Eyeing new heights

The year 2021 gave numerous ups and downs for the construction equipment and equipment financing industries. When the year comes to an end, the sectors look forth towards infrastructure as the ‘Growth Puller’ for the period ahead.

Tata Motors launches ‘16 saal bemisaal’ campaign

Commemorating 16 strong years of the Tata Ace, the most popular small commercial vehicle (SCV) of the country, Tata Motors, India’s largest commercial vehicle manufacturer, has announced the launch of the new ‘16 saal bemisaal’ campaign.

Tata Motors launches ‘16 saal bemisaal’ campaign

To celebrate this feat, Tata Motors has organised roadshows, wherein Tata Aces will travel across 10 states in the country. Patrons will also be able to test drive the vehicle to gain a first-hand experience of its comfort and drivability.

The M&HCV tipper trucks segment continues to look positive

RT Wasan, Vice President, Product Line, M&HCV, Tata Motors, elaborates on the company strategy in the Covid-impacted market scenario.

Growth factors of Indian warehousing and logistics sector

Aditya Vazirani, CEO of Robinsons Global Logistics Solutions, elaborates on the factors that will drive the growth of Indian warehousing and logistics in 2021.

ICRA predicts construction equipment volume growth in CY2021

Central Government projects in roads and rural development will drive demand

Financing Challenges

Devendra Kumar Vyas elaborates on the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on infrastructure and financing sector and the challenges faced by NBFCs.

CE industry to de-grow in 2020

In the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, the overall sales of construction equipment in the country in CY2020 are expected to diminish by 15-20 per cent.

CE industry to de-grow in 2020

In the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic, the overall sales of construction equipment in the country in CY2020 are expected to diminish by 15-20 per cent.

CE industry to de-grow by 15-20 per cent in CY2020

The Indian construction industry is facing numerous headwinds as a result of the economic slowdown and other factors impacting the construction activity.

CE industry to de-grow by 15-20 per cent in CY2020

The Indian construction industry is facing numerous headwinds as a result of the economic slowdown and other factors impacting the construction activity.

Grading the Future

The current market conditions are tough for motor graders since the projects are not active due to the coronavirus impact.

Paving to Perfection

The projects planned in roads, highways and expressways under the National Infrastructure Pipeline for the next five years will drive the demand for pavers during the period.

Steering Growth

Growing urbanisation and mechanisation of manual jobs are driving the demand for compact equipment such as skid-steer loaders in India.

We have a long-term expansion plan for India

Bonfiglioli Transmissions has recently expanded its manufacturing facility in Chennai to double the production in India.

TECH-MOVES

With the government plans to invest Rs 102 trillion in infrastructure development in the next five years, the demand for construction equipment will be immense.

The company is always close to its customers business

Putzmeister is a world-leading solutions provider for pumping, mixing and placing concrete, mortar and industrial solids. For over 60 years, the company's solutions have been utilised by the construction, infrastructure, mining, energy and environment sectors in a wide range of environments and application conditions all over the world.

We will build on our Intelli series

In four decades of operations in India, JCB has grown to become a full-range construction infrastructure equipment partner offering indigenous, innovative and versatile solutions of One-Global-Quality.

On the right path

It is a fact that the industry is under tremendous pressure of economic slowdown. However, hopes are alive as the government is listening to the problems of the industry and working out resolutions for a faster recovery.

THE ROAD AHEAD

The roads and highways sector is expected to bounce back soon with the government's corrective measures to combat slowdown and the large number of projects planned in the coming years. The road equipment players are bullish on the future growth prospects.

Poised to Grow

India's lubricant market is growing up with demand for industrial lubricants on the rise. More infrastructure developments and growth in manufacturing in the coming years will see further demand growth for industrial lubricants.

We have the widest range of oils to meet all requirements

GS Caltex India is a 100 per cent subsidiary of GS Caltex, which is a 50:50 joint venture between GS Energy of South Korea and Chevron Corp of USA.

Thwarting challenges

The construction equipment (CE) market was predicted to be flat this year due to elections and uncertainty in the new political scenario. The industry was cautiously optimistic.

