Boeing awards 777X titanium forgings contract to Bharat Forge

[Nilgiri]

If true this is impressive. Very impressive. Well done India.

That you Atanz? New name?

 

[Indus Pakistan]

New name?

My cover has been blown, darn it. Atanz is schizophrenic. This is his other ego. Only time will tell if this his better side.

Because of the rising economies of China and India look where the centre of economic activity has moved to. Yes, back toward South Asia. In AD 1 it was just about over North West Pakistan.Truth be told poverty is the bggest b*tch there is. So development is good for all the region despite the rivalry etc. In the long term it is win win for all. Look at Europe today.

 

[Armani]

The 777X series is a family of massive new passenger jets from Boeing and incorporates so many new innovative technologies, more refined and efficient systems, and reduced comparative operating costs. The first delivery is expected only in 2020.

Glad to know Bharat Forge is a part of this engineering marvel!

 

[Sensei]

I dont belive all this BS...all OEM are going to make positive PR on this cost cutting moves..the fact is..it does not hold up..i have tried a number of Chinese and Indian products made by global brands and the common result it..
When it is made cheap..it will be cheap..and mind you I trade in Industrial products..so my experience runs much diverse...

Made in India Bridgestone Tires = Rubbish
Made in India Nissan Sunny = Rubbish
Made in India Copeland Compressor = blow up in 6-8 Months..the American made last a life time with 20 years old units still in operations.

Agree with you that quality is poor when its made for Indian market but for exports to Europe or America quality standards are much more stringent

 

[somebozo]

Agree with you that quality is poor when its made for Indian market but for exports to Europe or America quality standards are much more stringent

May be if quality control is forigen but then a good made in china product cost as much as made in Japan so I would rather buy from Japan..

The 777X series is a family of massive new passenger jets from Boeing and incorporates so many new innovative technologies, more refined and efficient systems, and reduced comparative operating costs. The first delivery is expected only in 2020.

Glad to know Bharat Forge is a part of this engineering marvel!

Bharat Forge Ltd is one of the most innovative and exciting companies to emerge in the history of the forging industry. The Indian Automotive Industry in the 50’s was more like the story of imported kits. Ancillaries were nominal and infrastructure was scarce and inadequate. It was then, that Bharat Forge came into existence in 1961 to meet the forging needs of the Indian Automotive Industry. The 70’s witnessed a spurt in the Indian forging industry with more and more units coming up. For Bharat Forge, it was a period of consolidation and growth. With the largest integrated facilities in Asia and an unbeatable track record, Bharat Forge emerged as the undisputed leader - the first name in the forgings industry in India. With an emphasis on diversification, the 80’s saw Bharat Forge grow from a primarily automotive ancillary to an engineering enterprise focusing on technological supremacy, resilience and total customer-orientation. Today, the art of forging metal is a tradition at Bharat Forge, and all of our products are built with the expertise necessary to accommodate various industries. Each customer specification is carefully transformed into a cost-efficient reality. Every part we create is a representation of our overall dedication to craftsmanship. An outstanding reputation for customer service coupled with the Management commitment to quality has made Bharat Forge the preferred domestic and global supplier for major OEM’s. Under the intense and caring supervision of the Chairman & Managing Director, Mr. Babasaheb N. Kalyani, the company continues to expand and its markets continue to grow, while the goal remains the same : to deliver competitive, quality products and services - time after time.

1961

- The Company was incorporated on 19th June at Mumbai. The main object of the Company is to manufacture forgings and finished crankshafts.

1971

- Shares of Rs.100 each subdivided.

1976

- 9,30,000 Bonus Equity shares issued in prop. 3:5.

1978

- Pref. shares redeemed in 3 equal instalments on 2nd January, 1st July and 1st January, 1979.

1981

- The Company's technical collaboration with Sifco Industries Inc., of U.S.A., ended on 31st March.

- 24,80,000 No. of equity shares issued at a prem. of Rs.30 per share in part conversion of V Series debentures.

1982

- Balchandra Investment Pvt. ltd., became a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company and consequently, a deemed public limited company under section 43-A of the Companies Act, 1956.

