Wipro, EADS subsidiaries tie up for aerospace, defence manufacture

Bangalore: Wipro Infrastructure Engineering (WIE), a division of IT giant Wipro, has tied up with a subsidiary of European aerospace giant EADS, to manufacture engineered components for the aerospace and defence sector. The agreement with EADS' Spanish subsidiary, Compania Espanola De Sistemas Aeronauticos (CESA), will entail transfer of some technology and production workload for aerospace actuators and precision parts to Wipro Infrastructure Engineering (WIE).

"We have been in the hydraulics business for a long time and this will give us entry into the aerospace and defence sector. This is a difficult business to enter and the time required to put a product into the market is long. Once we enter this market and stabilise and build relationships we can expand," says Pratik Kumar, president, Wipro Infrastructure Engineering.

"Aerospace and defence (A&D) is a huge opportunity area for us to leverage our core competences in precision engineering and manufacturing and supply components to Tier 1 systems providers. Growth in this industry will be driven by offset opportunities as well as growth in this segment in India and other emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region," he added.

Initially, Wipro will supply CESA and gradually shift attention to other parties, domestic and global. The deal will also allow CESA to explore the Indian market.

CESA will get a fee for technology transfer as well as cost competitive manufacturing.

Wipro will invest about $15 million in setting up a manufacturing plant in the new special economic zone for aerospace being set up at Devanahalli in Karnataka by that state government. Production from the new facility will commence towards the end of 2012, firm's management said.