UK and India driving a success story

The Indian connection at the heart of the UK automotive boom, and the $4 billion opportunity for Indian companies.

As I made my journey into what (on first impressions) appeared to be a rather nondescript northern English town, Crewe, I was surprised to see the number of Indians getting off the train, at the bus station and surprisingly also sharing my host’s flat. Though it’s common to bump into an Indian face in the UK I didn’t expect such ‘thronging numbers’ in smaller places. But my host Nikita was rather comforted by the idea of having so many Indians around her.

I went to university with Nikita, who chose to stay back in the UK and has made quite a career there working in the very best of British auto brands. It was with her job at Bentley Motors where she met so many of her fellow countrymen (and women). The British luxury motorcar manufacturer, Bentley, has a partnership with Indian company Tech Mahindra that has enabled many young Indians to work as designers and engineers at one of the world’s biggest and most coveted automotive companies. Even though their work stint is short, all the Indian engineers I met there truly valued their UK experience.

Chethana Shivamurthy, an engineer with Tech Mahindra in Bengaluru worked at the Bentley headquarters and design and manufacturing centre in Crewe. She was responsible for design feasibility using 3D tolerance analysis. This was her first experience outside India and she feels that her time in the UK helped her grow as a professional.

“It was absolutely thrilling to touch and feel the actual physical models at the Bentley plant which my colleagues and I design in India. The incredible innovation, technology and technical know-how was a great exposure for me and there is no doubt that the time at the facility has honed my skills.”

The UK is a global leader in the automotive industry and is a true hive of innovation, expertise, technology, brands and opportunity. The country has also emerged as the fastest growing automotive manufacturer in Europe with more than 1.6 million vehicles rolling off the production line in 2015 alone, the highest in over a decade. And the industry has strong backing from the British government to return itself to being a global leader and to accelerate the auto manufacturing boom currently taking place there. UK Trade and Investment’s Automotive Investment Organisation (AIO) works across government and industry to promote the UK’s automotive sector abroad, to bring investment into the country, as well as help UK-based companies grow their business by exporting.

According to Lawrence Davies, the CEO of AIO, the UK is attracting attention from many international companies, including India-based automotive companies, looking to partner and expand into the UK.

“The UK is the biggest manufacturer of electric vehicles in Europe. In fact, roughly one in four electric cars driven in Europe is made in the UK. We have a desire to make even more! Indian companies and manufacturers are critical to our journey,” says Mr. Davies.

He was in India as a part of the British delegation of auto components companies who participated in Auto Expo held in New Delhi earlier this year. Mr. Davies is bullish about the Indian auto prospect.

“Not too long ago, Indian auto components were not considered on a par with leading European manufacturers but the buying of JLR by Tata Motors accelerated a perception change. Indian auto makers like Amtek and Samvardhana Motherson Reflectec (SMR) who have a presence in UK are delivering the highest quality and supply to all the big OEMs,” Mr. Davies added.

There is a $4 billion sourcing opportunity for auto component manufacturers in the UK. Companies based in the UK are primarily looking for UK-based suppliers in segments like engine castings and forgings, steering systems, fuel tanks electronics, shock absorbers and Indian companies with their growing prowess in the area are well placed to take advantage of this.

The Duke at the launch of the Tech Rocketship Awards an initiative by UKTI India – that provides Indian start-ups with expert business advice and support from leading professional services companies in the UK.

The UK-India collaboration in this sector also got a ‘Royal’ endorsement as Their Royal Highnesses, The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were invited to view and try out a simulator of a Mahindra Formula E racing car during their recent visit to India last month. The Duke in the Mahindra racing car not only created one of the most memorable images from his India tour but also celebrated UK-India technology collaboration.

From the very top names to smaller companies – the UK-India auto industry collaboration story runs deep! Millbrook, one of Europe’s leading independent technology centres for engineering, test and development of vehicles and vehicle systems and India’s International Centre for Automotive Technology (ICAT) are working together to promote each another’s services, facilities and capabilities in India and the UK.

The Indian driver’s best companion for long routes – the Mahindra Scorpio – features the 5MT320 five-speed manual transmission which is the result of a design and development collaboration between British auto specialist Ricardo and Mahindra engineers.

This year’s Auto Expo also saw British companies take centre stage. British motorcycle marque Triumph introduced the new Bonneville range and the new Triumph Street Twin. Even Bollywood stars were seen launching new British brands in India.

And why blame celebs, when even the most modest among us find it hard to resist clicking a picture with a foreign swanky luxurious car. And there was a sense of pride rather than embarrassment after discovering the ‘India connection’ to some of the most coveted international brands. So before I left Crewe guess what was my most memorable picture from the visit?