Escorts Group, is an Indian multinational conglomerate and automotiveengineering company that operates in the sectors of agri-machinery, construction and material handling equipment, and railway equipment. Headquartered in Faridabad, Haryana, the company was launched in 1944 and has marketing operations in more than 40 countries. Escorts Group's management team includes Nikhil Nanda as the Chairman and Managing Director. Escorts manufactures a wide range of tractors, automotive components, railway equipment and construction & material handling equipment.
History
Escorts Group was founded in 1944, by two brothers, Har Prasad Nanda and Yudi Nanda, in the name of Escorts Agents Ltd. They started out with the family owned Nanda Bus Company in Jammu. Escorts Limited was incepted in 1960 after the company set up its manufacturing base at Faridabad and started manufacturing X-Ray machines with collaboration of Westinghouse and Heating Elements with Elpro. Since inception, Escorts Group has been associated with engineering companies such as Minneapolis Moline, Massey Ferguson, Goetze, Mahle, Ursus Factory, CEKOP, Ford, J.C. Bamford Excavators, Yamaha, Claas, Carraro, First Pacific Company, Hughes Communications, Jeumont Schneider, Dynapac, etc.
Businesses
Escorts Agri Machinery
Escorts Agri Machinery was launched in 1960. The company manufactures tractors under the brand names of Farmtrac, Powertrac and Steeltrac. The current range involves over 45 models ranging from 25HP to 90HP. The tractor division was started in 1960 with the first Escort tractors produced in 1965. In 1969, a partnership with Ford was set up to produce licensed Ford tractors for India. Ford became New Holland, which is currently part of CNH Global, which in turn is owned by the Fiat Group. The agreement between Escorts and Ford New Holland was terminated in 1995. No current relationship between Ford Tractors, New Holland Agriculture or its parent company CNH Industrial remains with Escorts Agri Machinery Escorts has production locations in Mrągowo, Poland that was purchased from Pol-Mot in 2000, and in India. There was an assembly plant in Tarboro, North Carolina which was purchased from Long Agri, but the North American subsidiary went into receivership in 2008. Customers, dealers and creditors are still trying to work through the North American troubles. In India, it has four manufacturing plants in Faridabad and one subsidiary unit in Poland in the name of Farmtrac Europe.
Escorts Construction Equipment
Escorts Construction Equipment manufactures and markets construction and material handling equipment like pick and carry cranes, backhoe loader, vibratory rollers and forklifts. The manufacturing and assembly facility is located in Sec 58, Faridabad.
Railway Equipment Division
Railway Equipment Division manufactures and supplies critical railway components such as air brake system, EP brake system, draft gears and couplers, composition brake blocks, dampers and rubber components to Indian Railways. The manufacturing facility is located in Sector 24, Faridabad.
Escorts Auto Products
Escorts Auto Products manufactures auto suspension products such as shock absorbers, struts and telescopic front forks for the automotive industry. The company collaborated with Fichtel & Sachs, Germany to introduce the concept of shock absorbers manufacturing in India in 1966. In 2016, Escorts' Auto Products business was divested to Pune-based Badve Engineering.
Motorcycles
The motorcycle division of Escorts group used to manufacture Polish SHL M11 motorcycles under the brand name Rajdoot from the early 1960s until 2005. In the early 1980s, Escorts started making Yamaha motorcycles in India. Rajdoot 350 was launched in 1981, later followed by the Yamaha RX 100 in 1984, which were known for their performance. The motorcycle manufacturing unit in Faridabad, India was sold to Yamaha in the late 1990s when Escorts decided to quit the motorcycle business to concentrate on tractors and auto components.
Best Tractor Company In India
Best Tractor Company In India The Escorts Group is among India's leading Best Tractor Manufacturing Companies in India pioneers in manufacturing mobile cranes, tractors, railway equipment's, construction equipment's etc.
Knowledge Management Centre
Set up in 1976, the Escorts Knowledge Management Centre is spread over 100,000 sq.m. area in Faridabad. This centre designs the entire tractor – engine, transmission plus hydraulic systems and vehicle design consisting of sheet metal, controls and accessories. The KMC has facilities such as engine laboratory featuring computerized test beds with online control, data acquisition and analysis, advanced vehicle testing laboratory, noise vibration and harshness lab, metrology lab, and materials engineering lab. The KMC uses 3D-modeling, analysis and simulation software for engines, transmissions and vehicles. Physical prototypes are then tested for performance, durability and reliability.
