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Bosch Limited, the Bangalore-based flagship company of the Bosch Group of Germany and supplier of technology and services to automotive OEMs, would be relocating its manufacturing plant at Bangalore’s Adugodi locality to Bidadi, 35 km from the city in two phases till 2016-17.
The company is investing Rs 600 crore for the development of the new facility in both phases.
Bosch has acquired 97 acres land in Bidadi from the Karnataka government for the construction of the new manufacturing facility, which would also house related support functions besides the manufacturing facility for a wide range of products.
Its existing plant at Adugodi was built in 1953, which has grown to its full capacity and has no place left for further expansion.
“As part of our long-term investment plan for India, we are building a new plant at Bidadi as we do not have much space for further expansion in Bangalore. Our new plant at Bidadi would be developed in two phases, while we would transform the Adugodi plant into a technology and development centre,” Steffen Berns, managing director, Bosch Limited told Business Standard in a recent interview.
Bosch is breaking the ground for the new plant at Bidadi, later on Wednesday.
“We are convinced that there is a good future for us in India. There would be several phases. First phase development would be in two years and then subsequently, we have to see when exactly the second phase would be completed. First, we have to have some space available in Bidadi and vacate the place in Bangalore. The Bangalore plant would continue to house the corporate headquarters, administration offices besides the reserach & development facility. The Bidadi plant would be eventually bigger than the Bangalore plant. Our Naganathapura plant near Bangalore would also remain,” Berns said.
He said the Bangalore production would be shifted to Bidadi. Products like common rail diesel and gasoline injection systems, new engine technologies and many new products would be made at Bidadi plant.
Phase-I would see the shifting of 1,000 employees from the Bangalore plant to the new location. Production of common rail pump, common rail and glow plugs would be carried out in the new Bidadi facility.
Construction in Phase II would take place from 2015 to 2016. While production of inline pumps, elements, delivery valves, conventional and PF pumps would begin by the first quarter of 2017. With this, the remaining nearly 3,000 employees would relocate to the new location in Phase II, the company said in a statement.
“One of the reasons to build a new plant in Bidadi was to have more capacity, space and flexibility. We have constraints in Bangalore, which is in the middle of the city and no possibility for expansion here,” Berns said.
The Bangalore plant would also be used for further development of Bosch R&D Centre and Robert Bosch Engineering & Business Solutions (India) to create a Technology and Engineering centre, he added.
