Atlas Copco Delivering Sustainable Solutions is Our Strength

Atlas Copco, which has established an unassailable lead in compressors,construction, mining and power equipment worldwide, delivers sustainable solutions to push customers’ productivity through innovative products and services and is currently concentrating to strengthen its position in segments it commands core competence. To sustain its current position the company delivers new products and solutions ensuring extra benefits to customers as compared to existing ones, says General Manager, Benoit Etienne during an interaction with NBM&CW.

While interacting Mr. Etienne, clarified that currently Atlas Copco has no plan to set up manufacturing facility in the northern parts of the country. Instead we are concentrating on our existing world- class construction and mining equipment manufacturing facility in Nashik, compressor making plant in Pune and recently commissioned drill bit manufacturing unit in Hyderabad.

Moreover, through our well oiled delivery mechanism, we are supplying our products to every nook and corner of India and an instance of which is that scores of our construction equipment have been deployed in the Rohtang Pass Tunnel Project in Himachal Pradesh in the lap of Himalayas. In totality, we believe in delivering sustainable solutions as our talented and technically qualified team of technicians and engineers are working hard round the clock providing classic sales services for pushing customers’ productivity.

Responding to a query about the global financial turmoil, he explained that this is a very big company and the global financial turmoil has not impacted its routine business much, instead there is a noticeable spurt in equipment demand from China, India and Australia besides, an encouraging trends in demand from North and South America. Sustaining our growth target and matching the emerging trends in demands from emerging economies, we have decided to invest `100 crore in the next two years in expanding our Hyderabad and Nashik facilities, apart from this we are also contemplating on setting up a new manufacturing unit in Pune.

During an informal chat, the Global President and Chief Executive Officer, Ronnie Leten, claimed that India is a very big market for Atlas Copco as it has emerged, one amongst the top five markets in the world. It has a strong growth potential with about six lakh engineering graduates are currently streaming out of professional colleges annually and we are planning to recruit professionals in segments including information technology, financial and communication. Moreover, India is strategically located for establishing round clock communication links with eastern European and American countries and major advantage is that Indian professionals are fluent in English with added advantage that over half of the population in India is below 25 years and what is inevitable here is really irreversible.

He said adding that at Atlas Copco, we have a corporate policy, under which company offers multiple perks and welfare facilities including health insurance, pension and competitive wages to its workers. In fact, we are not interested in buying talent, we need people to grow with us and we are further strengthening our workforce including Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) in the country. Currently, China is our main manufacturing hub generating about 12% of our revenues as compared to four per cent from India but things here will go a sea change in the next decade and we are also betting big on our India business potential in the immediate future.

Earlier in the day, addressing the media on the completion of 50 years of its Indian operations, Managing Director, Filip Vandenberghe said that Atlas Copco has recorded healthy growth rate of 40% in the past six months and the company is currently going all out to keep it up in the future as well. For maintaining the targeted growth, it has to increase its capacity matching emerging demand trends as large scale economic activities that are taking place across the country will push the demand for our products in the immediate future. In view of this, a major part of the investment would be spent in acquiring land, raising necessary infrastructure and buying capacity boosting machinery for all locations. The Swedish company with its headquarter at Stockholm, manufactures compressors, construction, mining, power equipment and other industrial components, is currently concentrating with added focus on its compressors making plant in Pune.

He added that Atlas Copco which started its Indian operations in 1960 is currently selling over 30 brands including Chicago Pnuematic and Dynapacs that apart, the company is also engaged in innumerable social welfare initiatives including providing food and education to the Disha Orphanage, water for All, a non profit making wing manned by its own employees, which has to date provided clean and potable drinking water to over million masses in countries facing acute drinking water shortage, he claimed.