L&T forms new unit for smart cities, business to rise by $1 billion

Focusing on three key segments - smart cities, smart communication systems and security solutions, Indian multinational conglomerate Larsen & Toubro has come up with a new unit to cater to these segments. The business is likely to grow by $1 billion in next 3 to 4 years.

The government has big plans to push businesses in the three segments, therefore the Mumbai-headquartered engineering and construction company has formed a separate business unit, named Smart World and Communication, according to an Economic Times report.

The unit would tap the resources of the conglomerate's various verticals and subsidiaries to offer wholesome solutions in a first-of-its-kind initiative, a company official said.

"We have put together a small unit with 65 members which includes people from different verticals within the company and some people who have been especially hired for this," SN Subrahmanyan, board member and senior executive vice president (infrastructure and construction), told the financial daily.

The business unit is currently small but can become a strategic unit over a period of time if it receives orders. It can easily become a $1 billion business in 3-4 years, he said.

L&T has diversified businesses ranging from technology, engineering, construction, manufacturing to financial services. It has done such projects in bits and pieces and now wants to leverage on the synergy among different businesses to execute turnkey solutions.

"The government is talking about setting up 100 smart cities, even if 20 came up we will hopefully get big orders," Subrahmanyan said.

"In a way, we have been doing such projects as gated campuses for IT companies. We would now like to bid for bigger projects such as the one planned for the Bandra-Kurla Complex in Mumbai,” he said.

The Centre plans to spend Rs 1 lakh crore to build smart cities by 2020. These cities would have affordable housing in a cost-efficient and environment-friendly physical, social and institutional infrastructure set up for a better quality of living.

The Bandra-Kurla Complex is set to become the first smart district with Maharashtra state authorities calling for bids to complete the project by March next year.
(Image: Indiatimes)