Hitachi launches 'cool' products

Hitachi Home and Life Solutions India (HHLS) announced on Thursday the launch of five new cooling solution products for the Indian market.

The products include the Sense I split air conditioner, two models of the floor standing Hitachi Tower air conditioner, the Microcool Cassette ceiling air conditioner and the high end Quadricool window air conditioner.

"The Indian consumer has matured over the past few years and now looks at the air conditioner not just as a cooling machine but as a comfort machine and therefore useful throughout the year whatever the temperature," said Rakesh Khanna, Senior VP for sales, HHLS, when asked of the reason for the launch during the off season.

Quadricool will be made available to the end user at an approximate price of Rs 25,000 and comes with Twin Turbo technology for better cooling, a power index and Hitachi's patented Auto Climate Technology (ACT).

HHLS which claims a 14% share in the organised market is looking to increase its share to around 20% in the next two years. The company also says that its the market leader in the high-end segment, while LG remains the leader in the low end.

"India is a huge growth market and holds a lot of potential after China. We have grown close to 20% for the last five years here. But China remains a bigger market at 10 times India," says Khanna.

He added that the company had plans of launching new products to cater to the Indian market every six months.

HHLS, which is looking at a turnover of Rs 280 crore this fiscal, hopes to achieve a 25 per cent growth in windows and split air conditioners alone, largely driven by Quadricool and the six-month-old Atom.

HHLS India, which is a subsidiary of HHLS, Tokyo, has a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Kadi near Ahmedabad, Gujarat which also boasts testing and design teams.

The company also has dedicated OEM manufacturing units at Jammu and Parwanoo, HP. With 14 branch offices it has a nationwide sales, distribution and service network.