1983

- An agreement was concluded with Tokyo, Drop Forging Co., Ltd., of Japan for technology upgradation, cost optimisation and quality improvements in the Company's forging unit.

- The Company concluded an agreement with Maharashtra Electronics Corporation Ltd. (MELTRON), to establish a joint venture to manufacture colour T.V. sets.

1984

- Forge Investment Ltd., and Mundhwa Investment Ltd., became subsidiaries of Bhalchandra investment Ltd., with effect from 4th January.

1985

- The installed capacity of steel forgings at Pune was further increased from 30,000 tonnes to 40,000 tonnes per annum.

- Industrial licence for steel forgings was endorsed for 7,200 tonnes and 42,800 tonnes per annum at Jalgaon and Pune units respectively.

- In addition, the Company also received industrial licence for the manufacture of couplings with 600 tonnes per annum capacity at Mundhwa, Pune.

- To obtain technology and know-how for the manufacture of couplings, the Company entered into a collaboration agreement with Torsiflex Ltd., U.K.

- The Company privately placed with financial Institutions 3,80,000-15% secured redeemable non-convertible debentures (IV Series - PP) of Rs. 100 each, for working capital requirements. Also, 4,80,000-15% fully paid secured redeemable non-convertible debentures (IV series-Rights) of Rs.100 each were issued on rights basis to finance its industrial machinery and couplings projects at Vaduth, Satara, and at Mundhwa, Pune.

- In addition, 7,50,000-10% fully paid secured redeemable convertible debentures (V Series) of Rs.240 each were issued on rights basis to finance its front axle assembly projects and for the expansion of open forgings capacity and defence products machinery at Mundhwa, Pune.

1986

- A letter of intent for machine components was partially converted into an industrial licence for the manufacture of some of the items such as defence products machinery etc. as included in the letter of intent at Mundhwa, Pune.

- Registration was obtained for the manufacture of assemblies, components, spares, accessories for metallurgical machinery, size reduction and crushing equipment, conveying equipment and size separation units with a total capacity of 1,200 tonnes per annum at Vaduth, Satara.

- Registration for additional capacity of 700 tonnes per annum was obtained for the Vaduth unit, for the manufacture of other items of industrial machinery. The Company also undertook to market colour TV receivers and automotive components manufactured by other companies.

- The name of the Company was changed from Bharat Forge Co. Ltd., to Bharat Forge, Ltd. with effect from 30th April.

- 3,12,500 No. of equity shares issued at a prem. of Rs 30 per share in part conversion of V Series debentures.

1987

- Effective from 31st October, Jalkumbhi Investment and Finance Pvt. Ltd. and Starflower Investment Ltd. became subsidiaries of Forge Investment Ltd.

- Chakrapushpa Investment and Finance Ltd. and Jalakamal Investment and Finance became subsidiaries of Mundhwa Investment, Ltd.

1989

- The Company undertook modernisation and rationalisation of the steel forgings & furnish machined crankshafts division at Pune.

- Delay in the receipt of imported equipment and the initial teething troubles delayed the modernisation programme at the steel forgings division, Pune. Both the presses were installed by 1991-92.

- A joint venture under the name of Kalyani Sharp India Ltd. (KSIL) was set up for the manufacture of Televisions & VCRs. Necessary approvals were received for the transfer of the Company's electronics marketing division to KSIL effective from 1st, October.

- During September-October, the Company offered 10,55,450-14% non-convertible (VI Series) debentures of Rs.100 each on Rights basis in the prop. 1 debenture : 10 equity shares held. (All were taken up). Additional 1,52,349 debentures were allotted to retain over-subscription.

- The Company also issued 63,882 debentures (inclusive of over-subscription of 15% of 55,500 debentures) to employees (including Indian working directors)/workers of the Company on an equitable basis (only 2,010 debentures were taken up). The unsubscribed portion of 61,872 debentures was allowed to lapse.

- A detachable coupon is attached to every debenture entitling the holder thereof the right to apply and get one equity share of Rs.10 each at a premium as may be approved by CCI at the expiry of 5 years from the date of allotment of debentures.

