Chennai: With a plan to enhance its operations in India, information technology and engineering consulting firm Barry-Wehmiller International Resources (BWIR) has announced its plan to increase the company's headcount from the current 300 to 1000 by 2012. As the first step, the firm has moved its business operations to a new larger facility in Chennai.

A subsidiary of Barry-Wehmiller Companies (BWC), a diversified global supplier of packaging, corrugating, and paper converting technology, and engineering consulting services, BWIR is also eying acquisitions in Indian market.

"Our strategy is to strengthen our presence in Asia. Along with India, Japan market is another important target for us as that country holds a high potential market for the engineering consulting service. A grip in this market will provide us with a significant strategic win in the Asia region," says Vasant Bennett, President and Managing Partner of BWIR.

Though the company is working as a captive unit, it is evolving a hybrid model of business. While fifty percent of its total $12 million revenue generated is for the parent company, the rest is coming from the outside especially, the U.S. market. The Indian market is counted for the six percent of the revenue.

In early 1990s, BWIR started operations in Chennai as a captive organization for a mid-market, U.S. based, $ 200 million manufacturing company called Marquip. The captives unit's name was Marquip Worldwide Systems. And it was after BWC acquired Marquip and its captive firm that the company changed its name to Barry-Wehmiller International Resources.

Starting as early as 1994, BWIR worked on machine design projects that were considered core to a machinery building company and difficult to outsource for technical, logistical and political reasons.

"BWIR's service offerings are especially targeted to mid-market" says Senthil Kumar, India Head of the company. "Most of the small companies and companies in emerging markets look for a transactional partnership in Business relations. But as a provider of engineering consulting service, we need long term relations that is more possible in mid-markets," he added.