Panasonic Life Solutions India (PLSIND) has made inroads into the state of Andhra Pradesh. The wholly-owned subsidiary of Panasonic Corporation has opened its new manufacturing facility in Sri City. With this, the company has further strengthened its presence in the Southern region further enabling swift material deliveries. The industry 4.0 standard manufacturing unit is spread over 133,584 sq m and currently covers a floor area of 37,025 sq m. This marks the company’s first electrical equipment manufacturing base in Southern India and seventh in India followed by facilities in the North and West regions. With a total investment of Rs 6 billion being made in two phases, the first phase of Rs 3 billion has been made. And what are the benefits that this facility brings along? It supports infrastructure development, is creating employment opportunities and furthering industrial development in the state. Additionally, it is also contributing to the company’s larger goal of increasing capacity expansion in India and being carbon neutral by 2030. Rajesh Nandwani, Director and Business Unit Head of Wiring Devices, Panasonic Life Solutions India, shares, “This facility in Andhra Pradesh has been set up to manufacture and produce products from the Wiring Devices category. The new factory production system includes a state-of-the-art assembly line that will manifest Industry 4.0 technologies to support industrial transformation and business excellence, for enhanced safety and productivity. At PLSIND, we look towards building more resilient and sustainable partnerships by offering the best technologies and building world-class manufacturing facilities in India while supporting the Government's ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ mission.” The focus Having commenced operations, the facility at present focuses on manufacturing wiring devices with its present product range covering Penta Modular (Penta Modular switch, Penta twin socket, and Penta 3 pin socket) and Roma (Roma switch, Roma 3 pin socket, Roma Plates). Further, plans have been laid to add products from the wiring devices segment, which will include switchgear, wires, and indoor air quality (IAQ) products over a period. Currently, the production capacity in the first year is 80 million units, and is expected to increase by 15 per cent year-by-year as sales further expand. The advantage tour! The factory is supported by an automated storage and retrieval system (ASRS) that results into 85 per cent improved floor space utilisation, 67 per cent increase in productivity, and 99.9 per cent picking accuracy. In the present day, it comprises 29 machines in the molding section with a production capacity of 40 million pieces per month, 153 moulds, operating with a total of 24 employees. The tool room conventional machines include conventional milling, radial drill, Okamoto S.G, band saw, pillar drill, and Lathe. The metal section within the plant includes three ISIS Press Machines (made in Japan with a capacity of 40/60 tonne) and three Multi Forming Machines (with a capacity of 15 tonne). With a total capacity of 18.5 million pieces per month, this area operates with a total of 21 employees, and 12 types of parts are produced. What’s more, the metal section is supported by tool technology and skills such as an auto clamping system, progressive tool and metal part check in CMS that only result into high quality. This new facility brings along benefits for the local communities. After being among the most preferred employers in Uttarakhand with 5,000 employees, it is expected to create direct and indirect employment opportunities by developing a local supplier network for the Wiring Devices products by FY2025. Aligned with the vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat and Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana, the company looks to support an all-inclusive growth and contribution to the development of the country. Manufactured with Japanese standards, the automation assembly process ensures high precision assembly and 100 per cent quality check (HV and continuity). It also demonstrates high speed assembly with the capacity of 3 million FG per month. In the future With the setting up of this facility, Panasonic is set to significantly scale up its production in India and strengthen its presence in the region. “While several brands opt for contract manufacturing, we at Panasonic believe in manufacturing our offerings across brands at our plant. Our aim is to dominate the markets across categories in 2030,” says Nandwani. Going forward, the company has its objective set – to build consumer connections, enhance the industrial connect and improve visibility in terms of production.