Lenovo unveils PMA-compliant PCs with made-in-India motherboards, expands manufacturing presence

Lenovo, the second-largest PC manufacturer in India, introduced PMA-compliant PCs on Friday, equipped with motherboards made in India. Saurabh Agrawal, Lenovo India's chief operating officer, highlighted this as a significant leap in bolstering and broadening the company's manufacturing presence within the country.

Agrawal shared that Lenovo now meets the criteria for the Class 1 PMA category, with over 50% of components sourced through local manufacturing for a specific range of products. Emphasising the importance of localisation in achieving Class 1 PMA status, he expressed the company's successful attainment of this objective.

This development closely follows the recent establishment of Lenovo's shared support centre in Bengaluru earlier in August. The company plans to invest in local research and development, aiming to foster job creation within India.

The Pondicherry plant currently operates at almost half of its annual manufacturing capacity of 1.4 million units. Presently, it produces approximately 4,500 units per day across three shifts, encompassing 15 different models, including the latest V15 and Thinkbook15.

The Class 1 PMA (Preferential Market Access) category refers to a classification system under the government's preferential market access policy in India. This categorisation denotes the highest level of compliance with the policy's guidelines for procuring goods or services from domestically manufactured products.

For a product to qualify as Class 1 PMA, it needs to meet specific criteria set by the government regarding the extent of local manufacturing and sourcing of components. Typically, it requires a higher percentage of components to be sourced locally, often over 50%, and manufactured within the country to qualify for this top tier.

Being classified as Class 1 PMA enhances the eligibility of a product or company to participate in government procurement processes, especially for tenders where preference is given to domestically manufactured goods. It signifies a significant level of localisation and compliance with the government's initiative to promote and prioritise products made within the country.

What is the Production Linked Incentive Scheme (PLI)?

The PLI Scheme, short for the Production Linked Incentive Scheme, is an initiative introduced by the Government of India. Its primary goal is not only to entice foreign companies to seek a workforce within the country, thereby fostering employment but also to stimulate local production for the creation of smaller job opportunities.

Earlier this month, the government announced that 27 companies, such as Dell, HP, and Foxconn, received approval under the new production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for IT hardware.

This move aligns with India's efforts to attract IT hardware entities by offering policy benefits and incentive packages, aiming to firmly establish itself as a global centre for cutting-edge manufacturing. Ashwini Vaishnaw, Minister for Electronics and IT, expressed, "I am pleased to announce the approval of 27 companies under the PLI IT hardware scheme. Approximately 95 per cent of these... 23 companies are poised to commence manufacturing from day one."

He further added, "This positions us to become a big player in the manufacturing of PCs, servers, laptops, and tablets."

Also Read 27 companies including Dell, Foxconn, HP, Lenovo cleared for PLI; Rs 3,000 crore and over 50,000 jobs expected: Ashwini Vaishnaw