December 4, 2012: German supplier Mann+Hummel has opened a new manufacturing facility at Bawal, near New Delhi. Located close to the manufacturing sites of major OEMs in North India, it aims to provide just-in-time supplies to customers in the region. The major focus of the facility will be production for automotive OEMs, the automotive aftermarket and industrial (OEM and aftermarket) segments. It will also serve as a North India warehouse for the company’s aftermarket business.
The new plant will produce the company’s core products that include plastic air intake manifolds, air cleaner systems, cylinder head covers and crank case ventilation systems, washer reservoir systems among others for two-wheelers, passenger cars and commercial vehicles along with construction equipment and the industrial segment. The new facility, spread over 10,000 square metres, will have an annual production capacity of approximately two million products with potential of doubling the capacity based on market demand.
The new production site, which the company says is extremely environmentally-friendly in design, represents an important step within Mann+Hummel’s expansion strategy in Asia.
The plant, which was inaugurated by Kazuhiko Ayabe, Board Member, Maruti Suzuki on December 3, will essentially cater to Mann+Hummel India’s largest customer Maruti Suzuki India. It will also supply customers in the Northern, Western and Central part of India who are currently serviced from the plant in Tumkur, near Bangalore. These OEMs include Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, General Motors India, Ford India, Suzuki, Volvo Eicher and JCB among others.
Commenting on the inauguration, Alfred Weber, president and CEO of the Mann+Hummel Group stated : “It is our goal to be the first choice for our Indian customers and top supplier in our segments in Asia. By 2018, we will increase our Asian sales share to 25 percent, and India is one of our key markets in Asia to reach this goal. The inauguration of Bawal is part of our continuous growth plan.”
Reiterating the group’s commitment to India, Pradeep Randhawa, managing director of Mann+Hummel India said, “We are making significant investments to enhance our R&D capabilities to support our ambitious growth targets in India and have invested in one of the most advanced testing and validation facilities in the country to be able to launch our products locally. This helps us tremendously to align ourselves with the demands of Indian OEMs and to meet the challenging targets for time to market.”
This new state-of-the-art facility at Bawal represents a multi-million euro investment. This plant will incorporate environmentally-friendly technology and design, including for example a rainwater collection and retaining system, energy-saving lighting, electrical interlock switch to save power, battery operated forklifts to avoid pollution on the shop floor and expansive green spaces and landscaping to enhance the green touch. In addition, the roof and walls of the entire plant will be insulated to prevent energy loss.
Photograph (L-R): Alfred Weber, president and CEO of the Mann+Hummel Group, Thomas Fischer, Dr Gerhard Turner and Kazuhiko Ayabe, Board Member, Maruti Suzuki, inaugurate the all-new facility at Bawal.