Key facts
- Daikin Industries will establish a global R&D center in India.
- The investment for the center is ₹1,000 crore.
- The R&D center will focus on air conditioning systems for data centers, residential, and commercial applications.
- Daikin aims to hire around 500 engineers for the new facility.
- This initiative is part of Daikin's strategy to expand its presence in emerging markets.
Daikin Industries, a major air conditioner manufacturer, plans to establish a significant research and development center in India. This move signifies the company's strategic focus on bolstering its product development capabilities for emerging markets, particularly for large-scale air conditioning systems crucial for data centers.
The investment of ₹1,000 crore will fund the creation of this global R&D hub, which will be Daikin's first outside its home base in Japan. The center is slated to concentrate on software and product development for a range of applications, including chillers and air-conditioning systems for data centers, as well as residential and commercial uses worldwide. This initiative underscores Daikin's ambition to position India as a key strategic base for its global operations, encompassing manufacturing, exports, and product innovation.
According to KJ Jawa, a board member of Daikin Industries and MD of Daikin Airconditioning India, the company is "extremely bullish about India's potential" and aims to emulate the success of Japanese investments like Maruti Suzuki in the country. The new center is expected to hire approximately 500 engineers from leading Indian institutions, leveraging the nation's strong technical talent pool. Daikin Industries, with global sales exceeding $33 billion, is one of the world's largest AC manufacturers, and Daikin India has shown robust revenue growth, with a target of ₹15,000 crore for FY27.