The Delhi-based Agilent Technologies, one of the world's top companies providing core electronic measurement and bioanalytical solutions, is targeting small and medium companies in the pharma, food processing and environmental related industries, in India.

The company intends to garner a quarter of the business from SME sector worldwide of which a large chunk comes from India. The process began in Nov 2007 with the launch of 1120 Compact LC at Analytica Anacon and now within a short span of 15 months and a huge success with 1120LC, Agilent has launched its new 7820 GC, designed specifically for the mid range & academia markets in India, neighbouring Asian countries, Latin American and certain European geographies.

The product can be used to test volatile and semi-volatile components in pharma substances, speciality chemicals, environmental and food & flavour segments. India is a strategic destination for Agilent and it has strong plans to expand its country operations. The green field campus at Manesar, Agilent has invested $35 million and is nearing completion. The Centre of Excellence (COOE) & Application Lab in Bangalore which was inaugurated in 2007 is completely operational now and catering to customers across the industry. The COE in Bangalore showcases its complete life science related technology offerings and also serves as a training & demo centre for customers in India.

The company's products fit in with the Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) & complies with all Regulatory norms and is hence being used by Indian start-ups seeking GMP certification or Regulatory approval for their facilities.

"We see a huge market for our products tailored for Indian customer needs who would like to have a market leading brand in their lab but often have to curtail their buying needs due to financial constraints. There are also several labs doing routine sample analysis and need a simple and easy to use product as in many places getting a highly trained analysts is a challenge," said Sanjeev Dhar, country head, Sales, Life Sciences and Chemical Analysis division, Agilent Technologies.