NAVTEQ, ONE OF the world’s maps, traffic and location data enabling navigation, location-based services and mobile advertising has expanded its R&D Global Development Centers (GDC) to include operations in Mumbai. The centre will employ 150 R&D team members and support map and content design and development activities for the global Navteq product portfolio. The Mumbai centre adds to Navteq’s global R&D centres in the US, Germany, UK, Korea, Bosnia and Slovakia.
Efforts to expand the company’s R&D presence in India began in January 2008, with the original centre reaching its current capacity earlier this year. The new R&D unit is located near the Mumbai International Airport.
“India is strategically important to Navteq on several levels,” says Larry Kaplan, president and CEO, NAVTEQ. “It represents a significant marketplace for our customers, which is reflected in our growing product portfolio for the Indian market, and at the same time we view our operations there in both R&D and production as critical to our global efforts to give our customers innovative, high quality location content.”
“The deep technical talents in India, which will continue to be fostered by the academic institutions throughout the country, were a key consideration in the decison to expand our R&D setup,” Kaplan added.