With growing demand for electronic goods in India, imports are rising at a steep rate, annually. Only components for such goods as smartphones are imported and assembled here. However, Make in India initiative by the government is implementing a number of projects for the economic development of the country. One of the major consequences is that we are witnessing a new era in the field of manufacturing hi-tech electronic products.
Coconics, derived from the words coconut and electronics, is a new public-private original equipment manufacturer (OEM)/original design manufacturer (ODM) that launched its first range of laptops in February at Electronics Manufacturing Summit 2019. The event was organised by Manufacturers’ Association for Information Technology (MAIT) in Delhi. The company has been set up in Kerala by US-based technology firm UST Global, state-run Keltron, Kerala State Industrial Development Corp. (KSIDC) and Acceleron Labs (an Intel India Maker Lab accelerated startup) with the support and technical assistance of Intel to manufacture IT products in India.
The company was incorporated on October 22, 2018, and the manufacturing began by December 2018. Features of the components to develop the laptops were customised for Indian users. The high-tech manufacturing plant, set up on Keltron campus in Manvila Industrial Estate on the outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram, has a capacity to manufacture 250,000 laptops every year. The logo of the project was rolled out in public-private partnership (PPP) mode and released by state Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. Expenditure for setting up the venture amounted to ₹ 300 million.
The initial range of products includes three laptop models, namely, CC11B, CC11A and C314A. All of these come with pre-installed Windows 10 operating system and are powered by Intel processors. These are offered in four signature colours to choose from. Features like glare and drop resistance have been added to enhance user experience. Laptops are competitively-priced depending on the demand the company has received from interested organisations and educational institutions.
CC11B is a two-in-one tablet-cum-notebook featuring 27.9cm (11-inch) full-HD resolution with a sleek body, metallic casing and trendy look. It has an Intel Celeron N3350 processor coupled with 4GB DDR4 (Double Data Rate 4) RAM and 32GB eMMC (embedded multimedia card) storage. It features USB Type-C connectivity and a long battery backup of up to eight hours. The laptop is aimed at frequent travellers.
CC11A is a slim and lightweight notebook with 27.9cm (11-inch) HD display and Intel Celeron N4000 inside. It has 2GB DDR3 RAM and 64GB eMMC storage. Its trendy look is accompanied by a battery back-up of eight hours. It is specifically designed for students in educational institutions.
C314A is a rugged and water-resistant model that sports 35.6cm (14-inch) HD display. It has Intel i3 7I00U processor with 4GB DDR3 RAM and 500GB HDD. It comes with drop and spill resistance features. Designing is done according to the needs of the enterprise market.
The launch is just a baby step in the field of manufacturing of electronic goods, which is still in its infancy in the country. Although, the laptops from Coconics are aimed at government, enterprise and education markets currently, these will be launched in the public market later. With the right resources, these have the potential to cater to the global demand for producing high-quality products. The goal of India to become an electronics export giant is not too far away if the manufacturing ecosystem keeps strengthening at this pace.
