Japanese air-conditioner maker Daikin on Monday said it will set up a development centre in India as part of plans to roll out products specially designed for the market here.
The company said it has identified India as one of its most important strategic markets for the next five years to sustain the growth momentum.
“We are going to establish a sub-base of a research and development centre to make products only for India. We will do designing in Malaysia, or Bangkok, or Japan, but we will bring those designs and develop in a way that is most suitable for Indians,” Daikin Industries (Thailand) Chairman Toshio Nakano told PTI .
He, however, did not disclose how much the company will invest on setting up in the new centre, saying the plan will be finalised by next month. At present, Daikin has a manufacturing plant at Neemrana, in Rajasthan. It has already invested Rs 210 crore on the factory. The development centre will be set up at the Neemrana facility.
Mr. Nakano said setting up a product development centre in India is in line with its global strategy to cater to the demands of the local market.
“For instance, here (in India) the voltage range is different and temperature is different. We will do customisation based on what Indians want,” Mr. Nakano said.
Earlier, Daikin was focusing mostly on developed countries in Europe and the Japanese market, besides other small Asian markets, Mr. Nakano said. “In order to become number one, we had to have new markets, like China and India,” he said, adding that the two countries and Brazil were its most strategic markets.
“So, we have made medium-term plans. India and Brazil are the most important countries to develop for as these are the potential growth markets for us,” he added.
