MRF (company)

Madras Rubber Factory commonly known as MRF or

MRF Tyres is an Indian Multinational tyre manufacturing MRF Limited
company and the largest manufacturer of tyres in India, also
the sixth largest manufacturer in the world. It is headquartered
in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.[1] The company manufactures
rubber products including tyres, treads, tubes and conveyor
belts, paints and toys.[2] MRF also runs the MRF Pace
Foundation, Chennai and MIDD - MRF Institute of Driver
Development in Chennai.

Contents
History Type Public
Products Traded as BSE: 500290 (https://w
Manufacturing facilities in India ww.bseindia.com/stock-
share-price/x/y/50029
Funskool
0/)
Motorsports NSE: MRF (https://ww
MRF Racing w.nseindia.com/get-quo
MRF rally team tes/equity?symbol=MR
MRF Motocross F)
MRF Karting ISIN INE883A01011

Cricket Industry Tyres

MRF Pace Foundation Rubber products
Endorsement Founded Tiruvottiyur, Madras,
Previous endorsements Tamil Nadu, India
Sponsorship (1946)
Awards and recognition Founder K. M. Mammen
Mappillai
See also
Headquarters Chennai, Tamil Nadu,
References India
External links Area served Worldwide
Key people K.M.Mammen
(Chairman & MD),
History Rahul Mammen
Mappillai ( CEO )
Madras Rubber Factory was started by K. M. Mammen
Products Tyres
Mappillai as a toy balloon manufacturing unit in 1946 at
Tiruvottiyur, Madras (now Chennai). In 1952, the company Toys
ventured into the manufacture of tread rubber.[1] Madras Sports equipment
Rubber Factory limited was incorporated as a private Conveyor belt
company in November 1960 and ventured into manufacture of Paints
tyres in partnership with Mansfield Tire & Rubber company Coats
based in Ohio, United States.[3] The company went public on
Revenue ₹22,683.87 crore
1 April 1961 and an office was established in Beirut, Lebanon
(US$3.0 billion) (2017)
to develop the export market in 1964 and its current logo of
the muscleman was born.[3] In 1967, it became the first Indian Operating ₹18,482.15 crore
income (US$2.5 billion) (2017)
company to export tyres to USA.[4]
Net income ₹802.21 crore
In 1973, MRF started manufacturing Nylon tyres for the first (US$110 million) (2017)
time. The company entered into with a technical know-how
Total assets ₹9,978.98 crore
collaboration with B. F. Goodrich in 1978.[5] The Mansfield (US$1.3 billion) (2017)
Tire & Rubber Co sold out its share in 1979 and the name of
the company was changed to MRF Ltd in the year. The Total equity ₹5,675.72 crore
company finalised a technical collaboration agreement with (US$750 million) (2017)
Marangoni TRS SPA, Italy for the manufacture of pre-cured Number of 16,194 (2017)
tread rubber for retreading industry. MRF tyres supplied tyres employees
to Maruti 800, India's first modern small car.[3] In 1989, the Website mrftyres.com (http://mrf
company collaborated with Hasbro International, the world's tyres.com)
largest toy maker and launched Funskool India. Also, they
entered into a pact with Vapocure of Australia to manufacture polyurethane paint formulations and with
Italian tyre manufacturer Pirelli for conveyor and elevator belt manufacture.[5] During the year 2004–05,
the product range of the company expanded with Go-kart & rally tyres and tyres for two/three wheelers.

Products
Tyres manufactures various tyres for passenger cars, two–wheelers, trucks, buses, tractors,
light commercial vehicles, off–the–road tyres and aero plane tyres,[2] MRF ZVTS[6] and
MRF Wanderers for cars and SUVs, MRF Meteor all terrain tyres, MRF Steel Muscle for
trucks and buses.[5]
MRF ZLX is the latest one which is well known for its comfort in passenger segment
Conveyor Belting – manufactures its in-house brand of Muscleflex conveyor belts.[5]
Pretreads – MRF has the most advanced pre-cured retreading system in India. MRF forayed
into retreading in 1970 and manufactures pretreads for tyres.[5]
Paints - manufactures polyurethane paint formulations and coats used in automotive,
decorative and industrial applications.[2]

Manufacturing facilities in India

1. Kottayam Plant in Kerala
2. Puducherry Plant
3. Goa Plant
4. Trichy Radial Plant in Perambalur District, Tamil Nadu
5. Trichy Bias Plant in Perambalur District, Tamil Nadu
6. Arakonam Plant in Tamil Nadu
7. Tiruvottiyur Plant in Chennai, Tamil Nadu
8. Medak Plant in Telangana
9. Ankenpally Plant in Telangana
10. Dahej Plant in Gujarat
The company also manufactures toys at its facility in Goa. The paints and coats are manufactured at two
facilities in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.[7]

Funskool
Funskool India was established in 1987 in collaboration with Hasbro toys, US. Funskool manufactures and
markets toys, board games among others. It has a manufacturing facility in Goa, India. The company has
manufacturing licenses for toys and games from Disney, Warner Brothers, Rummikub, Dora and Funskool
also has partnerships with renowned toy brands Hasbro, Lego, Hornby, Ravensburger, Tomy Toys,
LeapFrog, Siku, Jumbo, and New Bright for manufacture and marketing in India.[8]

