Toshiba India appoints Shuichi Ito as new MD

Toshiba India (TIPL) announced the appointment of Shuichi Ito as the Managing Director, effective October 01, 2021. Ito will lead TIPL to the path of next level of growth across group’s energy and social infrastructure businesses in the country.

Toshiba India appoints Shuichi Ito as the new MD

A law graduate from Kyushu University of Japan, Mr. Ito comes with almost three decades of strong and diverse experience in Toshiba’s international energy business.

Caterpillar unveils new excavator portfolio

Caterpillar India announced the launch of its next generation 20-ton class excavators, Cat 320D3 and Cat 323D3 to cater to the Indian construction industry. The new machines are manufactured at its Thiruvallur manufacturing plant in Tamil Nadu, India.

Caterpillar launches next-generation 20-ton excavator portfolio

Caterpillar India announced the launch of its next generation 20-ton class excavators, Cat 320D3 and Cat 323D3 to cater to the Indian construction industry. The new machines are manufactured at its Thiruvallur manufacturing plant in Tamil Nadu, India.

Customers may look for more productive solutions

The current equipment industry scenario is quite positive. The announcement of several infrastructure projects will further spur the demand of construction equipment, which will be beneficial for the industry.

We deliver solutions, not just machines

Current market scenario: The numbers over the last 6-7 months show that the industry is booming. In fact, India is the only bright spot today and the world is focused on it. I think there is an enormous opportunity for CE per se and I think the future is good for the next 5-10 years.

Caterpillar welcomes new TIPL management

Caterpillar hailed the completion of the transition to new management of one of its oldest dealers anywhere in the world, Tractors India Pvt Ltd (TIPL).

MARC | The Way to Success

Maintenance & repair contract, more popularly known as MARC and more generally termed as full maintenance contract (FMC), has caught the imagination of mines operators in India.

Only undercarriage experts should do the maintenance and management

A proper undercarriage management and operations following the best practices will always help in maintenance and long life of crawler tracks. Saibal Mitra, Dy General Manager Parts Sales & Operations, Tractors India Pvt Ltd

Cat 3600 Advantage

GMMCO and Tractors India Pvt Ltd (TIPL) launched Cat 3600 ADVANTAGE special purchase bundle with the Cat 320D2 at Excon 2015.

Max Your Capital Assets? Productivity

Smart companies are deploying software to maximise returns on their investment in construction and mining equipment, finds Charu Bahri. A new wave of cost consciousness is picking up in the construction and mining sector.

Rental Market for DG Sets

The rental market for DG sets is expected to grow in future as the economy has started recovering. DG sets play a major role in peak hour saving - production, standby application, and continuous power - construction sites.

A System Approach

Improving cost efficiency has become one of the most challenging aspects for any business in an intense and cut-throat competitive market. The impact of this effect cascades to original equipment manufacturers, subsystem, components

MARC: The way to success

MARC (Maintenance & repair contract), in the past few years, has caught the attention of many mines operators in India. Maintenance & repair contract, more popularly known as MARC and more generally termed as full maintenance contract (FMC)

We have leading-edge solutions for machine control and tracking

Caterpillar India announced the launch of its new Cat? 424B backhoe loader in Chennai earlier this year. Our goal is the same everywhere in the world it does business, including India - to help our customers be more successful in their business by using Caterpillar products and services.

It's time for the show!

The 3rd edition of bC India, which mirrors the pulse of the CE industry, is expected to attract over 30,000 visitors to witness the exciting range of construction and mining equipment and machinery.

Will the Government be Able to Walk the Talk?

With the Union Budget scheduled in the second week of July, the entire industry seems to be on a highly expectant mood with the hope that the government will now shift to higher gear for bold, long-term and deep fiscal economic reforms. A Chinese proverb reads thus 'When the winds of change blow, some people build walls, and others, windmills.

The Winds of Change

A Chinese proverb reads thus ? ?When the winds of change blow, some people build walls, and others, windmills!? Agith G Antony finds out the views from the industry leaders who have been building windmills...

