Minister in charge Piyush Goyal lists five mottos for the growth of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS)

Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal named the five mottos to grow BIS at the institution’s 75th anniversary celebration. He said the Bureau of Indian Standarsd (BIS) should be a modern service provider and not be perceived as a hindrance by businesses and the public. Maintaining quality standards should not be too expensive and must take into account the profit margin of companies, Goyal added. In his thanking speech, the minister praised the contribution of BIS to India’s national economic performance with the main tasks of “standardization and certification” by BIS. “The Indian nation and BIS will be one hundred years old in 2047. Therefore, it is a great challenge to set a 25-year plan for the BIS. The contents of which should help make India a world power and great nation,” Goyal said in his speech.

The Bureau of Indian Standards, or BIS, was established in 1947 as the Indian Standards Institution (ISI) and celebrated its 75th anniversary on Jan. 6. On the five mottos of BIS’s future growth, Goyal said the following: First, he said, BIS must work as a facilitator, not an “obstructor.” Second, the BIS should become a global organization by learning and integrating global standards. Third, BIS needs to conduct a gap analysis of its laboratory capabilities and establish modern QA laboratories throughout the country. Fourth, BIS should achieve a quality or standard “revolution” through the “One Nation One Standard” program. Last and fifth, BIS should ensure that compliance with quality standards does not cost too much, but remains in proportion to the further costs of enterprises.

Goyal also said that standardization and certificates of conformity ensure safe, reliable and high-quality products for consumers, and therefore the importance of BIS will increase in the coming years. BIS must inform and raise awareness among consumers about quality assurance, the minister added at the end of his speech.

A large number of diverse products require BIS certification in order to import them into India or place them on the market. Depending on the product, a distinction is made between BIS-ISI or BIS-CRS certification. Since the product list is constantly being expanded, we will be pleased to help you with an initial assessment.

If you have any questions regarding BIS certification, please do not hesitate to contact us by email or phone (Europe: +49-69-271 37 69 261, US: +1 773 654-2673). 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“.

Mercedes-Benz asserts itself as market leader in India’s luxury car segment

Mercedes-Benz India, the local subsidiary of the German luxury car maker, has further strengthened its market leadership in the luxury car segment in 2021. With this, Mercedes-Benz has been the market leader in the Indian luxury car segment for the past seven years and owns a comfortable gap in sales figures over its competitors. According to the company’s own figures, it sold a total of 11,242 vehicles, an increase of 42.5 per cent over the previous year and a market share of 41 per cent. Nevertheless, the figures should be treated with caution, as the year 2020 is not considered representative due to the Corona pandemic and relatively low sales figures. Mercedes-Benz sold only 7,893 vehicles in 2020, for example, and not a single vehicle left a dealer in April. In previous years, the average sales figures were close to the 15,000 vehicle mark per year. Cars and their components have to be certified according to the AIS guidelines in India. AIS stands for Automotive Industry Standards, the technical automotive standards for India.

Nevertheless, Mercedes-Benz 2021 managed to position itself ahead of its German rivals BMW and Audi in the Indian market, even though the latter reported good sales figures. BMW reported a 34 per cent year-on-year increase with 8,236 vehicles sold, while Audi reported a 101 per cent increase with 3,293 vehicles sold compared to the particularly difficult year of 2020. Mercedes-Benz India is also very confident about the current year 2022 as they currently have more than 3,000 open orders on the books. Commenting on the highest ever level, Mercedes-Benz India CEO Martin Schwenk said, “This is a clear sign that we are in a healthy market with the Mercedes product portfolio.” Even though the large number of orders suggests high demand, another reason for the long waiting list is the shortage of semiconductors and logistics problems, which, however, also affect other vehicle manufacturers.

There is a certain surprise with the best-selling Mercedes model in India: it is not an entry-level model, but the long-wheelbase version of the E-Class. Other best-sellers were also the SUVs with the Mercedes-Benz GLC in first place. Apart from new models, Mercedes-Benz India also launched a new direct sales model “Retail of the Future” in October 2021, which proved successful with 2,500 orders. Further, 94 dealers and service outlets have been trained in the handling of the new all-electric EQ Series vehicles. According to the company, the Mercedes-Benz production facility in Chakan was equipped with solar cells to generate 3.6 MW of solar power. After the solar panels start operating in January 2022, the plant will now run on 100 per cent green power.
The automotive AIS 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 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.

New CMVR–Type Approval Software (CMVR-TAS) by ARAI

The Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) has published some updates regarding new developments in the field of automotive certifications relevant for India according to AIS.

The DELTA software solution previously used for AIS certification of automotive products has been fundamentally revised and replaced by the new “CMVR Type Approval Software” (CMVR-TAS). The update increases user-friendliness and also offers an extension of the previously available features. Overall, certification projects in this area can now be supported much more efficiently by CMVR-TAS.
Due to the continued strong increase in the production of electric vehicles, the AIS 048 standard relevant to batteries has been revised. Batteries are particularly safety-relevant components in such vehicles. The new AIS standard now allows a distinction between different battery technologies, both for motor vehicles and trucks. In addition, the AIS 156 and AIS 038 standards relevant to electric cars have been updated to ensure testing of batteries at system level. Particular attention is paid to aspects such as functional safety, risk reduction and analysis and thermal safety.
Local test capacities were also expanded in some areas. These include, for example, optimised testing possibilities for grip tests as well as for roll-off noise of tyres. New simulation software for complete vehicle and component testing provides better results for front and rear axle durability analyses, whole vehicle stiffness tests and suspension subsystem analyses.
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 AIS certification and other certifications in India 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 smartphone industry poised for stable growth this year

