14 minutes, 9 seconds market share around the 75% kind of mark. I think that is something that the organization has done to make sure that 14:17 14 minutes, 17 seconds it stays on course at this stage. I think uh if you look at it uh the there 14:24 14 minutes, 24 seconds are select customers given the lower volume opportunity right now because as I mentioned some of the larger states of 14:31 14 minutes, 31 seconds Karnataka, Maharashtra, Maharashtra was the number one state up until last year. 14:35 14 minutes, 35 seconds Telangana, Rajasthan and Mi have been muted um and only a certain set of states are driving the volume. My sense 14:42 14 minutes, 42 seconds is that once the confidence uh within the contractor community comes back by way of the projects coming back on course cash flow happening I'm very 14:51 14 minutes, 51 seconds confident that some of this will start happening within this quarter itself. I for one can say this with some degree of 14:57 14 minutes, 57 seconds confidence that in January uh we are better placed than in the previous quarter from a price point of view. 15:06 15 minutes, 6 seconds Uh thank you sir. Good to hear that. uh the nonSLCM realization is better by 12% 15:13 15 minutes, 13 seconds QoQ. Uh is there improvement in product mix in Q3? 15:19 15 minutes, 19 seconds So I so I think a few call outs here. Um the good news is that we continue to 15:26 15 minutes, 26 seconds improve our momentum particularly in the boom pump category. 15:31 15 minutes, 31 seconds um and also in the case of batching plants where we are seeing that the demand for 45 cubing meter and higher is 15:39 15 minutes, 39 seconds also improving. So from that context yes we are witnessing um you know improved demand for our products and also the 15:49 15 minutes, 49 seconds quality of the customers that we are uh selling to. 15:54 15 minutes, 54 seconds Thank you for that. and Q3 gross margin is better by 100 basis points Q despite 16:01 16 minutes, 1 second the higher share of non FLCM uh what has led to this improvement on a P basis. 16:09 16 minutes, 9 seconds So hi Ragu this is Suhin uh good morning. Um so Ragu this is uh primarily driven just by the pure mix of the 16:16 16 minutes, 16 seconds product uh in the nonSLCM and the spers had a good upswing for us. So these two are the drivers between the Q2 and the 16:24 16 minutes, 24 seconds Q3 1% uh improvements on the brush model. 16:30 16 minutes, 30 seconds Uh thank you Sinir. Uh just a last question on the uh smaller sized SLPM 16:37 16 minutes, 37 seconds what was the volume in Q3 and in which states has the model been well accepted? 16:46 16 minutes, 46 seconds Um so I think Ragu I'm much happier today in terms of uh the kind of numbers that we are seeing. Um see I think the 16:55 16 minutes, 55 seconds states of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Udisa, Gujarat, MP, CG, Rajasthan have 17:02 17 minutes, 2 seconds been the drivers of this business. Um I think both uh in the month of December and January the numbers have picked up. 17:12 17 minutes, 12 seconds We anticipate these numbers in February and March to be even stronger. Um as of uh now I can indicate broadly that uh by 17:21 17 minutes, 21 seconds the time the year is out you'll recall that you know we started out with UP as our beach head state and we drove that 17:29 17 minutes, 29 seconds uh to test the product done did a few things and I think there is enough confidence to suggest that this could be an important uh you know number to look 17:38 17 minutes, 38 seconds at as we move forward into the next year. uh by the end of this year I think we would have done closer to about uh 225 to 250 numbers. 17:50 17 minutes, 50 seconds Uh great to hear that sir. Thank you so much. I'll fall back to the cube. 18:03 18 minutes, 3 seconds Thank you. 18:05 18 minutes, 5 seconds We take the next question from the line of web sha from JM Financial. Please proceed. 18:12 18 minutes, 12 seconds Yeah. Hi sir. Firstly on uh Udan so so just to get a sense about the product. 18:19 18 minutes, 19 seconds So how is it different from Argo 1000 which we used to sell earlier and uh 18:25 18 minutes, 25 seconds which are the key applications where the where we are targeting the product and how has been the user experience so far? 18:33 18 minutes, 33 seconds Um thanks be good to talk to you after a long time. I can say this that uh uh in the best of years in a full year Argo 18:42 18 minutes, 42 seconds 1000 would do about 30 40 numbers in a best year case. It is a 1 cubic meter product. This is a 75 cubic meter 18:50 18 minutes, 50 seconds product. the product design uh the uh the utiliz the utility of the product its applications are slightly different 18:57 18 minutes, 57 seconds from the Argo 1000 and um this particular product I think by way of the design by way of the performance by way 19:06 19 minutes, 6 seconds of its resilience and the width of applicability is I think drawing some degree of customer interest because I think we've been slow to position it 19:15 19 minutes, 15 seconds across all states but I can say this that uh where has it gone into right now I think uh it has gone into wide range 19:24 19 minutes, 24 seconds of uh lower-end applications wherein probably none of uh the uh argos would 19:32 19 minutes, 32 seconds potentially go uh to take some example brick making uh very small base of 19:40 19 minutes, 40 seconds pre-cast walling solutions I think these are markets that we would never go to but there are existing markets also for 19:48 19 minutes, 48 seconds smaller size applications that it is starting to penetrate. For example, CC roads in G panchayats. You would have 19:55 19 minutes, 55 seconds heard that okay, Argos also do. But you know very small uh context for example column columns and footing application 20:03 20 minutes, 3 seconds in both small residential small commercial segment small culver storm drain uh water tanks in granch. I think 20:12 20 minutes, 12 seconds these are some of the early applications that we're witnessing. I can only say this with conviction that at the lowest level you will find the highest degree 20:21 20 minutes, 21 seconds of ingenuity amongst contractors to see how they can leverage mechanization. 20:25 20 minutes, 25 seconds So I'm excited by what I'm seeing. Uh but we'll wait as as time progresses on the product. 