- The debentures were to be redeemed at par at the end of the seventh year, from the date of allotment of debentures.

- 52,72,500 bonus shares issued in prop. 1:1. 35,15,000 rights shares issued (prem. Rs.40 per share; prop. 1:3). 4,76,412 shares allotted to retain oversubscription. Another 50,838 shares allotted privately (prem. Rs.40 per share). Another 48,450 shares allotted to employees (prem. Rs.40 per share).

1991

- On 22nd May, the Company allotted 10,00,000-14% non-convertible debentures (7th series) of Rs.100 each on private placement basis.

- The Company issued 19,00,000-18% secured redeemable non-convertible debentures (8th Series) of Rs.100 each on private placement basis with Mutual Funds. These are to be redeemed in equal instalments at the end of 6th, 7th and 8th year from the date of allotment viz., 26th November, at a premium of 5% payable along with the instalment due at the end of 7th year.

1992

- The Financial Services Division commenced for investment in various fund based areas. During the year, it diversified its portfolio into real estate development.

- The company commissioned the 12,800 tonnes capacity screw type hot forging press.

- During September/October, the Company offered 13,36,500-16% Non-convertible debentures of Rs.300 each with a detachable warrant on Rights basis in the prop. 1 debenture : 11 equity shares held. All were taken up.

- Another 66,830-16% Non-Convertible debentures of Rs.300 with detachable warrants each were offered to the employees' on an equitable basis only 1,560 debentures were taken up. Unsubscribed portion of 65,270 debentures was allowed to lapse.

- These debentures are to be redeemed at a premium of 5% in three equal instalments at the expiry of 6th, 7th, and 8th year from the date of allotment of debentures.

- Every debenture was attached with a warrent which entitled the allottee (of the debenture) to receive a equity shares of 12 months from the date of allotment of debentures. If the right attached to any coupon/warrant was not exercised within the specified period, the equity shares pertaining to the warrants were to be disposed of at the discretion of the directors.

- Forfeiture on 370 shares annulled. 38,01,950 shares allotted as rights/to employees (prem. Rs.150 per share).

1993

- The fall in exports was due to the letter of credit not being opened at Ukraine and recessionery conditions in the thrust markets of Japan & W. Europe.

- 13,37,035 No. of equity shares issued at a prem. of Rs. 145 per share on excercise of warrants attached to NCD (9th shares).

1994

- During February/March, the Company offered 65,93,300 No. of equity shares of Rs.10 each at a premium of Rs.40 per shares in prop. 1:3 (all were taken up).

- Another 3,29,700 No. of equity shares of Rs.10 each were issued to the employees on an equitable basis (all were taken up).

- The Company also offered 28,26,000-14.5% secured redeemable non-convertible debentures of Rs.50 each with a coupon/warrant attached in the prop. 1 deb : 7 equity shares held. (All were taken up).

- Another 1,41,300-14.5% debentures were issued to the employees on an equitable basis (only 1,00,450 debentures taking unsubscribed portion was allotted to lapse).

- These debentures would be redeemed at par in three equal instalments at the expiry of 6th, 7th, 8th year from the date of allotment.

- Each warrant entitles the holder to apply for one equity share of Rs 10 each at a premium of Rs 40 per share.

- On 1st March, the Company issued convertible notes (1994-1999) of Swiss Francs 20.00 million equivalent approximately to Rs.431 million.

- Effective from 24th October, Starfflower Investment and Finance Ltd. and Chakrapushpa Investment and Finance Ltd. ceased to be subsidiaries of the Company.

- Forfeiture on 4485 shares annulled. 69,23,000 shares allotted as Rights to the shareholders and employees, 12,09,801 shares issued (Prem. Rs. 40 againt Equity Warrants attached to NCD VI Series. 35,00,000 shares allotted (Prem. Rs. 146) against Warrants issued to Promoters. Pref. shares issued on private placement basis.

1995

- The Company proposed to set up a plant for the manufacture of Finish Machined Crankshafts with a capacity of 1,80,000 nos. per annum at Pune.