Although the Indian smartphone industry has faced some obstacles due to the corona pandemic and semiconductor shortages, the industry is confident about this year. For example, estimates suggest that between 190 and 200 million devices could be shipped in 2022, many of them with 5G functionality. The increase in sales is attributed by experts to the continuation of working from home and that more time in general is being spent at home and therefore with a smartphone. For example, Counterpoint Research market researcher Shilpi Jain said the Indian smartphone market has seen steady growth over the past five years, with around 158 million devices sold in 2019. Although Jain said the market saw a slight decline due to the Covid 19 pandemic, she expects robust growth this year and a surpassing of the 200 million devices shipped mark this year. The prerequisite for the production and sale of smartphones on the Indian market is BIS certification, which is mandatory for many of the components and production equipment. In addition, TEC certification is also required for wireless products.

Analysts at CyberMedia Research (CMR) have a similarly positive view, with estimated smartphone shipments in the range of 187 million to 190 million devices this year. Smartphones with 5G functionality will see particular growth, according to CMR’s Anand Priya Singh. For state-of-the-art devices, she projects an increase to 64 million devices in 2022. That would represent 129 percent growth from the 28 million devices in the previous year. For the general smartphone market in India, Singh could see growth of 11 percent between 2020 and 2021. The number of devices shipped increased from 150 million to about 167 million.

Although 5G networks are not yet available in India, industry experts nevertheless expect consumers to opt for a 5G-enabled device when making a new purchase. According to surveys, buying a new smartphone equipped with a 5G radio module is among the top 3 priorities of future users. Realme India CEO Madhav Sheth said conversations around the adoption of 5G technology have been happening since 2019 and smartphone manufacturers launched the first 5G devices in early 2020. Test runs for the 5G wireless network are scheduled for this year, and spectrum auctions are expected to take place in the second half of 2022. Realme CEO Sheth therefore expects demand for 5G smartphones to increase this year. Realme aims to be a leader in the deployment of 5G and will therefore equip all of its smartphones above a retail price of 15,000 Indian rupees with 5G radio modules, as well as work to offer the technology in devices below 10,000 Indian rupees, Sheth added.
Electronic components or finished electronic devices require BIS certification in order to import them into India or bring them to market. Here, a distinction is made between BIS-ISI or BIS-CRS certification, depending on the product. TEC is the abbreviation for Telecommunication Engineering Center. TEC is the competent authority in India when it comes to TEC certification for telecommunications products. From 1991 to 2019, TEC certification was still possible as a voluntary product registration, but now it is mandatory for many product groups. As the product list is constantly expanding, we are pleased to help you with a first assessment.
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 (Europe: +49-69-271 37 69 261, US: +1 773 654-2673). 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, please refer to our free brochures “BIS Certification Made Easy” and “TEC Certification Made Easy“.

The Indian Oil and Gas Industry – Outlook, Demand and Growth

The Indian oil and gas industry is one of eight key industries and plays an important role in decisions for other sectors of the local economy. According to the Indian Business Institute (IBEF), India is one of the world’s largest consumers of fossil fuels after the OECD countries. For instance, the import bill of crude oil into India grew massively from US$ 70.72 billion in 2016-17 to US$ 101.4 billion in 2019-20. With the subcontinent’s growing energy demand, this figure is likely to rise further in the future. Analysts predict that India’s energy demand will increase the most among all major economies. Experts expect India’s energy demand to double from 753.7 Mtoe in 2017 to 1,516 Mtoe by 2035, and India’s share of global energy consumption is estimated to double by 2035. Production facilities, refineries and equipment from the oil and gas industry usually require PESO certification to be approved for the Indian market.

From these figures, there will also be an increasing demand for refined petroleum products. The demand for oil in India will double by 2045 and then amount to 11 million barrels. The demand for diesel will also double between 2029 and 2030 to 163 MT. According to calculations, oil and gas will account for about 58 per cent of India’s oil demand in 2045. The consumption of natural gas in India will increase by nine per cent annually to 25 billion cubic metres by 2024. Due to the increasing demand for oil and gas, extraction, refining and other areas of this industry will also have to be expanded. Therefore, the demand for imported products in the oil and gas industry will also increase. According to the responsible minister, Pradhan, foreign investors have the opportunity to invest up to 300 billion US dollars in 2022. To this end, the Indian government has adopted the following supportive guidelines: Since July 2021, 100 per cent foreign direct investment is allowed in state-owned enterprises in the oil and gas sector. In addition, 100 per cent FDI is allowed in upstream projects and non-state refineries.

Therefore, the Indian oil and gas industry offers good opportunities for your company to provide services and products there or to produce locally. However, most equipment, plants and facilities have to undergo mandatory PESO certification. This is issued by the Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation of India. Relevant product groups or components are for example gas and pressure vessels, valves and fittings or safety equipment. The following link leads to a list of PESO certification mandatory products. The experts at MPR International GmbH are available to answer your questions about PESO certification or other India certifications without obligation for an initial assessment.

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 (Europe: +49-69-271 37 69 261, US: +1 773 654-2673). 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 PESO certification, please refer to our free brochure “PESO Certification Made Easy“.