EXCLUSIVE: An inside tour of Panasonic's 76-acre Haryana plant that employs over 1,500 people

Located in Jhajjar, Haryana, Panasonic's mega manufacturing factory was set up in 2012 for the production of air conditioners, refrigerators, welding machines and washing machines. The Japanese multinational electronics corporation has completed 100 years globally and in India, offers consumer and B2B based products. Adopting the Make in India vision, the company ensures that 80 to 100 per cent of each product sold by it in the country, is produced in India. We recently visited the factory located near the Dadri Toi, the Jhajjar Model Economic Township (MET), Haryana. 

Set up with an investment of Rs 115 crore for Refrigerators, Rs 300 crore for Air conditioners and 100 crore for Washing Machines, the factory is spread across 76 acres and has a capacity of manufacturing 10,00,000 sets of ACs, 4,00,000 sets of washing machines, 25,000 sets of welding and cutting machines and 5,00,000 sets of Refrigerators. The USP of the plant is it operates on the platform of 0 per cent scrap, which means that the company does not produce any waste during manufacturing of various products. All kind of scrap is reused for producing some other component. 

Photo of a worker busy in manufacturing process of one of the component:

Manufacturing process of a good at Technopark facility, Panasonic, Jhajjar, Haryana. (Image: Zeebiz)

Saurabh Rawat, Factory Head, Technopark, Panasonic, Jhajjar told Zee Business Online that this is one of the biggest, large appliances facility in India. "We produce refrigerators, air conditioners and washing machines here. Our television manufacturing unit is situated in Noida, UP, then there are other plants which are located in middle and south of India. We are producing upload washing machines, split air conditioners (1 ton to 2 ton) and Refrigerators (270 to 345 litres)," he said. 

Photo of the staff members at the plant:

Factory Head Saurabh Rawat, along with other staff members at Technopark facility, Panasonic, Jhajjar, Haryana. (Image: Zeebiz)

Rawat revealed that almost 1,500 people are deployed at the factory, out of which 300 are engineers and staff, while around 1200 are on contract or seasonal demand basis,.

The plant exports Panasonic products to countries like South Asia- Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Nepal, Middle East- UAE, Oman, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq, Africa- Nigeria, Ghana and Ivory Coast. Rawat explained that the large appliance segment has massive socpe in India and Panasonic is working on new technologies every year. 

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''Large appliances have a huge scope of expansion in India and we are working on new technologies and latest models every year. We intend to increase plant's manufacturing capacity and exports in future. There is a scope of scalability within the plant, for next to two to three years the unit will be working in the same model. While after that we can accommodate certain B2C or B2B products too," he added.

The plant operates on the platform of energy management with energy monitoring system and has a system of 100 per cent water recycling. Even the left over food on the plates is used towards environment friendly purposes. The plant is spread over a huge area on the outskirts of Jhajjar district and each product is manufactured at the allotted segment. There are monitors that show the targets on hourly basis. There is a huge canteen for staff and all other employees that serves freshly cooked food to them.

Photo of a workers during manufacturing process:

Workers during manufacturing of Split Air conditioners at Technopark facility, Panasonic, Jhajjar, Haryana. (Image: Zeebiz)

Explaining why Panasonic selected Jhajjar as the location of manufacturing unit, Rawat explained, ''Jhajjar district of Haryana is stratigically located, 45 KM away from Airport, adjacent to big tier cities like New Delhi, Gurgaon and Manesar. Also North India is a consumer hub of large appliances, there is an availability of suitable workforce here.''

The GST council's decision to bring large appliances like refrigerators and washing machines under 18 per cent tax slab from 28 per cent, has also come as a boost for the company, explained a Panasonic Spokesperson. 

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''From a manufacturer's point of view, GST has helped to bring in efficiency for us. While from a products's perspective, all the large consumer appliances were under 28 per cent GST slab at the timne when it was implemented. It has impacted the market for last two years, but last year Refrigerators and Washing Machines were brought under 18 per cent GST slab, which helped get some pace in the overall demand in the H2FY19, and will likely to bring more pace in this FY. We recommend the authorities to bring large appliances under 12 per cent slab, keeping in mind the need and energy efficiency the new technology brings in," the Spokesperson said.

Photo of the consumer goods after processing and packaging:

Goods ready to dispatch after processing and packaging at Technopark facility, Panasonic, Jhajjar, Haryana. (Image: Zeebiz)

The brand further aims to magnify Panasonic India’s business operations by accelerating the localizing, production and sales activities to develop products that match the intrinsic local needs. 

''We have just launched our new Air Conditioner models for this year. Now we have three models overall, one is the Aero series, Advance series and Arch series (Inverter Air Conditioners) launched this year. The new Arch series is based on the comfort, health, beauty and durability models. There has been a huge growth in the Inverter Air Conditioners segment, helping in to bring more energy efficiency at a great scale,'' added the Spokesperson. 

Photo of a Split Air conditioner range of Panasonic India:

Split Air conditioner range of Panasonic India shown at Technopark facility, Panasonic, Jhajjar, Haryana. (Image: Zeebiz)

Panasonic is 100-year-old Japanese consumer goods company that manufactures products like Air conditioners, washing machines, refrigerators, mobile phones, cameras, beauty & care, home entertainment, cold chain and anchor electrical (sub-brand).