Aerospace park plan gets going, 12 firms given nod
Jayaraj Sivan
Chennai:
Tamil Nadu may soon have an aerospace and defence park. The project proposed by the state government way back in 2011 is finally taking shape on Sriperumbudur-Oragadam Road, about 50km from the city. Sources said 12 aircraft component manufacturing companies have been given in-principle clearance by the state government to set up units. They will now be allotted land.
They are expected to invest more than `1,050 crore over the next five years.Vinmn Aerospace Pvt Ltd, the biggest among them, is expected to invest `800 crore in five years and provide employment to 1,500 people.“We have plans to invest `200 crore in the first phase and the facility should come on stream in 18 months, from January next year,“ said Vinmn CMD Venkatesh Chandrasekharan.
Funded by PE investors, Vinmn is venturing into making of aerospace components and unmanned aerial vehicles by acquiring an auto-components precision manufacturing unit. But for Baala Har Conn Aerospace Services, a joint venture between Chennai-based Baala Group and US-based Har-Conn Aerospace, all others are Indian firms.
Some supply parts to foreign aircraft manufacturers and others like Metallic Bellows India Ltd and Bhastrik Mechanical Labs are suppliers of pneumatic bellows to HAL, Isro and DRDO. The firms setting up units at the park are involved in electroplating, metal processing, precision engineering, manufacturing of cryogenic vessels, aerospace component and system design and the manufacture of aircraft wheels and landing gear.
Two more firms have sought land allocation and 15 more have evinced interest in setting up facilities in the park. The Tamil Nadu Industrial Development Corporation plans to set up an advance computing and design centre at the park at a cost of `250 crore to at tract 30 to 40 more smal firms. “Even individual en trepreneurs will be allowed to operate out of the design centre,“ said an official.
The state already houses more than 60 aero space components manu facturing firms in four clusters in Chennai, Coim batore, Salem and Hosur said Aerospace and De fence Industry Association of Tamil Nadu presiden N Shekar. Most of them are tier I and tier II suppliers to original equipment suppli ers. LMW in Coimbatore for instance, manufactures aircraft wings for HAL. It is the only firm other than HAL to manufacture air craft wings in the country .
Shekar said the associ ation would help college students develop skills re quired and upgrade skills of people already in the sec tor.
“Many auto companies can also upgrade them selves into aerospace com ponents manufacturers for which our association will provide technical sup port,“ he said.
