HUL to invest ₹700 crore in UP detergent unit by 2025
1 min read 21 Jul 2022, 04:41 PM ISTThe state-of-the-art spray dried detergent factory will manufacture products for leading Unilever brands, including laundry brand Surf Excel
PremiumNew Delhi: Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) is planning to invest ₹700 crore by 2025 in its new facility in Uttar Pradesh's Sumerpur that has a spray-dried detergent powder plant and a distribution centre.
HUL on Thursday formally inaugurated Unilever India Limited’s (UIL) new factory in Sumerpur. The state-of-the-art spray dried detergent factory will manufacture products for leading Unilever brands, including laundry brand Surf Excel.
The unit will significantly boost the production capacity of spray dried detergent powder, making the factory the largest volume strategic sourcing site for the company by 2025. To be sure, HUL is the country’s top fast moving consumer goods maker with its products reaching millions of households.
The factory was virtually inaugurated by the company’s CEO and MD Sanjiv Mehta and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath.
The factory stands at the forefront of ultra-modern manufacturing for Unilever globally, said Willem Uijen, HUL executive director of the supply chain.
“It is designed to make the best use of what the digital 4th industrial revolution has to offer, thereby guaranteeing world class performance in people safety, product quality, innovation lead times and environmental performance. The site’s integrated design allows for an ecosystem of material suppliers, logistic operators, and manufacturing partners to be located at the site for optimal integration of the supply chain," he said.
The manufacturing unit has been designed to have a zero carbon footprint. This UIL spray dried factory will be Unilever’s first gender-balanced factory in South Asia, where 101 women employees were hired under the Uttar Pradesh Government’s Mission Shakti. There is a plan to recruit an additional 153 women employees soon. The unit will also actively look at hiring persons with disability. The entire investment, when completed by 2025, envisages a total direct and indirect employment of 1,600 persons, the company added in its statement.
“The investment reinforces Unilever’s long-term commitment to the state of UP and acknowledges the excellent support from the Government and the local communities. This investment is consistent with Unilever’s long-standing commitment to Atmanirbhar Bharat," Mehta said.
Besides the manufacturing unit, HUL has set up a fully automated distribution centre, the first of its kind in South Asia for Unilever.
Unilever is also working on developing the local logistics market and increasing the number of its suppliers and ancillaries in Uttar Pradesh through several supplier integration initiatives, the company said.
