THE HISTORY OF HERO GROUP

THE HISTORY OF HERO GROUP

Men of Steel

The success of the Hero Group lies in the determination and foresight of the Munjal brothers, who shared their vision with their workers and led the Group to a position where its name has become synonymous with top-quality two wheelers.
The flame kindled by the Munjal brothers in 1956 with the flagship company Hero Cycles; Mr. Satyanand Munjal, Mr. Brijmohan Lall Munjal and Mr. O. P. Munjal continue to carry the torch and are actively involved in the day-to-day operations of the Hero Group.
The saga is being continued with the same zeal by the second and third generations of the family and by the large working force of the Hero Group. The spirit of enterprise which dominates the progress of the Group is characteristic of the land where it all began - the City of Ludhiana, in Punjab - home to some of lndia's finest workers and entrepreneurs.
The Hero Group is a thriving example of three generations of a family working and striving together to ensure quality, satisfaction and extensive growth.

Milestones
Hero's success saga contains an element of spirit and enterprise; of achievement through grit and determination, coupled with vision and meticulous planning.
1956
Hero Cycles Limited is established.
1961
Rockman Cycles Industries Limited established, which is today the largest manufacturer of bicycle chains and hubs.
1963
It pioneered bicycle exports from India - a foray into the international market.
1971
Highway Cycles was set up to meet the demands of Hero Cycles. It is today the largest manufacturer of single speed and multi-speed freewheels.
1975
Hero Cycles Limited became the largest manufacturer of bicycles in India.
1978
Majestic Auto Limited was formed and the Hero Majestic Moped was introduced.
1981
Munjal Castings established.
1984
Hero Honda Motors Limited established in joint venture with Honda Motors of Japan, to manufacture motorcycles.
1985
Munjal Showa Limited established to manufacture shock absorbers and struts and is today among the top two shock absorber manufacturing companies in India.
1985
The 100 cc Hero Honda Motorcycle arrived and by 1988 was the No. 1 among all motorcycles in India.
1986
Hero Cycles Limited entered the Guinness Book of Records as the largest bicycle manufacturer in the World.
1987
Hero Motors, a division of Majestic Auto Limited set up in collaboration with Steyr Daimler Puch of Austria.
1987
Gujarat Cycles Limited, now known as Munjal Auto Industries Limited was established to manufacture and export state-of-the-art bicycles and allied products in its fully automated plant at Waghodia.
1987
Sunbeam Auto Limited, earlier a unit of Highway Cycles Limited, established as an ancillary to Hero Honda. It is the largest die casting plant in India.
1988
Introduced "Hero Puch" from Hero Motors Limited. This revolutionary machine immediately set new records of petrol efficiency and usable power in 50 - 65 cc machines.
1990
Hero Cold Rolling Division established and is one of the most modern steel cold rolling plants.
1991
Hero Honda receives National Productivity Council's Award.
1991
Hero Honda receives the Economic Times - Harvard Business School Association Award against 200 contenders.
1992
Munjal Showa Limited receives National Safety Award.
1993
Hero Exports established as the International Trading Division for Group and non-Group products.
1993
Hero Motors becomes Indias largest exporter of two wheelers
1995
Hero Corporate Services Limited as the service segment for the Hero Group Companies, ancillaries, suppliers, dealers and other associates.
1996
- Hero Winner, a large-wheeled scooter was introduced by Hero Motors Limited with a choice of 50 cc and 75 cc engines.
1996
Munjal Showa Limited receives British Council's National Safety Award.
1998
- Hero Briggs and Stratton Auto Private Limited was set up to produce 4-stroke two-wheeler engines in various cubic capacities.
1998
Munjal Auto Components established to manufacture gear shafts and gear blanks for motorcycles.
2000
The Hero Group diversifies into IT and IT enabled services through its service segment - Hero Corporate Services Limited.
2000-2001
Hero Honda emerges as the market leader in motorcycles with sales of over a million motorcycles and a strong market share of 47%.
2001
Hero Global Design established to offer engineering services in CAD/CAM/CAE related to New Product Development, Design, Engineering and Manufacturing.
2002
Hero Cycles ties up with National Bicycle Industries, part of Matsushita Group to manufacture high-end bicycles.
2002
Fastener World Established.
2002
Easy Bill Established to offer utility bill collection & retail services.
2003
Tie up with Livebridge Inc., USA.
2004
Tie up with Bombardier - Rotax GmbH for scooter engines.
2004
Tie up with Aprilia Scooters, Italy.
2004
Hero Honda continues as the World's largest manufacturer of two-wheelers with annual sales volume of 2.07 million motorcycles and a market share of 48%.
2004
Retail Insurance business established.
2004
HeroITES, a division of HeroCorporate Service Limited hived off as a division of new company Hero Management Service Limited.
2005
HeroITES strengthens its relationship with ACS,USA,USD 5.0 billion market cap and Fortune 500 company.
2006
Hero Honda enters the scooter segment, launches 100cc "Pleasure"
2006
Hero Honda crosses a unit sales threshold of 3.0 million motorcycles
2006
Hero Group celebrates Golden Jubilee year since inception.It was commemorated by sales of over 15 million motorcycles & over 100 million bicycles.
Today, Hero Group comprises of 20 companies, 300 ancillary suppliers, deep market penetration with over 5,000 outlets, 23,000 + employee and has a turnover of US$ 3.20 billion (FY 2006).

