Driving Domestic Innovation and Self- Reliance in Electronics Industry in India – Centre of Excellence, Noida

By Ramashish Ray

A joint initiative by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India, in partnership with the Government of Uttar Pradesh, and Industry.

To address this extremely precarious dependency on imports, India needs to upgrade its design, and R&D capabilities to be able to enhance its share in the value chain.

India has made significant strides in boosting local manufacturing and nurturing its exports in the electronics and mobile industry through initiatives like the Phased Manufacturing Programme (PMP) and the Production Linked Incentives (PLI). The implementation of these schemes has generated substantial benefits for the industry and the nation alike.In2021-22,India produced over INR 2,75,000 Cr of mobile phones and in FY 2022-23, India exceeded its targets and exported USD 11.1 billion of mobile phones.

India has now become the second- largest mobile manufacturing nation in the world. However, there is still a long way to go to enhance India’s domestic value addition to the value chain of products like mobile phones and its accessories. Currently, India only contributes a small percentage of the total value chain, with over 75% of mobile and electronics components being imported from a single country.

To address this extremely precarious dependency on imports, India needs to upgrade its design, and R&D capabilities to be able to enhance its share in the value chain.

Therefore, India Cellular & Electronics Association (ICEA) formulated strategy in 2020 for the establishment of a Centre of Excellence (CoE) for designing mobile handset accessories and other electronic products based on Li-ion cells.

Understanding the pertinence of this strategy, the Centre of Excellence was established as a joint initiative by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY), Government of India, in partnership with the Government of Uttar Pradesh, and ICEA. The project is executed by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC) in Noida and is housed in a 4000 sq. ft. facility.

The CoE has been fully operational since the start of 2023. The goals of the strategy formulated are first, to support the growth of India’s nascent Lithium Ion Cell- based devices by generating demand for these products. Secondly, begin the process of in digenisation by designing and developing a set of locally manufactured products that are less complex but have mass usage. Thirdly, to experiment with a CoE model that involves stakeholders from the Union Government (MeitY), State Government (UP), and the industry (represented by ICEA) to ensure a focused effort on product creation that leads to immediate import substitution. And, lastly, to establish clearer norms for products in this category that promote standardization and quality control.

The key products that are being developed through this initiative include Charging Systems, Wireless Power Products, Hearables, Speakers, LED Drivers, Battery Management Systems, and Power and BT/Wifi Modules besides their embedded software. These products come under the category of “Mobile Enhancements”.

The Mobile enhancements market though less complex electronically still imports 80% of its needs. And, on a conservative estimate, this category is suffering from poor import control and regulation. For example, more than 10 million chargers are sold a month but many samples are found lacking in terms of efficiency, and safety thereby leading to higher energy consumption per user and higher E-waste due to frequent breakages and changes.

Therefore, considering the market and trade conditions, the objectives of the CoE are

1- To provide requisite R&D, Design and Testing infrastructure to local industries to make India self-reliant in mobile manufacturing.

2- To seed a design hub for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the mobile handset and accessories ecosystem products based on Li-ion cells (post-cell).

3- To provide a complete cycle of design, development and commercialization of the products.

The Noida facility of the CoE provides state-of-the-art R&D equipment and a dedicated team of engineers to help manufacturers and brands design and test their products. It also has hot desks for use by MSMEs, facilities for equipment usage with safeguards, and space for brainstorming.

The in-house capabilities of the CoE include

• ECAD & MCAD designing facility 3D printer with poly jet technologies
• Analog & Digital, RF smart LAB
• EMI & EMC, ESD
• safety LAB
• PCB Mate with rapid prototyping
• Complete facility for PCB assembly and development
• Reliability chamber facility for environmental stress testing

Industry leaders such as boAt, Titan, and Flex are partnering with the CoE to accelerate their R&D processes and improve the quality of their products.

The CoE aims to establish a fully functional testing lab empanelled by BIS, develop 25 SMEs  /entrepreneurs, build the capacity of 500 candidates, provide consultancy services for 50 SMEs, offer standardization and testing support for global needs, and launch a grand challenge for 14 envisaged products.

By providing training, support, and resources, the CoE is designed to help manufacturers and brands have a smoother transition to Design in India following Make in India – reducing reliance on country-specific imports. The Centre of Excellence is thus contributing significantly to improving the overall quality of mobile accessories based on lithium- ion cells in India.

The establishment of the CoE for mobile enhancements is a significant step towards enhancing India’s contribution to the value chain of products like mobile phones. With a focus on boosting local manufacturing and nurturing exports, initiatives like these have the potential to transform India into a design and innovation hub for electronics and mobile devices

Author

Ramashish Ray serves as the CEO of the Centre of Excellence, Noida. As a global executive, he brings with him a wealth of experience in the technology industry, having held regional and global positions at companies such as Nokia, Foxconn, and Samsung.

He can be reached at: coeinfo-noida@cdac.in

Website:www.coenoida.com