Backing Infra Growth

Show of Innovations

With 614,000 sq m of space, about 3,700 exhibitors from 63 countries and more than 620,000 visitors from over 200 countries, the largest bauma ever held was once again a bauma filled with records.

Infrastructure on fast track

The Indian infrastructure sector is not slowing down anytime soon, given the government initiatives and market demand. This makes it a feasible environment for the growth of construction equipment, writes Andy Dhanaraj, Director - Sales, Caterpillar India.

Excon will reflect the grassroot level optimism

Economic slowdown has impacted the Indian construction equipment industry over the past two years. The short-term economic outlook in India may seem unfavourable, however the medium to long-term economic prospects look encouraging.

Maintenance Management

After three-four years of economic slowdown, now infrastructure development activities like roads, rail and Metro projects are coming up. It is very challenging to execute projects under these changing paradigms.

New Opportunities Against the Odds

With more than 170,000 visitors from 149 countries and regions exploring the technologies and innovations showcased by 2,953 exhibitors from 41 countries, bauma China 2016 was a success in spite of an economic slowdown.

The Earth Movers and Shakers

As a consequence of the excavation activity gaining momentum, earthmovers like front-end loaders, crawler dozers, traxcavators and other earthmoving equipment are registering a CAGR of 15-18 per cent. Since the Indian economy is reviving, these equipment are also finding emerging markets in other sectors as well.

INDIA INSULATED FROM BREXIT FALLOUT

On the 23rd of June, UK public voted to leave the European Union. The news not just sent the UK markets and currency into turmoil but sent shockwaves that were felt all the way in India as well. The historic vote marks the rise of a new phase of uncertainty for the international markets.

8 YEARS OF EQUIPMENT INDIA

I am deeply honoured and pleased to inform you that EQUIPMENT INDIA has successfully completed eight years of publication as the only magazine on infrastructure equipment in the country.

Setting New Standards

SAMIL aims to capture a large share in the market as the government has allotted huge amount towards construction of new highways and road network all over the country.

Heavy Lift Anablers

India has witnessed an influx of new software-assisted multiple application-specific boom configured heavy lifters. Despite the economic slowdown taking the wind out of the sail for the heavy lift cranes? suppliers

Unacea team to take Made in Italy to Bengaluru

Confindustria Modena, Veronafiere-SaMoTer and Unacea will undertake a joined action for the attendance of a group of Italian companies at Excon, a major construction machinery trade fair in Southern Asia scheduled in Bengaluru during November 25-29, 2015.

BHL Market to Grow

It?s a fact that the backhoe market has been reduced to one-third of the actual market size, and currently, supply is more compared to demand, and the industry is not very hopeful for a turnaround, especially in this financial year.

Make in India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched an ambitious campaign ?Make in India?, which aims to turn the country into a global manufacturing hub. The campaign projects India as an investment destination and develop, promote and market India as a leading manufacturing destination and as a hub for design and information.

Rs 1 lakh-crore for power, mining projects

Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of Coal, Power and Renewable Energy, said that the power and coal sectors will shortly issue orders worth over Rs 1 lakh crore for various projects.

Smart Hydraulics

Hydraulics industry in India is on a revival mode with new designs, materials, and manufacturing technologies are coming into the market. In the coming years, energy efficiency, fuel consumption, and the life-cycle of machines will become the major deciding factors for hydraulic systems.

Towering Tall

The real estate and power sectors will show a tremendous growth in the next 2-3 years. As per projections, the tower crane requirement will increase to 30-40 per cent in these two years. Current demand growth for tower cranes is mostly from realty sector.

Liebherr plans to launch the next model for Indian market

The major demand in India is for the real estate sector, so, 5-tonne capacity cranes are the main demand for this sector. The demand for higher capacity cranes can increase in future gradually but still the 5-tonne capacity crane may have a major demand for real estate sector.

We have started a new manufacturing facility in India

There has been some positive vibes in the CE sector overall. Has this started reflecting on the demand for washing equipment?Policy changes do take time to manifest themselves in the form of improved business conditions.

