ABB net profit falls 22 pc

The new company is called ABB Alsthom Power India Ltd, he said. The earnings were negatively affected by the cost of restructuring, rationalisation of the work force, he said adding staff downsizing by 450 employees had cost about Rs 20 crore.

Higher depreciation charges and other associated costs of the start up of new transformer operations also negatively impacted the level of earnings, but were compensated by the reduction in productivity factors,he said.

Efforts to increase revenues through reduced cycle times has resulted in invoicing the orders recieved during 1999 in the same year, he added.

ABB, with an order book position of Rs 420 crore last year-end, was targeting at least 20 per cent growth in revenues and net profit in the next three years by increased orders, Kaura said.

As part of efforts to enhance the competitiveness, the company was in the final stages of implementaiton of SAP-based enterprise resource planning ERP solution connecting all the factories and marketing offices across the country.

The new ABB sans power business would refocus on expanding knowledge and service based businesses in a bid to provide integrated customer solutions in its present businesses including power transmission, distribution, automation, oil, gas and petrochem and building materials, Kaura said.

The company also aims to be a hi-tech service providerfor the now globally connected market place, which requires forseeing customer needs andmaking them more competitive in their operations, he added.

The specific focus for top line growth in the areas ofservice business, exports and new products in transmission and distribution, he said.

With the additional portfolio from elsag bailey8217;soperations acquired by abb8217;s swiss parent in early 1999, the company is in a position ot cater to industrial infotech solutions in automation covering a wide spectrum of applications and industries, he added.