Motorsports

MRF Racing

MRF built its first Formula 3 car in 1997.[9] MRF in collaboration with Maruti established the Formula
Maruti racing, a single-seater, open wheel class motorsport racing event for race cars made in India.[3] MRF
Challenge is a Formula 2000 open-wheel motorsport formula based series organised by Madras Motor
Sports Club in association with MRF. The latest season consisted of races organised at Madras Motor
Racing Track, Chennai, Bahrain International Circuit, Losail International Circuit, Doha and Buddh
International Circuit, Noida. Freddie Hunt, son of 1976 Formula One champion James Hunt and Mathias
Lauda, son of 1975, 1977 and 1984 Formula One champion Niki Lauda both competed in the series.[10]
MRF has sponsored Indian racing drivers including Narain Karthikeyan, Karun Chandok, Ashwin Sundar,
N. Leelakrishnan and Raj Bharath.

MRF rally team

MRF have also been a long-running sponsor of an MRF rally team participating in the Asia-Pacific Rally
Championship and Indian National Rally Championship. Associating with Czech car manufacturer Škoda,
MRF Skoda is the three time reigning champion in the Asia-Pacific Rally Championship with Chris
Atkinson winning in 2012, Gaurav Gill in 2013, Jan Kopecký in 2014,[11] Pontus Tidemand in 2015 and
Gaurav Gill again in 2016 and 2017. MRF also participates in Raid De Himalaya, the world's highest
rally.[12]

MRF entered the European Rally Championship in 2020, with WRC Hyundai driver Craig Breen and Emil
Lindholm driving for the team.

MRF remained in ERC for 2021 and also joined several other rally championships. Craig Breen, along
with Italian Simone Campedelli are set to participate in European Rally Championship. Campedelli, along
with eleven-time Italian rally champion Paolo Andreucci and the 2017 ERC Ladies champion Tamara
Molinaro will use the tyres while competing in the Italy Gravel rally championship. Emil Lindholm left
ERC and instead will focus entirely on testing the tyres on the gravel roads of Finland. After the 2021 Rally
di Roma Capitale, Breen was replaced by other Hyundai drivers, Jari Huttunen and Dani Sordo, as well as
Nil Solans later on.

MRF Motocross
MRF promotes a national motocross championship, a form of all-terrain two wheeler racing held on
enclosed off-road circuits annually across several cities.[9]

MRF Karting

MRF sponsors major karting championships in India. MRF is the first Indian tyre company to develop FIA
approved karting tyres.[9]

Cricket

MRF Pace Foundation

MRF Pace Foundation is a coaching clinic for training fast bowlers established by MRF with the help of
former Australian Pace spearhead Dennis Lillee in Chennai, India. Through this program, young aspiring
fast bowlers are trained in a special facility. Fast bowlers who trained with foundation and went on to
represent the Indian Cricket Team include Javagal Srinath, Irfan Pathan, Munaf Patel, Venkatesh Prasad, R.
P. Singh, Zaheer Khan and S Sreesanth. Besides Indian players, foreign players like Chaminda Vaas,
Henry Olonga, Heath Streak and Australian fast bowlers Glenn McGrath, Mitchell Johnson and Brett Lee
have also trained at the foundation. Sachin Tendulkar in his early days trained in the MRF Pace Foundation
to become a fast bowler. Glenn McGrath was appointed director of the Foundation on 2 September 2012,
replacing Dennis Lillee, who has held the post since its inception in 1987.[13]

Endorsement

MRF had been the bat sponsor for many cricketers of the game. Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara and Steve
Waugh have endorsed MRF products.[14] MRF has also sponsored Indian batsmen Rohit Sharma,[15]
Gautam Gambhir, Sanju Samson and Shikhar Dhawan. Currently MRF is endorsed by star batsmen Virat
Kohli,[16] AB de Villiers[17] and Mignon du Preez.

Previous endorsements
Sachin Tendulkar – India. Conqueror, Genius, Wizard
Brian Lara – West Indies. Wizard, Wizard 400
Steve Waugh – Australia. Conqueror
Gautam Gambhir – India. Genius
Sanju Samson – India. Wizard
Shikhar Dhawan – India. Genius
Rajan Soni – England. Genius
Prithvi Shaw - India. Genius, Prodigy PS 100
AB de Villiers - South Africa. Genius
Ureshan Chinia - Australia

Sponsorship
At IPL 2010, MRF sponsored moored balloons floating above the cricket grounds with a high-definition
camera recording live actions of the cricket match. MRF joined as a global partner of International Cricket
Council for 2015 Cricket World Cup.[18] In 2017, MRF became the sleeve sponsor for the Premier League
clubs Newcastle United,[19] West Ham United F. C.[20] and official tyre partner for West Bromwich
Albion.