Moving Ahead

The growth potential for earthmoving equipment in India has never been disputed. All sectors like power, roads, ports, etc. will drive demand. With increasing investment in the infrastructure sector, the earthmoving equipment industry foresees huge demand for CE in the coming years.

DesignED to Rule

Up & Moving

Powered for the long haul

Commercial vehicle OEMs - domestic and global - have pumped in investments, augmented capacities, launched global platform strategies, enhanced touch points, and stressed on soft solutions to suit the demands of emerging markets.

We cater to Delhi NCR, Uttaranchal, UP and Haryana markets

Apart from Volvo and Powerscreen, we would like to add at least one more business having Synergy with our existing range of products in construction and mining segment, says PK Shivpuri, Head - Sales Operations, Alpha Technical Services.

8,500 km by March 2015: How Realistic is the Target?

The Union Finance Minister has set a target of 8,500 km of roads to be completed during the current fiscal year, which simply means construction of about 35.5 km of road per day! In the last couple of years,

Radial tyres can give substantially higher mileage as compared to bias ply tyres.

At Tyresoles, we focus on lowering our customers' tyre costs. We work with our customers to reduce the damage and scrap of these new tyres. The more tyres get retreaded, the lower the cost for the fleet, says Karun Sanghi, Managing Director, Tyresoles. Excerpts of the interview.

Crawling Now, To Pick Up Soon?

Despite the muted demand due to lack of new projects in the power sector, the crawler cranes segment is expected to register good growth once the new projects are taken up after the general elections, writes Sudheer Vathiyath.India is a huge market for crawler cranes, especially higher capacity crawlers. This is mainly due to increasing demand in thermal power sector, nuclear power sector, steel plants, refinery expansions and wind power sector. However, the market has slowed down in the last tw

The crack of dawn

The recent decision of the Supreme Court lifting the ban on iron ore mining in Goa has implications beyond this state as the mining sector's woes have added to the economic slowdown along with low growth in manufacturing. Over the past two years, due to the ban on iron ore mining in Goa, Karnataka and Odisha, the iron ore export fell by 85 per cent or 100 MT and as a result, India, once the world?s third-largest exporter, turned a net importer of the commodity in recent times. The closure of iro

We believe in customers who believe in quality

We feel that India will grow and that is why we are here. The advantage we have is that our global leadership is concentrating to present better options for Indian markets, resulting which we have grown above Rs 1,000 crore in India. In spite of the slowdown,

TIL cranes are built on superior technology and design

At TIL, we continue to focus on product engineering, new product development and customer satisfaction initiatives, in order to remain competitive. This economic slowdown allows us to intensify our initiatives towards operational excellence,

Road 2 recovery

Despite the present day gloom in the market, the future for the construction equipment sector, especially for the road equipment segment in India, still holds much potential as this sector has a profound and immediate impact on the country?s economic growth. Off-Highway Research is optimistic about the growth in demand for road equipment and forecasts growth at a CAGR of 12.67 per cent over the next five years. Agith G Antony finds out more about the positive vibes in the industry.

The government should award projects only after securing key sovereign clearances.

With the government planning for a major infrastructure boom in the North-Eastern states, we foresee a lot of potential for businesses to grow and flourish. The government plans to make investments in roads, railways, air connectivity, cyber and telecom connectivity and power in this region, says Amit Gossain, Vice President - Marketing and Business Development, JCB India. Excerpts of the interview.

The growth of road equipment segment will be about 15 per cent by 2017

Last year, we took an aggressive approach with the launching of new products in spite of the recession. The objective was to be prepared and match customer expectations and take a chunk of market share when the economy turns around, says R Nandagopal, Chief Executive Officer, Construction Equipment Business, Greaves Cotton. Excerpts of the interview.

Slowdown hits CV makers

The country's commercial vehicle (cv) makers have been hit hard by the slowdown. Starting April 2012, sales of medium and heavy commercial vehicles (M&HCVs) fell nearly 12 per cent over the same month in the previous year, the fall has been becoming steeper by the month. Sales of large trucks are driven by investments in mining and infrastructure.

Looking Ahead with Optimism

Despite the economic slowdown and contrary to initial apprehensions from the major stakeholders, Excon 2013 turned out to be a success, with OEMs and aggregate and components manufacturers launching a new range of machines and components, and some of them even announcing further investment to augment capacity, in order to meet the expected demand spurt in the coming years.