20:34 20 minutes, 34 seconds Okay. So earlier you were targeting the rural housing as well G+1 G+2 kind of structure. So how has been the demand 20:42 20 minutes, 42 seconds from that uh segment for Udan? So we bifurcated we bifocated our approach into two parts. One approach is to use 20:49 20 minutes, 49 seconds udan as a standalone product because we wanted the product integrity and the product validity to stand out in that 20:56 20 minutes, 56 seconds sense and I think so far the product has stood out very very well. uh we have uh we are working on a pumping solution 21:04 21 minutes, 4 seconds along with Uran and uh as as things stand we are testing out some of these options and that will open up uh let us 21:13 21 minutes, 13 seconds say sometime in in the next year uh for potential applications in you know taking concrete up rather than only 21:21 21 minutes, 21 seconds pouring it down let's let the test results come through then we'll speak about it but at this stage I think we wanted it into two 21:29 21 minutes, 29 seconds segments one segment ment is to cater to pouring down into categories where we had never gone into and there is another category once we are in a position to 21:37 21 minutes, 37 seconds say and test out after and gaining sufficient confidence on on on the uh combination between Udan and let us say 21:46 21 minutes, 46 seconds the pump I think we'll come back at that point in time the number you mentioned 225 that was the YTD sales of udan 21:54 21 minutes, 54 seconds no I I spoke about what we think we should be in a position to do for the full And for a a full 12 months running for 22:02 22 minutes, 2 seconds maybe 27 or 28 uh what would be that number? So basically earlier a market share between the below 3 cubic m and 22:10 22 minutes, 10 seconds about 3 cubic m was 50/50ish the mix of uh product. So after you alluded to I mean the mix of our volume 22:20 22 minutes, 20 seconds of our volume mix. So uh once the udan sales also picks up so you maintaining that 50/50 each or there can be a tail 22:28 22 minutes, 28 seconds towards the less than 3 keep my fingers crossed at this point in time you have opened up another chapter 22:35 22 minutes, 35 seconds which is the potential of udan to cater to G1 G2 and so on and so forth. Let us first drive the business for uran across 22:44 22 minutes, 44 seconds all the states and I hope that the demand pattern in the overall industry comes back and we'll speak about these numbers when we get to them. 22:53 22 minutes, 53 seconds So if I if I ask it other way around. So what kind of uh share we are we targeting in our over total total volumes on a yearly basis for Udan. 23:05 23 minutes, 5 seconds I think I answered the question when I was alluding to this. I'd be very happy to make sure that first extensive 23:13 23 minutes, 13 seconds distribution across all dealerships happens. Uh we are able to take forward like what we have seen some degree of success in some of the states that I 23:21 23 minutes, 21 seconds alluded to. uh deeper uh and and then we'll talk about some of these numbers for next year. 23:29 23 minutes, 29 seconds Okay. And so secondly uh in terms of volumes for SLCMS this year. So for the year as a whole what kind of uh number 23:38 23 minutes, 38 seconds are we targeting? So it could be a marginal degrowth or we can do some something uh flattish for the year. 23:46 23 minutes, 46 seconds uh I think u I think we're starting on a very high base of the H2 of the last fiscal and if you remember uh the 23:55 23 minutes, 55 seconds numbers for uh the previous fiscal uh the Q3 was 1520 and Q4 was about 2,000 24:02 24 minutes, 2 seconds odd numbers which means a very high base of about 3500 plus numbers happened u 24:09 24 minutes, 9 seconds during this period um while we do see some improved momentum coming in into JFM of uh of the final quarter of this 24:17 24 minutes, 17 seconds year. I don't think we would be in a position to match up to the uh the absolute number of 2,000 that happened uh last year. 24:29 24 minutes, 29 seconds Okay. Okay. Thank you sir. I'll call back. Thank you. Thank you. 24:37 24 minutes, 37 seconds We take the next question from the line of Mohit Kumar from ICICI Securities. Please proceed. 24:43 24 minutes, 43 seconds Hi, good afternoon sir and thank you for the opportunity. My first question is of course again uh I'm stating it uh how 24:52 24 minutes, 52 seconds has been the January and last 15 days in terms of demand and do you think the Q4 of course Q3 was bad in terms of overall 25:01 25 minutes, 1 second uh the decline but but but but but are you seeing are you hopeful of having something like 10 15% decline compared 25:09 25 minutes, 9 seconds to compared to last Q4 in terms of SLCM volume is that a fair assessment uh there are many questions that you 25:17 25 minutes, 17 seconds have asked uh Mohit and good to talk to you after a long time now. Um so I think one of the things that I would express 25:25 25 minutes, 25 seconds is that there has been a strong turnaround in terms of uh the retail volumes as much as for wholesale volumes 25:32 25 minutes, 32 seconds and which we expect that would continue into February uh in and into March. I just hope that this sustained demand 25:40 25 minutes, 40 seconds momentum stays and there are no um you know events that happened around us uh that changes any of this because we are living in a world where it's very 25:48 25 minutes, 48 seconds difficult to say what will happen day after tomorrow but I think we do see much stronger demand momentum right now 25:55 25 minutes, 55 seconds uh and to suggest anything whether it will be 15% or this will be very early 26:02 26 minutes, 2 seconds for me to call out but definitely to be able to meet 2,000 numbers of last year Q4 four looks unlikely. 26:10 26 minutes, 10 seconds Understood. And my second question, it can talk about the pricing behavior in the marketplace. Are you seeing the 26:18 26 minutes, 18 seconds competition competition price? Are they holding of the prices or you seeing some kind of you know p upward price movement? 