Hitachi plans to double India revenues

Japanese technology company Hitachi is keen to ‘Make in India’ and sell it to the world, said President and COO Toshiaki Higashihara.

Addressing the media here, Higashihara said the company, which opened its office in the country in 1935, aims to expand the revenues of India operations from 100 billion yen in 2013 to 210 billion yen (about ₹11,000 crore) by 2015.

The company’s consolidated global revenue for fiscal 2013 (ended March 31, 2014) totalled 9,616 billion yen ($93.4 billion).

Hitachi in India has 31 business bases with over 10,000 employees. India revenues contribute to about 1 per cent of global revenues.

Hitachi intends to increase the ratio of its overseas revenues, which was at 45 per cent in FY13 to over 50 per cent by FY15.

Asked on his focus areas, Higashihara, said Hitachi is already selling advanced medical devices, including MRI and ultrasound diagnostic equipment. Plans are on to provide a full range of healthcare services that utilise these devices from check-up to diagnostic and treatment.

In elevators and escalators, which are essential to urban planning and development, Hitachi is introducing products and systems that meet the needs of the Indian market. In the rail systems business, it is making inroads into targeting metro rail systems, monorails, and high-speed trains.

Hitachi will also consider local production of rail systems in collaboration with Indian companies, he said.

Hitachi will provide new services that will sustain the advancement of the financial service in India, including settlement services for banking institutions, ATM operation services and cash operation and management solutions, mainly through Prizm Payment Services Pvt Ltd, which it acquired in March 2014.

Hitachi will utilise production bases in India as its global hub and strengthen the roll-out of the product business from India to overseas.

In the construction machinery business, in 2014, Tata Hitachi Construction Machinery Company began exporting excavators to Africa and West Asia.

Hitachi Hi-Rel Power Electronics started exporting power electronics products, including inverters and UPS (uninterruptible power supplies) to the West Asian and ASEAN countries from 2013.

Higashihara said about 30 per cent of the 70 billion yen planned investment from FY12 to FY15 remained unspent.

The company would open an auto component unit in Chennai in 2016, besides a unit for industrial chemicals and high-end material.

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