Varroc partners with UK’s Scorpion Automotive for 2W security systems

Varroc Engineering, the flagship company of the Rs 8,000 crore Varroc Group, has joined hands with Scorpion Automotive of the UK to design and develop security solutions for primarily two-wheeler markets in India and the world.

The partnership, which is a technical collaboration between the two companies, will combine Scorpion’s technical capabilities with Varroc’s manufacturing competence to cater to the demand for vehicle security solutions globally. As per company officials, the product portfolio will also be extended to the four-wheeler and the commercial vehicle segments later.

Under the agreement, while Varroc gets the exclusive rights to design and manufacture the security products for its domestic as well as global clients, Scorpion Automotive benefits in terms of cost competencies, portfolio expansion and innovative products for the two-wheeler segment in India.

The products that the home-grown company plans to design and manufacture at Chakan are alarms, immobilisers, heated grips, throttle locks, smart chargers and vehicle tracking devices (for CVs and passenger cars) for domestic as well as export markets (South East Asia, Africa and other geographies).

Of these, the immobiliser technology along with remote and alarms will be prominent products to be pitched to the two-wheeler models in the premium commuter segment and above, which is defined with an engine displacement of more than and equal to 150cc.

The event saw Ravi Damodaran, president, technology & strategy, Varroc Group, sign an MoU on the technical collaboration with Mark Downing, managing director, Scorpion Automotive, in the presence of Kumar Iyer, British Deputy High Commissioner, Western India & director general, India for UK Trade and Investment (UKTI), Amit Dakshini, chief strategy officer, Varroc Engineering, and Ravinder Sharma, vice- president – electrical division, Varroc Engineering.

“The operations under this agreement will come under Varroc’s electrical division and the products will be made at the company’s Chakan plant. The products will be built in India for local as well as export markets. We are yet to finalise the investments that we will be putting into making these products, we believe that these products will come by FY2016-17. To begin with, we will start with the OEMs and that will lead to the aftermarket business,” said Damodaran.

Commenting on this development, Downing said “technology combined with Varroc’s manufacturing capabilities will ensure that these products can be sold anywhere in the world. I believe that if you can survive here (Indian markets), you can survive anywhere.”

According to Damodaran, catering to the demand for the vehicle security systems primarily for the two- wheeler segment in India stands at a sizable opportunity of close to 3-5 million units per annum over next two years (considering the 150cc and above segment).