Arvind Lakshmikumar, Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Tonbo Imaging India Limited, a global defence electronics original equipment manufacturer (OEM) headquartered in Bengaluru, said the company’s next phase of growth will be driven by platform systems and high-power microwave technologies, as investments made over the past several years begin to generate revenue.
After Tonbo Imaging’s strong stock market debut, Lakshmikumar said the company’s tactical systems business is already delivering results, while newer product lines are expected to contribute over the next few years. He also reiterated confidence in a ₹2,500-3,500 crore order opportunity beyond 2029-30 (FY30), supported by defence programmes in India and overseas.
“The way we see our business is our tactical systems is bearing fruit right now. Our platform systems will start bearing fruit in FY28, FY29, and our Hyper microwave will start yielding results in FY30,” he said.
The company believes this staggered investment approach provides visibility across multiple defence technology segments over the coming years.
Lakshmikumar said investors should judge the company on its ability to execute large defence programmes rather than its listing-day performance.
“We are not looking at quarterly. We are not even looking at this yearly. We are looking at it as three to five yearly,” he said. “The fact that today we are listed… is not something which we can rest on. Our focus is how do we continue to innovate and continue to build.”
He added that the company’s current position reflects more than a decade of investment in research and product development, and expects investors to take a long-term view of defence technology businesses.
On future opportunities, Lakshmikumar said Tonbo already has a dominant position in tactical systems and sees a significant expansion in demand.
He noted that the addressable market for tactical systems is expected to increase from around 30,000 systems to 300,000 systems, while the company is also supplying missile seeker technologies for Indian defence programmes.
Explaining the company’s elevated inventory levels and negative operating cash flow, Lakshmikumar said inventory was built in anticipation of defence orders that were delayed because of the Middle East conflict.
“The reason why we ride on high inventory right now is… we wanted to make sure that we are stocked up on inventory, so that when we are ready to execute this programme… supply chain will not be a constraint,” he said.
He added that execution of a Morocco programme is underway and expects fresh orders from Armenia in the coming months after trials of Indian-made gun systems were completed.
Without providing specific revenue guidance, Lakshmikumar said the current financial year should outperform the previous one.
The company also reiterated confidence in its long-term order pipeline, highlighting letters of intent received for its high-power microwave systems from both Indian and European government customers.
Lakshmikumar said these opportunities, along with missile seeker programmes in India and Europe, provide visibility into the company’s targeted ₹2,500-3,500 crore order potential after FY30, supporting its long-term growth strategy in defence electronics.
For the full interview, watch the accompanying video
Tonbo Imaging CEO says FY30 defence programmes offer ₹2,500-3,500 crore order opportunity
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