Harley Davidson declared Assembly Operations in India

Harley Davidson Inc, the most popular name in the world of bikes, made a crucial announcement for their business in India. The company has made the official declamation of commencing assembly operations on the Indian grounds. Harley Davidson's decision of having Indian manufacturing plant has brought the the brand closer to Indian bike enthusiast.

This is not all, the assembly units will be equipped with U.S. made component Kits. The company is expecting complete knock down (CKD) assembly offerings activated by the end of first half of 2011.

The sensational announcement by Harley Davidson Inc. can be traced back to U.S. President Barack Obama's plan to visit India. Obama has shown great interest in building up ties between two countries which include trade and economic opportunities as well.

By now the company imported all assembled bikes from its native U.S. plant. But with this unit in Haryana, the company will import the SKD kits from U.S. based plants of Harley Davidson situated in Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Missouri and will be assembled on Indian grounds.

This plant is going to be the second assembly unit by the company situated outside U.S. the first plant of this kind is in Brazil where the Company initiated its assembly operations in the year 1999.

In India, the company initiated its operations in August 2009 with the first dealership in July 2010. at present the company has 12 models in its Indian portfolio with dealerships in Chandigarh, New Delhi and Hydrabad.

Press Release:

“We are building a strong foundation for our business in India, first by establishing a world-class dealer network, and now by commencing CKD assembly operations.  It is important for us to continue to invest in strategies that make our products and experiences accessible to an increasingly broader set of customers across India,” said Anoop Prakash, Managing Director for Harley-Davidson India.

“We are delighted to announce the Company’s plans to establish assembly operations in India,” said Harley-Davidson Motor Company President and Chief Operating Officer Matthew S. Levatich.  “CKD assembly operations are a natural next step for Harley-Davidson as we increase our ability to meet the needs of India’s consumers.”

“This investment will allow Harley-Davidson to improve our market responsiveness and production flexibility while reducing the tariff burden, which we expect will drive growth over time by making our bikes more accessible to India’s consumers.  Given the strong response we have received in the initial months of retail operations, we believe this is the right investment for this important market” Levatich said.

“We are committed to global growth and growth in India for the long term,” said Levatich.  “India’s rapidly growing economy, rising middle class and significant investment in construction of new roads and highways are paving the way for leisure motorcycle riding.”