26:28 26 minutes, 28 seconds So I think one of the things that I must state this is that the intent of Ajax on pricing has been clear from the time um 26:36 26 minutes, 36 seconds you know we went into you know the larger leg of the C post CV4 26:43 26 minutes, 43 seconds implementation and I can say this that there is much greater degree of confidence as we speak about Jan Feb 26:51 26 minutes, 51 seconds March uh we've seen some improvements coming through early improvements coming through in the month of January and uh we would love to hold that. If 27:00 27 minutes you look at our market shares in the last four months, as I alluded to, 82% 78% 80% and 78% is an indication that 27:08 27 minutes, 8 seconds our products are being preferred. And I can say this with a degree of confidence uh that irrespective of how our 27:16 27 minutes, 16 seconds competitors, our nearest competitors are playing out, we we are going to position ourselves stronger from a price point of view and we'll continue to make sure that uh we get to where we need to. 27:28 27 minutes, 28 seconds And Mr. last question is non associum portfolio I think grew by 18% in F25 and 27:35 27 minutes, 35 seconds the growth are much much higher in FI24 and FI23 uh but F26 9 month I think it is more 27:42 27 minutes, 42 seconds flashish kind of number how do you see this number going forward for F26 F27 is it fair to assume that you get back to a 27:50 27 minutes, 50 seconds 18 20 plus% growth from F527 onwards given the fact that backing plant is single pickup and and the palm tree 27:58 27 minutes, 58 seconds doing so. Boom. Boom. Pound three doing well now. 28:01 28 minutes, 1 second Yeah, I I think one of the things that is starting to happen is that I think we would watch the fourth quarter. We are relatively confident of the fourth 28:08 28 minutes, 8 seconds quarter numbers to come back. I think this is a function of the overall demand momentum in the fourth quarter and um and I think it that'll auger well for us for FI27 as well. 28:21 28 minutes, 21 seconds Understood. Understood. Thank you all. Thank you. Thank you. 28:27 28 minutes, 27 seconds We take the next question from the line of Rashi from City Group. Please proceed. 28:33 28 minutes, 33 seconds Thank you. Just uh coming back to pricing. So we've obviously seen some increases in pricing but not adequate 28:39 28 minutes, 39 seconds enough to offset the cost hikes. So how do we think about um you know margins from here and you know what is what 28:48 28 minutes, 48 seconds could you actually be targeting when you're saying that you'll take calibrated price hikes? uh what exactly do you have in mind in terms of 28:55 28 minutes, 55 seconds restoring margins or at what levels and how soon can that happen and what is actually the percentage of price hack 29:02 29 minutes, 2 seconds that you need from here to get to that particular margin level that you may be targeting so I think Rashi I will just course 29:10 29 minutes, 10 seconds correct it a little bit what we've seen is a movement for the better in the month of January right and I think it's 29:17 29 minutes, 17 seconds important that we sustain that momentum with grit and determination around this aspect while ensuring that we maintain our market share at least for the 29:25 29 minutes, 25 seconds quarter. Um I think we are very clear about it. We are positioning ourselves um to customers, dealers etc. very 29:32 29 minutes, 32 seconds clearly on that subject and I stand confident that FY27 I think we should be able to have 29:40 29 minutes, 40 seconds covered a fair ground as far as uh price increase is concerned common I wouldn't use the term whether it'll be exactly 29:47 29 minutes, 47 seconds common rate with the overall cost increase but as close as we can get to that uh sometime in the first quarter of FI27. 29:57 29 minutes, 57 seconds Right. So basically your entire cost increase is kind of captured now. Right. By and large. 30:02 30 minutes, 2 seconds Yes. There no surprises left for next year. 30:05 30 minutes, 5 seconds No. No. There are no surprises left on that until and unless there is very significant change in steel prices which uh very difficult for me to comment at 30:13 30 minutes, 13 seconds at this stage. But I don't see any any short-term you know play coming out in commodity prices particularly steel. 30:19 30 minutes, 19 seconds Right. And as far as volumes are concerned, I mean they're like you already gave very detailed uh information on what states there's pent 30:26 30 minutes, 26 seconds up demand and where you have good demand. So how are you thinking about volume growth in the next year? 30:32 30 minutes, 32 seconds So I think um I kind of tried to answer that question in two parts. I will retain that same focus and I think as an 30:40 30 minutes, 40 seconds organization we're committed to driving those kind of numbers uh given the fact that we do anticipate uh a positive 30:47 30 minutes, 47 seconds momentum on the states that have not done well and continued demand to come from the states and the applications that we spoke about 30:55 30 minutes, 55 seconds right and on both these grounds on both demand and pricing do you I mean is there any sort of pressure from competition I think you historically you 31:04 31 minutes, 4 seconds maintained a four to 5% premium to competition on pricing. Is that still the narrative? 31:10 31 minutes, 10 seconds It's still the narrative. Um, in certain cases, it could be a little more than that as well. Um, but irrespective of how they think and play, I think as an 31:19 31 minutes, 19 seconds organization, we're very clear that this is a number that we need to achieve and we'll strive for it. 31:26 31 minutes, 26 seconds Got it. And just last question, what is the cash balance currently? 31:30 31 minutes, 30 seconds cash balance is in uh including uh let's say the investments which you have in the debt markets uh is 800 10 million 810 crores. 31:41 31 minutes, 41 seconds Okay. Thank you. 31:48 31 minutes, 48 seconds Thank you. We take the next question from the line of Lakshmi Naray from Tunga. Please proceed. 31:56 31 minutes, 56 seconds Yeah. Thank you. I just want to understand if um there has been any uh discounting that is taking place in the market. Uh uh given that there has been 32:06 32 minutes, 6 seconds little dullness in the demand and uh the second is uh uh in the last 9 months how many dealers you have actually uh 32:15 32 minutes, 15 seconds onboarded and the third question is that uh there is the increase in uh sales and marketing. I think this pertains to I 32:22 32 minutes, 22 seconds just want to understand how successful it has been for you. What kind of uh uh differentiated access you got uh uh and and because of your presence in XCON. 32:32 32 minutes, 32 seconds Thank you. 32:33 32 minutes, 33 seconds I will take the last question first because we met each other at XCON Lakshmi and thank you for coming by and taking your time out to see our stall. I 32:41 32 minutes, 41 seconds would have loved to have some feedback about the subject from you to begin with. But I can say this that we participated in the XCON after a hiatus 32:49 32 minutes, 49 seconds of a of the previous XCON and I can say this with the degree of confidence that I think for us I think it was a 32:57 32 minutes, 57 seconds reasonable success. Uh all the products that were u let's say displayed from a 33:04 33 minutes, 4 seconds domestic standpoint uh were all booked and have been supplied. So we didn't 33:11 33 minutes, 11 seconds want any of those products to come back and stay as inventory. So I think that that's a good measure of uh and for me um you know return on investment on 33:19 33 minutes, 19 seconds certain things like this matter but of course I mean some exports customers and you did see some of them coming to our 33:26 33 minutes, 26 seconds stall and seeing um you know for a fact that 3D printing eved interest. A lot of people who came and saw our pavers were also surprised because they hadn't seen 33:35 33 minutes, 35 seconds something like this from an Indian company who able to develop and make pavers ground up. So I think that provided a lot of confidence. 