Awards and recognition

MRF won the JD Power Award for the record 11th time in 2014.[21] The company has won several awards
and accolades including the All India Rubber Industries Association's (AIRIA) award for 'Highest Export
Awards (Auto Tyre Sector)', 'Top Export Award' from Chemicals & Allied Products Export Promotion
Council (CAPEXIL) for 2009–10. In 2014, MRF was ranked 48th among India's most trusted brands
according to the Brand Trust Report, a study conducted by Trust Research Advisory.[22]

See also
CEAT (company)
Apollo Tyres

References
1. "MRF:Overview" (http://www.mrftyres.com/overview). 14 February 2015.
2. "Company Profile:MRF" (https://web.archive.org/web/20150214104152/http://in.reuters.com/
finance/stocks/companyProfile?symbol=MRF.BO). Reuters. 14 February 2015. Archived
from the original (http://in.reuters.com/finance/stocks/companyProfile?symbol=MRF.BO) on
14 February 2015.
3. "MRF Limited" (http://profit.ndtv.com/stock/mrf-ltd_mrf/reports). NDTV. 14 February 2015.
4. "Time line and milestones : MRF tyres 1946-1970" (http://www.mrftyres.com/milestones/194
6-1970). MRF Tyres website. MRF Tyres. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
5. "Company background: MRF" (http://www.indiainfoline.com/markets/company/background/c
ompany-profile/mrf-ltd/391). 14 February 2015.
6. "What Are The Best Tyre Brands 2020? - Caringlyyours" (https://www.caringlyyours.com/bes
t-tyre-brands/). Caringly Yours. 16 June 2020. Retrieved 24 June 2020.
7. "MRF Paints and Coats" (http://www.mrftyres.com/paints-and-coats).
8. "Funskool India" (http://www.funskoolindia.com/about-us.php). 14 February 2015.
9. "MRF Sports" (http://www.mrftyres.com/mrf-sports).
10. Simmons, Marcus (15 July 2014). "The sons of James Hunt and Niki Lauda to race in MRF
series" (http://www.autosport.com/news/report.php/id/114968). Autosport. Haymarket
Publications. Retrieved 15 August 2014.
11. "Kopecky wins WRC for MRF" (https://web.archive.org/web/20141129084902/http://www.rall
y.com.au/world-news/kopecky-wins-aprc-for-team-mrf). rally.com. Archived from the original
(http://www.rally.com.au/world-news/kopecky-wins-aprc-for-team-mrf) on 29 November 2014.
12. "Raid de Himalaya 2009 from October 5, 2009" (https://web.archive.org/web/201001010400
49/http://northindiatimes.com/news/122/ARTICLE/1902/2009-09-02.html). North India
Times. 2 September 2009. Archived from the original (http://www.northindiatimes.com/news/
122/ARTICLE/1902/2009-09-02.html) on 1 January 2010. Retrieved 30 March 2010.
13. "McGrath takes charge of MRF Pace Foundation" (http://www.espncricinfo.com/india/conten
t/current/story/580431.html). Espncricinfo.
14. "Sachin's innings with MRF ends" (http://www.thehindu.com/sport/cricket/sachins-innings-wi
th-mrf-ends/article21753.ece). The Hindu.
15. "Even I am guilty of getting carried away but Sachin has stayed grounded" (http://archive.indi
anexpress.com/news/even-i-am-guilty-of-getting-carried-away-but-sachin-has-stayed-groun
ded/1191324/). The Indian Express.
16. "Virat Kohli earns Rs 8 crore for MRF ad on his bat, rakes in Rs 2 crore more than MS
Dhoni" (http://www.oneindia.com/sports/cricket/virat-kohli-earns-rs-8-crore-mrf-ad-on-his-bat-
ms-dhoni-team-india-2047409.html).
17. "AB de Villiers named brand ambassador of MRF" (http://www.thehindu.com/sport/cricket/ab
-de-villiers-named-brand-ambassador-of-mrf/article7785075.ece).
18. "MRF becomes global partner for ICC" (http://www.zigwheels.com/news-features/news/mrf-b
ecomes-global-partner-for-icc-cricket-world-cup-2015/20446/). Zigwheels.
19. "MRF named shirt sleeve sponsor" (https://www.nufc.co.uk/news/latest-news/mrf-named-shir
t-sleeve-sponsor). Newcastle United Football Club. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
20. "MRF announced as West Ham United's first ever shirt sleeve sponsor" (https://www.whufc.c
om/news/articles/2017/september/08-september/mrf-announced-west-ham-uniteds-first-ever
-shirt-sleeve). West Halm Football Club. Retrieved 29 March 2018.
21. "MRF gets JD Power award for 10th time" (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-
business/MRF-gets-JD-Power-award-for-10th-time/articleshow/24935923.cms). The Times
of India.
22. "India's Most Trusted Brands" (https://web.archive.org/web/20150502221904/http://www.trust
advisory.info/allindia_2014.html). Archived from the original (http://www.trustadvisory.info/alli
ndia_2014.html) on 2 May 2015.

External links
Official website (http://www.mrftyres.com)

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=MRF_(company)&oldid=1061695035"

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