Public sector Bharat Electronic Ltd has signed an agreement with Boeing Co of the US to jointly develop an analysis and experimentation center in India to offer services for modernising India's defence forces.

The proposed analysis and experimentation centre will be staffed with local personnel who will coordinate with India's defence ministry, the statement said.

"Establishing a decision-support capability in India is a significant step for Boeing as our company expands internationally," Vivek Lall, Boeing Integrated Defence Systems vice president and India country head said in a release.

"Boeing has similar capabilities operating in Australia (Systems Analysis Laboratory, Brisbane) and the United Kingdom (The Portal, Farnborough), each having the ability to collaborate with Boeing centers in the United States, and we are bringing that experience to India."

The facility is designed to enable government and industry to work together to explore, through analysis and experimentation, the best alternatives and the right solutions to the challenges currently facing India's defense forces. With this capability, customers can make vital decisions on the best courses of action before expending significant resources to design and build actual products.

"This joint facility will be staffed with local personnel who, with an inherent understanding of India's challenges, will be most qualified to work with the ministry of defence to explore and identify the best ways to satisfy India's capability needs," said I V Sarma, director (Research & Development), BEL. "Working together, we will develop in-country processes that allow for the development of local intellectual property and the integration of other non-U.S. products into our environment."

With the latest modeling, simulation and analysis tools, customers will have the ability to conduct experiments in a collaborative, immersive environment to analyse the utility of new technologies or tactics on military operations. They will be able to explore alternative solutions and "what if" scenarios, define requirements in more detail and ultimately lower risk on developmental programs while better meeting the needs of the Indian Defence Forces.

"This is an opportunity for Boeing to work closely with one of India's foremost public-sector companies and together develop tools and technologies that will bring enduring benefits to India," said Dinesh Keskar, president of Boeing India. "This type of 'decision support' will ultimately reduce the time, cost and risk of bringing new and better capabilities to India's defense forces."

India is looking to spend $30-40 billion on imports over the next five years to modernise its largely Soviet-era arms by introducing new weapons systems.

It is allowing state-run and private firms to tie up with foreign defence equipment makers to scale up domestic production.

Boeing along with Lockheed Martin Corp, France's Dassault Rafale, Sweden's Saab are vying for a contract to supply India with 126 multi-role fighter jets potentially worth more than $10 billion.

Earlier, the Boeing India head said the firm was looking to bid for defence projects worth up to $31 billion over the next 10 years in India, as strategic ties between India and United States deepen.

BEL, a leading Indian defence electronics major, is a government-owned Navratna company. BEL is engaged in the design, development and manufacture of a wide range of cutting-edge C4I solutions, military communication systems, radars and sonars, naval systems, and electronic warfare systems, for use by defense services, paramilitary organisations and other government entities.

A unit of The Boeing Company, Boeing Integrated Defence Systems is one of the world's largest space and defense businesses specialising in innovative and capabilities-driven customer solutions, and the world's largest and most versatile manufacturer of military aircraft. Headquartered in St. Louis, Boeing Integrated Defense Systems is a $32 billion business with 70,000 employees worldwide.