33:41 33 minutes, 41 seconds Incidentally after seeing the paper um there is work that is going to happen in a 25 kilometer stretch. Somebody who's 33:49 33 minutes, 49 seconds taken it from us on rental to test it out between I think Nagil and Kanyakumari. So if you get some time do visit. 33:59 33 minutes, 59 seconds Mhm. I think the work is starting tomorrow. Got it. 34:07 34 minutes, 7 seconds uh on the other questions uh which are related to um your pricing related aspect. See I think 34:15 34 minutes, 15 seconds one of the things that I I think I've alluded to this in the past um I think as an organization we've maintained strong market share 8278 34:24 34 minutes, 24 seconds 80 and 78 uh in the last four months is an indication of where we stand. 34:30 34 minutes, 30 seconds Following up with the the context that Rashi was speaking about that we've had a price premium of about 4 to 5% incidentally the premium could be a 34:37 34 minutes, 37 seconds little higher we've tried to maintain that we we've not been in the phase of discounting and so on and so forth but I can only say this that wherever certain 34:46 34 minutes, 46 seconds deals are there and so on and so forth we've certainly tried to win those deals irrespective in a small volume market so 34:53 34 minutes, 53 seconds I think the these have been the contexts in which uh uh in which we have operated and and as a dealer footprint increase. 35:04 35 minutes, 4 seconds One more thing which you mentioned was about uh do we see any accelerated discounting etc in a low margin or let's 35:10 35 minutes, 10 seconds say low volume uh market scenario. I think uh Shugo mentioned that uh given the volume tidness obviously the push 35:19 35 minutes, 19 seconds from our side on increasing the prices we have to have a calibrated approach. 35:24 35 minutes, 24 seconds So yes uh pricing u pressure whether through discounting or the competition kind of holding back on any kind of 35:32 35 minutes, 32 seconds price rise is of course there but do we see crazy discounts which happened in Q1 um that is that has at least not uh uh 35:41 35 minutes, 41 seconds the case for Q3 and even let's say towards end of Q2 that has stabilized but no price increase overall from a 35:49 35 minutes, 49 seconds competition as well so far and in terms of dealership footprint if we had any dealers. uh uh 35:59 35 minutes, 59 seconds no I think uh we've continued our march with the existing set of dealers very broadly um and I I think that the focus 36:07 36 minutes, 7 seconds was to now stabilize the context of uh of the dealerships um and uh 36:15 36 minutes, 15 seconds yeah so I think uh and and overall I mean while the dealer base has largely remained the same for for Uran and for others overall we're looking to increase 36:24 36 minutes, 24 seconds in the range of about uh dealerships, additional dealerships as we progress. Uh we are already upward 36:31 36 minutes, 31 seconds of 60 now and that should get a bit better uh or let's say a bit more uh in the next couple of months. 36:44 36 minutes, 44 seconds U there was a disturbance on the line. 36:46 36 minutes, 46 seconds I'm just checking whether we are still online and people are able to hear us. Hello sir. Yes, we can hear you. 36:53 36 minutes, 53 seconds All right. Okay. Thanks. Thank you. 37:01 37 minutes, 1 second Thank you. We take the next question from the line of Rahul Kumar from Vara Fund. Please proceed. 37:08 37 minutes, 8 seconds Yeah. Hi. Uh just on the demand uh environment uh replies you had given earlier. Uh I think you mentioned that 37:16 37 minutes, 16 seconds December and January has seen a certain improvement in the demand momentum. 37:21 37 minutes, 21 seconds uh would you say that this is more driven by the uh the key impacted state which you had mentioned or is it 37:30 37 minutes, 30 seconds primarily in the you know the more buoyant state of or 37:37 37 minutes, 37 seconds no I think um I think I was speaking about between the transition between December and January and not December and January together I think we've seen 37:45 37 minutes, 45 seconds this momentum shift in January and it continues to be from the demand driver states of Gujarat, CG, Urisa, Uttar 37:55 37 minutes, 55 seconds Pradesh and so on and Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh etc. I would have been very happy to see something coming back in Maharashtra given the fact that elections and and so on and so forth 38:03 38 minutes, 3 seconds which were more municipal elections are behind us and stuff and uh I think the expectation from the states which are 38:10 38 minutes, 10 seconds large which is Karnataka, Maharashtra, Rajasthan MP would be to have cash flow back on terms. So once this cash flow 38:18 38 minutes, 18 seconds back is back I think the confidence of the contractors to accept new work orders will start happening and once they accept the new work orders the machine sales will begin. So I think 38:26 38 minutes, 26 seconds given the fact that there is a demand challenge in some of these states, I anticipate that the project pressure will put some of these states to 38:34 38 minutes, 34 seconds selectively start putting in money behind it. I mean this is just a we will have to see only when the money comes into the market and stuff happens. 