Japanese firm to market cordless power tools in India

Leading Japanese power tools maker Hitachi Koki (HiKoki) will soon market cordless tools in the Indian market, a company official said on Friday.

"In view of the shift to cordless tools from corded, we will soon introduce affordable, user-friendly cordless and DIY (do-it-yourself) tools in the India market," HiKoki Managing Director Tomoaki Moro told reporters here.

Unveiling the company's business plan for its 22-year-old Indian subsidiary, Moro said the dealer network would be expanded to 1,000 by 2020 from 600 currently, with 100 authorised service centres across the country.

"Our India arm has been growing steady over the last two decades, with a cumulative average growth rate (CAGR) of 16 per cent annually," he claimed but did not disclose the revenue amount.

The company plans to launch multi-volt tools for its Indian customers and end-users.

"We aim to sell four lakh tools during this fiscal (2018-19) as against 3.6 lakh last fiscal (2017-18) in the Indian market," added Moro.

The company has customers across diverse verticals such as automobile, construction and fabrication.

"The power tools market, estimated at Rs 4,000 crore, is growing at 7 per cent and is projected to grow at a steady pace over the next 10 years," asserted Hitachi Koki India Executive Director Dattaraya Joshi on the occasion.

The Central government's flagship schemes like 'Make in India' and 'Skill India' offer huge opportunity for growth and innovation to the manufacturing sector across the country.

"As there is a huge demand for quality tools to enable India compete globally, we are strengthening and customizing our offerings for the Indian market and its unique requirements," pointed out Joshi.

With demand for power tools growing in tier-2 cities and tier-3 towns, the company is set to strengthen its base to increase its market share.

Besides making 50 per cent of the local requirement by volume in India, the company exports its tools to Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka in South Asia and ships components to its subsidiaries in Japan and Malaysia.

The company changed its name to Koki Holdings Co Ltd after the US-based private equity firm KKR's arm HK Holdings Ltd fully acquired it from Hitachi for an estimated $13 billion in March 2017.

--IANS

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