The History of Paper

Paper making is one of the inventions by Chinese. 105 A.D. is often cited as the year in which papermaking was invented. In that year, historical records show that the invention of paper was reported to the Eastern Han Emperor Ho-di by Ts'ai Lun, an official of the Imperial Court. Recent archaeological investigations, however, place the actual invention of papermaking some 200 years earlier. Ts'ai Lun broke the bark of a mulberry tree into fibres and pounded them into a sheet. Later it was discovered that the quality of paper could be much improved with the addition of rags hemp and old fish nets to the pulp. The paper was soon widely used in China and spread to the rest of world through the Silk Road. An official history written some centuries later explained: In ancient times writing was generally on bamboo or on pieces of silk, which were then called ji. But silk being expensive and bamboo heavy, these twoich materials were not conveninet. Then Tsai Lun thought of using tree bark,n hemp, rags, and fish nets. In 105 he made a report to the emperor on the process of paper making, and received high praise for his ability. From this time paper has been in use everywhere and is called the "paper of Marquis Tsai."

In few years, the Chinese began to use paper for writing. Around 600 A.D. woodblock printing was invented and by 740 A.D., The first printed newspaper was seen in China.

To the east, papermaking moved to Korea, where production of paper began as early as the 6th century AD. Pulp was prepared from the fibers of hemp, rattan, mulberry, bamboo, rice straw, and seaweed. According to tradition, a Korean monk named Don-cho brought papermaking to Japan by sharing his knowledge at the Imperial Palace in approximately AD 610, sixty years after Buddhism was introduced in Japan.

Along the Silk Road, we learned that paper was introduced to Xinjiang area very early according to the archaeological records. The paper found at Kaochang, Loulan, Kusha, Kotan, and Dunhuang sites dated as early as the 2nd. century. The technique eventaully reached Tibet around 650 A.D. and then to India after 645 A.D. By the time Hsuan Tsang from China arrived to India in 671 A.D., paper was already widely used there.

For a long time the Chinese closely guarded the secret of paper manufacture and tried to eliminate other Oriental centers of production to ensure a monopoly. However in 751 A.D. the T'ang army was defeated by the Ottoman Turks at a mighty battle at the Talas River. Some Chinese soldiers and paper makers were captured and brought to Samarkand. The Arabs learned the paper making from the Chinese prisoners and built the first paper industry in Baghdad in 793 A.D. They, too, kept it a secret, and Europeans did not learn how to make paper until several centuries later. The Egyptians learned the paper making from the Arabs during the early 10th century. Around 1100 A.D. paper arrived in Northern Africa and by 1150 A.D. it arrived to Spain as a result of the crusades and established the first paper industry in Europe. In 1453 A.D. Johann Gutenberg invents the printing press. The first paper industry in the North America was built in Philadelphia in 1690.

Land Rover: History

WWII Willys Jeep

The man responsible for the development of the Land Rover was Maurice Wilks. He was the chief designer at the Rover car company at the end of World War II. He had been using a was surplus Willys Jeep on his farm in Anglesey for a variety of functions but found that parts for his Willys jeep were only available if bought in bulk. His brother, Spencer Wilks, was the general manager of Rover at the time and together with him they decided that there was a market for a good off road utility vehicle that was small, versatile and rugged, suitable for farmers.

The Wilks Brothers

The first Land Rover was made in 1947 being a hybrid which utilised a Jeep chassis and transmission with a Rover engine and gearbox. The first prototype required the driver to sit in the middle astride the gearbox. A pre-production batch of 48 vehicles were then produced.

