By IANS
Bangalore : Two Spanish firms Electronica ITEL and DigiProces have roped in two Indian serial entrepreneurs Anil Gupta and Alok Garg to set up an electronic manufacturing services (EMS) joint venture (JV), with an upfront investment of $10 million (Rs.410 million).
The JV-Indic Electronics Ltd, to be commissioned by August, will provide end-to-end customised solutions, including functional testing and simulation to vendors outsourcing their product requirements.
"The manufacturing facility will come up on a two-acre plot in Doddaballapur industrial area, about 30 km from Bangalore. The JV will give a fillip to the growth of the hardware sector in Karnataka, attracting more investments," Indic vice-chairman Anil Gupta told IANS after the partners signed a tri-partite pact for the venture late Thursday.
Gupta and Garg are also co-promoters of CIPSA-RIC India Ltd, a joint venture, set up at Doddaballapur last year to manufacture printed circuit boards and membrane switches for domestic and export markets.
To be built on a scalable modular, the facility will have the latest technology and skilled manpower to provide design, development and start-to-finish products under one roof.
"We will employ about 100 people initially to commence production. In view of the growing demand for EMS from domestic and overseas vendors, we estimate a turnover of $20 million (Rs.820 million) in the first full year of operations," Indic managing director Alok Garg said.
Electronica director Beatriz Serrano said her $120-million Spanish firm had decided to begin sourcing its requirements from India due to the advantages the country had to offer in terms of cost, quality, availability of talent pool and strategic partners.
"India has been on our radar for quite some time. Though we have been getting printed circuit boards (PCBs) from China, we have noticed India was equally consistent in delivering quality products," Serrano noted.
DigiProces CEO J. Batet said the JV would cater to diverse verticals such as automotive, energy, industrial automation, telecom and peripherals.
"We have already tied-up with S.A. Sistel, a European firm, dealing in elevators, for assembling its products, including functional testing tools," Batet affirmed. DigiProces posted a turnover of $18 million in 2006.
Sistel director-general B. Jordi said his firm would in future shift its entire business to India from China where it had been sourcing its requirements (sub-assembling) for long.