India’s forging sector, now the world’s second‑largest after China, is set to become a preferred destination for automakers looking to diversify their supply chains under the China Plus One strategy.
At the AIFI conference in Pune on September 15, BMW’s Chennai plant MD Thomas Dose highlighted India’s engineering talent and domestic market as key reasons why manufacturers should consider the country as a ‘plus one’ partner.
The theme, ‘New Development Trends – Impact on Forging Industry’, spurred debate over technology, automation and rising input costs that threaten productivity, yet also presented a clear upside: automakers can tap into suppliers that add engineering and product‑development capabilities, not just parts.
Yash Munot, president of AIFI and CEO of Varsha Forgings, warned that to reap the benefits of global realignments, Indian forging firms must boost their competitiveness through technology adoption, workforce development and sustainability practices—areas that directly affect delivery times and cost certainty for carmakers.
For buyers, the upside is clear: a stronger, technologically equipped forging base in India means more domestic parts, tighter lead times and a buffer against geopolitical risk—an important consideration as automakers shift away from single‑source Chinese suppliers.
The conference underscored that the forging industry’s evolution will unfold over the next few years, with automakers likely to place larger orders for high‑strength forged components that meet stricter emission and safety standards.