Overseas Vehicles Sales Limited will relocate their plant from Negombo Road, Peliyagoda to Kirimandala Mawatha, Narahenpita.
The company is engaged in converting large US built vehicles made by General Motors from left hand to right hand drive for the export market. The vehicles they import are essentially 4-wheel drive Sports Utility vehicles (SUVs) of the Cadillac, GMC and Hummer brands.
Chairman of Overseas Vehicles Sales Limited Peter Hill, an Australian national, decided to locate his plant in Sri Lanka as he has many family friends in the island. This was the main selling point, he added.
The latest vehicle to be converted is the Hummer, the popular civilian version of the vehicle, which is used extensively by the United States military. The conversion from left to right hand drive is a very extensive task, as the vehicles have to be completely taken apart and rebuilt.
The company produces many of the parts which are used in this conversion such as right hand drive dashboards, windscreen wiper panels, centre consoles, electric seats, heater boxes, bracketing for air conditioning, steering boxes and the brake system.
Since the company was established in Sri Lanka in 2003, the project is not new, but the decision to relocate the plant to a larger facility at Kirimandala Mawatha, Narahenpita is an indication of the growing demand for such vehicles.
There are currently 52 right hand drive countries in the world, so the market potential for these converted vehicles is considerable.
Hill, is very optimistic about the market potential for these large and very luxurious SUVs. The economic growth in Asian countries has resulted in increasingly discerning customers who are attracted by the powerful performance, luxurious fittings and near indestructible bodyworks of the American vehicles.
According to Hill his primary export markets will be India, Malaysia, Hong Kong, South Africa, Indonesia and Fiji. The 50 workers employed have been trained to man very advanced equipment needed in the process of converting the vehicles.
The conversion plant at Kirimandala Mawatha, Narahenpita is an ISO standard quality workshop. Hill is confident that the plant will convert about 300 vehicles every year.
He also added that he would like to see his vehicles on Sri Lankan roads. The vehicles he said are ideally suited for Sri Lanka, especially those in the Chevrolet range.
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