HOMAG India racing to HOMAG India 5.0
In an interview with WoodNews, Homag India Country Head and Managing Director, Venkataramana Gorti, explains his plans to expand the company’s product portfolio, some of them exclusively manufactured in India for the domestic and export markets. The technology supplier plans to grow 5X in the next 5 years, beginning 2023.
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![Homag India Country Head and Managing Director, Venkataramana Gorti]()
Homag India Country Head and Managing Director, Venkataramana Gorti
“There’s increasing demand for automation and mechanisation; greater appreciation of HOMAG’s digital business enablers. Furniture manufacturers nowadays seek real-time information and data to help them take ontime decisions.”
Venkataramana Gorti, Country Head & Managing Director, Homag India.
It’s been 5 years since you took over reins of Homag India. What trends do you see in the furniture manufacturing industry in the country?
It is very heartening that overall our furniture industry continues to grow at a CAGR of almost 12%. What is more, it is projected to grow at the same rate till the year 2028! This growth is a result of the demand upsides in the home, hospitality, commercial and office projects, as well as educational institutes and the retail industry.
Some of the trends which are very evident are that furniture manufacturers are challenged by innovative ideas of architects and interior designers in a big way.
Second, the ‘need’ for ‘business enablers’ is being translated more and more into investing in digital products and software to help in real-time information flow to facilitate decisionmaking in the manufacturing process.
There is also a marked trend to be agile and quality-conscious. This is a major shift in the furniture manufacturing sector – it will help in the acquisition of exports markets for Indians.
What is the scale of the Indian furniture manufacturing ecosystem like?
The current estimate of our Indian furniture market is about US$16 billion and is estimated to reach US$27 billion by the year 2028. Imports still play a major role in meeting the domestic demand, and our exports are still very less in comparison.
Homag is part of the ‘Make in India’ mission to make our industrial sector more globally competitive. How about ‘make locally, supply globally’?
Homag India continues to be a key cog in our global strategy roadmap. We are in the midst of a very exciting journey of enhancing our product portfolio out of our Bengaluru facility, not only to meet the domestic needs but to serve our international market demands in the near future. We are already supporting our global requirements through our ‘Global Sourcing (purchasing)’ organisation, based in Bengaluru.
What are your plans to introduce and promote solid wood processing technology in India?
We are planning to get into the solid wood processing machines from this year onwards, to complement
our panel processing solutions with straight-line rip saws, four-side planer and moulders, single-head spindle moulders, four-side moulders, and entry-level sanding machines under our Kentwood/ Ironwood product ranges.
We would be introducing five machines. We closed our first order already in 2024 for one of the machines, and are looking forward to more of them in the future.
Read the full interview WOODNews - Issue JAN - FEB 2024