Coimbatore centre for Robert Bosch Engineering and Business Solutions (RBEI) was never a Plan B but the main driver of change. The centre has over the last decade emerged as a “powerhouse of technology and innovation,” playing a significant role in global R & D networks, Vijay Ratnaparkhe, president and managing director, RBEI, said at an event marked to celebrate the 10th year of Bosch in the city.

The operations at this centre began in May 2006 with 125 associates, which have now grown to 6,300 associates at four locations.

Second phase

The second phase of RBEI's facility at CHIL-SEZ, Keeranatham Village, Coimbatore was launched a few months back. “The 2.5 lakh sq ft facility with a total seating capacity of 1,500+ is 50 to 60 per cent full now. We have plans for expanding into the next phase. There has been no limitation on the infrastructure front,” Ratnaparkhe said.

To a query on the centre's contribution to the group's revenue, he did not reply directly, but said the Coimbatore Centre owed responsibility for high-end technology innovation.

“We believed that the young engineers here could meet global challenges and have not been disappointed. Close to one-fourth of the engineers of Bosch across the world are in Coimbatore. The Centre is taking responsibility for handling technology projects end-to-end.”

He, however, admitted to the rapid change in technology and the way RBEI looked at new technology and newer business models.

Stating that the facility here has over the years proved to emerge as a seamless alternate development centre, he said the engineers at this facility work on automotive domain topics.

“Coimbatore is the only centre for Bosch in India engaged in delivering to instrumentation clusters for premium OEMs,” he said.

“The entrepreneurial cult and good educational ecosystem are important for the success of IT companies and Coimbatore has no dearth of this,” observed Sathyanarayana TK, vice-president – HR, RBEI.

The company, in its bid to bridge the disconnect between academia and the workplace has set up automotive electronics laboratory at PSG College of Technology and Amrita University, which helps provide hands-on experience in automotive embedded software. One such lab is expected to come up at Kumaraguru College of Technology soon.

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