Chennai: Heating, ventilation and air-conditioning (HVAC) equipments maker, Trane, on Wednesday announced the launch of its India Design Centre in Chennai for an undisclosed amount.

"The new centre would support the company s India market and will be a global R D facility for Trane," the company's Global Engineering and Technology Vice-President Prakash Bedapudi said.

With the new centre, the company hopes to tap the market with the availability of infrastructure software development and human resources.

"India is a fastest growing market globally and we believe a lot of great talent is available here," Prakash said.

Declining to comment on the investment made for setting up the Chennai facility which is the company's seventh in line across the globe, Prakash said, "it is a multi-million dollar investment this year (for Chennai facility)."

The Chennai unit, set up on 20,000 sq ft at Ascendas IT Park, would initially recruit software professionals.

"Predominantly, we are looking for software professionals in this centre," Trane RS-India Design Centre Leader, Paparao Kodali, said.

Kodali said around 200 software professionals would be recruited in the next two years and in future, the company would collaborate with premier technology schools for recruitment.

"It is in the initial stage, we have talked to various premier schools and would be recruiting more (in future)," Kodali said.

Trane Inc recorded a revenue of 7.5 billion dollars in 2007 and has set a target of more than 8 billion dollar by 2008.

"Globally, we are looking for 6-7 per cent growth and hoping to record eight billion dollars plus this year," Bedapudi said.

Trane provides systems and services that enhance the quality of the air in homes and buildings world wide. The company's systems and services have positions in commercial, residential, institutional and industrial markets.

Trane Inc other design centres are located at Epinal in France, Shanghai (China), St Paul-Minnesota, La Crosse-Wisconsin, Tyler-Texas, Clarksville-Tennessee in United States.

Source : PTI