38:44 38 minutes, 44 seconds Understood and sorry to apolog noise from at from somewhere. Uh I'm not 38:54 38 minutes, 54 seconds sure where but the audio is getting disrupted at R quite a bit. 38:58 38 minutes, 58 seconds Okay. No. Uh and the second question which I have is is on pricing. Uh so 39:07 39 minutes, 7 seconds do we have the uniform pricing across all states or do can we calibrate the pricing across you know a better 39:13 39 minutes, 13 seconds performing states and continue with the existing pricing for the rest of the impacted states. Uh so this industry is 39:20 39 minutes, 20 seconds very contiguous. So you can be a contractor operating from Tamil Nadu but you have the work in let's say Rajasthan I mean obviously we can't have two 39:28 39 minutes, 28 seconds different sets of pricing operating otherwise you know that state will start supplying somewhere else and so on and so forth. So I think there is a broad 39:36 39 minutes, 36 seconds uniform trend of pricing uh the selling price to all our customers uh kind of remains uh the same from the company's 39:44 39 minutes, 44 seconds side. um only if there are any specific uh product related uh you know areas only then you know those pricing gets 39:53 39 minutes, 53 seconds altered other than that I mean it depends upon what kind of variant and so on and so forth it is 39:59 39 minutes, 59 seconds okay okay and uh basically uh if I just summarize the uh commentary which you made earlier is that the pricing uh 40:09 40 minutes, 9 seconds environment can improve uh as and when the demand momentum uh improves uh you know in in some of the key states 40:17 40 minutes, 17 seconds where where you're seeing some challenges on the cash I mean uh we have to be prudent right we 40:24 40 minutes, 24 seconds spoke about a cal calibrated approach to pricing and we also spoke about the fact that you know the demand has been muted in across largely across the board we 40:33 40 minutes, 33 seconds are seeing some improvement and some amount of uh you know directional improvement has happened in the month of January we would like to pursue that 40:42 40 minutes, 42 seconds path Okay. Okay. And uh if you can just uh uh 40:49 40 minutes, 49 seconds help us understand the key top states let's say for 9 month FI 26 uh which are the top key states for us in terms of volume. 41:01 41 minutes, 1 second So [clears throat] Gujaratu Uttar Pradesh Rajasthan um Karnataka Maharashtra they all comprise the top 41:09 41 minutes, 9 seconds five states. uh they obviously you know different times different states crop up as uh number one or the volume changes 41:16 41 minutes, 16 seconds but these are the top five uh for the current year fiscal and uh what would be the broad 41:24 41 minutes, 24 seconds contribution of these top five six states I mean see top 10 states typically have 41:33 41 minutes, 33 seconds about 2/3 of our volume but obviously these states change these are not ch states which They are consistent every 41:40 41 minutes, 40 seconds year as top 10 but top 10 for us constitute about 2/3 of our volume. 41:48 41 minutes, 48 seconds Okay. Okay. Thank you. Thank you. 41:56 41 minutes, 56 seconds We take the next question from the line of Kishor Kumar from Unifi Capital. Please proceed. 42:02 42 minutes, 2 seconds Yes. Uh thanks for the opportunity. Uh sir, uh my questions have already been answered. I have a small clarification on the commodity price inflation. Now 42:11 42 minutes, 11 seconds steel prices are actually uh picking up and uh aluminium copper although it's smaller proportion uh that's also gone 42:19 42 minutes, 19 seconds up uh significantly. So considering this and the price hikes that we are already planning, how are you how are you actually planning to manage this? Uh 42:27 42 minutes, 27 seconds because uh do you think that uh this inflation might offset the price that we we are actually taking in the market and 42:35 42 minutes, 35 seconds may keep the margins uh near the margins uh at a similar level. 42:41 42 minutes, 41 seconds I think um you seem to be covering the auto sector quite closely. Um so I think 42:47 42 minutes, 47 seconds um steel is our only um area and I don't think we are too much impacted by some 42:54 42 minutes, 54 seconds of those things and I think at least in the short term we don't anticipate very significant shifts coming out of that 43:01 43 minutes, 1 second and I can only say this that if it is pure commodity it becomes that much more rational to explain and if if there is a 43:10 43 minutes, 10 seconds need to kind of pull that up we will we will do that. I think uh it's not a scenario that's panning out right now. 43:16 43 minutes, 16 seconds If it does, we will address it. 43:20 43 minutes, 20 seconds Got it sir. Got it. Understood. So my second question is on the cash flow constraint that your customers are facing. So is it because that there's a 43:27 43 minutes, 27 seconds payment delay from the from the from their customers end. Uh is that the reason? 43:33 43 minutes, 33 seconds That is correct. In fact it is the government and I can only say this that it is both it's largely the state governments of which we have already spoken about. 43:43 43 minutes, 43 seconds Got it sir. Got it. Thank you so much sir and all the best. 43:49 43 minutes, 49 seconds Thank you. Before we proceed with the next question a reminder of the participants in order to ask a question you may press star and one on your 43:58 43 minutes, 58 seconds touchstone telephone. We take the next question from the line of Mayang from Asian markets. Please proceed. 44:07 44 minutes, 7 seconds Yeah thanks for the opportunity. uh so uh suin sir I'm just referring to the data given on vahan uh statewise 44:17 44 minutes, 17 seconds ax data which shows I mean you have highlighted that the top states are really uh doing well like 44:26 44 minutes, 26 seconds Rajasthan and all but uh Tamil Nadu particularly we have seen a sharp dip in the numbers as well as Bihar has been a 44:35 44 minutes, 35 seconds very strong growth for you in last two So I'm just trying to understand few more uh extending it to few more states 44:44 44 minutes, 44 seconds like what's happening there if you could highlight. Okay. Uh who's that? May right? Yeah. Yeah. 44:52 44 minutes, 52 seconds Yeah. May um this is Shubo here. I can only say this that look um Bihar uh I mean elections are always an interesting 45:00 45 minutes driver and uh some of you you know been through our calls know for a fact that uh um pre-election spend in Bihar drove 45:10 45 minutes, 10 seconds the demand. Uh the good thing in Bihar that they did was that they put the money into wherever they were doing for 45:17 45 minutes, 17 seconds social spending before the elections. Um now these kind of freebies are never very good. They do impact the state 45:25 45 minutes, 25 seconds fiscal balances and so on and so forth and creates a challenge in the going 45:31 45 minutes, 31 seconds into the future. U so I think even post elections uh of course the same kind of 45:38 45 minutes, 38 seconds volumes may not happen uh but I think Bihar need Bihar's need for infrastructure particularly driven by 45:45 45 minutes, 45 seconds irrigation roads um PW2 etc. happy to say that they are continuing on a good trajectory. As far as Tamil Nadu is 45:53 45 minutes, 53 seconds concerned, I think overall Tamil Nadu state particularly from a government capital expenditure from a state point of view has been muted. Um and we don't 46:02 46 minutes, 2 seconds anticipate any change or shift unless there is clarity around how the elections pan out. Uh so let's see how if they do put money behind something 46:11 46 minutes, 11 seconds pre-election. It's an estate that is going into election soon as you're aware. 