Germany Contact - Wolfgang Lehmacher

German-Indian Cooperation
Start-up support in India
German Centre Delhi.Gurgaon has a lot to offer
Are you interested in India, but
wondering how to deal with this
huge subcontinent? Two tenants
of the German Centre Delhi.
Gurgaon give us their comments
and report on their experiences in
India: Lödige Systems GmbH and
management consultants, Rödl
& Partner. The German Centre in
Gurgaon is on the outskirts of New
Delhi and supports the activities of
German companies in India.
As a budding economic power, India
is one of the most interesting growth
markets in the world. Approx. 1,800
German companies are already active
in India - and the trend is upwards. One
of them is family-run company, Lödige
Systems GmbH, based in Warburg in
Westphalia, which specialises in the
design, production and installation for
the air cargo industry and storage centres
and manages projects in more than
40 countries.
Their latest project is the design,
delivery and installation of components
for the “in-town check-in
system” for the new Delhi Airport
Metro system, which links the city
centre with the airport. Here, passengers
can check in their baggage in the
city centre, which is then loaded fully
automatically onto the metro trains
and transferred directly to the baggage
handling system at the airport. “We
think there are excellent prospects for
our products as a result of the current
privatisation of airports and the issuing
of concessions to private investors
for the provision of air cargo and
ground handling services,” says Axel
Hellriegel, Director of Business Development
India, who has set up the newly
opened Indian branch of the SME since
last October.
The Indian subcontinent is
extremely promising for other companies
as well. The crisis in the fi nancial
markets and the economy virtually
has passed India by without leaving
a mark, and the country is politically
stable and has a large skilled labour
force at its disposal. The large domestic
market, low production costs and a
fast-growing SME sector add to India’s
attractiveness as a business location.
Inauguration of the new offi ce in the German Centre: Axel Hellriegel is smashing
a coconut, promising success on the Indian market.
Another world
However, the subcontinent also holds
a number of diffi culties: for example,
barriers to entry, such as government
regulation of the labour market
and the various bureaucratic hurdles,
need to be overcome. “A lot of companies
underestimate the demands of the
Indian market,” says Mr. Hellriegel.
As a graduate engineer, Mr. Hellriegel
has worked abroad for almost ten years
and lived for longer periods in Saudi
Arabia, Thailand and Dubai. He feels
that India has been the biggest challenge
so far. “Life is very hard over
here. As interesting and diverse as
the country is, for a German it is like
entering a new world.” The examples
he cites are the poor infrastructure, the
high level of price sensitivity and the
lack of networks.
For this reason, a facility such as
the German Centre Delhi.Gurgaon is
“absolutely essential”. The joint enterprise
between the two German Landesbanks,
Bayerische Landesbank and
Landesbank Baden-Württemberg,
makes it easier for SME companies to
enter the new market. “We support our
customers with ready-to-use offi ce
space and a comprehensive range of
advice and services,” says Managing
Director, Nadine Ulrich, explaining
her business model.
8 Germany Contact India 2 / 2010
Photo: German Centre Delhi.Gurgaon