High-tech glass company Corning is bullish on growth from mobile consumer electronics and life sciences businesses in India, a senior company official said on Thursday.
The automotive and optical fibre business is the biggest revenue contributor to the company in the country, at present.
Corning which started business by providing glass cover for bulb invented by Thomas Alva Edison has expanded into several verticals to provide glass technology ranging from electronics display protection cover for mobile, television displays, semiconductor manufacturing, space telescopes to glass based packaging for labs, vaccines etc.
"We waited for ecosystem to be established in India where we are seeing now global players are already establishing footprints to manufacture smartphones, and we just want to be a part of the supply chain. India is now becoming a rising star. We want to just be part of the story," Corning International, division vice president and general manager Gokhan Doran told PTI.
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The company has committed an investment of over Rs 1,000 crore to set-up a joint venture with Optiemus Infracom, Bharat Innovative Glass (BIG) Technologies, in Tamil Nadu to make finished cover-glass parts for mobile consumer electronics.
Corning is also setting up a borosilicate glass unit to produce vials and tubes for the life sciences sector with an initial investment of Rs 500 crore in Hyderabad.
Corning, managing director and president for India, Middle East and Africa, Sudhir N Pillai said that the company's Hyderabad plant will become operational in the first half of 2025 and BIG Technologies will be operational in the second half.
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"The BIG Tech is for Gorilla Glass finishing. This plant will create 500-1000 jobs. The SGD Corning facility to make Velocity Vial will employ around 500 people," Pillai said.
He said that the company has started its Global Capability Centre in Pune which has a capacity of 100 people.
"The GCC Pune should have around 50 people this year and by the end of next year it should be ready with full capacity," Pillai said. He said that all the businesses of Corning in India are at different stages of maturity.
Pillai said that automotive and optical fibre verticals are the biggest contributor to Corning's business in India while mobile consumer electronics and life sciences are going to be the fastest growing verticals for the company in the country.
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