Excavator Market Looking at Boom

As per Off-Highway Research, crawler excavators will be the fastest growing product of the near future, and its demand should grow to over 30,000 units in the next four to five years.Excon 2013 bears testimony to the fact that OEMs are gearing up for the anticipated demand for excavators. Some of the leading players either launched new models or showcased upgraded versions. Volvo CE launched two productive and powerful models in the D Series - EC220D and EC300D; JCB showcased its completely

JCB Excavator provides best-in-class productivity and fuel efficiency.

In the excavator segment, JCB offers an unmatched range starting from 8T operating weight (JS81) to 22T operating weight (JS 220LC), to serve the plant hirers, earthmoving and quarrying customer base. At Excon 2013, JCB introduced the JS30 mini excavator and JS360 LC which like all other JCB excavators, offers excellent fuel efficiency, says Vipin Sondhi, Managing Director & CEO, JCB India. Excerpts from the interview.

Equipment Finance Companies are Optimistic on Sales Growth

Bangalore, 23 November 2013: As with any product that requires a large one-time capital expense, financing is a good way for the construction equipment industry to spark demand and acquire new customers. In 2011, India?s earthmoving and construction equipment (ECE) financing industry was valued at Rs.23,000 crore according to the report on ?Roadmap for Realising ECE Industry?s Long Term Potential? released at CII EXCON 2013 - South Asia?s Biggest Construction Equipment Event.

The Rupee Impact

The depreciation of the Indian rupee has had its adverse impact on the manufacturing sector, especially OEMs who import various components. To the extent possible, OEMs are trying to localise production, but that is just a part of it. What the industry is looking is for concrete measures that can bring life back into the economy and trigger growth in a sustainable way.

We give client different options to fit their budget.

We have diversified our umbrella beyond trading of AR plates and are providing clients services like CNC plasma cutting, laser cutting, underwater CNC jet cutting, drilling and bending, and fabrication of wear parts, says Bhavesh Mehta, Managing Partner, Leomet Alloys Inc. Excerpts from the interview.

Our core competence lies in our fast after-sales service and flexible warrantee policy.

Friends Equipment, engaged in the sales and service of construction equipment, offers a wide range of products at a reasonable price along with spare parts supply. ?To be more close to our customer, we provide operation and maintenance services and the installation and dismantling services for the offered product, says Rajeev Kumar

We expect a huge spurt in demand for construction equipment from Q4 2014.

Low downtime of the machine is a major factor under consideration while buying new equipment. We have a very strong and focused after sale service with a very efficient and trained service staff. We are also looking into new initiatives like SAP enable part support in all our design and mobile service, says Anil Bhatia, Director Sales and Marketing

Staying close to our customers is our priority.

We have a very strong research and development team that is striving to provide break?through technologies on our equipment. Our focus is now on providing solutions to our customers to keep the operating costs at the minimum level. I will consider this as our value for money proposition in hard times, says Viraj Parthi, India Country Leader

38 German companies will showcase their innovative products at Excon 2013.

German investors in India take a positive long-term view of the Indian market and continue to invest in their operations and tap growth opportunities. . Maharashtra, with around 39 per cent share of German investments, remains the most attractive destination for German business in India.

Stalled but Hopeful

In spite of the present slowdown and resultant sluggishness in the CE market, the long- term growth prospects are still intact; and experts view the huge infrastructure deficit as a major growth driver and prudent steps from the government can bring India back on the growth trajectory.

The kind of service we provide ensures that we get repeat orders

We work closely with our customers and provide the best technology and integral consulting solutions for their projects. Our timely after sales, operation and maintenance services all keep us close to our customers, says Rajeev Kumar, Chief Executive Officer, Friends Equipment.

An upward trend

Over the years, the manufacturing sectors have made remarkable progress in integrating the latest and most advanced systems of material handling into the manufacturing process. There is a perceptible shift towards third-party logistics providers, increased focus on integrated supply chain

We understand how important it is to pay attention to our customer needs.

