Competition Forces Indian Bakery Equipment Manufacturers To Invest In R&D

Lakshman V Bangalore

Move Initiated To Beat Competition From Related Foreign Equipment

The craze for imported bakery equipment by Indian hospitality professionals is a known fact. As a result, Indian companies manufacturing bakery equipment are finding it increasingly difficult to convince the end user that their products are on par with international standards if not better. In an attempt to establish their claims and prove their worth in comparison to international bakery equipment Indian companies are now looking at investing a substantial amount of their turnover toward setting up in-house research and development centres.

The key factor behind this move according to George Thomas, managing director of Bangalore-based Porus Cuisine Technologies is the increasing presence of imported equipment in the hospitality market. “The move is a result of imported equipment flooding the hospitality segment. Further, the market forces would eventually reduce the number of domestic players, if Indian companies do not invest in R&D.

“As a matter of fact, we are investing 10 to 15 per cent of our turnover in R&D and counter competition from international equipment through timely product innovations and value positioning. The company has incorporated superior technologies like ‘turbo door’ (for steamers and fused heating electrode, which are products of our in house R&D efforts,” explained Thomas.

This apart, the company which has witnessed a growth rate of 98 per cent over the previous year on a quarter to quarter basis is looking at a turnover of Rs 20 million this year with an increased emphasis on its R&D breakthroughs.

“In addition, our manufacturing process arguably has incorporated the best technology available for the hospitality industry. We also have very robust manufacturing process installed to ensure superior quality products. All these factors have made strong impact on our customers and have also enhanced our export initiatives. Domestic firms have to make serious efforts to beef up their production technology to meet the needs of changing customer perceptions, offer enhanced price-value, adapt innovative technologies, competitive pricing, good distribution network and efficient after-sales service,” he added.

Analysts also opine that investing in research and development (R&D) could turn out to be a significant earner for the country and could pave wave for Indian companies to make an aggressive entry in to international markets. This apart, R&D could also play an instrumental role for domestic firms to compete effectively with global majors in their home turf.

Says B C Pandian, managing director, Shakti Kitchen Equipment Pvt Ltd, “The challenge is definitely tough but certainly not impossible. Incorporation of latest technology developments will be a major challenge as far as the hotel equipment industry in the country is concerned. The need of the hour is to adopt international production techniques and have a good network of R&D team. This would help our business growth both on the domestic and international markets.”