46:17 46 minutes, 17 seconds Okay. Okay. So for next year let's say I mean which could be the top three states for you in terms of growth. I mean you I have I have spoken about it at length. 46:27 46 minutes, 27 seconds I have tried to divide it into two parts clearly. Uh we would definitely love higher volume states of Maharashtra, 46:34 46 minutes, 34 seconds Karnataka, Rajasthan MP to come back into flow. Um the continuity in Gujarat, Odisa, Uttar Pradesh CG is something that we would love to see. 46:47 46 minutes, 47 seconds Okay. Okay. And one more thing I mean we also see that uh uh uh competition is getting aggressive. In fact uh our 46:56 46 minutes, 56 seconds parent company itself is uh clocking in uh volumes now uh which is uh so I mean 47:03 47 minutes, 3 seconds is there any uh I mean would you like to comment anything on that? 47:07 47 minutes, 7 seconds May you have seen the market share numbers right? If that is any indication then it really throws competition off balance by the quality of our product 47:14 47 minutes, 14 seconds our service network and reach and also the relationships that customers have with us for a very long period of time. 47:21 47 minutes, 21 seconds I think this question has come to us time and time again happy to say that in the last four months irrespective of how the market has been customers have 47:30 47 minutes, 30 seconds continued to trust us and we thank them for it. uh 4 month market share at 8278 80 and 78 I think is a good number to 47:39 47 minutes, 39 seconds indicate where we stand and and just to clarify uh because it's a it's a factor thing fury was not 47:46 47 minutes, 46 seconds Ajax's parenting uh it was a 50/50 JV which uh got uh let's say dissolved uh 47:54 47 minutes, 54 seconds many years back I just wanted to call that out because there are a lot of new participants also on the call No, that thank you very much sir. 48:06 48 minutes, 6 seconds Thank you. We take the next question from the line of Pitesh from Lucky Investments. Please proceed. 48:14 48 minutes, 14 seconds In your assessment uh the SLCM product line how much? 48:20 48 minutes, 20 seconds Sorry to interrupt Mr. Pratish. I would request you to come closer to your device and then speak. Is it clear? 48:27 48 minutes, 27 seconds Better better. Yeah. 48:29 48 minutes, 29 seconds Okay. So the question is uh the SLCM product line how much of the demand in your opinion is linked to housing 48:38 48 minutes, 38 seconds construction and how much of the demand is linked to infrastructure because in your comments you've only highlighted 48:46 48 minutes, 46 seconds infrastructure and you highlighted um states which were impacted uh because of 48:53 48 minutes, 53 seconds the infrastructure side less government budget etc and highlighting the fact that you didn't have group. So 49:01 49 minutes, 1 second um now the nature of the product also has its application otherwise. So maybe this would be helpful if you could you know help us understand this aspect. 49:11 49 minutes, 11 seconds Okay. Um I'm sure um you've been to some of our meetings in the past and we've spoken extensively about the application 49:19 49 minutes, 19 seconds of SLCMS in specific areas. Um I think um you are trying to allude to the housing sector and its utility of and the utility of SLCMS for that purpose. 49:30 49 minutes, 30 seconds Uh SLCMS generally pour down right and there are only few people who have taken SLCMS along with pumps and tried to drive it as an opportunity or a segment. 49:41 49 minutes, 41 seconds However, u most people generally tend to use either small batching plants along with transit mixers if they have to do any high-rise construction because of 49:49 49 minutes, 49 seconds the volume of concrete that is required to be able to deliver uh the outcomes that are required. SLCMS if you note 49:58 49 minutes, 58 seconds range from 2 cubic meter all the way to 4.5 cubic meter at least broadly 4.8 cubic meter broadly in our category. Now 50:06 50 minutes, 6 seconds if you observe that uh then the quantum of output at the smallest end uh let's say in every 20 minute cycle is 2 cubic 50:14 50 minutes, 14 seconds m right so in an hour it will be 2 into 36 cubic m and in a working day of 8 50:21 50 minutes, 21 seconds cubic sorry 8 hours it'll be about 48 cubic m whereas the requirement and that two has to be churned out every time and 50:28 50 minutes, 28 seconds for high-rise construction in uh for residential sector the utility of the machine is limited it from that 50:35 50 minutes, 35 seconds perspective and as you will understand I have spoken about um renewable energy I've spoken about irrigation I have 50:43 50 minutes, 43 seconds spoken about PWD I've spoken about roads I've spoken about power I've spoken about railways in the past I think those are the broader applications into which 50:50 50 minutes, 50 seconds SLCMS go into there will be a foundation work involved right in uh in single 50:59 50 minutes, 59 seconds I am it is it is a requirement for a very large building site which is a high-rise 51:07 51 minutes, 7 seconds the utility of using an SLCM for the volume of concrete and the nature of concrete will be suboptimal to be able 51:15 51 minutes, 15 seconds to do that. However, if you allude to things like a small uh house then to 51:23 51 minutes, 23 seconds prepare the uh you know foot and column and so on and so forth it is used in in certain markets. uh but on a very broad 51:32 51 minutes, 32 seconds basis the utility is largely in infrastructure. 51:38 51 minutes, 38 seconds Okay. And your comment on the the demand side was that even quarter 4 is where you're not seeing volume growth on a Y 51:46 51 minutes, 46 seconds basis right so far. So if you look at it I I don't know how people are reading what I'm saying. Uh maybe uh I need to 51:55 51 minutes, 55 seconds spell it out and make it absolutely clear. What I mentioned very clearly was that between let us say the average of 52:03 52 minutes, 3 seconds what we have seen in the first nine months and between what we have seen in the third quarter. The fourth quarter at least to begin with in January we have 52:12 52 minutes, 12 seconds seen a stronger shift in demand both in retail and wholesale for one month. 