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| Tuesday, 10 June 2003 |
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Jinasena Group contributes 20% to world's tyre market by Shirajiv Sirimane A small machinery repair workshop which was started in the early 1900's has today blossomed into one of the largest tyre manufacturing companies in the world. The company Jinasena Group today holds 20% of the world tyre manufacturing market and is Sri Lanka's only company which has such a large share of the world market.
A Sri Lankan Engineer C. Jinasena who had a sharp eye on the market started a mini lathe shop at Hunupitiya Cross Road, Colombo 2, mainly to repair tea machinery. Having worked for a brief period in Burma, his skilled work and prompt service saw him having a steady clientele and Jinasena expanded his business rapidly. It was noteworthy to say that C. Jinasena was recognised for his genius workmanship as he was recognised by the British Institute of Mechanics in 1914. He was the first Sri Lankan to be a member of this epic body. After his tour to England he specialised in steam boilers and steam machinery.
In 1932 the founder of the company passed away and his son, T. S. Jinasena took over the company. However, he was faced with a major problem as his father had taken many loans to improve the business. The Jinasena junior however overcame this problem and in 1950 he engineered the first Sri Lanka water pump with the assistance of a local baas, Edward. This was a major challenge undertaken by him since this was the era where there were no locally manufactured finished items and even the tag "Made in Ceylon" virtually had no value among the British and even the Ceylonese. However the first few water pumps which were manufactured with new technology using pistons which needed virtually no servicing slowly and surely started to make an impact on the local market. He named this product the Jinasena Centric water pump. Their catch line for their water pump was 'fit and forget' was one reason for their success story.
Ably assisted by his wife Lily, Jinasena steered the company through the turbulent years of the depression and World War II. 1963 brought the third generation into the business when T.S. Jinasena took his four sons as partners. Three were Mechanical and Production Engineers and the fourth qualified in Business Management. 1967 saw the formation of two Limited Liability Companies. Jinasena Limited continued with the manufacture of water pumps and rubber rolling machinery while Jinasena Castings took over the foundry. In the early 1970's the Company acquired an industrial site of 22 acres at Ekala Ja-ela, within the Free Trade Zone. The next decade saw rapid expansion. The group diversified, branching into eight other companies in fields such as manufacture of eclectic motors, agricultural machinery, tourism, garments, sea food export, computer software and the production of solid rubber tyres. In the 1990s the group further expanded by building a second luxury tourist hotel and into property development by building several factories for lease. Expansion in the Rubber Tyre Company saw it increase the output of solid tyres and widen its product range to include pneumatic tyres to become one of the world's largest manufacturers of Industrial Tyres. The simple engineering Company C. Jinasena founded in 1905 has grown into a Group of 15 Companies which is one of Sri Lanka's largest Industrial/Trading Conglomerates. Headquartered in a modern 3000 sq. metre office in Colombo, the Jinasena Group is equipped with state-of-the-art Data Processing and Communication Facilities. It is a tightly controlled and efficient business group with products and services which are admired by the communities they serve. Today the company has an annual turnover in excess of US $ 100 million and has a steady and expanding overseas market. Managing Director Dr. T. N. Jinasena said that the main success in their company is with their staff. "They are our primary asset and if you take our past records you will see that none of our employees has left our company with problems. "We look after them as the company too does not want to lose their employee to another company". He said that he was somewhat disappointed in the manner in which the country looks after local entrepreneurs. "If you take Korea they were far behind Sri Lanka decades ago. Their government went out of the way to help their businessmen giving them soft loans, foreign aid and even technical advice free. This is their success story. Their government gave them enough incentives to start their businesses, he added. |
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