Every change in design is aimed at better productivity and enhanced versatility.

Every Cat product, by applying proven technologies systematically and strategically, meets customers' expectations for productivity, fuel efficiency, reliability and service life. In generic terms, products from Caterpillar with service and support by Cat dealers like TIPL bring Indian.

We provide tailor-made offerings to suit different customer requirements

Caterpillar?s vision is to be recognised as the leader everywhere we do business. Our strategy in India is to win by delivering quality products, services and solutions to our customers, says Ajay Shankar, Country Manager, Caterpillar India. Excerpts of the interview.

TIPL acquires Caterpillar Global Mining

With the acquisition of the expanded Cat? mining support business, TIPL will now be responsible for the complete Caterpillar mining product line, including the former Bucyrus-branded surface and underground machines for customers in northern and eastern India.

Caterpillar and TIPL expand rajasthan footprint

Caterpillar and its Indian dealer network is aggressively expanding its footprint in Rajasthan in a bid to further bolster its sales and service network through TIPL, Caterpillar's authorised dealer.

Caterpillar, TIPL to strengthen presence in Rajasthan

Tractors India Private (TIPL) plans to open a substantial number of retail outlets and after sales service centres at various locations in Rajasthan, including Jaipur and Udaipur to widen its reach and services to customers through the availability of high quality parts and technical support. TIPL is a wholly owned subsidiary of Tractors India (TIL) and is responsible for the entire Caterpillar business of c

Caterpillar and its dealer TIPL expand Rajasthan footprint

With the economy showing signs of improvement and demand for equipment in the infrastructure sector, Caterpillar and its Indian dealer network is aggressively expanding its footprint in Rajasthan in a bid to further bolster its sales and service network through TIPL,

Cat dozers are designed for ease of serviceability

Cat dozers are known for their operator comfort features, excellent visibility and low-effort controls that help improve operator efficiency, Vedhakumar talks about the dozer market and the product and service back-up offered by the company.

Cat motor graders are well known for their productivity and profitability

Caterpillar offers a wide range of motor graders that cater for multiple customer segment requirements, right from heavy con?struction to haul road maintenance and mining applications.

Moving More and Making More

Enhanced productivity and reduced operational and ownership costs make the new Cat 950H wheel loader a valuable partner in SEW Infrastructure?s Trichy-Dindigul road project.

The upgraded CAT 424B backhoe has set a new benchmark

Despite the market becoming more competitive with many new players entering the indu?stry, TIPL has continued to grow through value selling and with an objective to garner profits for customers, says Arunava Ghosh Dastidar, AVP & Business Head?BCP, TIPL.Backhoe loaders in India started as multipurpose equipment, cutting across various sectors, both in urban as well as rural areas.

STILL NUMBER ONE!

The sales forecast for backhoes by Off-Highway Research is pegged at a target of 36,000 units by 2015, up from 30,000 in 2011, whereas for the crawler excavator alone, the forecast is 35,000 units, up from the 2011 figure of 14,500.There is the school of thought that points to the visible drift from the backhoe market towards the wheel loaders market.

Compacting Technology Set to Improve

The new trend in technology is faster compaction by achieving the required density at a lower operating cost. Also, the latest equipment is designed with features to improve operator safety, comfort and maintainability.

TIPL offers products from the Caterpillar global mining stable

MARC contracts are a great value differentiator and TIPL was perhaps one of the first service providers in the Indian mining industry to pioneer this concept with one of its esteemed clients Tata Steel

Equipment Rental: Rentals Moving Up

Out of $ 2.3 billion construction equipment sold in India, just seven per cent is sold to rental companies, which is low compared to the global average of 50 per cent; in China, it is approximately 35 per cent, in USA 65 per cent and in Japan, it is 80 per cent.

Earthmoving Equipment: TIPL is fully geared to meet the market demands

We strongly believe that techn?ology built into machines and add-on technology solutions will create the paradigm shift in the industry, says GVR Murthy, Joint Managing Director, TIPL.

