Henkel launches application engineering centre in Chennai for adhesive tech biz

CHENNAI: Henkel on Thursday announced the launch of an application engineering centre in Chennai, further strengthening the leadership of its adhesive technologies business in the electronics sector.

The investment underscores Henkel’s commitment to localisation, innovation, and accelerated product development to meet the rapidly evolving demands of the region’s electronics industry.

“As the country solidifies its position as a global electronics manufacturing hub, Henkel is proud to reinforce its ‘Make in India’ commitment, and be a key partner in this journey,” said S Sunil Kumar, country president - India, Henkel. “The new facility in Chennai aligns with this growth, strengthening regional self-sufficiency and supply chain resilience.”

The 17,000 sqft Chennai facility is designed to accelerate new product introductions (NPIs) and reduce time-to-market for customers. The center houses five specialised labs dedicated to advanced adhesive solutions and thermal management materials, essential for enhancing the reliability, durability, and sleek designs of smartphones, wearables, and other consumer electronics. This center will enhance Henkel’s global innovation footprint, complementing its existing sites in Germany, the US, China, Singapore, Japan, Korea and Vietnam. With these investments, Henkel further strengthens its role as a key innovation partner for electronics manufacturers worldwide.

Wen Zhou, corporate VP, Electronics, Henkel Adhesive Technologies, shared that these investments are a natural progression of the company’s growth in India and the electronic market’s supply chain diversification. “We have had established Indian operations for a long time, and with customers intensifying their operations in the region, we are investing in additional local capabilities to deliver collaborative NPI and product validation expertise with more immediacy,” she said.