The future of material handling equipment is going to be about more automation and easier human control interface, says Tushar Mehendale, Managing Director, ElectroMech. Excerpts from the interview.

Escorts represents fassi gru, Italy, for its complete range of knuckle boom cranes.

Escorts have had the advantage of first mover. The consequent visibility of Escorts-Fassi cranes are high and the quality of these cranes are extremely good, bringing in the good reviews and repeat business. Our current range of cranes includes cranes from 0.8 Tm to 195 Tm in over 60 models and more than 30000 configurations

We work very closely with OEMs.

In the economic slowdown techno?logy plays a role where one becomes more profit conscious and looks for someone like Shell. Our solutions are based on delivering value, says Akhileshwar Jha, Vice President-Technical, Lubricants, Shell India Markets.

Speco JV with the basic group will have a manufacturing set up in India soon.

Speco is the only company which is constantly upgrading the techno?logy by introducing an air automised burner to reduce the fuel cost. The new design dryer has reduced maintenance. The new vibrating screen design ensures good quality, says VP Mundra, Director, Basic Engineering Equipment.

We have positioned ourselves as a true infrastructure partner rather than a lender

More projects, faster enviro?nm?ent and forest clearances, support in land acquisition and a general clarity in policy are the key. Any infrastructure project takes time and stability of policy is a must to ensure that investment flows, says DK Vyas, CEO, Srei BNP Paribas.

We at Shriram treat FTUs as niche and are focused on supporting small customers.

All bottlenecks on the project execution side, i.e., environmental, land clearances, financial closures, allocation of funds, and awarding of contracts need to be tackled on an immediate basis, or else the industry will see a major down-turn and many good operators will exit the segment, says Rakesh Chandra, Vice President and Risk Head, Shriram Equipment Finance Company. Excerpts from the interview.

Navigating through turbulent times

Overall slowdown in demand for new equipment, absence of new channels for the deployment of equipment compared to the overall availability, plummeting value of currency, lack of clarity on private coal blocks, highly depressed rental rates - all seems to have had its negative impact on the equipment finance segment.

In search of a strong foundation

Absence of big ticket projects such as greenfield power and steel plant projects, crashed out rental rates and surplus of idling equipment, and the cash flow crisis - the overall scenario of the foundation equipment market from the micro point of view seems to be grim, even though from the macro point of view few metro projects seem to have given a bit of relief to the industry.

We have taken up the dealership of Beretta micro piling and anchoring drilling rigs

There is an overall economic slowdown in the market. However, we are confident that once the market conditions improve, there will be a tremendous demand again for foundation equipment as this is the equipment which is required for all major projects involving foundation work, says Surajit Mukherjee, Managing Director, Suretech. Excerpts from the interview.

Towering high

Our estimate pegs the total demand for tower cranes in India at approximately 600 units. Of these, 85-90 per cent of the demand is from the real estate construction sector, while the remaining 15 per cent comes from power, steel and cement.

SEFC has already attained the most prominent position in the CE finance space

We have drawn a three-year plan and in the first tranche, we are well on track. The next three years will be a mixed bag of challenges and opportunities and we will capitalise on the same and consolidate our position to be one of the largest NBFCs in this segment, says Akshaya Nayak, Head Administration and Legal, SEFC.

Our commitment to sustainable development is total

To promote sustainable development and encourage recycling, we have developed plants which take asphalt recycling to the next level.

We are seeking a growth of 200 per cent this year

We have a major focus on our after sales service. The Friends Equipment team is a sales and service provider for heavy machinery and totally dedicated to the construction industry.

The Zoomlion-Electromech JV offers frequency control across its tower cranes

Zoomlion has the second biggest population of installed tower cranes in the country across all segments. Over 550 Zoomlion tower cranes are working on various sites across India.