- The Company had entered into a technical knowhow and Assistance agreement with Metalart Corporation, Japan for the manufacture of small precision forgings.

- 293, shares allotted. 29,26,450 shares allotted (prem. Rs. 40 per share) against warrants attached to NCDs. (Xth series). 15,68,600 shares issued (prem. Rs. 186.93 per share). Under senior executive stock cum share option scheme 18,00,000 shares issued (prem. Rs. 107.18 per share) to Promoters/Group Companies.

1997

- 120,00,000 Redeemable pref. shares redeemed during the year.

1998

- The Company has decided to go head with the implementation of the Mundhwa project for additional forgings capacity of 38,000 Tonnes.

- BFL also has a financial services division which it set up in FY 93, IN FY95 it diversified into production of wheel rims.

- BFL's wheel rim division has been hived off into a joint venture with the collaborator Lemmerze-Were of Germany, with effective from 4th June 1996.

- BFL is the leading player in the sector. It is the flagship of the Kalyani group and was established in 1961 in collaboration with Steel Improvement and Forge Co., USA (SIFCO), Commercial production of forgings began in 1966 with the setting up of a plant at Mundhwa near Pune.

1999

- Bharat Forge has surprisingly turned an impressive results. Being the fifth-largest forging company in the world in volume terms.

2000

- Demerger of Investment Division & Wind Mills Division with effect from March, 1.

2002-Bharat Forge Ltd has informed that Mr G A Nayak, Nominee Director of Unit Trust of India (UTI) has resigned and ceased to be Director, with effect from December 19, 2002, his nomination having been withdrawn by UTI.

2001

-Bharat Forge Ltd has retrenched around 800 employees which represents close to one fourth of its total workforce at its manufacturing facility.

-G A Nayak has replaced Mr.K.G.Vassal as the nominee of UTI on the Board of Bharat Forge.

-Bharat Forge reported a 16% drop in the revenue and 81% drop in the net profits.

2002

-Bharat Forge signs a contract with Dana Corporation's Spincer Europe Ltd., for the supply of forgings.

-Leading Chinese Auto Dealer OEM has awarded the company a large contract for the supply of engine components,which is worth around $20 million order.

2003

- Bharat Forge Ltd secured the second Largest Customer in China. Guangxi Yuchai Machinery Co. a part of second Auto Works is among the largest Auto companies in China, which is a stepping stone for acquiring a large size of the Chinese Markets.

-Bharat Forge Ltd has appointed Ajay S Nagle as Company Secretary and also to act as Compliance Officer.

-New contracts has been won in the area of passenger car components. BFL has been chosen by Ford Motor Company and Daimler Chrysler as a supplier of components for their global passenger car programs.

-Board approves raising of raising long term resources

2004

-Bharat Forge all set to enter China

-Bharat Forge Ltd (BFL) has tied up with BITS-Pilani for offering employees an opportunity to enhance their education while continuing to work with the company and acquire degrees in BE and B.Tech.

-Bharat Forge Ltd has appointed Mr Amit B Kalyani as Director of the company wef May 11, 2004 and also as Executive Director of the company wef May 11, 2004.

2005

-Bharat Forge Ltd receives `outstanding organisation' award for quality from the National Institution for Quality and Reliability on April 23

-Bharat Forge acquires Imatra Kilsta AB, Sweden & Scottish Stampings, Scotland

-Bharat Forge Ltd has signed a Joint Venture contract with FAW Corporation for its forging business

-Bharat Forge enters in JV contract with FAW Corporation, China

-Company has splits its Face value of Shares from Rs 10 to Rs 2

2006

-Bharat Forge Ltd has appointed Mrs. Lalita D Gupte as Director of the Company with effect from December 05, 2006.

-Bharat Forge inks agreement with Maharashtra Govt to establish SEZ

-Opening Ceremony of FAW Bharat Forge (Changchun) Co., Ltd. -Government of Maharashtra and Bharat Forge joined hands to set up a multi-product SEZ in Pune District.

