Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam inaugurates world-class Mahindra Research Valley in Chennai

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. (M&M Ltd.), a part of the US $14.4 billion Mahindra Group, today formally inaugurated its world class engineering and research and development center in Chennai. The state-of-the-art Mahindra Research Valley (MRV) facility was inaugurated by His Excellency,  Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, Honourable Former President of India. MRV bears testimony to the Mahindra Group’s commitment to technology-driven innovation, as it is a facility that will house the company's engineering research and product development wings for automobiles and tractors, all under one roof. Perhaps the only R&D facility of its kind in the world for automobiles and tractors alike, MRV is spread over 125 acres in Mahindra World City, Chennai and was created at an investment of over Rs. 650 crore. Home to over 1500 employees, it has experts who are leading various technology and product development projects.

In future, this number can be scaled up to 3000. At the inauguration, Mr. Anand Mahindra, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Mahindra Group said, “Innovative product creation and engineering services are the cornerstone of any company with global aspirations and Mahindra Research Valley will function as the crucible for innovation and technology within the Mahindra Group. Based on the principle that collective design development can only be achieved through mutual understanding, transparency and trust, MRV also marks a true watershed in the history of industrial architecture.” Designed by the world renowned architect and Padma Vibhushan, Shri Charles Correa, MRV has engineering offices situated directly above a podium housing the technical workshops. The complex also sports several green spaces, with approx. 6500 trees on the premises, adding an element of nature to encourage fresh, creative thought.

Dr. Pawan Goenka, President – Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. said, “MRV will provide the Mahindra Group with the tangible benefit of indigenous design at lower costs and shortened product development cycles. All of which when aligned with the latest technological advancement in the field of automotive research would translate into a dramatic increase in Intellectual Property for the company, resulting in global recognition. We have already seen this manifest in the very successful Mahindra XUV500 which was the first product to be designed and developed at MRV.” “In future, we hope to see MRV emerge as a symbol of Indian ingenuity. MRV will place Chennai on the global automotive design and development map and provide a huge impetus to the domestic automotive product development capabilities in the region,” he added.

Elaborating on the direct benefits of MRV, Mr. Rajan Wadhera, Chief Executive — Technology, Product Development and Sourcing, Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. said, “The multi-faceted R&D facility boasts of truly world class facilities including a design center, an Engine Development Center (EDC), an NVH lab, a fatigue test and reliability lab, a driveline development center and an electrical and electronic lab, amongst others. The facility will develop prototypes and components which will then be transferred to high volume production lines at M&M’s different manufacturing plants located in the country and overseas.”