Mr. Ralph Kieser, Head of Sales & Marketing, Kendrion Linnig GmbH, says the company is now in the process of setting up its Indian entity in the next 5 to 6 months and will start local production. It has already identified local vendors for the Indian project.
Kendrion Linnig is a global leader in the manufacture of electromagnetic solutions. The company offers complete system solutions for the commercial vehicle and bus / coach industry, which include not only the mechanical drive, but also the electronic control system. Mr. Sameer Deshmukh has been appointed as the Country Manager responsible for Indian operations.
Mr. Kieser says: “The motivation to set up a facility in India is the upcoming changes in emission norms for commercial vehicles from BS2 to BS3 across the country and from BS3 to BS4 in 11 metros starting from April 2010. We are planning to offer products and technologies which are not available in the Indian market. The products are very sophisticated and offer higher cooling performance.”
“Our products will result in fuel savings of 2.8% which has been already verified by our customers. This becomes a big market driver as it results in significant cost saving for the operator. Our products also results in reduced CO2 emissions of close 500 kg per month. We are talking of half a tonne of reduced CO2 emissions and that again becomes an important consideration. We are offering a solution to the market that is superior, durable and offers better cooling performance”, adds Mr. Kieser.
Kendrion Linnig is already working very closely with many of the OEMs in the India commercial vehicle segment both for trucks and buses. The company’s product range is focussed on electromagnetic drives, fan drives, motion vibration dampeners, tensioners as well as angle gear drives and couplings for air compressor assemblies.
Globally, Kendrion Linnig has increased its presence considerably. Apart from its existing facilities in the US, China, Mexico and Brazil, the company is now looking at additional regions and milestones. “The next logical step for the company was to enter the Indian market. There is a need in the Indian market for a technology that we can support and this is superior to the technology available in the market right now”, Mr. Kieser adds.
The company is planning to start with a team of 15 to 20 people working in the new facility which is most likely to come up in Pune. To start with, it will be an assembly facility. Initially investment will be made on assembling and testing equipment.
Mr. Kieser said: “Our philosophy is to support the market locally. We are very convinced with the market potential in India and the response from the customers has been very encouraging and we are working with them to reach the timelines”.
Globally Kendrion Linnig is investing a lot on technology. A further contribution on reducing fuel consumption and thus emissions was achieved through further development of the Linnig compressor clutch, which is now also available in a 2-speed version. Particularly in countries with high temperatures, the possibility of demand-actuated A/C compressor control promises a crucial advance in terms of energy efficiency and driver/passenger comfort and convenience. The high-drive functionality enables swift cooling-down, while energy savings can accordingly be realized when cooling-capacity requirements are low. For this innovation, customers can rely on the company clutch technology.
“For over 30 years, Linnig compressor clutches have set the highest standards when it comes to efficiency and effectiveness. We have transferred this expertise on to our 2-speed solution”, added Henning Diel.
