Swiss group Starrag sets up plant in Bangalore

Starrag Group, headquartered in Switzerland, has set up a machining plant in Bangalore through its subsidiary Starrag India.

The new plant, located at KIADB Aerospace Park in Devanahalli in the city, was inaugurated by its Chairman, Walter Fust and is expected to focus on building WMW machining centres in India.

The company also launched a new range of high performance WMW IWK Horizontal Machining Centers (HMC) at the ongoing international machine tool show Imtex 2013 in Bangalore.

According to A. N. Chandramouli, Managing Director, Starrag India, “The greenfield facility has been built with an investment of 12 million swiss francs or Rs 60 crore.”

It was approved by Karnataka Udyog Mitra during the Global Investor Meet.

The factory is expected to rollout four popular models of WMW Horizontal Machining Centres from July this year to to December 2014. A cost reduction programme through a local supply chain is in an advanced stage of implementation and there will be a national road show of the localised product by July, said Chandramouli.

The two phased manufacturing programme (60-120 units a year) will mainly be absorbed by the Indian market which is now on its economic revival after a slowdown last year.

About 300 highly skilled technicians will be employed over time here. In the new factory, an apprentice training centre has been commissioned using Swiss Vocational Education and Training (VET) programmes already tailored in collaboration with SWISS-MEM.

Maini Aero eyes $100 m biz

The opportunities provided by “offset” in the defence space in India, estimated at about $10 billion in 2013 by Deloitee’s “Aerospace & Defence Outlook” has enthused Bangalore-based Maini Global Aerospace to look at increasing its turnover from the present $60 million to about $100 million by fiscal 2015.

The company is looking at showcasing its capabilities at the forthcoming “Aero India 2013” event in Bangalore next month to potential customers for firming up joint ventures to tap the burgeoning aerospace and defence (A&D) market in India, given the group derives about 20 per cent of its revenues from India business currently. It’s a business that requires perseverance, according to the company. 

The term “offset” in the context of defence supplies, refers to a mechanism where a (foreign) supplier of defence equipment places work for an agreed value with business enterprises of the buying country to offset the buyer’s outlay. India announced its “Defence Offset Guidelines” that came into force from August 1, 2012. One of the objectives of the guidelines is “encourage the development of synergetic sectors such as aerospace and internal security”. 

The Executive Director of Maini Group, Gautam Maini, told Deccan Herald: “It is a business with a long gestation period where customer approvals can take about 18-24 months. We have been in business for about four years now and are poised to ride the exponential growth in the aerospace business between 2016 and 2020.” 

The company is currently a supplier to many firms in the A&D space including public sector Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd and global firms like Snecma, Eaton, Magellan, Marshall, Avio, MTU and GE. It supplies mechanical components and sub-assemblies, said Maini. 

On the pace of offset programmes in India, the company’s CEO, Naresh Palta, said that offsets have lagged behind. “The build up is not at the rate at which it should have been.” 

A 2012 survey by advisory firm KPMG titled “Aerospace & Defense 2012 – Industry Outlook” said that 49 per cent of the respondents comprising industry executives saw Asia (excluding China) as a top market. 

Maini Group outlines expansion plans at Aero India 2013

• Becomes a direct sub-tier partner with two global aerospace prime contractors
•  Enters its fourth decade of successful industrial build up

Bangalore, January 09, 2013: The Maini Group today announced that it would be sharing details regarding its expansion plans at The Aero India 2013. The group has acquired industrial land in preparation for its expansion of plant facilities and is concentrating on long term aerospace and defense strategic plans spanning the next two decades. For this purpose, it is currently in talks with global and domestic aerospace leaders in order to explore the right opportunities. The Maini Group is all set to court growth in the Indian aerospace industry, which is growing at an exponential rate.

The Maini Group is participating and exhibiting its products at Aero India 2013 in Bangalore on 6th to 10th February 2013. They will be present at Hall B, Stall B1.5.

The group also announced that Maini Precision Products Pvt. Ltd. (MPP), has achieved a unique distinction in India in the year 2012 by becoming a direct sub-tier partner with two global aerospace prime contractors, supplementing its already impressive list of customers who are the global who-is-who of aerospace domain. MPP has been steering its aerospace aspirations through a dedicated team of domain skilled people, which has been christened as Maini Global Aerospace (MGA).

“MGA is proud to be associated with global majors as direct suppliers and also to a host of global aerospace leaders like Snecma, Eaton, Magellan, Marshall, Parker, Avio, GE, MTU, HAL, SnecmaHAL and Hamilton Sundstrand. The MGA strategy is to grow up the value chain in the domains of aerospace parts manufacture such as aero structures, precision and aero-engine parts and aircraft systems.” said Mr. Naresh Palta, CEO, Maini Global Aerospace Pvt. Ltd.

