Business. Moving past the blocks.

Customer Support and Satisfaction.

Our focus has always been on giving our customers the maximum value. We constantly undertake efforts to maximise product quality, marketing strategies and technical support. We engage with our stakeholders through awareness, training and skill development programmes, knowledge sharing and site visits. Customised programmes are conducted for individual house builders (IHBs) through our dealers and retailers; institutional buyers who are directly serviced by our Key Account Management (KAM) group; B2B segments comprising small and large builders and contractors; and the Government.

In 2016 our Technical Services Team engaged with 330 construction supervisors, 345 masons, 2,844 construction professionals and 18,974 contractors over 25,668 man-days. Contractors are helped to upgrade their technical as well as project management skills through a skill upgradation platform called ‘Neev Abhiyaan’. The initiative comprises six training modules: project management; steel estimation and detailing; estimation and costing; repair and water-proofing; earthquake resistant structures; and the most recent, applicator module for rain water harvesting, launched in 2016. Ambuja influencers are given access to quarterly magazines in six regional languages and allowed ACL plant visits.

Value Added Products and Services GRI 102-2

Our value added products and services are available in all markets across the country. Brahmand, the integrated Ambuja digital platform, was rolled out in April 2016. The integrated platform connects four contractor applications, a technical services executives’ portal and a brand development executives’ portal, all of which were launched in 2016. Two new Ambuja Knowledge Centres (AKCs) were added to the existing 25. Eight Ambuja Concrete Future Laboratories (CFLs), covering all our business regions, offer services and solutions to concrete users with locally available materials. Five of these conform to ISO/IEC 17025:2005 requirements and are accredited by the National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration of Laboratories (NABL), Government. of India. This year our Technical Services team provided 28,809 concrete mix proportions, 7,092 modular curing solutions (MCS) and 105 rain water harvesting solutions, thus saving 1,65,400 cubic metres of water, an example of sustainable construction. We also provided 5,694 architectural design and cost estimates (AD) and 12,100 concrete cube testing services (CCTS) at customer sites.

Our portfolio of value added products includes Ambuja Plus, a high performance PPC with special performance enhancers (SPEs) that give higher initial strength, better cohesiveness and low water demand in concrete; Alccofine 1100 micro-fine cement that is used for grouting; Alccofine 1200 micro-fine slag for high strength high performance concrete grades M35 to M100; and classified fly ash (Dirk brand) that is available in grades P40 to P100.

BRAND DEVELOPMENT AND PROMOTION

For over 30 years now, Ambuja Cement has consistently built its brand around the promise of ‘giant compressive strength’. Today, Ambuja Cement has become synonymous with strength. To the extent that it has become a part of common vocabulary. Even social media is filled with numerous memes around this theme of strength. With engaging communication, superior product quality, and strong technical support to the consumer, Ambuja has consistently scored 5+ in Nielsen’s Brand Equity study for the last 10 years. Ambuja’s recent TV commercial featuring ‘Khali’ won the Golden Lion at Cannes, the world’s most prestigious advertising award.

Customer Satisfaction

Various formal and informal methods are used to measure satisfaction levels and garner feedback from consumers and channel partners. Brand equity is measured by conducting brand health studies on individual customers. The satisfaction level of dealers is gauged using Net Promoter Score (NPS) methodology. Our offerings are fine tuned on the basis of these scores. All our surveys comply with global standards. Complaints on product quality are managed by a customer complaints handling system that is accessed through a toll-free number (1 800 22 3010) that is printed on all cement bags. In 2016, 401 queries/ complaints were received; all of them were addressed, and no customer complaint was pending at the end of the year. There were 17 consumer cases pending before different forums at the beginning of the year. Four were added during the year; five cases were disposed, leaving sixteen pending cases. ACL does not/has not sold products that are banned in certain markets, or are the subject of debate. There are no received or pending complaints about breaches of customer privacy and/or loss of customer data. GRI 102, 417-2, 418-1

Ambuja also runs various loyalty and support programmes for its channel partners to engage and motivate them in realising better results for both Ambuja as well as themselves.