Volkswagen Taigun was responsible for half of VW brand’s growth in October 2021

The Indian offshoot of the German carmaker, Volkswagen Passenger Cars India, recently announced that the Taigun SUV was responsible for half of its growth in October. This is based on VW’s overall year-on-year sales figures. The company received more than 18,000 pre-orders for the Taigun, which is now sold out for the rest of 2021. According to Volkswagen, both trim levels, Dynamic Line and Performance Line were equally in demand. The rush of customers resulted in delivery times of over two months after placing an order, but is dependent on the trim chosen. The Taigun is the first model based on the MQB A0 IN platform, which has been specially developed or adapted for the Indian market. Based on this, a sedan the size of the Virtus will also be launched soon, VW says. The comparable model to the Taigun in Europe is the T-Cross. The Virtus is based on the hatchback version of the Polo VI, which in turn is only built and sold in Brazil. Like other models from the automotive sector, many components for the production of the Taigun are subject to AIS- and/or BIS-certification, which is mandatory in order for them to be approved for the Indian market.

The price of the Taigun in India starts at the equivalent of 13,965 US dollars. Two engine variants are offered: a 1.0-litre TSI three-cylinder petrol engine with 115 hp and 175 Nm of torque, mated to a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic transmission. Also available is a 1.5-litre four-cylinder TSI petrol engine with 148 hp and 250 Nm of torque, mated to a six-speed manual or seven-speed DSG automatic transmission.

Cars and two-wheelers and their components have to be certified under the AIS guidelines in India. AIS stands for Automotive Industry Standards, the technical automotive standards for India. MPR International GmbH – India Certification will be happy to support you with AIS certification and is also available to answer any questions you may have.

AIS stands for Automotive Industry Standards, the technical automotive standards for India, while TAC stands for Type Approval Certificate. This kind of automotive product certifiation is conducted by authorities like the International Center for Automotive Technology (iCAT).

Depending on the product category, there are different certification steps. We will be happy to advise you on certification in India like AIS, BIS, WPC, TEC or PESO and are always available to answer your questions.

Please do not hesitate to contact us for further details and consultation. You can contact us via e-mail, or call us (UK: +44 2071931135, Rest of Europe: +49 69 2713769261, US: +1 773 654-2673).

If you have any questions you can also use our chat-window in the bottom right. (Please check your browser settings if you can’t see the window)

You can also check out our free AIS-Brochure, which can be downloaded right here as a PDF file.

Indian Authorities Closed During New Year

Several Indian authorities and certification institutions will be closed for the New Year Holidays.
The New Year holidays will be on January 01, 2022. This year, the New Year’s Eve falls on a weekend, so the authorities will resume their work from January 03, 2022.
Additionally, iCAT  will also be closed in the days around Christmas, from December 23 – 25, 2021.
Due to the closing delays in the certification process may occur.

MPR International GmbH will continue to support you in your certification processes. If you would like to have products checked for AIS-, BIS-, PESO- or other certifications, you can call or email us any time.
Please do not hesitate to contact us for further details and consultation. You can contact us via e-mail, or call us (UK: +44 2071931135, Rest of Europe: +49 69 2713769261, US: +1 773 654-2673).
If you have any questions you can also use our chat-window in the bottom right. (Please check your browser settings if you can’t see the window)
MPR International GmbH wishes you a succesfull New Year 2022!

Successful Conclusion of 2021

The MPR Group looks back on an extremely successful 2021, even with the ongoing Covid-19 challenges. Many of our clients had to deal with delivery bottlenecks, high shipping costs and material shortages. Looking back, we can say that our clients overcame these hurdles very professionally and were still able to complete all projects successfully. Thanks to our clients and our motivated staff working hand in hand, there were no critical delays in our certification projects.

Our direct contacts within the certification authorities and testing laboratories in Asia have allowed us to continue to offer expedited services and certification completions comparable to pre-pandemic times. The pandemic changed the certification process due to travel restrictions, temporary shutdowns and customs delays. Fortunately, we were able to work with our clients, the test labs and the certification authorities to adapt and coordinate alternative methods and processes to meet our clients’ crucial deadlines. In many cases, the factory audits were carried out remotely and the exchange of information with the test laboratories was adjusted accordingly.

From the beginning of the pandemic MPR Group hired additional staff, invested in IT infrastructure, implemented remote work from home and mapped out alternative plans to optimize capacities for the additional workload of the new processes of certifications.  The planning paid off and allowed us to offer our clients the efficient, seamless process they have come to expect from us. The consistent switch to working from home and the implementation of technical systems required for this were implemented very quickly and has proven successful. All certification projects are accompanied by an individual contact person who is replaced by a permanent representative in case of absence. This guarantees our clients continuous availability and a consistently high quality of service.