MGA is also one of the few selected Indian Offset Partners (IOP) with global aerospace majors. Having already commenced supplies against offset programs, the MGA team has recently begun the manufacture of mechanical parts for space applications.

The Maini Group also enters its fourth decade of successful industrial build up in 2013. From its modest beginning of manufacture of precision components and assemblies for the automotive, hydraulic, material handling and engineering industry by its flagship company Maini Precision Products Pvt. Ltd. (MPP), the group has grown to become a six company entity today. Widely known for its innovative and revolutionary electric car ‘REVA’ and eco- friendly material handling solutions, the group diversified into aerospace activities in 2005 by manufacture of precision machined parts for the Snecma’s widely used CFM 56 engines.

With a high focus on leveraging its diverse strength in design, manufacture, innovation, integration, international joint ventures, strategic alliances, and technology absorption, The Maini Group aims to propel itself as a strong aerospace and defense entity in the country.

Prestige set for sturdy expansion in 2013

Prestige Group, the Bangalore-based publicly-held realtor, has charted out a sturdy expansion plan during calendar 2013. The company is planning to launch 20 million square feet of residential projects through the year compared to the 15 million square feet to development across assets during 2012.

Irfan Razack, CMD, Prestige Group, said that he believes that many existing areas in Bangalore are fast approaching saturation, driven by existing challenges including infrastructural constraints. “With the hope that the situation would improve one can expect increased development in select areas in Bangalore including townships in Sarjapur, Kanakpura and North Bangalore from Prestige,” Razack added. On the retail sentiment, Razack felt that with the new policies supported by the government, the sector will fare well and see renewed growth and energy.

During 2013, Prestige will be opening of several of its retail projects, starting with the Forum Vijaya Mall in Chennai, followed by the opening of Forum Sujana in Hyderabad and Forum Mangalore thus marking its retail expansion across South India. “On the hospitality front, we will also soon begin operating Oakwood Service Residences in Whitefield and the Aloft Hotel in the ORR, Bangalore,” Razack noted.

In addition to residential and retail space, Prestige Group has been making significant expansion in the coming up with sizeable offerings in the commercial leasing market. Driven primarily by the IT/ITeS Industry, the office market has witnessed a steady growth rate.

“We have leased out retail/office spaces of approx 2.5 million sq ft in CY12 and target to lease out approximately 3 million sq ft of retail/commercial space in CY2013. Several of our retail and commercial projects are presently under development and we are on track to achieving rental revenues of Rs 500-550 crore by the year 2015, which should further strengthen and increase our stabilized and sustainable cash flows,” Razack highlighted.

Govt report recommends ways to revitalize Bangalore's IT

Karnataka Information Communication Technology Group, a special body set up by the state government, presented its report to the government on Tuesday. 

The report proposes efforts towards improving education, talent development, entrepreneurship development, infrastructure development, strengthening Karnataka's relationship with other countries, development of the ESDM (electronics systems design and manufacturing) sector, readying tier II and tier III cities for business expansion and living, and refurbishing brand Karnataka and Bangalore. 

The report is the outcome of several rounds of interactions and brainstorming sessions between industry leaders, government officials, technologists, educationalists and domain experts. 

Speaking on the occasion, chief minister Jagadish Shettar said, "Our government is keen to follow this business road map. The recommendations will be implemented in phases to bring in holistic growth to the state." 

The report titled 'Karnataka's Roadmap to Undisputed Global Leadership in ICT by 2020' was prepared by a team headed by TV Mohandas Pai, former board member of Infosys. 

The report suggested that the government should clear all pending IT projects in the next 90 days. It said that Bangalore could be positioned as a MICE (meetings, incentives, conventions and events) destination. 

The Karnataka government has asked marketing specialist and consultant Harish Bijoor to prepare a report on Brand Bangalore. Bijoor said that Bangalore would outpace Delhi and Mumbai, and record the highest per capita income by 2030. "Bangalore is a microcosm of modern India. If you look at the demographics, 63% of the city's population is below the age of 25 years compared to the national statistic of 54%," he said. 

The report makes recommendations that seek to address the city's pain points and outline the need for a strong imagery to stay relevant in 2020. "The focus is on creating an inclusive city," Bijoor said. The report will be submitted to the state government in the next three months.

Karnataka to help ICT industry create 2 mn jobs

The Karnataka government would partner with the burgeoning Information & Communication Technology (ICT) sector to generate two million jobs in the state by 2020, Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar said Tuesday.

"The state government will implement the ICT group's recommendations by making budgetary provisions over the next four-five years to enable the ICT industry generate two million jobs by 2020 from 0.8 million (eight lakh) presently," Shettar told reporters here.

