Belden to Boost India Operations, Aiming for 30% Growth Rate Over Five-Year Horizon

In this interview, we’re diving into the operations of Belden Inc., a global leader in network infrastructure and digitization solutions with a legacy spanning over 120 years. Headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, and with a significant presence across continents, Belden’s commitment to innovation and quality is unwavering. A key focus is on its operations in India, highlighted by the establishment of its production facility in Pune and the strategic launch of the Bengaluru Customer Innovation Center (CIC), its second in Asia and fifth worldwide. This move underscores Belden’s commitment to fostering co-innovation and delivering cutting-edge solutions in the digital landscape. With India’s market playing a crucial role in Belden’s global strategy, we spoke with Dr. Ashish Chand, President and CEO, Belden Inc. To understand the company’s approach to leveraging local growth opportunities, its plans for expansion, and the impact of digitization across sectors.

1. Can you provide an overview of your company and its operations in India, including the role of the Bengaluru Customer Innovation Center in your strategy?

• Belden Inc. is a leading global provider of network infrastructure and digitization solutions at the forefront of simplifying, enhancing and securing the digital journey. Going beyond mere connectivity, our performance-driven portfolio, forward-thinking expertise and purpose-built solutions redefine possibilities. With over 120 years of legacy in quality and reliability, we are committed to building the future. Headquartered in St. Louis, MO, USA, our global manufacturing capabilities span North America, Europe, Asia and Africa, reinforcing our position as a trusted leader in innovative infrastructure solutions.

India continues to be an important market for us. While we have contributed to a number of key projects in the country since the early 2000s, our inaugural production facility was established in Pune in 2018; this strategic move paved the way for further growth in the region. We have continued to expand the Chakan facility with an investment of INR 330 crores.

The Bengaluru Customer Innovation Center (CIC) represents Belden’s second CIC venture in Asia and the fifth globally. Positioned as a strategic hub, this new CIC aims to facilitate co-innovation by uniting customers, partners and Belden experts to create, test and validate cutting-edge solutions that effectively address the challenges of the contemporary digital landscape. The establishment of the new CIC in Bengaluru serves as a significant step in fortifying Belden’s dedication to delivering state-of-the-art solutions across automation and smart infrastructure. The Bengaluru CIC is designed to prioritize key business goals such as innovation, customization and digitization, aligning with Belden’s strategic focus.

2. How does Belden plan to leverage the potential of the Indian market, and how is the Bengaluru Customer Innovation Center aligned with this strategic approach?

• India holds significant importance as a market for Belden, given the substantial surge in investment across various sectors in the region. There has been a remarkable increase in investments for infrastructure projects in rail transit, roads, airports, seaports, power transmission & distribution and data centers. Belden has strategically focused its efforts on these sectors due to the intricate network and data integration technologies required to manage such facilities effectively.

Currently, Belden’s operations in India contribute to 3-4 percent of the company’s global revenue. The country has displayed an impressive annual growth rate exceeding 30 percent, surpassing the global average. With the establishment of the Bengaluru CIC and other forthcoming expansion plans, Belden expects to sustain growth in India with a growth rate of around 30 percent over the next five years.

Customers in India represent a diverse array of industries, including transportation, power distribution, seaports and airports. Given the complexity of each of these markets, Belden’s CICs provide the setting to exchange ideas and foster collaboration to tailor specific solutions that meet the unique requirements of the region’s diverse customer base.

3. Could you share insights into Belden’s future expansion plans and initiatives in the Indian market, particularly in light of the Bengaluru Customer Innovation Center opening?

• The Bengaluru Customer Innovation Center signifies a pivotal step in Belden’s global expansion initiatives. The company is excited about the prospect of collaborating with emerging industry leaders and is well-prepared to support our newly acquired customer base. Belden’s primary focus is to delve into co-innovation possibilities and engage in collaborative solution development with our partners.

As the fifth of our global CICs, the Bengaluru site and Indian market will benefit from the experience and capabilities we’ve built thus far in network and data solutions for smart infrastructure and automation. Global collaboration across our sites, teams and technology enable us to swiftly bring these learnings to local partners and customers through training and education.

Lastly, our key focus in the next 12-18 months is to strengthen and scale up our talent, aligning with substantial investments in manufacturing capacity improvement in the region.

4. What are the key drivers behind the increasing trend of digitization in various sectors, and how does digitalization enhance organizational agility and foster innovation?

• The rising trend of digitization in various sectors is fueled by factors like technological advancements and the potential for improved agility and innovation. Advances in digital technologies such as AI, machine learning, cloud computing and IoT offer opportunities for streamlining processes and gaining insights from data. Meeting consumer expectations for seamless digital experiences is crucial, and organizations investing in digitization enhance customer satisfaction. Digital tools enable global connectivity, faster communication, and data-driven decision-making, contributing to efficiency and reduced operational costs. Embracing digital transformation allows companies to stay competitive, respond to market changes, and comply with evolving regulatory standards. Digitalization fosters innovation, empowering organizations to create new products and business models. Overall, leveraging digital technologies enhances organizational flexibility, responsiveness and innovation for sustained growth in the digital age.

5. What challenges do companies commonly face during their digitalization efforts, and how can these challenges be addressed?

• Belden is positioned to win in an ever-changing environment by delivering exactly what our customers expect from our brand – solutions customized for their unique challenges. We are the only company positioned to handle the four aspects of data: acquisition, transmission, orchestration and management.
• This is important. In order for a facility to be safer, more efficient, more productive and support the needs of employees and customers, all four of these must be present to design and implement a network that can collect, translate and make use of the data to make business decisions. This includes automation of processes, visibility into key areas of operation, enhanced quality control, reduced downtime and greater access to information.
• Our vast portfolio of network and connectivity products lays the foundation for data solutions upon which our teams of solutions specialists and ecosystem partners build the network that helps customers reach their goals. Belden has also developed an innovative edge orchestration platform, Belden Horizon, that expands the boundaries of what’s possible in a truly connected network. Finally, Belden works in all of the spaces required for successful network deployment – automation, data solutions, smart buildings and broadband. We bring this expertise together in a way that others cannot.

6. In what ways does data transformation contribute to achieving better insights and analytics within an organization, and how is it relevant to the broader digitalization landscape?

• Data transformation is essential for enhancing insights and analytics within organizations and is integral to the broader digitalization landscape. It involves connecting what we call “islands of automation” – disparate machines and systems operating in isolation. We work to connect these islands and enable the combination of diverse data sources, so they can be cleansed, standardized and analyzed to enrich insights. Additionally, this allows standardized data formats for easier comparison, condenses information for efficient analysis of large datasets and ensures interoperability with analytics tools. It enforces data governance policies, enables real-time insights and prepares data for machine learning applications. Transformation optimizes data storage, improving performance and cost efficiency. In the context of digitalization, it plays a fundamental role in leveraging technology to support data-driven and agile operations, particularly as businesses increasingly embrace digital transformation.