Aero India 2019: Adani to step up investment in defence, aerospace sectors
All our initiatives have been driven by the belief that India needs to have an ecosystem of capabilities, Mr. Ashish said.
Bengaluru: Betting big on ‘Make in India’ initiative, Adani Defence & Aerospace plans to step up its investments in companies rolling out key components and systems for fighter jets, helicopters and UAVs in order to create the ecosystem for production of combat jets such as Saab’s ‘Gripen’, naval utility vehicle (NUH) and advanced UAVs through the strategic partnership model.
“It’s part of our strategy to step up our investments if we think the industry has the capability to scale up and meet the requirements of OEMs. The intent is to take their mindsets, processes and skills to global level because they are now supplying to defence public sector and domestic firms and will not be able to match the quality parameters of OEMs (original equipment manufacturers). Forty per cent off sets for any major defence deal will not happen because we lack the ecosystem,” Mr Ashish Rajvanshi, head of Adani Defence & Aerospace, told Deccan Chronicle.
He said: “We were discussing at the CEOs round table at Aero India 2019. The language has changed because everyone is talking about Make in India, which means the government has succeeded to some extent. The responsibility of taking it to the next level rests on us” The Adani Group has invested in several companies such as Alpha Design Technologies, Alpha-Tocol Engineering Services, Comprotech, AutoTEC, and Adani Elbit Advanced Systems India Ltd as part of its strategy to build the ecosystem for big-ticket aerospace and defence projects.
Mr. Ashish Rajvanshi said “We have put our might behind the small and medium enterprises in the country and invested in their differentiated capabilities and future growth. All our initiatives have been driven by the belief that India needs to have an ecosystem of capabilities, to enable true indigenization and help achieve the ultimate goal of self-reliance in defence manufacturing. Today, with our Group companies, we have amalgamated world class skills and capabilities across carbon aero-structures, metal aero-structures, transmission gears, systems & avionics, engine components etc. which are being showcased at Aero India 2019. With these capabilities, Adani defence & aerospace is well positioned to transition to system integration of larger platforms including UAVs, Rotary-wing and Fixed-wing aircraft.”