The Hindu Business Line : Nokia plans to add 5,500 workers in India this year

Panaji, March 29 Handset manufacturer Nokia plans to recruit 5,500 more employees in India by the end of the financial year, taking its total headcount to 15,000. Most of the new recruitments will be towards enhancing its manufacturing capabilities at Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu.

“A significant number of jobs will be created by Nokia’s manufacturing plant. We are also increasing the headcount in the research and development team,” said Mr Bimal Rath, Head Human Resources, Nokia India. The company has 8,000 people at the handset manufacturing plant and another 900 at its R&D facility. India is Nokia’s second-largest market with revenues of €3.6 billion, which is bigger than the revenues earned by large Indian telecom operators.

Mr Rath said Nokia has an attrition rate of about 10 per cent, which is lower than the industry average. On the manufacturing front, Nokia is investing $75 million in 2008, taking the total investment in the plant to $285 million by December 2008.

Mr Sachin Saxena, Operations Director, Nokia India, told Business Line on the sidelines of a Nokia-sponsored media event in Goa: “We have reached production volume of 125 million mobile handsets in just over two years of operations at the factory in Sriperumbudur. Our decision to invest in local manufacturing has given us the opportunity to fuel the demand for the domestic and emerging markets while also allowing India to emerge as a global manufacturing hub.”

Approximately 50 per cent of its production at Sriperumbudur is consumed domestically and the rest exported to countries across the Middle East and Africa, Asia, Australia and New Zealand.

The Nokia telecom park has signed up with global component manufacturers including Salcomp, Aspocomp, Foxconn, Perlos, Jabil, Laird and Wintek. Of these, five companies have started production and the other two are likely to commence by the middle of 2008.

More Stories on : Telecommunications | Human Resources

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page

Stories in this Section
Nokia plans to add 5,500 workers in India this year

Indiaproperty looks to tap overseas market

IT hiring slowing down