News from the Indian IT worldTransnational companies have recognized India's capability and potential as an important hub for global e-business solutions and as a source for innovative ideas.

“Over the next three to four years, we want to help create up to 100 dotcom companies in India, each with a market cap of around $10 billion,” said Lionel Lim, Sun's VP and MD (Asia South). “That is, perhaps, the biggest investment we can make in this country,” he added.

Sun, he said, planned to push the Net economy in India much the same way it had done in Singapore a few years ago. Primarily, it would be through offering its technical expertise and incubation funds. It has already started an incubation program with ICICI. Besides, it is working with DoE (Department of Electronics), LG (for developing appliances) and Price Waterhouse Coopers.

The company has other plans for greater presence in India. It has evolved a three-pronged strategy- -to increase the number of people working at its engineering center in Bangalore to 500 in 12 months from around 100 at present; to open new offices; and to expand its Java pool program to help engineers develop network-centric program and devices.

Networking giant Cisco Systems Inc said that it would invest $150 million to expand its technology development center in India over the next two years.

“This will be Cisco's second-largest research and development (R&D) facility globally and the largest outside the U.S.,” Jayshree Ullal, Cisco's vice president and General Manager, Enterprise Line of Business, told a news conference in the southern Indian city of Bangalore.

“This center will play a strategic role in Cisco's ability to rapidly develop technologies...and quickly deploy solutions and products that customers are demanding,” she said. Cisco officials said the investment was part of the firm's strategy to tap the rapid business growth in the Asia Pacific region.

Close on the heels of making India its accounting headquarters, the US-based auto giant Ford Motor Company (FMC) in now working towards making India the IT hub for its global operations.

"Ford will set up a software development center in India by January next year for its future e-business solutions," said the company's director (IT) Asia Pacific and South Africa John Larson.

FMC has decided to infuse $3 to $5 million over the next six-18 months into the IT venture, said Larson. This can go up to $30-$50 million per annum. “We have already started getting the IT work from other manufacturing bases to India”, said Larson. The company is in the process of finalizing the modalities of the venture, which is likely to be floated as a separate company.

“India would play a major role in Ford's global strategies and it would be the pilot for our new e-business solutions,” said Larson, adding that the company had tested some new IT solutions in the country before their global launch.

“Covisint has been floated as a joint initiative between Ford, General Motors and Daimler-Chrysler for common purchases on the Net. Since all the three partners already have manufacturing bases in India, we are looking at setting up an exclusive exchange for us. At a later stage, we will also look at including other automobile manufacturers into the system,” Larson said.

The three partners are merging their respective current exchanges under Covisint. The exchange will help in online purchasing, price comparison and configuration.

Larson said Ford was also planning to set up call centers in the country to do back-office processing work on the lines of General Electric (GE).

Oracle has drawn up huge plans for India. On the drawing board are plans to set up an off-site consulting center for providing a virtual consulting resource for Oracle worldwide. Oracle has also started an initiative in India to focus on incubation for evaluating start-ups

According to Gary Bloom, Oracle's executive vice-president who also looks after the company's venture capital operations, India has a lot of small technology companies that have good ideas. He says, “There is a lot of incubation happening in India and we want to focus on that. The board has authorized us $500 million for global investments and we haven't allocated any sum to any location. If we find $200 million of great investments in India, we'll invest $200 million. But there are no allocations by geographical regions.”

Oracle Consulting has plans to set up an extension of its
e-business studio at Hyderabad, which will provide virtual
consulting capability and knowledge to all Oracle clients
worldwide. "At this point of time, we might start off with just
100 people. But, over time, I see that growing to over 1,000
people," said Oracle executive vice-president Edward Sanderson.
Oracle already has global software development centers in
Bangalore and Hyderabad.

Leading U.S. multinational General Electric (GE), is investing approximately $130 million (over a three year period) in the multi-disciplinary John F. Welch Technology Center in Bangalore, the largest R&D center of its kind in the GE family outside of the U.S.

The Center, which was built in a record 10 months, was inaugurated by John F. Welch Jr., chairman and chief executive officer, GE. It incorporates the latest technology and e-engineering tools that facilitate real-time global interaction with GE's customers, suppliers, businesses and technology centers, including its U.S. lab in Schenectady, New York.

The Technology Center will eventually employ 2,200 scientists and engineers who will work in the areas of advanced chemistry, polymer science and new synthetic materials, chemical engineering, advanced Six Sigma and process modelling/simulation, mechanical engineering, electronic and electrical system technology, ceramics and metallurgy, information technology and e-business.

GE's e-knowledge center, which is fully integrated with the facility, will access and disseminate knowledge globally to accelerate competitive technology developments for the benefit of GE's customers.