Land Rover 1947 / 48 Prototype

On 30th April 1948 the Land Rover was launched at the Amsterdam Motor Show. Due to the post-war steel shortage and the plentiful availability of aircraft aluminium Land Rovers were manufactured using a rustproof aluminium and magnesium alloy. This led to the development of their reputation as tough, corrosion resistant vehicles. Early vehicles were all painted green due to the use of military surplus aircraft cockpit paint supplies. The Land Rover was classed as a commercial vehicle and therefore it was free from Purchase Tax.

Series I Land Rover

Between 1948 and 1951 the Land Rover used an 80 inch wheelbase and a 1.6 litre petrol engine. In 1949 a second, more comfortable body option was introduced. This option was called the Station Wagon which seated 7 people utilising a wooden framed construction made by Tickford. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tickford) This model was far better equipped having a heater, a one piece laminated windscreen and various other options. The vehicle was sold as a private car which led to high levels of purchase tax resulting in relatively few vehicles being sold.

Around 1952 new larger engines of 2.0 litres were introduced and the legal status of the Land Rover was resolved. Up until this time the Land Rover had been classed as a commercial vehicle which meant that its top speed was limited to 30mph. on British Roads. This status was changed to that which we see today which is ‘multi-purpose vehicle’. In 1954 the 86 inch and 107 inch wheelbase models were introduced. These extensions to the wheelbase provided more carriage space.

Series II & IIa Land Rover

Land Rover Series II 1959

In 1958 the Series II was introduced. This utilised a larger 2.25 litre engine, had wheelbase options of 88 and 109 inches and a more modern body shape. The series IIa, introduced in 1961, used a 2.25 litre diesel engine. Further development of the Series IIa led to the 12 seater station wagon. In 1967 Rover and British Leyland merged. In 1970 they launched the Range Rover. This was followed by the Series III Land Rover in 1971. In 1994 British Aerospace sold the Rover Group to BMW and in 2000 BMW sold Land Rover to Ford. This move preceded the second major redesign of the Range Rover which was launched in 2002.

Lattest Model

Jaguar Racing

Jaguar’s racing history started during the 1950s. The company decided to participate in the Le Mans racing with the production of XK-120. Even though the car failed to win in its initial race, the very next year was historic for Jaguar. With the production of the C-Type car of XK120, the company went on to win the Le Mans. Jaguar won again in Le Mans in 1953 and again from 1955 to 1958. It was the Ferrari of 1960s that ended the run of brilliance of then Jaguar D-type. It was only in 1988 Jaguar came again to win with the XJR-9LM edition. Up to date, Jaguar is yet to win another Le Mans race.

It was during the year 2000 that Jaguar decided to join the very competitive F1 racing. Jaguar bought the team previously owned by Jackie Stewart and the name Stewart Grand Prix Formula One Team was renamed to Jaguar Racing. The engines of the F1 racing car featured the Jaguar R series for its chassis and features Cosworth Engines. The team was in high hopes as they hire runner up finisher Eddie Irvine. Also a good addition to the team was the former driver for the Stewart, Johnny Herbert. However, the company has little to no success during the Jaguars stint in Formula 1 racing. Jaguar, racing in its four years stint, never won the Constructor’s Championship, Drivers Championship or even a starting pole position in any of its races. The best finish of the team during its stint was 2002 with Irvine finishing 9th place. Clearly, Jaguar’s place in racing history seemed to be non-existent because of mismanagement of the team and its resources.

Ford, its parent company decided to end its F1 race in after the 2004 season. The Jaguar Racing team was purchased and replaced by Red Bull for the 2005 season.

Jaguar History

Jaguar started in 1922 under the legendary name Swallow Sidecar Company or the SS. The original proprietors of the company were William Lyons and William Walmsley. The company officially changed its name to Jaguar in 1935. The production of cars stopped during the World War II and the company manufactured only sidecars and airplane parts during those hard times.

The company again regenerated its production in 1948 with the release of the XK120 sports car. Only 200 cars were originally planned to be placed in production. However demands has been high and the company since then released other editions based on the XK120 considered by some as the fastest car during that time. Production of this car went on until the late 50s.

The 1960 was the dawn of the E-type vehicles. These types of vehicles were also known as the XKE type of vehicles. It was during that time the company also merged with Daimler Cars originally owned by the Birmingham Small Arms Company. E-Type series continued its production until the early 70s.