By the year 2014-15, the top line should grow three to four fold

We have undertaken a number of measures such as creation of fiscal strength, intellectual capital sufficiency, diversification of our product and capability repertoire, as well as investment in greenfield expansions, together with strengthening of our service brand, says Sumit Mazumder, Vice Chairman & Managing Director, TIL.

Cat at the Heart of Gammon Projects

With a fleet of more than 80 Cat machines, Gammon banks on Caterpillar for smooth sailing, peak performance levels and timely completion of its infrastructure projects.

TIPL's New Nerve Centre

With a major focus on offering innovative and value-added solutions to the customers, TIPL, the wholly owned subsidiary of TIL, has launched a 50,000 sq ft, state-of-the-art Component Rebuild Centre (CRC).

Caterpillar brand is synonymous with durability and reliability

Our cusomer support agreements (CSA) deliver the highest asset uptime and lowest cost of operation over the entire product life cycle, says Subir Bhattacharyya, Advisor - TIPL. 0 - - 16259 14 102 2011-06-01 00:00:00.000 Equipment India ACE is in the process of doubling the capacity

We are focusing on backward integration especially in-house fabrication with specialised strengthened steel, says Jitendra Sharma, Chief Executive Officer, Action Construction Equipment. Excerpts from the interview.

What is the demandsupply scenario for backhoes in India? What is the market share of ACE for backhoes in India and growth envisaged?
As of now, the demand-supply is at equilibrium. ACE has focused in this segment and is targeting to capture 15 per cent market share by 2012 with approximately doubling the growth in next three years.

What is the market potential for backhoes in India in terms of volume and value? What are the growth enablers?
The market potential is around 22,000 units as per the past trend, value wise it touches around Rs 4,000 crore. India is focusing on infrastructure development in a big way like China and other developing countries and many MNCs in tie-up with Indian companies are moving into the segment. Also, timely completion of the projects will play a major role for enhancement of the potential.

Could you tell us about the range offered by ACE and their features?
We offer basically two models with different variants, the first one is a common 76-hp two-wheel drive, and the other is 96-hp four-wheel drive model. In addition, we have various combinations and optional attachments which can be added or removed depending on the application of a backhoe loader. ACE is focusing on backward integration especially in-house fabrication with specialised strengthened steel. This is a strength for producing best quality with competitive pricing, and also marching with new patterns like BS III compatible engine as per the requirement.

What is the existing manufacturing capacity for backhoes?
ACE has a capacity of manufacturing 200 units per month and is in the process of enhancing the same to nearly 400 units per month in the near future.

Which segment contributes maximum share for backhoes in India?
Plant hirers comprise around 6570 per cent of the market.

What is the rental scenario for these products?
One can anywhere rent out a machine on an average of Rs 600800 per hour and if rented on a monthly basis, one can generate Rs 70,00080,000 per month with a fixed expense of around Rs 20,000 per machine.

What is the RoI on a backhoe?
The machine if purchased on a loan recovers its cost in three years excluding an average monthly income of Rs 20,000.

Tell us about the attachments offered along with backhoe?
We offer various attachments namely forklift, 6-in-1 clam shovel, ripper tooth, rock breaker etc. Various bucket sizes are also available for different applications.

How do you look at the competition in this segment?
With more and more companies entering in the segment, the competition has become fierce as well as interesting. But, since ACE's USP is better quality at a right and highly reasonable price, we are sure we will be looking for big results in a short span of time. Nevertheless, we are confident about our well established sales and service network spread across India, and service being a major issue of concern, we will leave competition far behind.

How do you look at the replacement/repowering market for the units sold which are not complying with Bharat Stage III norms?
Engine manufactures have already worked on this and government regulations have to be complied with. A plan is being chalked out to ensure the required modification, but practically it may take some time to get the work accomplished.

