Industrial Products Finder spoke to Dalip Sharma, Managing Director, Delta India Electronics Pvt Ltd, during Hannover Messe 2015, about the company's plans for India. Excerpts

How do you propose to scale up the Delta activities in India? What is your present manufacturing reach?

We have two factories in India - one in Rudrapur, and the other in Gurgaon. In Rudrapur we manufacture telecom power systems, UPS systems and wind power systems, and would soon start manufacturing solar systems. This factory is more dedicated to manufacturing high-power equipment. The factory in Gurgaon manufactures video walls and display products. We have 14 offices countrywide, and the coverage is complete in that sense. We have a channel partner community of over 300. Our authorised service partners are also there in every part of the country. We have 24/7 service helplines because our business (UPS) is mission critical.

As of now, out of the products manufactured in India how much is exported?

Not much, very small. It mostly goes to Bangladesh, Sri Lanka in the SAARC region only. A very small percentage also goes to Southeast Asia.

Delta is a global corporation and can manufacture more in India? So what of the new plant?

Of course yes. That is the reason why we are making a major manufacturing investment in India for doing major exports from India to the western world. That will be under the electronic system design and manufacturing (ESDM), which is mainly for electronic manufacturing - power supplies for various applications, mostly targeted for the export market.

So there will be an export thrust?

Yes. We are looking at factory with employment possibility for about 30,000 people. We have already identified the locations but it's under final consideration hence, I cannot disclose it at the moment. But it will be in south India and we are in talks with various state governments there. We will be zeroing on the final location and an announcement will follow.

Right now how much is 'Make In India' in the Delta scheme of things globally?

Our revenues in India in 2014 were about Rs 1200 crore and in terms of Delta scheme of things we are not even in five per cent yet. So we are currently very small but there is huge potential in India business. We are looking at roughly close to one billion USD by 2020.

In India, we are seeing some sort of consolidation happening within the power electronics business. Is Delta going to consider any acquisitions? Are you open to it?

Globally, Delta has just completed the acquisition of Eltek ASA. Yes, we are very open to do that if we find a credible target, it is very much on our radar. We will consider any company having good technology or goodwill or market or customers, talent, anything that can be a reasonable business proposition.

Right now what is your manpower strength in India?

It is over 800 direct employees. With operators and others it is over 1200. So, total of 2000.

How engaged are you in the telecom segment in India in terms of numbers?

Our market share in telecom in India is 65 per cent from last 10 years. So we are quite a dominant player in the telecom power market.

What about the smart city initiative in India? Do you see it happening the way government plans to?

We are participating. It will take some time but it is happening there's already a lot of positive momentum on it. We are engaged with the government mostly for the Smart City project, but we are also engaged with the government on renewable energy policy discussions. For MNRE we are actively engaged.

Any other security related automation? How secure are these systems?

We are doing security related automation for banks, ATMs. Digital security system for banks. Currently we have installed 500 systems in India and by end of this year we should be covering about 5000 ATMs. The system is very secure. It is online, which means that you can actually predict and stop untoward incidents from happening. Our systems can tell you how many times you went and how much time you spent there, which side you were looking at. Video analysis, picture analysis everything happens online and you do not even know who is watching you.

So can this system be scaled-up? Because the security issue is only going to increase?

Yes we are going to do that. We are scaling from ATMs to retail, malls, hospitals, railway stations, etc. Building those software platforms, hardware components.

So in these areas you must be definitely working with service providers?

Well, hypothetically, if police or other law enforcing agencies give us the pictures of lookout notice people we can tell you who is where, the moment that person moves out on the street.

So we are coming closer to what, say, Singapore is?

It will take another 5-6 years. It is a matter of investment. We are building the platforms for that purpose.

How optimistic are you on 'Make In India'? Not just your company but in general?

I think it is the right time and the right move. India is a huge country and offers a lot of potential for people who want to invest in India and specially manufacture in India. We have huge population, we have big labour pool, we have big talent pool and English is the preferred language of most people.

Is skilled labour also an issue? A segment of the industry feels that we are facing a skills shortage. What are your views on this?

I don't think it is a big challenge. The situation is still better than most of the countries.

How competitive is manufacturing in India for Delta as a group compared to other locations of the world?

I say it is at par with other locations. Some things are better while some things are still not there. As a whole package it is at par.