2007

-Centre for Advanced Manufacturing … takes shape in Baramati -BHARAT FORGE – BITS PILANI convocation ceremony held for the first batch of B.S. (Manufacturing Engineering) Programme.

2008

-Bharat Forge Ltd has announced that on February 08, 2008, the Company has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with NTPC Ltd, to set up a Joint Venture Company for its foray into the Capital Goods sector.

-Bharat Forge Ltd has has appointed Mr. Sunil Chaturvedi as Additional Director of the Company with effect from May 20, 2008 and he is also appointed as Executive Director of the Company with effect from May 20, 2008.

-Bharat Forge Commissioned India’s Largest Commercial Open Forging Press. -Bharat Forge signed Letter of Intent with IIT-Bombay -Alstom and Bharat Forge to set up a Joint Venture to manufacture state-of-the-art super-critical power plant equipments in India. -Bharat Forge signs MOU with Government of Maharashtra for its Centre for Advanced Manufacturing in Baramati -Bharat Forge signed a MOU with NTPC 2009

- Bharat Forge Ltd has informed that the Board of Directors of the Company at its meeting held on May 20, 2009, has appointed Mr. P H Ravikumar as Additional Director of the Company with effect from May 20, 2009.

-Bharat Forge and AREVA sign MoU for Manufacture of Heavy Forgings in India -Bharat Forge receives National Award for Best HR Practices -2009

2010

- Bharat Forge Ltd has appointed Dr. T. Mukherjee as Additional Director of the Company with effect from January 23, 2010.

2011

-Mr. Ajay Kumar Sharma has been appointed as Company Secretary of the Company and he will act as the "Compliance Officer" of the Company.

-Bharat Forge has recommended Dividend of Rs. 3.50 per equity share (175%)

2012

-Bharat Forge Ltd's power equipment joint-venture with Alstom bags Rs. 1,570 crore order from NTPC Ltd.

-Bharat Forge ecommend a final Dividend of Rs. 2.50/- Per Equity Share (125%),in addition to Interim Dividend paid of Rs. 1.50/. (75%), totalling to Rs. 4.00/- (200%)

2013

-Bharat Forge Ltd - NTPC orders three supercritical turbine islands from Alstom-Bharat

-The Company have appointed Mr.Vimal Bhandari as an Additional Director of the Company

-Bharat Forge, Alstom Power JV bags Rs 2,251 cr order from NTPC

-Bharat Forge Ltd. ndia awarded ‘Sword of Honour’ for safety success

-B.N. Kalyani conferred with the IOD Distinguished Fellowship Award 2013

2014 -Bharat Forge - Amalgamation of Joint Venture Companies -"Safran and Bharat Forge to form partnership to address opportunities in Indian civil and military aerospace". -Baba N Kalyani conferred with the prestigious ‘Sir M Visvesvaraya Memorial Award - 2014' -Saab and the Kalyani Group Sign a Strategic Partnership for the Air Defence of India

2015 -Bharat Forge Ltd - Production starts at Alstom-Bharat Forge's new turbine and generator manufacturing facility in India -Bharat Forge - Corporate reorganization of European subsidiaries of the Company -Bharat Forge awarded Recognition Prize - Energy Efficiency Award 2015 -Bharat Forge and Mahindra CIE, an alliance between Spain''s CIE and Indias Mahindra Group are in the race to acquire Amtek Autos German subsidiary Neumayer Tekfor. -Bharat Forge Limited has formalized a significant supply agreement for long term co-operation with Rolls-Royce

 

[AyanRay]

How is manufacturing in India and then shipping it back to USA with all the custom and VAT included will cost cheap than making actual thing in America itself ?

Shouldn't this be the standard question for every damn thing we import or export. Like how is Chinese toys cheaper that local toys, etc.

 

[Water Car Engineer]

I love Bharat Forge, one of the big private firms entering the defence sector after the sector's liberation.

It's also trying to be top 3 artillery producer on the planet as well.

 

[aakash_2410]

there is no way to believe Indians can be more expert and at the same time cheaper in producing such crucial component..Boeing will go down the typical line of American manufacturers developing a reputation for quality fade due to outsourcing. This will be a good news AirBus was customers are always willing to pay money for quality. But customers are not willing to bear extra large margins over goods out-sourced to China and India...

