Keen to be in the forefront of the country’s defence programme, engineering firm Larsen & Toubro (L&T) is readying itself to partake in the defence sector opportunity expected to be worth $150 billion over the coming decade.

From designing and developing complex weapon systems for the Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Indian Navy to building a portfolio of indigenous missiles and weapons systems, submarines and artillery systems, L&T is well positioned to capitalise on the government’s plan to increasingly indigenise defence production. L&T has released over 100 weapon and engineering systems in partnership with DRDO and independently with in-house capability, over the last three decades, said Jayant Patil, Senior Vice-President and Head-Defence and Aerospace, L&T Heavy Engineering and L&T Shipbuilding.

The long tenure and association has helped the company build a “basket of technologies covering the domains of mechanical engineering, hydraulics, pneumatics, electronics, controls, sensors, electrical, military communication, avionics, and integration of multi-disciplinary systems and platforms, with the ability to customise to meet a set of user requirements,” Patil pointed out.

Signalling L&T’s increased thrust in defence related businesses, the Board of directors of Larsen & Toubro has decided to appoint Patil to the Board with effect from July 1. Patil is to be designated Whole-time Director and Senior Executive Vice-President (Defence Business).

Work centres

The company has nine dedicated work centres for defence, “six of these have been new facilities created over the past decade after opening of the defence sector,” said Patil.

“On a continuing basis, we have a new armoured systems facility on the cards at Hazira in Gujarat, followed by a new facility for the new joint venture L&T-MBDA Missile Systems Ltd, wherein we intend to do missile integration,” Patil said.

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