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Tube Products of India

Overview

Tube Products of India (TPI) is an Indian manufacturer of precision steel tubes, cold rolled steel strips and tubular components, operating as a division of Tube Investments of India Limited, part of the Chennai-based Murugappa Group. The division supplies primarily to the automotive industry, along with bicycles, boilers, and general engineering applications.

Key facts

Name Tube Products of India
Type Division of a listed company
Parent Tube Investments of India Limited
Group Murugappa Group
Headquarters Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Industry Steel tubes and strips, automotive components
Products Cold drawn welded tubes, electric resistance welded tubes, cold rolled steel strips, tubular components

Background

Tube Investments of India was established in the years following Indian independence as part of the diversification of the Murugappa Group, in collaboration with Tube Investments of the United Kingdom. Tube Products of India emerged as the group's tubes manufacturing arm, focused on precision steel tubing for industrial use. Over time, the parent company organised its operations into business divisions, with TPI handling tubes and strips while a sister division concentrated on bicycles and another on engineered chains.

Operations

TPI manufactures a range of steel tubes and strips used as inputs by other industries:

  • Cold Drawn Welded (CDW) tubes — used in automotive applications such as propeller shafts, steering columns, shock absorbers and axle housings.
  • Electric Resistance Welded (ERW) tubes — used in bicycles, furniture, and general engineering.
  • Cold Rolled Steel Strips — supplied to component makers in the automotive and consumer goods sectors.
  • Tubular components — value-added formed and fabricated parts for vehicle manufacturers.

The division operates manufacturing plants in multiple Indian states and supplies leading domestic and global automobile and two-wheeler manufacturers.

Significance

As one of the early organised producers of precision steel tubes in India, TPI has been associated with the localisation of automotive tubular components, reducing dependence on imports for items such as propeller and steering column tubing. Its output also underpins the bicycle manufacturing operations of the Murugappa Group, including the BSA and Hercules brands produced by TI Cycles.

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