The Hindu : Business : Hindustan Latex posts record profit

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Dec 16, 2005

Business

Business

Hindustan Latex posts record profit

Special Correspondent

The company had declared a dividend of 23.3 per cent

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Central public sector contraceptive company Hindustan Latex Limited (HLL) achieved a record turnover and profits during 2004-05, company's managing director M. Ayyappan has said.

The turnover during the year touched Rs.196 crores and the profits after tax Rs.20.11 crores, he told a press conference here. The turnover was 20 per cent more than during the previous year.

The HLL had declared a dividend of 23.3 per cent amounting to Rs.4.10 crores inclusive of dividend tax to the Union Government.

Direct marketing grew by 34 per cent to reach the level of Rs.51 crores in 2004-05. The foreign exchange earnings were of the order of Rs.13.54 crores. During the year, the HLL relaunched its major brand `Moods' and it is now available in 11 varieties. Two of these are new varieties: the `spiral' condom and the `glow' condom.

The company's brands have all improved their market share despite a slow- down in the market, Mr. Ayyappan said.

He noted that the HLL had won the MOU Award of the Union Government for the second year in succession for achieving the highest ratings for performance against MOU standards. The company is rated among the first 10 Central public sector companies, he said. During the year, the company's plant at Peroorkada here achieved a record production of over 2.5 million condoms a day. The sale of HLL's blood bags grew to 39.70 lakh pieces during the year against 33.72 lakh pieces during the previous year.

The company achieved more than 100 per cent capacity utilisation in the manufacture of all its major products - condoms, OCPs, Copper-Ts and blood bags.

It has started manufacturing various grades of polypropylene and poly glycolic acid (absorbable) surgical sutures at its manufacturing facility at Akkulam here.

"The transformation in the performance of the company during the past year was due to a total reorientation in its outlook from a production-oriented organisation to a market/customer-oriented organisation," Mr. Ayyappan said.

He said the company was marketing female condoms in collaboration with the U.S.-based Female Health Company to enable women to protect themselves against sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS. This product had gained acceptance all over the country, according to Mr. Ayyappan.

Another major product introduced last year was the auto disable syringe under the brand name `autolok.' This product is being marketed in India under a strategic alliance the HLL had with Becton and Dickinson of the U.S.

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