The Hindu Business Line : All new MICO products to come under Bosch brand

"Worldwide, Bosch is a bigger name than MICO," Motor Industries Company Ltd's Managing Director, Dr Albert Hieronimus, told Business Line. Eventually, applications under the MICO brand name will be reduced, he said. "The turnover of MICO-branded products will reduce over a period of time," he said. But in certain areas such as the aftermarkets where MICO has a significant presence, the company will continue to carry the same brand.

He, however, said that there are no plans to delist Motor Industries from any of the Indian stock exchanges or replace it with the Bosch name. Dr Hieronimus said Motor Industries Company Ltd is the name of the company, while MICO is the brand.

But the decision assumes significance, as the Indian operations are turning out to be a major hub for Bosch's operations worldwide. "It is not a decision, but a consequence," Dr Hieronimus said. "The change clearly shows the commitment Bosch has towards India," he said. He pointed out that during the previous Auto Expo, all the brands were displayed as part of MICO. During the current Auto Expo, all the brands are being displayed under the Bosch brand.

Dr Hieronimus said even the newly launched car service centres carry the Bosch brand name. There are around 100 such centres across the country, and 80 more will be coming up. MICO service centres now display the Bosch brand more prominently. Dr Hieronimus said labour issues at the Nashik plant had been tackled quickly without affecting production. He pointed out that the voluntary retirement scheme offered to the employees at the company's Bangalore plant did not receive a good response. The company, in fact, redeployed 300 of its staffers to handle other products.

Dr Hieronimus said the Indian automobile market is growing in extremes. For example, the low-end as well as the high-end markets are growing faster than the mid-range segment. "We are very confident that we will see continued growth, which will be slightly higher than the GDP growth," he said. The company expects the Indian auto market to grow at around 8 per cent, Dr Hieronimus added.

He said the diesel market is not growing significantly because of limited product offerings. "But we expect this scenario to change."