Question 1

Why almost all tiles factories are surrounding Morbi?

Accepted Answer

There are several reasons as under:

In the year 2007, the Gujarat government inaugurated the facility of piped natural gas (PNG) supply to the local industry. Soon it started to grow as a hub of various types of tiles. By the year 2012, it became major tiles cluster across the world

Technical supports and supply are easy & cheaper if a factory is located in the vicinity of this zone.

Due to a cluster of factories, the buyers find it easy to source their tiles requirements which again boosts sales and incentivizes new factories nearby this zone.

The recent accelerated growth of the industry is mainly due to the "ecosystem" structure created by all the above factors.

Question 2

Why a single factory can't make all the size/type of tiles?

Accepted Answer

Most of the factories have either 1 or 2 production lines. At a time only one size can be produced on 1 line. If a factory wants to produce a different size it needs to changeover which generally doesn't happen more then twice a month. So every month a factory with a single production line can produce 2 sizes efficiently.

Now about the different TYPE of product. A factory that makes ceramic wall tiles can't make vitrified tiles in the same setup due to the difference in body preparation & temperature. So most of the big groups have separate factories for different TYPES of tiles like double charge, glazed porcelain, ceramic wall tiles, etc.

Question 3

Why the same group factories have different legal names & also brand names for each?

Accepted Answer

Regarding legal names: Sometimes all partners of the first factory are not common in another factory. So to keep the books separate they give a new name to the new venture.
Regarding brand names: Unlike China or Europe, there is no concept of brand consolidation at Morbi. Lately, a few leading brands (e.g. ICON group) realized this important concept & started to offer a single brand from all their factories which is a good move. This improves operational efficiency & makes stronger branch equity.

Question 4

Why many roads of Morbi are not good?

Accepted Answer

The local tile industry's perimeter is more than 89 kilometers. Most of this area DO NOT come under the purview of any urban development authority.

To bring down the erection cost of a factory the industrialist choose a remote location where land is cheaper. Thus obviously it will take years to connect each factory with a proper road network. Another reason for the condition of roads is overloaded trucks. However, Some major roads are already revamped.

Welcome to Morbi Tiles.

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What makes Morbi Tiles the next big thing in the global tile market?

Why India’s tile industry mushroomed around Morbi?