1974 was the release of XJ series of Jaguar Cars with XJ12 Saloon. These types of cars continued in production until today. It was during the 1970 until late 80s the car was regarded to be reliable. However, its status as the premier sports and luxury car was revived when the company was officially bought by Ford in 1989. Four years after, JaguarXJ12 was born yet again with a different body.

Currently, the three latest cars designed by Jaguar are the XKR for sports-type vehicles, XJ8 for luxury cars and the C-XF for compact luxury cars. The XF was unveiled only in January, and is planned to be in production in 2008. C-XF is known to be a departure from other car designs. Its looks are still compact but it has a big of edgy sports car kind of feel– only that it has four doors instead of two.

The History of the Telephone

Alexander Graham Bell and Elisha Gray raced to invent the telephone.

In the 1870s, two inventors Elisha Gray and Alexander Graham Bell both independently designed devices that could transmit speech electrically (the telephone). Both men rushed their respective designs to the patent office within hours of each other, Alexander Graham Bell patented his telephone first. Elisha Gray and Alexander Graham Bell entered into a famous legal battle over the invention of the telephone, which Bell won.

Alexander Graham Bell - Evolution of the Telegraph into the Telephone

The telegraph and telephone are both wire-based electrical systems, and Alexander Graham Bell's success with the telephone came as a direct result of his attempts to improve the telegraph.

When Bell began experimenting with electrical signals, the telegraph had been an established means of communication for some 30 years. Although a highly successful system, the telegraph, with its dot-and-dash Morse code, was basically limited to receiving and sending one message at a time. Bell's extensive knowledge of the nature of sound and his understanding of music enabled him to conjecture the possibility of transmitting multiple messages over the same wire at the same time. Although the idea of a multiple telegraph had been in existence for some time, Bell offered his own musical or harmonic approach as a possible practical solution. His "harmonic telegraph" was based on the principle that several notes could be sent simultaneously along the same wire if the notes or signals differed in pitch.

Alexander Graham Bell - Talk with Electricity

By October 1874, Bell's research had progressed to the extent that he could inform his future father-in-law, Boston attorney Gardiner Greene Hubbard, about the possibility of a multiple telegraph. Hubbard, who resented the absolute control then exerted by the Western Union Telegraph Company, instantly saw the potential for breaking such a monopoly and gave Bell the financial backing he needed. Bell proceeded with his work on the multiple telegraph, but he did not tell Hubbard that he and Thomas Watson, a young electrician whose services he had enlisted, were also exploring an idea that had occurred to him that summer - that of developing a device that would transmit speech electrically.

While Alexander Graham Bell and Thomas Watson worked on the harmonic telegraph at the insistent urging of Hubbard and other backers, Bell nonetheless met in March 1875 with Joseph Henry, the respected director of the Smithsonian Institution, who listened to Bell's ideas for a telephone and offered encouraging words. Spurred on by Henry's positive opinion, Bell and Watson continued their work. By June 1875 the goal of creating a device that would transmit speech electrically was about to be realized. They had proven that different tones would vary the strength of an electric current in a wire. To achieve success they therefore needed only to build a working transmitter with a membrane capable of varying electronic currents and a receiver that would reproduce these variations in audible frequencies.

First Sounds - Twang

On June 2, 1875, Alexander Graham Bell while experimenting with his technique called "harmonic telegraph" discovered he could hear sound over a wire. The sound was that of a twanging clock spring.

Bell's greatest success was achieved on March 10, 1876, marked not only the birth of the telephone but the death of the multiple telegraph as well. The communications potential contained in his demonstration of being able to "talk with electricity" far outweighed anything that simply increasing the capability of a dot-and-dash system could imply.

First Voice - Mr. Watson, come here. I want to see you.

Alexander Graham Bell's notebook entry of 10 March 1876 describes his successful experiment with the telephone. Speaking through the instrument to his assistant, Thomas A. Watson, in the next room, Bell utters these famous first words, "Mr. Watson -- come here -- I want to see you."




This model of Bell's first telephone (right) is a duplicate of the instrument through which speech sounds were first transmitted electrically (1875). Alexander Graham Bell

The Wright Brothers - First Flight

In 1899, after Wilbur Wright had written a letter of request to the Smithsonian Institution for information about flight experiments, the Wright Brothers designed their first aircraft: a small, biplane glider flown as a kite to test the


ir solution for controlling the craft by wing warping. Wing warping is a method of arching the wingtips slightly to control the aircraft's rolling motion and balance.

