Crown Defence establishes indigenous PCB assembly facility in Goa
New Delhi, February 14. Crown Defence has set up a new indigenous printed circuit board (PCB) assembly facility in Verna, Goa, aimed at strengthening India’s domestic capabilities in high-reliability electronics for defence and select civil sectors. The company announced that the unit will begin operations in March 2026.
The facility has been established under Aviatech Enterprises Pvt. Ltd. (AEPL), the group’s aviation vertical. Located in Verna, an industrial hub in Goa, the unit is designed to cater to mission-critical electronics requirements across defence platforms as well as civil applications in aviation, maritime and industrial systems.
According to the company, the new facility is equipped to deliver high-precision PCB assembly (PCBA) solutions for boards ranging in size from 80 × 80 mm to 460 × 460 mm, with thickness capabilities between 0.4 mm and 8 mm. It also adheres to controlled edge clearance standards of 3-5 mm, ensuring compliance with reliability, traceability and quality requirements typical of strategic and regulated programmes. The company said the unit will be open to both domestic and international projects.
Strategic capability amid growing demand
Positioned as more than a manufacturing site, the Verna facility is intended to function as a strategic electronics capability hub at a time when demand for indigenous PCBA solutions is rising. The Indian PCBA market is currently estimated at around $6.3 billion and is growing at an annual rate of nearly 16 percent, driven by defence, industrial and electronics manufacturing requirements.
With over 1,000 items placed under government import restrictions – including several PCB assemblies previously sourced from overseas – the availability of reliable in-country assembly capacity has become increasingly important for defence and critical civil programmes.
Vice Admiral (Retd) Paras Nath, Group President of Crown Defence, said electronics availability now plays a central role in determining platform readiness and upgrade cycles. Establishing domestic PCB assembly capability, he noted, would enhance supply predictability and help reduce dependence on external sources across defence and key civil sectors.
Commodore (Retd) SK Iyer, Head of Aviation at Aviatech Enterprises Pvt Ltd, said the Verna unit would enable closer integration between electronics assembly and aviation support services, improving quality oversight and timelines for modernisation, upgrades and sustainment programmes.
Crown Defence operates through specialised group companies providing maintenance, repair, overhaul (MRO), upgrades and modernisation services across defence and civil domains. The addition of PCB assembly capability under AEPL is expected to complement the group’s existing system-level sustainment expertise and strengthen its contribution to India’s long-term defence and industrial preparedness.