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ABB India plans to collaborate with universities in India to develop cost efficient manufacturing solutions. "We are working on several areas but the key areas for us are manufacturing technologies and material sciences. We will work together with universities on projects and sponsor Ph.D studies,'' said Giandomenico Testi, chief technology officer of ABB.
"Most expenses in India are material related and associated manufacturing cost. Manpower cost in India is low compared to other countries,'' he added. The objective of the research is to look for new materials and manufacturing techniques which will cut down the dependance on imports and reduce overall costs. The company spends over $ one billion each year globally on research and development. Testi did not share R&D figures for India.
ABB India's management informed equity analysts earlier this year it plans to cut down its import bill, which is currently pegged at 30-32 per cent of its expenditure, by carrying out an indigenisation programme. The programme does not just cover local sourcing or local manufacturing; it also looks at the design aspect of the products, the company had said.
ABB's net profit rose to Rs 179 crore for FY13, a 30 per cent rise over the full-year profit of the previous year. (It follows a January-December financial calendar).
