Sartorius, a bio-process, lab equipment and weighing scales major has invested Rs 45 crore (Euros 5 million) to set up a full-fledged facility including a R&D and production plant at Neelamangala the outskirts of Bangalore. It is equipped with an advanced research lab, manufacture, clean room and training centre.

Dr Joachim Kreuzburg, CEO Sartorius Group, who was in India to inaugurate the new plant said that India is a recognized as a strategic hub in the Asia Pacific region. Country's knowledge resource and pharma-biotech infrastructure are the key attractions for global players to augment their investments here.

"India offers a huge talent pool. We have established a clear cut road map to chart our future business efforts for the Asia-Pac region from here. This country is on our radar for growth initiatives and is already a strategic location for us," Dr Kreuzburg said.

Sartorius which has a presence in India for over two-decades has been extensively catering to the lab and bio-process engineering customer requirements. The Bangalore plant was engaged in the development and production of bio-reactors, fermenters, lab equipment for bio-pharma companies and weighing scales for life sciences and industrial applications.
At the new site, the company has combined its five decentralized individual locations in Bangalore into a single location to create new capacity. From bulk drugs to formulation research and manufacture, Sartorius can offer a value chain in engineering services and validation. This has helped the Indian operations to play a pivotal role in terms of revenues.

Indian operations have the second largest personnel which is around 500. The Group across its global sites has a total of 2,200 staff. The team in India not only has an excellent basic technical education, but they also have a good grasp of the knowledge and experience in the various industries for different business processes. "Therefore, we have turned the spotlight to India which is now our base to increase our presence in the Asia-Pacific region. From here, we have already started tapping Korea and Taiwan markets which are regions known for the huge state-of the art bio-manufacturing plants that need Sartorius products," said Dr Kreuzburg.

This is an age of disposable technologies. Sartorius already has a vast range of disposable technologies for the production and research labs. The new facility will see business expansion here to the tune of 30 to 40 per cent in future which will include a range of products of the future, said Amit Chatterjee, managing director, Sartorius India Group.

In 2008, Sartorius Group earned sales revenue to the tune of Euros 611.6 million. The India operations registered a turnover of Rs 160 crore.