To pass on a productive environment and prosperous cities to future generations is the corporate vision of our parent company Hitachi Construction Machinery (HCM) and at Tata Hitachi, sustainability is about reinforcing this vision.

Sustainability is at the core of everything we do at Tata Hitachi. We are deeply invested and committed to reducing our carbon footprint using eco-friendly technology and practices. We believe that it is our responsibility to protect the planet for future generations and are continuously implementing measures to minimise waste, conserve resources and reduce emissions. Our team is dedicated to finding innovative solutions that not only benefit the environment but also provide customers with cost-effective and efficient equipment. We believe in sustainability and our belief is implemented through initiatives both in terms of products and production methods.

Believing that Tata Hitachi is much more than its products or technical capabilities, we are committed to creating a better world by contributing to society. Our result-oriented corporate social responsibility (CSR) programmes focus on serving the local communities where we operate.

Environmental sustainability

Tata Hitachi promotes the eco-friendly design of our products and services. Apart from ensuring that our wheeled equipment adheres to regulatory requirements of CEV-4 emission norms, we are working to ensure that our excavators are also compatible with futuristic emission norms. In addition, we also maintain a target of reducing fuel consumption of all our products and models through engineering innovations. With our TL340H PRIME, we are also the first and only manufacturer in India, of hydrostatic wheel loaders that assure fuel savings to the tune of 20 per cent over conventional wheel loaders. Also, Tata Hitachi excavators are very well-known in the market for their fuel efficiency.

We have made significant investments in our plants at Dharwad and Kharagpur towards renewable energy, rainwater harvesting, and reusing ETP water for irrigation, apart from creating biodiversity parks and improving the quality of potable water in the catchment areas of our manufacturing plants. Our Kharagpur plant has an installed solar capacity of 10.5 MW that meets 74 per cent of our power requirements, while our Dharwad plant has a target to meet 90 per cent of power requirements through solar power through a power purchase agreement. In addition, the administration buildings of both our plants are LEED-certified green buildings. We also have a special focus accorded to safety, both in terms of employees as well as the safety of our machines.

For the effective use of resources, we promote a circular economy through our used equipment business and remanufacturing of the parts. These initiatives are aimed at ensuring a sustainable consumption and production pattern by enhancing the value of the product life cycle.

Recently, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) recognised Tata Hitachis efforts in the field of energy conservation and management at the CII Energy Conservation Awards 2022. Our Kharagpur plant has been awarded a 5-star rating for its efforts toward energy conservation and has also been adjudged as the first runner-up in the energy-intensive group category at the event. In 2021, HCM, Japan, selected both our Kharagpur and Dharwad plants as ECO Factory of the Year for outstanding efforts in energy efficiency, use of renewable energy, recycling of wastes and other resources, and efficient water recycling.

Social sustainability

Tata Hitachi has a structured CSR process to fulfill the needs of immediate stakeholders. We have a four-pronged approach for our CSR initiatives:

Education and literacy: Schools are supported by Tata Hitachi for their infrastructural improvements such as the construction and extension of classrooms, the building of toilets, providing tanks for a continuous and adequate supply of drinking water, etc. For school-going children, our aim is to create a lively, welcoming, and wholesome environment conducive to learning. Facilities for these include supplying benches, computers, projectors, school bags, notebooks, and sports items. With the same objective in mind, we also sponsor extracurricular events in these schools.

Community healthcare: Increase in life expectancy and access to healthcare are again other vital indicators of socio-economic welfare. Organising health check-up camps like eye check-ups, general check-ups, and addressing ladies health issues, etc. are periodically done inside the plant for employees and their families, as well as at nearby villages where the whole community can benefit. This is our way of meaningfully providing a service to the villages surrounding our factory. Even during the Covid-19 pandemic, we supported the local communities.

Rural development: We undertake various infrastructure support to local villages to satisfy their basic needs. It is a concerted effort to use and manage natural resources to maintain a balanced ecosystem. This is done through the de-silting of lakes and the building and repairing of bunds. North Karnataka is generally a drought-prone region. Lakes dry up during the summer season. Our lake de-silting activity increases the capacity of storage water and ensures the availability of water in the lakes throughout the year. This in turn supports human beings, animals, and birds.

Skill development training for youths from local communities: We have an operator training centre with a facility for training on operating construction equipment like hydraulic excavators, backhoe loaders, and wheel loaders. This setup is elaborate with experienced trainers from across the country imparting training. This is backed up by a state-of-the-art simulator for machine operation conditions simulation which gives near-real-life machine operating conditions for the trainees. Once the course is completed the participants are given certificates in collaboration with GoI, which help them to get a job as machine operators easily across the country.

Despite the changes and challenges we face, at Tata Hitachi, we are committed to providing customers with products that offer social, environmental, and economic value, and the value chain that goes along with it. We encourage our partners and customers to join us in this mission and work together towards a more sustainable future. We believe that by making conscious choices and investing in sustainable technology, we can make a positive impact on our planet.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

The article is authored by Sandeep Singh, Managing Director, Tata Hitachi Construction Machinery. Singh is an engineering graduate from the National Institute of Technology, Surat, and has a rich experience of over three decades in sales, marketing, customer support, and general management. He has spent a large part of his career at Toyota. His last assignment was as Deputy Managing Director and Chief Operating Officer of the India Operations. Post this, he moved with an international assignment to Toyota Motor- Asia Pacific Head Quarters and was based in Bangkok, Thailand where he was responsible for leading the strategic planning function. Singh joined as Managing Director of Tata Hitachi Construction Machinery Company in August 2015, where he is guiding the company through its next phase of growth. He is also Executive Officer- Hitachi Construction Machinery, Japan. He is the current Chairman of the Infrastructure Equipment Skill Council (IESC) and the past Chairman of ICEMA and CII, Karnataka.