The Wrights spent a great deal of time observing birds in flight. They noticed that birds soared into the wind and that the air flowing over the curved surface of their wings created lift. Birds change the shape of their wings to turn and maneuver. They believed that they could use this technique to obtain roll control by warping, or changing the shape, of a portion of the wing.

Over the next three years, Wilbur and his brother Orville would design a series of gliders which would be flown in both unmanned (as kites) and piloted flights. They read about the works of Cayley, and Langley, and the hang-gliding flights of Otto Lilienthal. They corresponded with Octave Chanute concerning some of their ideas. They recognized that control of the flying aircraft would be the most crucial and hardest problem to solve.

Following a successful glider test, the Wrights built and tested a full-size glider. They selected Kitty Hawk, North Carolina as their test site because of its wind, sand, hilly terrain and remote location.

In 1900, the Wrights successfully tested their new 50-pound biplane glider with its 17-foot wingspan and wing-warping mechanism at Kitty Hawk, in both unmanned and piloted flights. In fact, it was the first piloted glider. Based upon the results, the Wright Brothers planned to refine the controls and landing gear, and build a bigger glider.



In 1901, at Kill Devil Hills, North Carolina, the Wright Brothers flew the largest glider ever flown, with a 22-foot wingspan, a weight of nearly 100 pounds and skids for landing. However, many problems occurred: the wings did not have enough lifting power; forward elevator was not effective in controlling the pitch; and the wing-warping mechanism occasionally caused the airplane to spin out of control. In their disappointment, they predicted that man will probably not fly in their lifetime.

In spite of the problems with their last attempts at flight, the Wrights reviewed their test results and determined that the calculations they had used were not reliable. They decided to build a wind tunnel to test a variety of wing shapes and their effect on lift. Based upon these tests, the inventors had a greater understanding of how an airfoil (wing) works and could calculate with greater accuracy how well a particular wing design would fly. They planned to design a new glider with a 32-foot wingspan and a tail to help stabilize it.

During 1902, the brothers flew numerous test glides using their new glider. Their studies showed that a movable tail would help balance the craft and the Wright Brothers connected a movable tail to the wing-warping wires to coordinate turns. With successful glides to verify their wind tunnel tests, the inventors planned to build a powered aircraft.

After months of studying how propellers work the Wright Brothers designed a motor and a new aircraft sturdy enough to accommodate the motor's weight and vibrations. The craft weighed 700 pounds and came to be known as the Flyer.

The brothers built a movable track to help launch the Flyer. This downhill track would help the aircraft gain enough airspeed to fly. After two attempts to fly this machine, one of which resulted in a minor crash, Orville Wright took the Flyer for a 12-second, sustained flight on December 17, 1903. This was the first successful, powered, piloted flight in history.

In 1904, the first flight lasting more than five minutes took place on November 9. The Flyer II was flown by Wilbur Wright.

In 1908, passenger flight took a turn for the worse when the first fatal air crash occurred on September 17. Orville Wright was piloting the plane. Orville Wright survived the crash, but his passenger, Signal Corps Lieutenant Thomas Selfridge, did not. The Wright Brothers had been allowing passengers to fly with them since May 14, 1908.

In 1909, the U.S. Government bought its first airplane, a Wright Brothers biplane, on July 30. The airplane sold for $25,000 plus a bonus of $5,000 because it exceeded 40 mph.



In 1911, the Wrights' Vin Fiz was the first airplane to cross the United States. The flight took 84 days, stopping 70 times. It crash-landed so many times that little of its original building materials were still on the plane when it arrived in California. The Vin Fiz was named after a grape soda made by the Armour Packing Company.

In 1912, a Wright Brothers plane, the first airplane armed with a machine gun was flown at an airport in College Park, Maryland. The airport had existed since 1909 when the Wright Brothers took their government-purchased airplane there to teach Army officers to fly.

On July 18, 1914, an Aviation Section of the Signal Corps (part of the Army) was established. Its flying unit contained airplanes made by the Wright Brothers as well as some made by their chief competitor, Glenn Curtiss.

That same year, the U.S. Court has decided in favor of the Wright Brothers in a patent suit against Glenn Curtiss. The issue concerned lateral control of aircraft, for which the Wrights maintained they held patents.

Although Curtiss's invention, ailerons (French for "little wing"), was far different from the Wrights' wing-warping mechanism, the Court determined that use of lateral controls by others was "unauthorized" by patent law.