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Blue Star to set up Rs 30 cr unit in Himachal Pradesh

Company expects to start production within eight months

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Our Regional Bureau Chennai
Blue Star Ltd, central airconditioning and commercial refrigeration major, is going to set up its fourth manufacturing unit at Rs 30 crore in Himachal Pradesh.
 
Addressing mediapersons, T G S Babu, executive director, Blue Star, said, "We expect to start production in our Himachal Pradesh plant within eight months. Negotiations are on towards this."
 
Blue Star also expects to ramp up its manufacturing capacity in its existing manufacturing plants at Dadra, Thane, and Bharuch. The central airconditioning market is estimated to be around Rs 1,600 crore. This segment is expected to grow at around 30 per cent during the current fiscal.
 
The growth is attributed to income from the information technology (IT), IT-enabled services, and business process outsourcing segments. The company expects to garner a market share of 20 per cent in the room air-conditioner corporate segment with its newly launched mega split airconditioners, by the end of 2005.
 
"We plan to set up about 100 product display centres across India, which would be co-funded by Blue Star and Blue Star dealers in the next one year," he said.
 
The mega split airconditioners had been aimed at the light commercial market such as small offices and retail showrooms, he said. The indoor units come in 2.5-tonne and 3-tonne capacities priced at Rs 41,000 and Rs 47,000, respectively.
 
The company also plans to enter the cold storage rooms sector, based on ammonia refrigerant technology, used by the perishable-foods sector, ice-cream makers, pharmaceutical firms, and hospitals.
 
The market size for cold storage rooms in India is estimated at Rs 400 crore. Of this, half is contributed by free-on refrigerant technology and the other half by ammonia refrigerant technology.

 
 

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First Published: Aug 31 2004 | 12:00 AM IST

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