US-based Ashland opens global business services centre at Hyderabad

The US-based Ashland Inc has opened its global business services centre at Hyderabad in order to further strengthen its position in the Indian market. The new centre is a part of the specialty chemicals maker’s overall plan to build a critical mass of human resources that helps drive innovation and deploy these solutions for the improvement of its operations, said Ashland in a press release.
 
The company is reportedly planning to expand in India through organic route. “As we look to expand our presence in high growth markets, we see a disproportionately larger investments going to markets like India, China and Brazil in the coming years. We look to leverage opportunities in these countries to reach our target of registering higher growth,” said J Kevin Wills, senior vice president and chief financial officer of Ashland Inc.
 
The company is planning to increase the headcount at the centre to 300, up from the existing 120. Operating in three product segments - specialty ingredients, performance materials and Valvoline lubricants -in the country, its total workforce stands at 300 now.