Strengths:

The company is situated in Daud Khel, district Mianwali. This location is rich with raw
material that is required by the cement industries for the production of cement.
Maple leaf is operating with a present production capacity of 1.5 mntpa. Further
expansion of 2.0 mntpa is expected in the near future which will make MLFCL, the
third largest capacity wise player after Lucky cement and D.G. Cement.

The production of the cement in maple leaf is completely automated.

The company has imported the machinery for dry process from Denmark. The use of
this advance machinery has helped the company produce good quality cement with
much efficiency.

The company is going to import the waste heat recovery plant from Denmark, which
will help the company to cut the power expenditures.

Maple leaf cement factory is the only cement factory that produces both grey cement
and white cement.

It also has developed a niche market by being the only manufacturer of oil well
cement in Pakistan.
Maple leaf is one of the pioneers of cement industries in Pakistan, established in
1956. This long time span of the company has helped it earn customer loyalty all
over Pakistan.

Maple leaf, having a good brand image, has the advantage to charge their customers
at a higher price than the other competitors.

The price of maple leaf cement is high in the international market as compared to its
local competitors who are involved in the exports as well.

The company brand image is very strong in the market, both local and international.

The brand equity of maple leaf is $ 500 million

Maple leaf is an ISO certified company. The company has obtained the ISO 9001 - 9
making it a reliable producer for production of quality products in the international
market.

Maple leaf along with Lucky cement, are the only two companies to obtain the BIS
certification from India.

The maple leaf cement factory compensates its employees, better than all the other
industries.

The basic salary of the company employees is higher than even the salary package
offered in the industry.

Weaknesses:

The location where the cement plant of maple leaf is located is a very remote area.

Maple leaf faces problems in hiring good quality of employees for the factory place
due to this reason in spite of a good salary package.

The company has been established since 1956. Therefore the technology being
used by the factory, i.e. the production of cement through wet process, is old and
yields low profits and high costs.
Although, maple leaf is taking steps to convert its wet process plants into dry
process plants, but at present these plants are causing the increase in per bag cost
of the cement.

The cost of freight charges further reduces the retention price of the cement,
hampering the profitability of the company.

Hence maple leaf is extraordinarily sensitive to the changes in cement prices.
Excess capacity expansion, over supply of the product in the market and price
pressure over the company negatively affects the company.

The location of the company limits the ability of the company to distribute its product
all over Pakistan.

According to Rizwan Butt, the means of transportation for the company is main
problem at present for the company.

This problem has affected both the local and export sales of the company.

Maple leaf is short of trucks to distribute their product in local markets.

India is a very big market for the cement industry, as there is a construction boom in
the country. But due to the shortages of trucks and the Pakistani train wagons not
meeting the standards of Indian authority, maple leaf is unable to avail the golden
opportunity at its fullest.

The company has borrowed heavy loans from the financiers, further increasing the
debt burden over maple leaf.
Opportunities:

At present the demand for cement in the domestic market is increasing. Maple leaf is
benefiting quite well at present.

If Kala Bagh dam is commissioned, MLFC will be the major beneficiaries in the
industry.

At present, maple leaf along with Lucky cement is the only two cement factories that
have received the BIS certification.

This has given maple leaf a golden opportunity to capture the Indian market with very
less competition.
The demand of cement outside Pakistan has been increasing rapidly, providing
maple leaf a good chance to explore these markets.

Maple leaf is also exploring new markets for the potential customers of white cement,
which will give maple leaf a competitive edge against the competitors.

The conversion of wet process plants to dry process plants and the shifting of
company from coal based production to waste heat production will cut down the
companys expenses and increase companys retention prices.


Threats:

The company is highly vulnerable to price competition since it faces higher cost of
production per bag.

The rocketing increase in prices of furnace oil, and even 300 % increase in the price
of coal has been affecting badly to companys profitability.

The export to Indian market highly depends on diplomatic relations between the two
countries.

The day after day terrorist attacks and the suicidal bombing have caused the unrest
in the country. Along with creating a sense of non security among the citizens of
Pakistan, these activities have proved to be hazardous to the manufacturing
companies as well. The incident of rocket launcher fired on the grid station in
Mianwali caused a great damage.