Mr. P. Nachimuthu Gounder, pioneer entrepreneur, founded the ABT Group in 1921. Born to a family which was in the traditional business of hiring out bullock carts primarily for passenger transportation, Mr. Nachimuthu Gounder pioneered the first motorized passenger transport service of its kind, the ‘Anamallais Bus Transport (ABT)’ service, in Pollachi, 40 kms from Coimbatore, South India. Within a short span of time, the company had grown to 150 buses in 110 routes, in and around the Coimbatore region. The company earned goodwill, reputation and trust from the people and became a popular name brand in the industry.

In 1946, Mr. Nachimuthu Gounder’s son, Mr. N. Mahalingam joined his father in the business. Mr. Mahalingam was primarily responsible for developing the business and gaining entry into several sectors such as Agriculture, Finance, Textile and Education. Besides growing and expanding the ABT Group, he also served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for 15 years (1952 to 1967) and played a key role in the Agricultural and Industrial development of South India.

He has served on the Board of Directors of several public sector undertakings and the State Planning Commission for two terms. He has been conferred on Doctor of Laws by Bharathiar University, Coimbatore in 1984, Doctor of Science by Anna University, Madras, in 1988 and Doctor of Science by Tamilnadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, in the year 2000. He was recently conferred the Indira Gandhi National Integration Award and the Honorary Consulship of Mauritius. Dr. N. Mahalingam, the Chairman of the ABT Group of Companies, an octogenarian, a philanthropist, an industry leader, a promoter of education and a seeker of spirituality – was awarded the Padma Bhushan (National award recognizing his ‘Distinguished Service & Contribution to the country), by the former Indian President, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, in 2006.

Mr. M. Manickam, the eldest son of Mr. N. Mahalingam, graduated from the University of Madras with a Masters in Statistics, and successfully completed an MBA from the University of Michigan. He returned to India to take over as Vice-Chairman of the ABT Group of Companies.

True to the saying – “The apple never falls far from the tree”, Mr. Manickam followed his father’s footsteps and made some massive advancements to the business, and expanded the ABT Group to where it is today, a $1.2 billion conglomerate. He has been instrumental in developing 2 world class foundries in South India manufacturing auto components – one at Pallagoundenpalayam near Erode in TamilNadu, with an annual production capacity of 60,000 MT; and another foundry manufacturing industrial valves and auto components in Coimbatore, with a production capacity of 18,000 MT per annum. With the acquisition of the European Group of companies, the ‘Intermet’ in April 2007, the ABT Group added to its portfolio 2 foundries in Germany and 1 in Portugal. The company also acquired 1 more foundry “Arvika” in Sweden, in February 2008. The combined capacity of these 6 foundries is approximately 280,000 tons per annum.

Mr. Manickam’s contributions to the field of education and his commitment to social responsibility must be appreciated, as he like his father, believes strongly in ‘giving back to the society’. The ABT Group owns 16 Non-profit Educational & Technical institutions, with 1000 engineers graduating every year. Although started especially for the families of the employees working in the ABT Group, the schools and colleges provide admission to students living in the vicinity. Mr. Manickam serves as the Vice-Chairman for the Governing Council of Kumarguru College of Technology, Coimbatore; Dr. N. Mahalingam College of Engineering and Technology; and Nachimuthu Polytechnic College, Pollachi and the Correspondent for 5 other Educational Institutions.