We are very happy that in the end we did not get into the situation of having to carry out any substitutions due to illness, and that our masking, safe-distance and hygiene measures worked well, and we did not have a single Covid-19 infection transmitted among colleagues during the entire pandemic.
In the meantime, our employees were able to take advantage of the vaccination and everyone in our offices is fully vaccinated or recovered from Covid-19.

The MPR Group wishes all employees, clients, family and suppliers a relaxing holiday season and a great start into the new year!

Sales of smartphones and electronics up 15 to 20 per cent between October and November

Sales of smartphones and electronic items grew between 15 and 20 per cent year-on-year during the period from early October to the Diwali festival in early November. Medium- and high-priced goods were most in demand, with prices rising due to high popularity. Retailers and malls saw higher sales of apparel and lifestyle products than before the 2019 pandemic outbreak. Electronic products and smartphones could have achieved even better sales figures if companies’ supply volumes had not been restricted. Still, single-digit growth was reported over last year’s record growth, writes the Economic Times of India. Consumer sentiment during the festive season is at a high, said Deepak Bansal, vice president of LG Electronics India. Smartphones and similar electronic items often require components imported from abroad for their production. Most of these components require BIS certification, and in the wireless sector often also WPC ETA certification, in order to be used in India.

LG and Samsung expanded their sales by 20 per cent year-on-year during the holidays. Smartphone maker Realme managed to sell 40 per cent more device and the average selling price increased by 11 per cent. This suggests increased purchases of high-end products. Panasonic’s sales figures even rose by 42 percent. All notable brands or manufacturers, including Samsung, Apple, LG, Xiaomi and Bosch suffered from supply problems during the holidays due to shortages of semiconductors and other components because of supply chain disruptions. The industry continues to expect consumer sentiment to remain strong. This is due to the start of the wedding season this year with some auspicious dates in November and a steady increase in visitors to shopping malls, it said.
Electronic components or finished electronic devices need BIS certification to import them into India or bring them to the market. Depending on the product, a distinction is made between BIS-ISI or BIS-CRS certification. As the product list is constantly being expanded, we will be pleased to help you with an initial assessment. MPR International GmbH – India Certification supports you with a pending BIS certification and is also available at any time to answer any questions you may have.
If you are interested in understanding what requirements are needed for your product to be imported into India, please do not hesitate to contact us by email or phone at +49-69-271 37 69 261. There is no cost or obligation for us to check for you. If a certification need is discovered we can provide a quotation to make sure that all your certification needs are covered.
If you have any questions you can also use our chat-window in the bottom right. (Please check your browser settings if you can’t see the window)
For more information about BIS certification, please refer to our free brochure “BIS Certification Made Easy“.

Research institution ARAI passes on e-vehicle technology to manufacturers

The Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI), based in the Indian city of Pune, recently passed on numerous technologies to automotive OEM manufacturers. The institute’s head, Reji Mathai, told the press at the end of September that several technology transfers have taken place in the field of battery management systems, lightweight construction and vehicle batteries. Electric and hybrid vehicles and green energy engines are some of the industrial sectors that the government is supporting. Improvement in technology has increased the efficiency of these vehicles and now all major OEM manufacturers have e-vehicles or components in their portfolio. Components from this sector are usually subject to BIS certification, but in certain cases may also require AIS certification in order to be approved for the Indian market. So far, 120,658 electric vehicles have been sold in India and subsidies of more than US$ 51.6 million have been disbursed.

A total of 90 licences have been issued to OEM manufacturers for batteries, and two to three to producers of battery management systems, Mathai said. In addition, the ARAI has entered into an agreement with Bharat Electronic Limited to market a fast-charging device for batteries. The ARAI is currently working with domestic industry to strengthen local production of components, but imports will continue to play a major role in the foreseeable future.

Cars and two-wheelers as well as their components have to be certified in India according to the AIS guidelines. AIS stands for Automotive Industry Standards, the technical automotive standards for India. The according automotive product certifiation is conducted by authorities like the International Center for Automotive Technology (iCAT).
BIS certification is mandatory for many electronic products for industrial and consumer uses. Factory inspections are also required for some products.
Depending on the product category, there are different certification steps. We will be happy to advise you on certification in India like AIS, BIS, WPC, TEC or PESO and are always available to answer your questions.
Please do not hesitate to contact us for further details and consultation. You can contact us via e-mail, or call us (UK: +44 2071931135, Rest of Europe: +49 69 2713769261, US: +1 773 654-2673).
If you have any questions you can also use our chat-window in the bottom right. (Please check your browser settings if you can’t see the window)
You can also check out our free AIS-Brochure, which can be downloaded right here as a PDF file.