Lol! Your hatred for India is so much that you think that the quality will go down if these are produced in India. I like how you included China so you don't come across as a vindictive and a spiteful person.

Anyways, ever heard of 'Quality Assurance'? Google it. It's a manufacturing concept. You might learn something rather than basking in sheer hatred.

 

[Sensei]

May be if quality control is forigen but then a good made in china product cost as much as made in Japan so I would rather buy from Japan..

Goods produced in China/India are cheaper not because of poor quality but because of cheaper resources (Labour, Land, Power etc).

 

[dadeechi]

Goods produced in China/India are cheaper not because of poor quality but because of cheaper resources (Labour, Land, Power etc).

The right word is "inexpensive" not "cheaper"

 

[HAIDER]

I dont belive all this BS...all OEM are going to make positive PR on this cost cutting moves..the fact is..it does not hold up..i have tried a number of Chinese and Indian products made by global brands and the common result it..
When it is made cheap..it will be cheap..and mind you I trade in Industrial products..so my experience runs much diverse...

Made in India Bridgestone Tires = Rubbish
Made in India Nissan Sunny = Rubbish
Made in India Copeland Compressor = blow up in 6-8 Months..the American made last a life time with 20 years old units still in operations.

Interesting ..you never mention that part of your personality trait...

It is not just these forgings, there is a lot more to come:

http://www.economist.com/news/busin...ng-themselves-arms-making-opportunity-strikes

India’s defence industry
Opportunity strikes
The country’s conglomerates are throwing themselves into arms-making

This one looks sub standard

VISITORS to the Talegaon plant of Larsen & Toubro (L&T), an Indian engineering company, might confuse it for the props department of a film studio. Half-a-dozen hangars spread over 50 acres near Pune, a city in western India, are filled with enough weaponry to thrill a Bond villain: camouflaged track-mounted howitzers, anti-submarine rocket launchers and, particularly appealing should Blofeld share Indians’ fondness for trains, a contraption to turn a humble carriage into a ballistic-missile-launcher.

The missile itself is a dummy, but the rest of the kit speaks of India’s ambitions to breed world-class makers of defence equipment. Although India now has the world’s fourth-biggest military budget, it has been the single biggest arms importer for seven of the past ten years, says SIPRI, a research institute (see chart). The government, tired of this unwanted accolade—and convinced indigenous weapons production can provide jobs, budget savings and technological know-how—puts defence at the heart of its drive to boost domestic manufacturing.

Local conglomerates are salivating at an opportunity they expect could be worth $150 billion-200 billion in the coming decade. Tata, Mahindra and Godrej—as well as L&T—are among those that have piled into weapons manufacturing in recent years. But to succeed they will have to take on foreign importers (which snap up about two-thirds of all procurement by value), a crowd of state-owned companies and the country’s bloated defence bureaucracy.

Impatience with familiar suppliers opened the first breach for private contractors over a decade ago. An unconvincing victory in a skirmish with Pakistan, in Kashmir in 1999, exposed the Indian army’s lack of capability. Insiders blamed a plethora of corruption scandals, involving foreign firms as well as flabby state-owned arms-makers, for leaving forces ill-equipped. But private-sector enthusiasm faded when promises of contracts did not materialise.

The latest sally slightly preceded the arrival of Narendra Modi in power in May 2014, and has been reinforced by his team’s energetic drumming of a “Make in India” theme. Mr Modi has spoken of having 70% indigenous weapons procurement by 2020, roughly double today’s figure (the defence ministry is a bit less ambitious), with more of it produced by the private sector. To achieve this, procurement rules overtly favour stuff made locally. Some of the red tape entangling all things industrial has been done away with: for example, foreign groups may now own as much as 49% in Indian ventures, up from 26%.

Bosses at private Indian firms are delighted by the new rhetoric: Tata, India’s largest conglomerate, identifies defence as one of four core growth areas. Groups with a background in cars (Mahindra) or precision engineering (L&T) have recast themselves as arms-makers, often with the help of Western partners such as Airbus, Boeing or Lockheed Martin.

