Hyderabad: Hyderabad has been ranked number one in the third and latest edition of FDI’s Aerospace Cities of the Future 2020/21 rankings, under the category of ‘Top 10 Aerospace Cities in Cost-Effectiveness’ by FDI Intellegence.com, a division of Financial Times Group.
In all the three (biennial) editions, Hyderabad has stayed ahead of Bengaluru in terms of cost-effectiveness. Hyderabad climbed two positions having ranked third in 2018-19 and six positions from its seventh spot in 2016-17. Bengaluru, on the other hand, has been ranked at the seventh spot this year on cost-effectiveness while it retained the fifth spot in 2018-19 and eighth spot in 2016-17. New Delhi could improve its ranking from the eighth spot in 2018-19 to second this year.
The criteria used for ranking global aerospace cities under the cost-effectiveness category are annual rent for prime Grade A office space (Dollar/sqm), the annual rent for prime Grade A industrial space (Dollar/sqm), cost to import and export (Dollar/container) and average salary (Dollar/semi-skilled and skilled worker).
Commenting on the ranking, Praveen P A, director- Aerospace & Defence, Government of Telangana, said, “Hyderabad, which already hosts manufacturing and allied facilities of global majors such as Lockheed Martin, Boeing, GE, Safran, Pratt & Whitney, CFM, Saab, Thales, Elbit, Rafael, etc, is a tried and tested aerospace hub in India. The top ranking in cost-effectiveness will further highlight the value proposition offered by the Hyderabad aerospace and defence ecosystem.”
Aerospace needs a very specialized workforce and precision capabilities. Hyderabad has already established that ecosystem, which ensures and enhances efficiency. Post pandemic, overhead reduction, and supply chain cost efficiency have become the utmost priority for the global aerospace industry, noted Praveen.
In the 2020/21 rankings, Hyderabad topped the charts globally in the cost-effectiveness category, followed by New Delhi and Eskisehir (Turkey). The other cities that also made to the top 10 list include Subang Jaya (Malaysia), Mielec and Wroclaw (Poland), Bengaluru, Istanbul (Turkey), Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), and Hermosillo (Mexico) in the same order.