Construction equipment firm Sandvik Asia plans to make significant investments in India, including in its research and development (R&D) centre over the next two years.

   Olof Faxander, President and CEO of the firm said the company will also source components from India for export to its other plants globally.

   

It may be recalled that the firm aims to produce equipments that are suitable for the Indian construction and mining sector from its proposed plant in Pune.

   

The firm bought 50 acre land at Chakan near Pune to set up a new unit for the purpose and it expect the unit to be operational by 2015.

   

The investment on the proposed plant is part of its strategy to focus on the construction and mining sector that has been identified as a major growth area.

   

Sandvik has launched a new surface rock drill that has been designed and manufactured in India from components sourced locally, and also plans to design and make products for the domestic construction and mining sector, Faxander said.

   

The company expects that supplying equipments to India's construction and mining sector would make significant contribution to its top line and would become the largest business area in Sandvik.