Bangalore: SKF inaugurated its Global Technical Centre in India (GTCI), in Bangalore, set up with an initial investment of Rs. 50 crores. The company will increase its headcount at the centre to 400 engineers by 2015 from the current 115 engineers (125 by the end of this year).
Engineers at the centre will work in the areas of product engineering, development and testing. It houses laboratories for metallurgy, chemistry and bearing performance analysis.
As a part of its expansion plans SKF is setting up a seals facility in Mysore which is expected to be operational by the first half of 2012. Lubrication systems provider Lincoln Holdings Enterprises, which SKF acquired in 2010, is setting up a new manufacturing facility at Bangalore near Devanahalli. The land acquisition process is over and the facility is expected to be ready by the second half of 2013.
"Western Europe accounts for 41 percent of SKF's revenue. 27 percent of the revenue comes from the Asia Pacific region. Revenue from the APAC region has doubled over the last 10 years," said Tom Johnstone, SKF President and CEO. "India currently contributes around 20 percent of our revenue from the Asia Pacific region."
"SKF currently has a solution factory in Pune. One more in the not too distant future will enable better access SKF products," said Tom Johnstone.
"In India, 46 percent of SKF's revenue comes from the Automotive segment, followed by 25 percent from the industrial aftermarket, 21 percent from the Industrial sector and 8 percent from exports," said Shishir Joshipura, Country Head, SKF in India. The company recorded an annual growth rate in excess of 15 percent in the last 7 years."Our Intent is to grow faster than the market," said Rakesh Makhija, President Asia-SKF Group.
SKF's investment on R&D increased by 27 percent in 2011. In 2010 the company registered 251 patents, up 15 percent compared to the previous year.
At the GTCI, SKF will soon add more equipment in its laboratories like Heat treatment equipment, hardness testers, x ray diffraction microscope, scanning electron microscope, immersion ultrasonic test equipment, Carbon Sulphur analysis, NDT equipment etc. "We are also planning to have a production prototyping facility at the GTCI," said Arun Shivaram, Director, Global Technical Centre, India. "We are driving the innovation culture here by encouraging more patents. There are already quite a few patents in the pipeline. We currently do not have any university collaboration in India, but we are actively working towards that." |