OEMs are confident in our technical capabilities to deliver cost-effective solutions

We are working overtime with our OE customers and media supplier's to develop new high-efficiency and high-capacity filters which are a must for new generation engines as reduced clearances to meet stringent emission norms are putting extra pressure on much better contamination control,

Our products set a benchmark by way of enhancing safety and fuel efficiency

Our fully integrated and purpose built manufacturing facility at Kolkata delivers state-of-the-art design, manufacturing and product technologies. TIL distribution network offers mobile cranes: industrial cranes, truck- mounted canes, rough terrain cranes, and all terrain cranes, lattice boom crawler cranes, and lorry loaders

Liebherr cranes are designed and manufactured according the highest safety norms

It will be much sensible to ask for a crane functional test and load test certification from a reputed third-party inspector before import. This will restrict the number of junk cranes coming into India. Also, the project people should have very strict controls on quality, selection of suitable equipment and timely completion of the job, says Ajay Kumar Somani, Director, Mobile Crane Division, Liebherr India.

On a recovery mode

The construction equipment industry is experiencing a slump due to the slowdown in the mining industry as well as delays in infrastructure projects and governmental clearances, shortage of funds, environmental concerns. EQUIPMENT INDIA interacts with some of the major players to get the pulse of the industry.

Our presence is more project-centric than city-centric

Today, we are at a turnover of around Rs 850 crore and are looking at increasing the turnover of both the topline and bottomline, says Rajinder Raina, General Manager - Marketing, Escorts Construction Equipment.

India is developing as an attractive manufacturing base for export of CE

In view of the infrastructure development needs in every sector and the government's massive and investment plans, Off-Highway Research forecasts the Indian construction equipment market will grow to over 100,000 units by 2017,

Super Solid Tyres

Trident International specialises in the design, development and supply of solid industrial tyres for construction, quarrying, underground mining, port and material handling equipment.

We believe in keeping ahead in all endeavours, including competition.

The competition is growing across the world. Even from India the other tyre companies are following BKT's activities very closely," says Arvind Poddar, Chairman & Managing Director, BKT. Excerpts from the interview.

We have standardised the LiDAT system in our crawler cranes

Based on state-of-the-art technology, LiDAT provides information on the location and operation of your machines, enabling their efficient management, optimal operation scheduling and remote supervision

Allcargo invests hugely in implementing international best practices

We are very meticulous about delivering the best to our customers and want to ensure that we can offer end-to-end solutions. Having our own fleet of transport vehicles and equipment helps us do this effectively

CE Industry to benefit from Budget's focus on infrastructure

The initiatives announced in the Budget and the measures taken outside it together will impact the demand for construction equipment. DK Vyas trains his thoughts on the likely impact of the recent Budget on the CE sector.

We cater to the entire value chain from procurement to deployment to disposal.

Our pan-India presence and in-depth knowledge of the Indian market make us a preferred player for any equipment manufacturer, (Indian or foreign, who is eyeing the ICE market in India. A proper risk management system, floating interest rate financing and customised offering have been major growth factors for us, says DK Vyas, CEO, Srei BNP Paribas. Excerpts from the interview.

Bauer is committed towards producing safe, highly productive and fuel....

Re-affirming our commitment to and our conviction about the Indian market, we have also extended our Valueline range with new products, the BG 26 and BG30 rigs for bigger diameter and deeper piles with Kelly drilling, says Jagpal Singh, Managing Director, Bauer Equipment India. Excerpts from the interview.

At TIL, safety is a key priority

The trend of the future is likely to focus more on better technology with world class safety standards. Usage of telematics and electronic fault diagnostic systems is also likely to become a trend in crane design and usage. Over the next few years, the Indian market is likely to follow global best practices and specification standards for

bC India 2013 will contribute to improve current market sentiments

BC India 2013 is a special edition and it has grown tremendously, even in times of general economic slowdown. We will have more exhibition space than in 2011, more exhibitors and expect more visitors. The positive feed?back from exhibitors and visitors showed us that there was a need for a construction equipment show in Mumbai and that we introduced the show at the right time, says Thomas Loffler, Chief Executive Officer, bC Expo India.

JCB manufactures products which are robust, custom built and highly fuel-efficient.

JCB offers a world class vibratory soil compactor VM115 and a recently launched 9 T Tandem Roller VMT 860, which are specifically used for road projects. These machines are built specially for Indian roads and are amongst the best at compaction, says Amit Gossain, VP - Marketing & Business Development, JCB India. Excerpts from the interview.