Walton to export refrigerators
Saturday, 21 March 2009
Bangladesh is going to emerge as a refrigerator exporting country in the world market, reports UNB.
According to industry sources, Walton, a local firm, has started manufacturing world-class refrigerators in its high-tech plant in Gazipur, 40 kilometres off the capital.
Walton officials claim they can produce about 2,000 units of refrigerators a day. Even production could be enhanced to three-times as well if there is a market demand.
The Walton High-Tech Industry had set up a composite manufacturing plant a few years back to produce refrigerators and some other electronic goods in the country.
The country's annual demand for refrigerator is about 500,000 units. The demand is growing with the rapid growth of urbanization and also the increasing purchase power of the rural people.
Such growing demand has prompted the Walton management to set up their manufacturing plant near the capital city.
However, the growing demand in the neighbouring countries was another reason to opt for setting up such a venture in the country.
In the Walton plant, all the backward linkage accessories are also being produced to support the main product. It contains other facilities for die, mould, sheet processing, power press, powder cooking, injection moulding, pure-foaming, thermo-foaming, gasket making and packaging.
Several thousand workers are engaged in the manufacturing plant.
Walton officials claim that cost of their manufactured refrigerators is 20-30 percent lower compared to imported ones.
They said at present, local traders are importing refrigerators mainly from China, India, Thailand and Malaysia. But those products are not up to the mark.
"But our products are world-class and we can assure their life-span is more than the imported ones," said Walton director Emdadul Haque.
"We're manufacturing our products as conducive to our own environment," he added.
Haque said although the main consumers of Walton fridge are local people, but "export is also our target as this product is more competitive."
He said they would move to world market soon as many foreign buyers are showing huge interest because of the competitive price of Walton products with world-standard.
According to industry sources, Walton, a local firm, has started manufacturing world-class refrigerators in its high-tech plant in Gazipur, 40 kilometres off the capital.
Walton officials claim they can produce about 2,000 units of refrigerators a day. Even production could be enhanced to three-times as well if there is a market demand.
The Walton High-Tech Industry had set up a composite manufacturing plant a few years back to produce refrigerators and some other electronic goods in the country.
The country's annual demand for refrigerator is about 500,000 units. The demand is growing with the rapid growth of urbanization and also the increasing purchase power of the rural people.
Such growing demand has prompted the Walton management to set up their manufacturing plant near the capital city.
However, the growing demand in the neighbouring countries was another reason to opt for setting up such a venture in the country.
In the Walton plant, all the backward linkage accessories are also being produced to support the main product. It contains other facilities for die, mould, sheet processing, power press, powder cooking, injection moulding, pure-foaming, thermo-foaming, gasket making and packaging.
Several thousand workers are engaged in the manufacturing plant.
Walton officials claim that cost of their manufactured refrigerators is 20-30 percent lower compared to imported ones.
They said at present, local traders are importing refrigerators mainly from China, India, Thailand and Malaysia. But those products are not up to the mark.
"But our products are world-class and we can assure their life-span is more than the imported ones," said Walton director Emdadul Haque.
"We're manufacturing our products as conducive to our own environment," he added.
Haque said although the main consumers of Walton fridge are local people, but "export is also our target as this product is more competitive."
He said they would move to world market soon as many foreign buyers are showing huge interest because of the competitive price of Walton products with world-standard.