52:16 52 minutes, 16 seconds However, this we hope will continue in both February and March. Will be different distinctly different from what has happened in let us say Q3 is our estimation. 52:26 52 minutes, 26 seconds Right. 52:28 52 minutes, 28 seconds I hope I'm being a I've been able to put my point across. However, if you look at it, last full last last year last 52:36 52 minutes, 36 seconds quarter, we had done close to about 2,50 odd numbers. Are we going to be able to match up to those numbers? Potentially not. 52:45 52 minutes, 45 seconds Given the current conditions and given the fact that larger states are still not right there in terms of being able 52:52 52 minutes, 52 seconds to provide the necessary cash flow contractors to accept work orders because if they accept the work order they have to do the work. 53:01 53 minutes, 1 second Okay. Even without getting paid on time. 53:05 53 minutes, 5 seconds So on one side you're saying stronger shift on the other side you're saying that the Y number will not be 53:12 53 minutes, 12 seconds difficult to surpass that number. versus Q4 versus Q4 on a quantitative basis PH that's right we are saying that okay 53:20 53 minutes, 20 seconds that yeah I think even I have referred to this that there was a much stronger base last year of more than 3,500 units 53:28 53 minutes, 28 seconds between Q3 and Q4500 in Q3 of SLCMS and more than 2,000 and in the current demand conditions we 53:36 53 minutes, 36 seconds don't estimate that to happen uh so how about The so the so so just 53:44 53 minutes, 44 seconds keeping this quarterly and yearly assessment aside otherwise uh you know there's a fairly longer history of about 53:53 53 minutes, 53 seconds a higher doubledigit growth so does anything change there or the demand environment requirement for the 54:01 54 minutes, 1 second doubledigit volume growth what should be that you're more intelligent than I am as far as the macros are concerned I 54:08 54 minutes, 8 seconds think the need for infrastructure in this country continues to remain We know for a fact that cement and the level of penetration of concrete is still 54:17 54 minutes, 17 seconds relatively low. The level of mechanization those macros as a driver will obviously have an impact in terms of the continuity of demand for 54:25 54 minutes, 25 seconds concreting equipment. I'm happy to say that I think we are still in the right sector at the right time. 54:31 54 minutes, 31 seconds Okay. Thank you and all the best to you sir. Thank you. Thank you. 54:41 54 minutes, 41 seconds Thank you. 54:44 54 minutes, 44 seconds We take the next question from the line of Nidish Sha from ICICI securities. Please proceed. 54:51 54 minutes, 51 seconds Uh thank you so much for taking my question. So you mentioned that there's a growing interest um in our favor. So could you just tell us about apart from 55:00 55 minutes that uh uh one one vendor revenue that we are receiving what kind of interest are we seeing in favors and the uh as 55:08 55 minutes, 8 seconds well as the 3D printers are we seeing some movement over there domestic or international in terms of recognition of the product. So I think I was speaking 55:16 55 minutes, 16 seconds more from the context of what we saw at XCON and a fallout of how one contractor after specifically looking at a product 55:24 55 minutes, 24 seconds got interested in using it on rental basis to construct a road of about 25 kilometers in Tamil Nadu in the south of Tamil Nadu. I think that is one area. 55:34 55 minutes, 34 seconds The second is on an international front. 55:36 55 minutes, 36 seconds Yes, there is uh improved interest coming in from countries as far as out as Barus to Saudi Arabia and some of 55:46 55 minutes, 46 seconds those kind of countries. We'll keep you posted as we move forward on some of these uh areas particularly on the paving front. I think uh it has given us 55:55 55 minutes, 55 seconds some confidence once the machine has run in Russia and and Gabon and so on and so forth. So given that I think our export 56:02 56 minutes, 2 seconds team um is now able to reach out because it's important to put some machines on ground before you can reach out to anybody. Uh we feel far more comfortable 56:11 56 minutes, 11 seconds and confident that look we have a product which can work and if domestic also people start using it. It becomes a good reflection of the test of a product 56:19 56 minutes, 19 seconds that we have made. Um I I think that's where we stand as far as papers is concerned. As far as 3D printing is concerned I think 3D printing is a slow 56:27 56 minutes, 27 seconds burn at this point in time. I don't think we had international customers looking at 3D printing but I can say this that there is some interest that has come in from the border roads 56:36 56 minutes, 36 seconds organization and the ministry of defense uh who are wanting to look at uh the potential applications of uh developing 56:44 56 minutes, 44 seconds certain sections using um 3D printers. 56:49 56 minutes, 49 seconds So connected to this um given the shavers are a significantly higher cost than any other uh type of concrete uh 56:58 56 minutes, 58 seconds equipment uh how much in your opinion is cost saved uh when a paper is used versus the manual methods of uh laying the concrete. 57:09 57 minutes, 9 seconds I'm not able to understand your question properly. Maybe there is uh some problem with the line or anything. if you can 57:16 57 minutes, 16 seconds just help clarify or repeat the question or move your position at a level where we we can hear you clearly. 