According to a recent article, by 2016, the Chinese consumer durables major Haier will manufacture all of its products in India. This will shield Haier India from the rupee-dollar fluctuations and encourage faster growth.
Their 40-acre facility in Pune currently holds imports from China such as refrigerators, televisions, washing machines, and water-heaters. According to Haier India’s president Eric Braganza, over 70 different products have been introduced to the facility within six different categories.
The Pune facility’s refrigerator capacity will double, which will contribute to about 35% of their total revenue. Furthermore, another facility is being built in South India, which will hold much of their washing machines, which will be exported to places in the Middle East and Africa in addition to being sold in India. Note that Hyundia Motor of Korea has adopted a similar approach to make some of its cars in India for the local market and for export to Africa and Europe.
What this means
India is increasingly become a location of choice for sourcing and manufacturing of products that are complex and have a global reach.
