Interview: KJ Jawa, Chairman & Managing Director, Daikin Airconditioning India discusses new plant investment & air-con for green buildings

Kanwal Jeet Jawa. Photo: © Daikin

SEAB: Daikin India has set up its third manufacturing hub in Sri City, Southern India. What were the reasons for investing in the third manufacturing facility?

Jawa: With Indian showing huge potential for air-conditioning needs across residential & commercial segments, there is an opportunity for explosion in the AC category as the current AC penetration still remains at 6-7 percent penetration, leaving 90 percent market still underserved without the right product & price.

With infrastructur e & housing development, ACs have now become a necessity to enhance human productivity & maintain a better quality of life.

We aim to leverage the third factory to serve this rising domestic demand in addition to our exports plans to Africa, Central Asia & SAARC countries that share a common weather pattern with India.

SEAB: What kind of market position does Daikin India hold in India and in the export market?

Jawa: In last 11 years, Daikin has established itself as the volume player across every category and emerged as the fastest growing AC brand in the country. Powered by more than 10,000 channel partners, Daikin India is perceived as the Superior & Reliable Japanese brand that is available at India prices. Daikin achieved the leadership position in the overall HVAC market and now gunning towards becoming the Absolute No. 1 player.

Our entry into exports in the last few years have met with a very warm reception from across the new geographies. India having a gained a reputation of a stable manufacturing hub is helping global customers accept & approve – India Made Products. Daikin is gradually creating the fundamentals of a robust business across all new geographies and infusing investments towards – distribution, product, brand, service, supply chain & Innovation.

SEAB: Green buildings are becoming the norm everywhere. In what ways can air-con manufacturers provide sustainable cooling solutions?

Jawa: The evolution and expansion of India’s building stock has a critical role to play in its battle against climate change. Accounting for more than 40 percent of the country’s total energy consumption, energy use from buildings is increasing at 8 percent annually. If conventional inefficient building practices continue, buildings would account for over 70 percent of emissions by 2050, thus posing a major threat to India’s green ambitions.

According to the International Finance Corporation (IFC), 70 percent of the buildings required by 2030 are yet to be constructed in India. If India were to embrace the concept of green buildings to meet this huge demand, it would be a win-win for the environment and the economy.

The green buildings market in India is currently at a nascent stage of development, with only 5 percent buildings being classified as green, though the overall green building footprint has crossed 8 billion square feet with more than 7,000 projects. This shows the huge potential lying in the country. While this might come across as a challenge at the outset, it does open up a wide array of opportunities for the development of green buildings.

Given the pandemic and its aftershocks, the appeal of green buildings has increased for the occupants of residential houses as well as workspaces. Post-Covid, individuals are expected to become all the more cautious about their health, well-being and comfort, and would want to live in buildings that have a better ventilation

Daikin Factory Ph II in Neemrana, Rajasthan, India. Photo: © Daikin