During Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visit to the Airbus production facilities in Toulouse last week, Airbus Group CEO Tom Enders committed to support Modi’s Make in India call saying that the company was “ready to manufacture in India, for India and the world”.
In India, Airbus Group already operates two engineering centres – one focused on civil aviation and the other on defence – and a research & technology (R&T) centre which together employ over 400 highly qualified people. During the meeting with Prime Minister Modi, the Group’s senior representatives conveyed their decision to expand these centres so that they can take on comprehensive design responsibilities for future Airbus Group programmes.
In 2014, Airbus’ procurement from India stood at over $400 million from around 40 companies (public and private) which together support more than 5,000 jobs locally. The top three procurement areas have been in engineering & IT services, aero-structures, and detailed parts & systems. The Prime Minister was informed that procurement from the country is set to grow further as Airbus plans to award additional manufacturing and engineering work packages to local companies, which will accelerate their integration into its global supply chain.
Airbus also stated that it is willing to set-up final assembly lines and establish supply chains and related infrastructure for military transport aircraft and helicopters in India. These would be in full compliance of the procurement policies specified by the Indian Ministry of Defence and local Foreign Direct Investment guidelines.