MAXSOFT TO SET UP 3 NEW UNITS FOR AUTO, AEROSPACE APPLICATIONS

Peerzada Abrar, Bangalore, August 4, 2008
The Economic Times (Bangalore edition)

Computer-aided engineering solutions provider Maxsoft will soon open three new business units to develop cutting-edge technologies for the automotive and aerospace sectors and tap venture capital funding for its expansion, Rajeev Gopalakrishnan, company chief executive, said.

The business units, to be based in Bangalore and expected to be operational by October, will include a centre for the modelling and simulation of fuel cells, one to design vehicle antennas and a diagnostic lab for analysis of automotive prototypes, Gopalakrishnan said.

Maxsoft is aiming for revenues of Rs 75-85 crore from the new units in about three years and expects top Indian and global automotive and aerospace companies as customers for its solutions.

The diagnostic lab is being established in collaboration with Germany’s Softing, which develops hardware and software for industrial automation and automotive electronics. Another German company, IMST, is the partner for the antenna design unit for vehicle-tovehicle communication to help in situations such as traffic jams or accidents, Gopalakrishnan said.

Maxsoft will invest $5-10 million to acquire an engineering software products firm in Eastern Europe in about a year and plans to raise about Rs 40 crore as venture capital to fund the planned buy and its technology development programme, Gopalakrishnan said. Offices in Poland, the US and the Philippines are also on the cards.

The Bangalore-based company employs some 60 staff, most of them engineers, and plans to raise headcount to 100 by the end of 2009. Last year, on completion of its third fiscal, it had orders worth Rs 5.8 crore and expects orders valued at Rs 9 crore in 2008-2009.