With a view to maintaining the state's leadership position in the knowledge sector, the state government had set up the 'Karnataka ICT group' in June 2012 under the chairmanship of T.V. Mohandas Pai, chairman of Manipal Global Education Services Ltd and former director of Indian IT bellwether Infosys Ltd.

"As the premier IT state, our objective is to triple ICT exports to Rs.4 trillion (Rs.4 lakh crore/$74 billion) from Rs.1.35 trillion (Rs.135,000 crore/$25 billion) over the next eight years and help incubate 1,000 start-ups and entrepreneur-driven firms by 2020," Shettar asserted.

In order to achieve the ambitious targets, the group has recommended setting up a Rs.1,000-crore (Rs.10 billion) ICT & Innovation fund for infrastructure development and Rs.100 crore for incubating start-ups and new IT firms.

"To create the huge talent pool required for the ICT sector, the state government should provide free Wi-Fi (wireless fidelity) across Bangalore, distribute a Tablet PC with 3G connection, pre-loaded with teaching material to students in class 7 and above and connect all government and private schools and colleges with high speed bandwidth," Pai said on the occasion.

The group also recommended setting up of learning academy and talent development centers in ICT and Electronics System Design Manufacturing (ESDM) areas across the state to train thousands of youth in developing skills required by the sector.

"We have asked the state government to develop ICT centres at Belgaum, Dharwad, Gulbarga, Hubli, Mangalore, Mysore and Shimoga on the lines of hub and spoke model, with Bangalore as the tech hub," Pai pointed out.

The group also suggested expansion of the metro rail connectivity in and around Bangalore to cover 250km, development of elevated high-speed travel corridors across the city and proper solid waste management and drainage facilities by 2020.

Gurgaon, Noida set to eclipse Bangalore in IT space

North India has emerged a hot spot for IT and IT-enabled services industry with many large companies setting up their businesses here. While Shimla and Chandigarh are among the top cities with investment potential, it is the National Capital Region, including Gurgaon and Noida, that is becoming the preferred destinations for companies offering IT, ITeS, BPO, BTO and KPO services in various domains such as banking, financial services, insurance, pharma, auto, FMCG and manufacturing.

According to a study by Assocham, Bangalore may lose its crown of India’s Tech Eden to Gurgaon and Noida. The study showed that leading IT and ITeS vendors prefer to shift their focus from Bangalore to other cities — especially the satellite cities of Gurgaon and Noida — to generate more revenues.

Assocham interacted with around 800 directors, CEOs, CFOs, chairmen and managing directors of Indian and multinational companies in various verticals with a choice of five cities to relocate their businesses to garner more revenues.

Conducive environment

As many as 30 per cent of the top-ranked officials of IT companies based out of Bangalore said they prefer to shift their business to Gurgaon. Of the remaining, 25 per cent respondents said they would prefer to shift their base to Noida or Greater Noida which are rapidly developing software and BPO hubs. About 20 per cent said that they would prefer to shift their base to Chandigarh, which offers a conducive business environment.

“Gurgaon’s cosmopolitan culture, modern infrastructure, availability of skilled workforce and proximity to Delhi along with industry-friendly government policies are the factors which give it the edge,” Assocham said. Some of the top names in IT, including HCL, NIIT and Genpact, are based in NCR . “The advantages we see in this part of the country include good infrastructure with better connectivity within the area. Another major enabling factor is the relevant pool of resource/talent available due to the spread of reputed educational institutions in this area,” said the NIIT Technologies spokesperson. The company has 4,700 employees in the NCR region across three offices spread over 7.8 lakh square feet. Himachal Pradesh is portraying itself as an alternative location to the NCR. Nasscom conducted an extensive survey amongst 11 cities/ towns to find out the relative advantages/disadvantages of these cities/towns to attract IT investments.

The survey discovered that Himachal Pradesh is uniquely positioned to exploit its inherent as well as inculcated plus points for furthering IT in the State.

The major advantages include excellent power situation, salubrious climate eminently suited to IT industries, capability to increase the pool of skilled manpower, engineering colleges and other educational institutions, low cost of setting up an IT unit as well as low recurring cost (including cost of living).

Software tech park

Chandigarh and Jaipur are the other emerging cities for IT investors. The Software Technology Park in Mohali is the top exporter of software among the Tier 2 cities in North India. It is also one of the top three software exporters amongst the Tier 2 cities in India. Chandigarh got a boost for IT investments when the Government set up the Rajiv Gandhi Chandigarh Technology Park. “Chandigarh, being one of the first planned cities in India, always had an extremely good civic infrastructure and power situation. The connectivity to Delhi is excellent due to the Shatabdi trains and has, therefore, attracted many companies to consider the Tricity as an alternative location in North India,” says a PwC report