Siemens VAI Moves to Meet Indian and Chinese Demand for Modern Steel MIlls

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Written by Richard Finlayson, Senior International Editor for Industrial Info Resources--In addition to new construction work, Siemens VAI Metals Technologies (Linz, Austria) (Munich, Germany) is anticipating strong demand for modernization and services in the Indian steel sector following the economic crisis.

The company is planning to set up a steel manufacturing equipment plant base in India and expand its existing Indian operations with the employment of a further 1,000 people. Currently the company has a factory near Mumbai and an office in Calcutta with 800 personnel involved in engineering, project management and manufacturing components for the steel rolling sector.

"We are growing our base in India, where the steel industry is on a growth path. We want to set up our own factory to make steel mill equipment with an investment of around €25 million ($35 million), and we are looking for land in Bhilai and Vizag for sites," said Siemens VAI CEO Werner Auer.

In addition to the large steel companies that Siemens VAI services, the company is increasingly targeting smaller and emerging companies with an eye to the future. Auer said that the company was expanding its capabilities in India in project management and other service areas.

The company will be focusing on the manufacture of components for steelworks and will be setting up new factories in India and China. Operations in Russia will also be part of the expansion focus in 2011.

In China, the company has three plants manufacturing and assembling mechanical and electrical plant components for VAI's metals and mining portfolio and employs 1,600 people in manufacturing and sales across the country. Auer said that Chinese and Indian companies are coming into the market with their own manufacturing capacity and primarily are looking to produce steel with simpler and cheaper plants to develop their infrastructure. Locally produced plants can cost up to 40% less than those from European suppliers. Developed high-tech companies in Japan and the West are maintaining the focus on efficiency and flexibility in their production processes.

Siemens VAI intends to develop plants for the China and India segments of the market and will transfer responsibility for design, production and marketing from Europe to China and India, looking to strengthen market position by responding to the changes.

For related news item see July 23, 2020 - Siemens VAI and Shriram EPC Consortium to Construct Rolling Mill for SAIL at Durgapur.

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