'We Are Planning For More Expansion-Based Investments'

The first business of Mitsubishi Electric in India was equipment supply for electric locomotives to the Indian Railways in the early 1960’s by its Transportation Systems Division in Japan. From there, says Katsunori Ushiku, Managing Director, Mitsubishi Electric India (MEI), “We started with a small liaison office in India and grown the company from strength to strength. Today, we have a strong network of three manufacturing facilities, office and technical centres in 23 locations across the country and one R&D centre in Pune.”

- Rahul Kamat

How do you view the Indian market? What kind of space does it provide for MEI’s products and services? How is it helping the company’s growth?

India is an important market for us. The opportunities in India are immense and with a GDP of around 7-7.5 per cent, the country is definitely one of the hottest business destinations in the world today. Compared to matured markets like North America, Europe or Japan, India’s potential is massive, however, it will require time and effort for companies to realise that potential.

While the country does not contribute a very large amount to Mitsubishi Electric global revenues as of now, we have huge expectations from the Indian market. Our commitment to the Indian market can be seen from the gradual investments and growth in business interest. We are closely watching the developments and reforms happening here. We are eager to participate in infrastructure, for example, the basic water treatment plants to heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) needs of the Indian society as a whole.

What steps are you taking to increase sales in the Indian market?

We are taking various steps to increase sales in the Indian market like increasing sales offices in India, penetration of new market (tier 2 and tier 3) cities, expansion in tier 1 by increasing sales from existing distributor and dealers, working on strengthening support functions to increase sales, strengthening manufacturing and future expansion of manufacturing and enhancing the research and development (R&D) activities. We are targeting on bringing more India-specific products by recruiting skilled manpower into the system for better productivity, efficiency and growth.