This story first appeared in DNA Money edition on Saturday, June 15, 2013.
Sotax AG, a Swiss dissolution systems maker, is setting up a unit in India to make affordable systems for the pharmaceutical market here.
The company is scouting for a location which most likely would be in Navi Mumbai.
Jean-Louis Raton, head of business units-Europe and Asia-Pacific, Sotax, said the company has been looking at a few places in Mumbai/Navi Mumbai and soon finalise the location soon.
"The India unit will help us reduce the price gap between locally-made dissolution systems that are priced seven times lower than Sotax's. The India facility will manufacture 400 units in the first year, which would be increased gradually to 1,000 units," said Raton.
Sotax AG, a Swiss dissolution systems maker, is setting up a unit in India to make affordable systems for the pharmaceutical market here.
The company is scouting for a location which most likely would be in Navi Mumbai.
Jean-Louis Raton, head of business units-Europe and Asia-Pacific, Sotax, said the company has been looking at a few places in Mumbai/Navi Mumbai and soon finalise the location soon.
"The India unit will help us reduce the price gap between locally-made dissolution systems that are priced seven times lower than Sotax's. The India facility will manufacture 400 units in the first year, which would be increased gradually to 1,000 units," said Raton.
The company plans to start the facility by August 2014.
Being Swiss-made, the dissolution system attracts 30% customs duty in India.
So, while a basic Sotax dissolution bath (manual) is priced Rs 12 lakh the locally made system costs Rs 3 lakh.
The Sotax's India-made systems will cost Rs 4 lakh.
"Despite being made in India, the systems will still be over 30% premium to the local systems," said L Ramaswamy, managing director, Sotax India.
While the company did not share investment, official said it will be not be very capital intensive as the facility will be more of an assembly line.
"Approximately 60% of the parts would be sourced from India and the balance will be imported. The India facility will only focus on assembling the system. Set-up cost will not be high because we will be hiring and leasing the machinery," said Ramaswamy. The company will, however, continue to import the semi-automatic and fully-automatic dissolution systems from Switzerland.
In another development, Sotax has acquired another Swiss firm Dr Schleuniger Pharmatron, a maker of physical test equipment for solid dosage and specialists in complete tablet hardness testing solution, for $15 million.
Sotax registered global revenues of $48 million and with the acquisition of Dr Schleuniger Pharmatron it is expected to swell to $58 million.
Holger Herrmann, vice president-sales and marketing, Dr Schleuniger Pharmatron, said the company has over 800 installations in India.
Sotax's India manufacturing facility will also manufacture Dr Schleuniger Pharmatron products / solutions and would also cater to overseas markets.
Foreseeing significant growth opportunities, Sotax will also relocate its headquarters from China to India in July.
Sotax has set up a R&D centre at Navi Mumbai to develop an indigenous system and plans to set up a contract lab in India to cater to testing requirements of European pharma companies.
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