Hindoostan Mills Ltd Management Discussions

A. BUSINESS SEGMENT – TEXTILES: Industry Structure & Development:

The Indian textile industry experienced a challenging year due to a drop in demand and competitive global pricing. Due to this, many of the textile mills reduced their capacity utilization in an attempt to get through this difficult period. There doesnt seem to be any respite from these conditions in the year to come. The newly announced 27% tariff on Indian imports announced to the United States will further add pressure to the fabric export market.

Strengths and Opportunities, Weakness and Threats and Outlook:

In light of the difficult conditions of the textile as mentioned above, in October of this year the Company had decided to temporarily suspend operations at its textile manufacturing plant in Karad, Maharashtra. After analyzing the future viability of the business, the Company has subsequently decided to apply for closure of the textile unit subject to approval of the Government Authorities.

Industry Structure and Development

The Engineering Division of the Company continues to demonstrate robust capabilities in design, innovation, and manufacturing excellence. Building on our established foundation, we have further evolved into a trusted development partner through sustained focus on technological advancement, value engineering, and customer-centric solutions. In FY 2025 26, the business prioritized strategic expansion across key industrial segments , Textile . Technical Textile including Sheet Metal, Corrugation & Paper Indutries. Our specialized offerings Super Calender Machine , Press Roll , Calender for Technical Textile , Cold Calender have enabled deeper penetration in these sectors. We have further consolidated our leadership in Calender Manufacturing, with targeted efforts underway to expand our market footprint and increase wallet share from existing and new customers. In alignment with market trends, we have also enhanced our sector mapping strategies, assessed untapped opportunities, and refined our go-to-market approach to maintain agility in a rapidly evolving industrial landscape.

Strengths and Opportunities

Innovation remains a cornerstone of our operational philosophy. By harnessing deep technical expertise and cross-functional collaboration, the business has been able to deliver customized, high-impact solutions across diverse applications.

A strategic emphasis on product diversification, supplier consolidation, and portfolio optimization has not only improved our value proposition but also contributed to pipeline growth and higher customer retention—particularly in the machine Manufacturing.

Material substitution initiatives and product innovation are being actively pursued to increase cost efficiency and competitiveness. With increasing customer focus on integrated engineering solutions, the business is well-positioned to capture incremental value across the product lifecycle.

Weaknesses and Threats

The Engineering Division continues to operate within a dynamic environment marked by certain structural challenges and market risks, including:

Volatility in the prices of critical raw materials

Extended sales cycles, particularly in the steel segment

Pricing pressure from unorganized/grey market players

Import lead-time dependencies across product categories

On-site service challenges, especially in machine Installation & Service projects

Service delays impacting project delivery timelines

We are actively addressing these headwinds through improved supplier engagement, tighter cost control mechanisms, and strengthening our service infrastructure.

Outlook

The overall business outlook for the Engineering segment remains cautiously optimistic. As global and domestic demand continues to show signs of steady recovery, our focus remains on enhancing the share of value-added products in our portfolio. Emphasis will continue on operational excellence, benchmarking global best practices, and embedding sustainability and digitalization into our processes. Strategic investments in R&D, quality systems, and supply chain optimization are expected to further improve product reliability, delivery timelines, and customer satisfaction. These efforts will collectively contribute to reinforcing our brand equity and expanding our market share in FY 2025-2026 and beyond.

However, geopolitical tensions and economic uncertainty in certain export markets, including Bangladesh, continue to pose near-term challenges. In addition, the U.S. governments continuation of the 27% import tariff on Indian goods underscores the importance of fast-tracking bilateral trade agreements to protect sectoral competitiveness. Despite these external headwinds, the Engineering Business is aligned to deliver sustainable value through a combination of innovation-led growth, operational discipline, and customer-first execution.

Performance, Risks and concerns, Internal control systems and their adequacy and industrial relations are mentioned in the Directors Report.

Key ratios are mentioned in Annexure A to Notes the Standalone Financial Statements, page No.114.