Xerox Marks India As Regional Hub

"It is a reflection of Xerox's confidence in the Indian market," Xerox Modicorp managing director H N Nanani said.

To this effect, Xerox Modicorp, which is a 68:25 joint venture between Xerox and B K Modi-controlled Modicorp with seven per cent shares held by the public, will set up a competence centre at a cost of $4-5 million.

Though the company is yet to zero in on a site, the centre will most probably be located at Gurgaon near Delhi. The details of the project are likely to be crystallised in October when the company starts work on next year's business plans.

 

Fitted with the latest communication devices, the competence centre will act as a showcase of Xerox's new generation products, monitor consumer needs with the aid of the feedback received from the marketplace and act as a virtual technology support centre for India, China, Russia, the Middle East and Africa.

"It will do all the troubleshooting in case of a problem in the entire region," Nanani said.

It will also act as a centre for service, sales and applications training with inputs on technological advancements from Xerox's research and development centre. The competence centre is expected to be up and running by 2001.

This will be Xerox's second such centre in the developing market. The first one has been set up in Brazil.

While 50 per cent of Xerox's worlwide revenue comes from the US and Canada, 25 per cent comes from Europe and the remaining 25 per cent from developing market operations like India.

According to Nanani, the funds required for setting up the centre will be generated internally by Xerox Modicorp. The company is targeting a turnover of Rs 700 crore during 2000 with a 10 per cent return on sales.