The Madurai-based Arya Vaidya Nilayam (AVN), the ayurveda treatment and drug-manufacturing firm, is trying to foray the Middle East market with a network of treatment centres under the brand 'AVN Middle East'.

Established in 1930, Arya Vaidya Nilayam (AVN), a professionally managed ayurvedic institution engaged in the manufacture and marketing of quality ayurvedic medicines and in rendering traditional ayurvedic treatments has announced its entry into the Bahrain market envisaging a spread out over the other countries in the Middle East. The company recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Bahrain based East West Group for its ME operations.

AVN is planning to take off the operations by launching two centres at Bahrain for the royal family, within December 2006, according to sources close to the development. The plans are to set up six clinics in UAE in the first phase, along with fixing up a target of 20 clinics in the first year of operations in various parts of the ME nations.

The company is in the final stage works to commence the two centres. The the experts for the treatment clinics has been appointed. All the basic requirements are facilitated by the East West Group itself, said sources.

While the trend on setting up marketing tie ups for ayurveda products as health supplements is in the peak, the company is trying to be different with entering the market with treatment clinics, where the products will be served from the company's manufacturing plant at Tamil Nadu, commented these sources. The company eyes on the large number of Non Residential Indians (NRI) to establish the market and the works will gradually turn to take the natives into confidence soon, they added.

AVN, started as a clinic in Madurai for manufacturing the necessary medicines, envisages introduction of more products in the market in the coming years. "The company is trying to blend traditional knowledge of ayurveda with the modern scientific techniques of treatment," Dr. Ramesh R Varier, MD, AVN Group said.

The company is carrying an expansion project in manufacturing, R&D, marketing and treatment facilities at an investment of Rs 10crore, as the part of upgradation of manufacturing facility. Exporting medicines to ME nations as the part of its projects with the new division calls for a state of the art manufacturing facility, added Ramesh.

The company is on the final stage of works in doubling its manufacturing capacity, focusing on basic extraction and processing methods, to increase its production strength and to improve the quality of packing. The manufacturing unit is under expansion with an expected investment of Rs Two crore. The monthly production of the company will go up from the current level of Rs One crore to Rs 1.75crore with the expansion, according to the company sources.