"Indian polyurethane market has huge potential but is relatively underutilised due to lack of awareness of the product. Dow (India) Systems will develop the market by forging alliances with prospective buyers," said Dow Italia Spa general manager (PSU systems houses) Peter Davis.

Indian market is growing at the rate of 12-15 per cent. But the potential for growth is far higher than this if the end-users of polyurethane could be made aware of the advantages of using it, said Davis.

The rising number of cold storage chains and booming footwear market will double the demand for polyeurthane in India. However, operating in the Indian market is a huge challengeas far as logistics and infrastructure are concerned, said Davis.

It is too early to give an investment figure for India but the company will invest as much as necessary. However, the initial focus will be on investment in resources, Davis said.

The upward spiral of crude oil prices would not have a major impact on the downstream market. This was because of the fact that the oil prices do not go hand in hand with downstream products. But the rising prices would drive cost, said Davis.

The Asian meltdown has taken the glitter out of the markets like Malaysia, Philippines, etc and caused a glut in the construction, footwear and consumer goods businesses which mainly use polyeruthane, Davis said.

Service centre opened

Dow (India) Systems Pvt Ltd on Monday opened the polyurethane systems service centre at Vikhroli, Mumbai. The centre has been designed for offering solutions to both large and small customers operating under Indian enviornmental conditions.

Inaugurating the centre, Dow Italia Spageneral manager Peter Davis said: ``This is a new milestone for new business. The facility will be a combined technology and service centre set up to satisfy our customers directly in India.'' The new facility will be the technical `hub site' for several countries in South East Asia.