Thanks to world-renowned brands setting up shop in Chennai, the city has emerged as a global manufacturing hub — particularly across the automotive, electronics and engineering sectors.
As home to the country’s largest automotive cluster, the capital city of Tamil Nadu produces millions of vehicles every year, as well as smartphone electronics from multiple Chennai-based Foxconn facilities. And while manufacturing drives 40 percent of the state’s total output, the city alone contributed $78.6 billion to India's GDP in 2023, underscoring Chennai’s crucial role in the nation’s economy.
The following Chennai-based companies are some of the major players in the city’s manufacturing success.
Top Manufacturing Companies in Chennai
- Garuda Aerospace
- Ashok Leyland
- TVS Motor Company
- Royal Enfield
- EID Parry India
- MRF
- Saint-Gobain
- Sundaram Clayton Limited
18 Top Manufacturing Companies in Chennai
Garuda Aerospace manufactures drones and drone-enabled services. Headquartered in Chennai, the company builds unmanned aerial vehicles for agricultural, disaster and warehouse management, load-carrying delivery, monitoring, mapping and inspection use cases. Founded in 2015, Garuda Aerospace is a DGCA-certified manufacturer that has completed over one million flights to date.
Nissan India, a subsidiary of the Japanese automotive manufacturer Nissan, produces and sells a wide range of cars and SUVs in the Indian market. The company began its India-based operations in 1933, and now runs a manufacturing plant in Tamil Nadu while focusing on offering affordable, fuel-efficient vehicles and exploring the electric vehicle segment.
Saint-Gobain is a global manufacturer of sustainable construction materials — ceramics, chemicals, plastics and abrasives — and is one of the largest glass manufacturers in the world. The French company began in 1665 when it was commissioned to make glass for the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles, and has since grown into a multi-billion company with employees across 76 countries. Saint-Gobain expanded to India in 1996, where it operates 22 manufacturing plants and a research and development center in Chennai.
While global manufacturer Caterpillar began operations in India in 1930, its manufacturing arm didn’t start until the 1970s. Today, the company, known for building construction and mining equipment, runs manufacturing facilities, research and development centers and customer service operations across the country. Chennai is home to one of Caterpillar’s three key India-based offices as well as its primary technical center.
EID Parry, founded in 1788, is one of the longest surviving mercantile companies in the country, manufacturing sugar and bio products. It established India’s first-ever sugar plant, and now operates six factories with the capacity to process 40,800 tons of sugarcane per day. The company is expanding its operations into the power and ethanol sectors, generating power as a byproduct of its sugar production process and operating five distilleries.
Sundaram Clayton Limited is a global manufacturer of auto components and a top supplier of aluminum die castings for heavy commercial vehicles, passenger cars and two wheelers. Founded in 1968, the company provides end-to-end solutions from design to finished products at scale. Three of its five international locations are based in Chennai.
Chemplast Sanmar is a manufacturer of PVC resins, caustic soda and specialty chemicals for the agro-chemical, pharmaceutical and fine chemicals sectors. It also produces other chemicals, such as chlorochemicals, hydrogen peroxide and industrial salt. Founded in 1967, the company prides itself on its eco-friendly manufacturing practices, implementing a zero liquid discharge system in all five of its manufacturing plants across the country.
Ramco Industries Limited manufactures green, dry-construction building materials. Its portfolio of products include calcium silicate boards, industrial roofing sheets, asbestos-free ceiling tile as well as fiber-cement boards, tiles and planks. With 12 plants across South Asia, the Chennai-based company produces over 700,000 tons of its signature fiber cement roofing sheets per year.
Hatsun Agro Products Limited manufactures dairy products, including milk, ice cream, ghee, paneer and other processed food items. As a household brand with over one million customers in India, the Chennai-based company operates a large network of dairy farms, manufacturing facilities and distribution channels domestically, while also exporting its dairy ingredients to more than 42 countries.
Wheels India is one of the largest global manufacturers of steel, aluminum and wire wheels. Since its founding in 1960, the company has partnered with major brands — including Ford, Hyundai and Tata — and expanded its portfolio, building bus and truck chassis, suspension products, hydraulic cylinders, custom-fabricated assemblies and precision components for wind turbines.
Carborundum Universal, or CUMI for short, is a materials science manufacturer of abrasives, industrial ceramics, aluminum oxide grains, polymers, adhesives and electro minerals as well as machine tools. Since its founding in 1954, the Chennai-based company has expanded to mine, develop and distribute more than 20,000 varieties of mineral products to over 50 countries.
Apollo Tyres Limited manufactures and sells tires for various vehicle types, including passenger cars, trucks and two-wheelers. With a workforce of more than 19,000 employees, the Gurgaon-based company operates two research and development centers and seven facilities across Asia and Europe that exports to over 100 countries.
Ashok Leyland is the second largest commercial vehicle manufacturer in India, specializing in trucks, buses and defense vehicles. It serves both domestic and international markets, producing 500 vehicles per day from its nine manufacturing plants across India. Additionally, the company ranks fourth globally in bus manufacturing, with four of five State Transport Undertaking buses in major Indian cities being Ashok Leyland's high-capacity double-decker and vestibule models.
TVS Motor is a global manufacturer of two- and three-wheeler vehicles. Operating in over 80 countries, the company produces motorcycles, mopeds and scooters to more than 50 million customers. Its electric scooters are built for commuter travel and, with a 150 kilometer range, can cover a greater distance than petrol-based scooters with the same cost of fuel.
BGR Energy specializes in providing products and services for the power, oil and gas industries, which includes manufacturing cleaning systems — condenser tubes, debris filters and deaerators — for power plants. Headquartered in Chennai, the company also offers engineering, procurement and construction services as well as turnkey project execution.
Chennai Petroleum Corporation Limited is a state-owned oil refining company that produces fuel, lubricants, wax and petrochemical feedstocks. Founded in 1965, the company is made up of two facilities, the Manali Refinery in Chennai and the Cauvery Basin Refinery in Panangudi, with a combined capacity of 11.5 million metric tons per year.
MRF, or the Madras Rubber Factory, manufactures a wide selection of tires for passenger cars, two- and three-wheelers, commercial trucks and farm vehicles. Headquartered in Chennai, the company also produces various rubber-based products, including tubes, conveyor belts, paints and toys.
Royal Enfield is one of the world’s oldest motorcycle manufacturers, having been in continuous production since 1901. The Gurgaon-based company is known for its modern classic bikes that define the mid-sized motorcycle segment in India. Operating in over 60 countries, it has three manufacturing facilities in Chennai, five assembly plants globally and technical centers across India and the United Kingdom.