57:25 57 minutes, 25 seconds Uh just give me a second. Uh am I audible now? 57:31 57 minutes, 31 seconds Yes, you were audible then too but the um maybe try again. Yeah. 57:39 57 minutes, 39 seconds Yeah. Uh so my question was that if someone were to use the paver instead of using the uh traditional manual methods 57:46 57 minutes, 46 seconds of laying down a road what kind of cost saves can we expect from that? So my 57:54 57 minutes, 54 seconds question is more on this of the standpoint of I understand and appreciate your question um but making concrete roads um 58:03 58 minutes, 3 seconds is is definitely not doable by hand. um what you see in certain segments um I 58:12 58 minutes, 12 seconds think you may have seen some some work happening in certain places in Bombay uh which is also machine done in part but 58:21 58 minutes, 21 seconds not in the manner in which you typically use a paver and these are very small roads so don't confuse between building 58:28 58 minutes, 28 seconds a highway versus building a street in which somebody has done that um so there is no context of anybody body making a 58:38 58 minutes, 38 seconds larger road of 7 m, 8 m, 9 m, 12 m width by using hand. It can't be done. It is extremely unproductive and very 58:46 58 minutes, 46 seconds expensive for somebody to use labor to do that. And you will never get the finish and the um let's say the quality 58:53 58 minutes, 53 seconds of concrete roads. Um and you will understand Nidhi if I get your name right that um roads are made of two 59:01 59 minutes, 1 second types. One is the bitinous road and the other is the concrete road. And there are sometimes where people use bitamin at the bottom with a white topping on on 59:09 59 minutes, 9 seconds on on top of bitamin. So there are three different ways in which people very broadly make roads which are essentially 59:17 59 minutes, 17 seconds let us say state or national highways for which only machines are utilized. It can't be done by hand. 59:24 59 minutes, 24 seconds Uh my question is more on on cost. So versus the traditional methods that are being used today. If I were to use 59:32 59 minutes, 32 seconds the methods that are used today, I think we need to distinguish this. Uh the only method that is used for claying concrete roads is by using pavers. 59:40 59 minutes, 40 seconds And similarly, there are bitamin pavers that are used when you make bitamin roads. 59:47 59 minutes, 47 seconds All right. So the the primary reason why the adoption of in our country Hello. 59:55 59 minutes, 55 seconds It's just part of this question. I just need a yes or no answer on this. So my my question is primarily just that so the reason why the pavers in India are 1:00:03 1 hour, 3 seconds not prevalent is only because concrete roads are not being made at this point. 1:00:07 1 hour, 7 seconds Yes you're now now you've come to the point it is not that see in the past the government wanted to do there is some intent in certain specific states for 1:00:16 1 hour, 16 seconds them to lay concrete roads. It moved from concrete to bitumen and hence many pavers that were sold by other 1:00:23 1 hour, 23 seconds manufacturers were not utilized at least for quite some time. I hope that doesn't stay for too long. Mhm. 1:00:31 1 hour, 31 seconds All right. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you. 1:00:36 1 hour, 36 seconds We take the next question from the line of above. Sha from JM Financial. Please proceed. 1:00:43 1 hour, 43 seconds Yes. So just a couple of data points. So what would be our inventory as of uh December? 1:00:51 1 hour, 51 seconds So uh I mean uh inventory overall uh just give me a section we are in the range of 190 cr. 1:01:02 1 hour, 1 minute, 2 seconds So it was around 228 cr as of September right. 1:01:06 1 hour, 1 minute, 6 seconds Yeah and then I mean if you look at yeah that is true. So the from our overall cash cycle is still good 9 months uh you 1:01:12 1 hour, 1 minute, 12 seconds know the OCF to EIT it's uh near 70%. So that way working capital rigor is there. 1:01:20 1 hour, 1 minute, 20 seconds We do experience a slight increase in DSO but apart from that the inventory uh your payables everything is uh in the right corridors for us. 1:01:30 1 hour, 1 minute, 30 seconds So overall working capital should be similar to September levels for December. 1:01:35 1 hour, 1 minute, 35 seconds Uh for December we will have a slight improvement. Okay. Okay. Okay. Thank you sir. 1:01:45 1 hour, 1 minute, 45 seconds Thank you. We take the next question from the line of Vinil Sha from KJMC Capital Markets. Please proceed. 1:01:58 1 hour, 1 minute, 58 seconds Sorry to interrupt Mr. Vin. Your voice is not here in this. Could you please fix that? 1:02:05 1 hour, 2 minutes, 5 seconds Hello. Am I audible now? Hello. Yes. Yes, you are. 1:02:11 1 hour, 2 minutes, 11 seconds Yes. I just wanted to understand uh the status of our new facility. uh earlier we had given a target of H2 for the completion but now we are expecting it 1:02:19 1 hour, 2 minutes, 19 seconds to be completed in Q1 of FI27. So what is causing the delay and the commencement of the new plant? 1:02:27 1 hour, 2 minutes, 27 seconds I mean there is no let's say operational delay. It's just tactical decisions. Uh we are of course that was predominantly for the nonSLCM portfolio. Uh we are 1:02:36 1 hour, 2 minutes, 36 seconds seeing what is the right calibration and it's a delay of few months if we if at all we call a delay. So nothing which is 1:02:44 1 hour, 2 minutes, 44 seconds alarming or um which need to be thought through too much either on your side or us. It's it's just a tactical decision making. That's sir. 1:02:54 1 hour, 2 minutes, 54 seconds Okay sir. And uh my next question was sir that uh we had introduced the B2B sales channels for targeting the higher 1:03:01 1 hour, 3 minutes, 1 second end of customers. So what progress are we seeing there? Are we seeing a good demand coming up from that distribution channel as well? 1:03:09 1 hour, 3 minutes, 9 seconds Yeah, of course. I mean, if you see the how the nonslcm portfolio is panning out um and also the access to better quality 1:03:17 1 hour, 3 minutes, 17 seconds customers, I think that's come through, I think, in more ways than one. Uh whether it's improvement in the volume, whether it is improvement in the overall 1:03:26 1 hour, 3 minutes, 26 seconds realizations, I think those those are things that are playing out. 1:03:29 1 hour, 3 minutes, 29 seconds Okay. Uh that's it from my side. Thank you. 1:03:35 1 hour, 3 minutes, 35 seconds Thank you ladies and gentlemen. Due to time constraints, we take that as the last question and would now like to hand the 1:03:43 1 hour, 3 minutes, 43 seconds conference over to the management for closing comments. 1:03:50 1 hour, 3 minutes, 50 seconds Thank you all for joining us on today's call. We hope we've been able to address all your questions. For any further queries or clarifications, please feel 1:03:59 1 hour, 3 minutes, 59 seconds free to connect with us or SG, our investor relations partner. Thank you once again. 1:04:08 1 hour, 4 minutes, 8 seconds Thank you on behalf of Ajix Engineering Limited. That concludes this conference. 1:04:13 1 hour, 4 minutes, 13 seconds Thank you for joining us and you may now disconnect your lines.