Honda CB Shine to be rolled out of Karnataka plant

Two-wheeler manufacturer Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) is revamping its Karnataka facility, from where it plans to roll out the 125cc motorcycle CB Shine amid rising demand for the model. The company, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Japanese auto giant Honda, currently manufactures the model at its Tapukara plant in Rajasthan. 

"It is a strategic decision taken by the company. In order to cater to the demand for the CB Shine, we are coming up with changes in our Bangalore facility. So CB Shine will become the fourth model to roll out from the Bangalore facility," HMSI Vice-President (Sales and Marketing) Y S Guleria told PTI. 

The Karnataka plant, which has a production capacity of 12 lakh units a year, currently makes the Dream Series motorcycles and Activa scooters.  Guleria said there has been some production loss due to the changes being made at the Karnataka plant. The company sold 27.55 lakh units in FY 12-13. Until December, HMSI's production capacity stood at 40 lakh units across its three plants in the country. 

"By March 2014, we plan to hike the production capacity to 46 lakh units," Guleria said. Asked if the company is looking at setting up a fourth production facility to cater to increasing demand, Guleria said: "Yes, we are considering it." HMSI has 2,500 outlets and is aiming at expanding its network and entering tier-III cities to raise it to 2,700 outlets.