Danfoss Industries commences exports

Mumbai: Danfoss Industries, the 100-per cent subsidiary of the $2-billion Danish MNC Danfoss A/S, has started exporting refrigerator-condensing units to Sri Lanka in a small way from its Chennai facility. Says Danfoss Industries managing director and CEO Christian Ege: "Our next export market is Bangladesh."

Danfoss A/S is a global major in refrigeration and air-conditioning components — compressors, condensers, controls and others, motion control equipment, frequency converters, soft starters, comfort controls, radiator thermostats, heating and ventilation controls and instrumentation, fluid measurement flowmeters and water-control devices. The company has pioneered techniques like load-sensing hydraulics, intelligent refrigeration controls, radiator thermostats, CFC-free compressors and thermostats for household appliances.

Says Danfoss A/S president and CEO Jorgen M Clausen: "Nearly 50 per cent of the group’s turnover comes from selling refrigeration and air-conditioning products and the remaining is contributed equally by the group’s other two divisions."

During the last decade the Danfoss group branched out to other parts of the world in an accelerated manner, setting up new plants and acquisitions. Today the group has 53 factories in 21 countries. Danfoss’ products are sold in more than 100 countries by a network of 95 sales companies and 73 agents and distributors. "Sixty per cent of our production is done outside Denmark," says Clausen. With 60 per cent of its revenues coming from the saturated European Union (EU) markets, Danfoss is now seriously focussing on the Asian region. Apart from India, the group has a plant in China.

Commencing commercial production in 1999, the Indian unit has a turnover of Rs 28 crore, focussing on two-product lines — refrigeration/air-conditioning and motion-control equipments (energy savers). Danfoss Industries is slated to launch new products like Flux-vector drives, drives for water segment, burner controls and oxygen analysers.

Says Ege: "Our investment in the Chennai facility is around $6 million. Given the market receptivity for our products we will soon invest additional sum." The company supplies to industrial and commercial refrigeration players like Fedders Lloyd and Carrier Aircon. "We also supply our components to railways for their AC coaches and several, pharma, food chilling and dairy projects."

The Chennai plant currently assembles the product after importing the components from its sister outfits. The 55-per cent duty component is forcing the company to look out for localising some of the components soon. "Barring compressors and controls, other components will be localised in a short period," Ege says.