India Cellular & Electronics Association (ICEA) has signed the memorandum of understanding (MoU) with boAt as the “Industry Partner” for the Centre of Excellence based on Li-ion products (Post Cell) at CDAC, Noida. This will improve the competitiveness and growth of the electronics industry by closely working with key stakeholders (including the Central and State governments) to create a robust electronics industry with global acclaim and create an innovative market environment for the country.
National Policy on Electronics 2019 (NPE 2019) has prioritized the electronics hardware manufacturing sector, one of the important pillars of both the “Make in India” and “Digital India” programmes of the Government of India.
The total electronics manufacturing envisioning 2025-26 is US$300 billion and mobile handset manufacturing has been given a target of US$180 billion, out of which US$55 billion is for exports and US$125 Billion for domestic market consumption.
At a generic level for the long-term success of Indian electronics manufacturing, research and innovation, design centers need to be based in India. Both the electronic components and design ecosystem must be built together as one cannot exist without the other.
“Currently, due to a lack of design capabilities, India is losing valuable foreign exchange to international design hubs in other countries and in turn, it perpetuates imports too. This CoE is expected to further add an additional 40-50k Cr. to the Indian economy by 2025. Analyzing the above and to make India self-reliant in the Lithium-Ion battery products segment, a Centre of Excellence (CoE) for Mobile Add on products (Bluetooth Speaker, Power Bank, Power Adaptors, and related portfolio etc. based on Li-ion power) was proposed by ICEA, which is set-up and functional at CDAC Noida, in collaboration with MeitY and UP Government”, said Mr Pankaj Mohindroo, Chairman ICEA.
“This CoE aims to set up a design hub for MSMEs and other Indian mobile handset and accessories eco-system products. We aim to establish an MSME cluster and promote sustainable employment growth by enhancing the industry’s design and R&D capabilities,” added Mr Ramashish Ray, CEO, Centre of Excellence.
This CoE is proposed for 3 years, which will achieve self-sustainability within the project duration. In this CoE, products (including the Neckband, Bluetooth speakers, Power banks, Power Adapters etc.) would be designed by the boAt and other industry R&D partners.
boAt shall collaborate with ecosystem partners, EMS partners, vendors, components suppliers, and distributors in India to design, to develop, as well as test the mentioned products.
“The Indian electronics industry is currently highly dependent on the import of technology and core components such as chips and processors. boAt aims to achieve self-reliance in product innovation and hence reduce the dependency on the import of various products. Through the Centre of Excellence partnership, boAt will provide technical and product mentoring as well as expert advice on products based on Li-ion cells. This will be a small, yet significant step in nurturing future national champions aligning with Hon PM’s vision to a reduced foreign exchange outgo and employment generation in India”, said Sameer Mehta, Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer at Imagine Marketing Limited (Parent company of boAt).
“boAt being an Indian company as well as India’s largest Hearable and Wearable brand with our incredible product know-how and an experienced Research and Development (R&D) team called boAt Labs, shall mentor the Indian electronics start-ups at the CoE, by advising on embedded product design, hardware schematic design, PCB design, Embedded software design and development”, said Mr. Naveen M, Head of R&D, boAt.
ICEA shall ensure the support and participation of component and sub-assembly manufacturers in the CoE without whose support, the development of products shall not be complete.
The CoE is established for the benefit of the industry, a facility inculcated to offer the design and development of Mobile add-on products and provide testing and consultancy services – for the growth and development of the industry (including MSMEs) in Uttar Pradesh and other states in India.
