"The industry is on an upswing"
Considering these positive trends, we expect at least a double-digit growth of the construction equipment industry in the next 5-10 years. Shandar Alam, Managing Director, Vehicle and Hydraulics, India, Eaton, shares more

Which construction equipment segments do your products cater to?
Whether an equipment moves, turns, shapes, moulds, lifts, digs, or hauls, Eaton's hydraulics solutions and technologies help deliver the performance its customers need to stay competitive. Eaton, for decades, has been a partner of choice to equipment manufacturers in India for mobile and industrial applications.

In the mobile segment, through a host of innovative technologies and industry leading brands of pumps, valves, steering units, hoses and fittings, hydrostatic transmissions, motors, etc. Eaton offers proven solutions to key industries such as agriculture, construction, mining, material handling and transportation.

In the stationary segment, Eaton's pumps, valves, motors, hoses, fittings, filters, cylinders, industrial clutches and brakes, etc power some of the critical systems and solutions for the machinery, processing, bulk material handling, healthcare, alternate energy and oil and gas industries. What really differentiates us is our capability to design and manufacture hydraulic power units as well.

What are the positive market trends for your products?
The industry seems to be on an upswing. A major reason for this is the growth in infrastructure projects. The government's focus and investments in infrastructure projects has grown substantially and this trend should continue for the next couple of years. Roads constitute major share of infrastructure growth and with the announcement of the Bharat Mala project, roads will continue to be a major engine for growth for the construction equipment industry. There is also lot of optimism for growth from increased investments in ports and railway projects as well.

Considering these positive trends, we expect at least a double-digit growth of the construction equipment industry in the next 5-10 years. With our strong manufacturing presence in India, a robust sales and service network and a diversified portfolio of industry leading products for construction equipment, Eaton is well positioned to become a significant part of this growth story.

How do you experience the demand growth for your products in the last two years?
In the past couple of years we are witnessing significant growth in two of our most critical market segments namely agriculture and construction. Our wide range of products and solutions catered to diversified markets in both Mobile and Stationary segments.

Mobile segment is seeing a growth of 20 to 30 per cent compared to last year and we expect this growth to sustain for at least next couple of years, keeping in view the various infrastructure related projects launched by government. Further, all mobile equipment OEMs are indicating similar sentiments and also are investing in production expansion.

The focus is definitely on efficiency, cost of ownership, reliability, downtime reduction, ease of operation and machines designed to meet the safety and environmental regulations. And all this is leading to adoption of piston products, electronics/ electrohydraulic and digital technologies and we also see end users adopting the same, which was not the scenario say five years back.

What are the new technology trends that you are catering to through your product range focusing on productivity, efficiency, and economy?
A major technology trend now is digitalisation. Customers are looking for more connected products that allow life and performance tracking with real-time data to deliver maximum equipment uptime. Our customer-centric approach and unrelenting focus on innovation empowers us to stay ahead of the curve. We have an exciting portfolio of advanced technologies with integrated telematics and digital connectivity for construction equipment that ensure reliable and safe operations while minimising downtime.

How are you gearing up to meet the growing demand in future?
Our focus is to offer Indian OEMs the latest hydraulic technology to help them make their machines smarter and more efficient and we are confident that with safety and environment regulations becoming more stringent day by day, it will help Eaton and the leading manufacturers grow in Indian market.