Growth continues for AC

Indian crane manufacturer Action Construction Equipment (ACE) is planning to enter the capital market with a public issue of 46 lakh (a unit of 100,000) equity shares through a 100% book-building process, according to reports in the Economic Times.Book-building is basically a capital issuance process used in an Initial Public Offer (IPO) which aids price and demand discovery. It is a process used for marketing a public offer of equity shares of a company.It is a mechanism where, during the period for which the book for the IPO is open, bids are collected from investors at various prices, which are above or equal to the floor price.The process aims at tapping both wholesale and retail investors. The offer or issue price is then determined after the bid closing date based on certain evaluation criteria.ACE director Sorab Agarwal explained recently that over the past three years the company has grown by around 100% each year and the current facilities cannot cope with demand.It manufactured around 2,000 pick and carry cranes (from 3t to 16t capacity) last year, which are the most popular models in India. It also manufactures loader cranes and tower cranes, including self-erectors.ACE is aiming to complete the development of a new plant in Faradabad in early 2007.The company has supplied cranes to Kuwait, Dubai, Saudia Arabia, Bahrain, Nigeria, Algeria, Kenya, Phillippines, Mauritius, Madagascar, Libya, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Kazakhstan, Singapore, Ethiopia, South Africa, Iran, Portugal and New Zealand.