The company, which is known for its expertise in for outdoor power equipment, exhibited its range of solutions for the Indian agriculture sector at the recently concluded India Foodex 2012 at Bengaluru.
The company made a concerted effort to tap the opportunities in India after their recent acquisition of Premier Power Products in Coimbatore.
For the Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based Briggs & Stratton Corporation, its presence at the important agri-trade event demonstrates the increasing importance of the Indian potential in general and in particular the Indian light agricultural market. The acquisition of Premier also highlights the importance of a wider global presence for Briggs outside the traditional lawn and garden markets in the US and Europe.
The company is known for high performance and reliability of engines and equipment. It already has some varied experiences in Indian market, but the recent acquisition of Premier Power Products indicates its efforts to storm into the Indian agricultural market. "We hope support the Indian farmer in his drive for mechanisation and productivity in the face of labour shortages. Premier's innovative ranges of products including the Mini Weeder, Power Tillers and the Paddy Weeder have all been developed in collaboration with the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University in Coimbatore. This important partnership will continue to help Indian farmers to develop farms for the future," said Roger Jann, managing director, Briggs & Stratton (Europe, Middle East and African region), who was here in Bengaluru.
One of India's great challenges in the next 50 years will be a transformation in the efficiency of its agricultural sector to support the growth of rapid urban development, as the global economy opens up for the Indian entrepreneur. India will need more food. But with significantly less manual labour and more productivity, we are committed to bringing its power, performance and reliability to our Indian customers, he added.
Briggs is planning to strengthen through targeted recruitment for their Indian operation from its current base of around 100 employees. They also plan to expand the factory at Coimbatore to support the new levels of demand. It will focus on developing new products in the harvesting and the ride-on field preparation markets and stay in constant touch with research institutes to produce and develop new products and solutions for the farming community.
In addition, Briggs & Stratton will be working on alternative fuel sources to power the engines like LPG and diesel. They are also working to identify the right products for the Indian market.