Could you brief us on ACE's strength in training and service network?
ACE has already been rated as the fastest growing construction equipment company. With enhancement in product range as well as capacities, the company has already chalked out a detailed programme to ensure not only to retain the present training and service status but to enhance the same for betterment to the level of perfection and entire satisfaction of the customers. New training centres with all modern facilities and best expertise available in the market is going to be utilised. Train the trainer programme and continuous and vigorous training camps supported by seminars will be the part of the continuous process for the same. Also in this line, we already run a residential training school for service engineers and operators with a capacity of 30 candidates in one batch.

Caterpillar has vibratory soil compactors in the operating weight range of 4.5T?18.5T

The popular model being offered in India is the CS533E (11T Class) which is required to meet the National Highway Project requirements in India,? says Pankaj Dara, Associate Vice President - Construction, TIPL. 0 - - 15633 14 102 2011-05-02 00:00:00.000 Equipment India Hamm is the technology leader in compaction equipment

?Our existing manufacturing facility can produce 400 machines annually and plans are on for further expansion in the coming years,? says Girish Dixit, Head - Engineering & Design, Wirtgen India. In a freewheeling chat, Girish speaks about the industry trends.

Tell us about the range offered in compaction equipment and also their unique features?
Wirtgen India offers Hamm-11T soil compactor, 9T asphalt compactors and 24T pneumatic tyre rollers (PTR) for the Indian market. Hamm compactors come with German design and technology mainly featuring excellent operator comfort and safety. The equipment are powered by a fuel-efficient and highly durable water-cooled engine.

Hamm is the technology leader in compaction which has been awarded many design prizes for its latest innovations. Recently, it was awarded iF-Gold award 2010 also called the Design Oscar for new HD+ series of asphalt compactor. The GRW 280, rubber-wheeled rollers received the iF Design award 2010.

Higher quality level of the components used in Hamm compactors increases the durability of the equipment. Better serviceability and reduced maintenance frequency with less fuel consumption results in the lower operating cost of the equipment.

What is the existing manufacturing capacity for these product lines?
Our existing manufacturing facility can produce 400 machines annually and plans are on for further expansion in the coming years.

What is the rental scenario for these products?
Currently, Wirtgen India is not in the rental market and is only selling the new equipment in the retail and corporate segments, rental companies.

Are these products compliant with the Bharat stage III emission norms?
Yes, the equipment built after April 2011 will comply with Bharat stage III emission norms.

How do you look at the replacement/ repowering market for the units sold which are not complying with Bharat stage III norms?
As per the regulations, no replacement/re-powering is required for the units built with Bharat stage II norms.

Why vibratory compactors over static ones and what is the vibration effect in compaction over the static loading?
Vibratory compactors develop dynamic force in addition to the static load and total applied force is the sum of dynamic force and the static weight of the machine. For example, Hamm 11T soil compactor generates 24T dynamic force and with 6.8T static weight at the drum will induce 30.8 tonne load on the ground. The advantage of using 11T vibratory soil compactor versus 30 tonne static compactor is evident from this.

The vibratory compactor with drum vibrating at higher amplitude will result in compacting the higher lift thickness and achieving the required density compared with the static roller. In the static roller, the linear load is not uniform over the width of the machine (one front roller and two rear rollers) which results in uneven mat finish. In the vibratory compactors, the linear load is uniform along the width of the drum.

To what extent do soil conditions determine the selection of compactors? Could you tell us the reasons?
Type of soil and conditions like moisture content decides the achievable density within the required number of passes. It is important to select the suitable compactor which will develop the required force to achieve the density with lesser number of passes on the appropriate lift thickness.

What determines the maximum achievable density?
Density depends on the soil characteristics (type of soil) and optimum moisture content (OMC) present in the soil. Generally, 95 to 100 per cent density can be achieved with 11T soil compactors on the appropriate lift thickness.

?To have maximum return on investment, the equipment should have maximum productivity and less rework,? says SM Roy, Chief Executive Officer, Lanco Infratech. In an exclusive chat with Equipment India, Roy elaborates on the evolution of compacting and grading technologies. Excerpts from the interview.

