Bosch, Klenzaids JV marks coming together of German quality systems and Indian value engineering

The joint venture between Bosch Packaging Technology and Klenzaids Contamination Controls, where the former will acquire a 49 per cent share in the latter, will complete a year this December. Viveka Roychowdhury gets an update on the integration process and a sense of the rationale behind the JV from Dr Andreas Mattern, Project manager – post merger integration of Klenzaids and Hamish Shahani, Managing Director, Klenzaids

Bosch already has a presence in India, so what was the rationale for the JV?

Speed was an important criterion for the joint venture. The Indian pharmaceutical market is growing at a very fast pace. The portfolios of Bosch and Klenzaids complement each other ideally. This enables us to service customers’ needs for cost-effective filling lines from a single source. By combining Klenzaid’s strengths in cleanroom equipment, peripherals and sterilising tunnels with Bosch’s innovative filling technology – such as the FLC 3005 vial filler series, which was developed in India — we are able to cater to the requirements of this so-called emerging market.

On a larger scale, we see high potential for joint projects and opportunities in further emerging markets, which goes well with our focus on Africa as a further growth market. Both Klenzaids and Bosch already have good references here. By strengthening our offer for cleanroom equipment, turnkey solutions and containment options, the joint venture will bring us a number of interesting new opportunities.

While the Bosch plant in Verna, Goa will continue to mainly focus on the confectionery and food equipment, Klenzaids brings another important asset into the joint venture, they already have a manufacturing set-up and a supply chain, which is tailored to the requirements of the pharma industry.

One year after the JV was announced, what is the progress on the integration front? What were the learnings from integrating a family-driven Indian company into the Bosch group?

We are extremely happy with the progress. The teams are connecting well, as they are driven by similar company cultures that emphasise a ‘customer first’ and quality mindset.

Bosch associates value the depth of knowledge and experience of their new Indian counterparts and the quality of the equipment they produce. This has generated trust and a lot of interest for joint projects, which is essential for the fast integration. On the other side, the Klenzaids colleagues also see the benefits of building a more scalable organisation, which is on the fast track to turning from a regional champion with some international outreach to a truly global player.

First successes prove that this is the reality, and not just theoretical planning. The first filling lines with licensed Bosch technology have been sold, and customer feedback on the partnership has been very positive. They see that we are now able to provide them the ‘best of both worlds.’

What is essential for a good integration? From our point of view it’s fast decisions, an open and honest communication, as well as being open for change on both sides. Bosch and Klenzaids had already worked together on joint projects in the past, so we knew each other quite well. This meant that from day one, we started with a common idea, and a high amount of mutual trust.