The pipeline for new defence systems looks appealing. The military budget, some $50 billion a year, is expected to track long-term economic-growth rates of around 7% a year. Press reports suggest the armed forces are short of some 300 fighter jets, at least a dozen submarines, over 1,000 combat helicopters, seven frigates and perhaps 3,000 artillery guns. What gear it has is often of cold-war vintage and from Russia, India’s traditional supplier. Even ammunition is in short supply.

Yet in practice the armed forces are lousy customers. Defence bureaucrats are risk-averse. Military spending is growing, but much new money goes towards salaries and pensions. The share of funds for procurement, research, development and testing has slumped from 34% in 2005 to 25% today, says IHS Jane’s, a research outfit.

Worse, a fifth of the capital budget typically goes unspent because, in the run up to year-end, the finance ministry usually begs generals to shelve projects so that overall public-spending targets can be met. That leaves just $11 billion-12 billion for procurement, says IHS. And much of this is committed to existing projects, often in the hands of state-run companies good at lobbying for their share.

So those in charge of India’s putative defence groups are waiting to see if the opportunity is really as big as it appears. Official rhetoric was enough for investment plans to be drawn up, but not quite enough for big amounts to be spent. “We like the policy; we await the execution,” says one firm’s defence-division boss. A bureaucrat who misinterprets a single word in a regulation could stymie a billion-dollar project, he adds.

Foreign firms will also seek a chance to profit. Nearly 500 attended a recent defence jamboree in Goa. Some are still hoping to do deals to deliver equipment outright. Dassault has been in talks to sell its Rafale fighter jets for over 15 years (“We are getting closer...we are in the final phase,” its chairman said last month, redefining optimism). But if it comes off, this deal would probably be one of many contracts to have the first batch of a weapons system made overseas before shifting manufacturing—and some technology—to India for later orders, assuming the local partner could cope with production demands.

The past year has seen the weaving of a tangled web connecting big Western defence groups and Indian manufacturing counterparts. A recent deal for BAE Systems to supply howitzers uses Mahindra as the local assembler. A track-mounted artillery gun at L&T’s facility (part of which is a joint venture with Airbus Defence) was designed by Samsung. Boeing and Tata have a partnership to produce Apache helicopter fuselages, among other things.

Sceptics wonder whether local groups do much more than give existing foreign weapons systems an Indian veneer just thick enough to get contracts. Systems developed abroad (often some time ago) can be assembled in an Indian plant, with both sides claiming the gear has been extensively adapted for the Indian market.

Assembly work is not the lucrative bit of the weapons industry—just as the iPhone brings more profits to Apple (its designer) than to Foxconn (its contract manufacturer). For now, India mostly makes the cheaper bits, especially parts that can benefit from lower labour costs. Pricier systems, which require long development lead-times, are hampered by higher capital costs for Indian firms compared with Western rivals.

All that could change if Indian companies develop expertise to design, not just assemble, equipment. Last month the government said it would give priority to weapons designed and made in India. It should also let firms export their wares—which, in the long term, is the only way investments in arms-making pay, says Deba Mohanty of Indicia, a consultancy. Countries that spend heavily on armed forces typically have successful arms-making companies. India’s ambition, one day, is to stop being an exception to this rule.

From the print edition: Business

If it look like submarine , dive like submarine ......then it must be submarine ...rest leave it to..........!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Sensei]

The right word is "inexpensive" not "cheaper"

Cheaper is the standard word used widely in Industrial Engineering/Macro Economics literature.

 

[dadeechi]

Cheaper is the standard word used widely in Industrial Engineering/Macro Economics literature.

May be but still what India provides is an inexpensive alternative to west not cheap.

 

[fsayed]

I love Bharat Forge, one of the big private firms entering the defence sector after the sector's liberation.

It's also trying to be top 3 artillery producer on the planet as well.

Can Bharat forge help GTRE KAVERI weight reduction through metallurgy knowledge?