How, over a period, have the methods of compaction and grading evolved and to what extent does the contracting fraternity use the advanced equipment and methodology?
The first road roller was horse-drawn; this was followed by steam and diesel rollers. For a long period, static compactors of various sizes were used. The introduction of vibratory compactor in 1946 opened a new era in construction industry.

A few decades ago, grading was done manually or with tractor dozers where operator skill was important for accuracy. Advanced technology has made the grading work simple by giving option of automatic slope and elevation offsets. GPS navigation and machine guidance systems have reduced the amount of external surveying required.

Almost every construction project or site preparation requires some kind of grading and compaction. The Indian contracting community extensively uses the graders and compactors for various purposes based on size and extent of projects.

Why vibratory compactors over static ones? What is the vibration effect in compaction over static loading?
Static compactor functions with its own weight and hence compaction is confined to the top soil layer. Vibratory compactors use a mechanism to create a downward force in addition to the machine's static weight thereby affecting the top layers as well as deeper layers. Vibration moves through the material, setting particles in motion and moving them closer together for the highest possible density.

To what extent does the soil condition determine the selection of compactors?
The desired level of compaction is best achieved by matching the soil type with its proper compaction method. Clay is cohesive; its particles stick together requiring high impact force to compact. Hence, the sheep-foot roller is the best choice. Best compaction of granular soils is possible with shaking or vibratory action. For mixed type of soils, it is a good idea to choose the compactor appropriate for a larger percentage of the mixture.

What is the return on investment on a compactor and on a grader?
To have maximum return on investment, equipment should have maximum productivity and less rework. Production cost depends on depreciation, maintenance, fuel, working hours and labour. Smaller machines cost less in terms of ownership but more in labour and vice versa. In general, for each situation, one should study equipment productivity and try to strike a balance to get better value for money.

Could you tell us about the density achievable from the range of compactors? What determines the maximum achievable density?
The maximum achievable density depends on fill type, compactive efforts and moisture content and it varies from 2.1 tonne/cu m for well graded gravels to 1.5 tonne/cu m for highly plastic clays. Most of the compactors can achieve maximum fill density with different compactive efforts and efficiencies.

What are the variants in compaction?
The variants in compaction are soil type, moisture content, lift or fill thickness, compactive efforts or number of passes of compactors.

Selection Criteria:

A selection criterion for graders and compactors is given below:
? Size, weight and machine power.
? Steering, direction control and maneuverability.
? Functional automation.
? Multi-tasking machine with various attachments.
? Maximum possible thickness of the lift (for grader).
? Accuracy of the grading (for grader).
? Range of vibration frequency (for compactor).
? Working and downtime.
? Ownership and maintenance cost.
? Availability of trained manpower to use the machine.

Motor Graders

Most of the reputed suppliers today supply motor graders and dozers with an accurate grade system, where one can upload the design of the site and grading will be done automatically by machine to the required specification.

The Road Ahead

With more than 60 per cent of the cargo movement done by India's large network of roads, the road-building sector in the country has offered major growth opportunities for the construction equipment industry.

TIPL offers Caterpillar excavators from 7T to 85T

?TIPL has already tied up with Sitech, a distribution network for the most reliable and rugged construction technology systems available to the heavy and highway contractors today, says G V R Murthy, Joint Managing Director, TIPL.

Excavators Settle In Comfortably

The market potential for hydraulic excavators in India looks to be most promising, as a large number of players have entered the scene. What's more, the boom is expected to last for quite some time. Agith G Antony digs up the facts.

Mining Equipment: Mining Shows Promising Potential

Mining and quarrying activities have contributed significantly to growth, primarily in the sales of large-sized equipment over the last few years. Equipment India finds out the details from some of the major players in the segment.

Earthmoving Equipment: Moving Up Steadily

At six per cent growth in the economy, infrastructure typically grows at 12 per cent which in turn, fuels the growth of the construction equipment by 20 per cent.