Neolite ZKW Starts Its Next Manufacturing Chapter in Pune, Strengthening India-Focused Automotive Lighting Capabilities!

Neolite ZKW Lightings Limited has marked an important milestone in its India growth journey with a commemorative ceremony at its new automotive lighting manufacturing facility in Pune, Maharashtra. The event was led by ZKW Group GmbH CEO Won Yong Hwang, underlining the strategic importance of India within the group’s global manufacturing, technology, and localisation roadmap. The Pune plant, which commenced operations in December 2025, represents a significant step in strengthening Neolite ZKW’s manufacturing footprint and customer proximity in one of India’s most critical automotive regions.

Located near the Mumbai–Pune–Nashik–Aurangabad automotive corridor, the facility offers Neolite ZKW close access to several leading automotive OEMs. This strategic positioning is expected to improve responsiveness to customer requirements, streamline logistics, and enable tighter inventory management. By manufacturing closer to its customers, the company aims to reduce lead times, enhance supply reliability, and support faster ramp-ups for new vehicle programs across multiple segments.

The Pune facility has been designed as an integrated automotive lighting manufacturing unit, covering key processes such as moulding, surface treatment, and final assembly. It is equipped to support a wide range of lighting products and components for passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles, off-road applications, two-wheelers, and three-wheelers. With Indian OEMs increasingly seeking localisation and faster development cycles, the new plant allows Neolite ZKW to align production more closely with evolving platform requirements while maintaining consistency with global quality, safety, and regulatory standards.

In line with the industry’s transition toward electrification, the product portfolio supported by the Pune facility includes lighting solutions suitable for electric vehicles, while remaining powertrain-agnostic. This flexibility enables the company to serve OEMs operating mixed portfolios of internal combustion engine and electric platforms, ensuring relevance across multiple technology pathways as the Indian market evolves.

A key differentiator of the Pune expansion is the establishment of an independent in-house design centre at the same location. The design centre is equipped with advanced digital tools, including simulation software, 3D modelling, optical design systems, and prototyping and validation capabilities. This setup is intended to accelerate product development, shorten time-to-market, and reduce dependence on external design resources. By integrating design and manufacturing at one site, Neolite ZKW aims to improve collaboration between engineering and production teams while ensuring that locally developed products meet global performance and compliance benchmarks.

Company leadership highlighted that India continues to emerge as a strategic growth market within the global automotive industry, driven by rising vehicle production, increasing localisation requirements, and a strong push toward electric mobility. The Pune facility reflects Neolite ZKW’s long-term commitment to capacity building, technology investment, and talent development in the country.

Looking ahead, the company plans to operationalise its upcoming manufacturing facility in Kancheepuram, further expanding its presence in India. Together, these investments position Neolite ZKW to play a larger role in India’s automotive lighting supply chain, support OEMs through rapid technology transitions, and contribute to regional employment generation and industrial capability development.