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EDITOR’S NOTE

October 2013 / 3 www.motownindia.com

We have completed 36 months of an eventful journey

that has borne immense fruits. We have proved to

the publishing world and to the corporate world in

general that if you are committed, you can definitely

be successful. You do not need a foreign title or a foreign template

to be a successful magazine. In the last one year we featured some

every important people from the automotive industry on the cover of

our magazine that included the likes of Rajeev Dubey of Mahindra &

Mahindra, Lowell Paddock of GM India, Rohit Saboo of NBC Bearings,

AK Taneja of Shriram Pistons, Nikhil Nanda and R. Sridhar of Escorts,

Bhanu Sharma of SAME Deutz Fahr and Vinod Aggrawal of Volvo Eicher

Commercial Vehicles. We also had Union Industry Minister Praful Patel on

the cover.

The third anniversary cover report is on Joginder Singh of Ford India. An

interview that was to last 30 minutes, Singh spent almost an hour talking

about his professional journey. He delved upon his postings with Ford

globally which took him to markets in Europe, Canada, the US and the

UK. He has now come to India when the ‘Blue Oval’ is really beginning to

shine quite brightly. In the one hour he spoke to us, one could conclude

that he is a die-hard Ford man. “In case I cut myself and my blood came

out you will get to see Blue Oval and not red corpuscles,” he jokingly

told me. He is immensely proud of the Blue Oval logo and everything

it stands for. On almost every occasion when the Ford EcoSport was

unveiled across India, he did

not miss an opportunity to

bend down and kiss the Ford

logo. At dealership meetings

he has even taken out his

handkerchief and wiped the

‘Blue Oval’ logo on some of

the cars at display. Such is

his love and passion for his

company and its products.

The Motown India journey could not have been completed without

the willingness of several companies to advertise with us. Even when the

industry was witnessing a slump, they ensured that they did not back out

of their commitments towards advertising in our magazine. As we now

gear up for the next 12 months, we thank all our readers, the automotive

industry in general and the men and women who work in them, for

appreciating our work!

Edit Note.indd 3 10/7/2013 4:58:32 PM

P. Tharyan

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CONTENTS

www.motownindia.com 8 / October 2013

MOTOWN INDIA HIGHLIGHTS >> INDIA REPORT >>

COVER REPORT >>

TÊTE - À - TÊTE >>

20 Expo Mart gears up for Auto Expo in Feb 2014Automobile industry body SIAM has decided to or-ganise the 2014 Auto Expo from February 5 -11 at the India Expo Mart in Greater Noida.

22 Force Motors inaugurates new Engine Tech CentreForce Motors inaugurated its new Engine Tech Centre on October 7, 2013. The centre was inaugurated by Force Motors Chairman Dr. Abhay Firodia.

44 Brave auto industry sits through the annual SIAM meetThis year at the Annual Convention 2013 organised by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), the mood was sombre.

50 Harish Lakshman to steer Rane’s global driveRane Group, which clocked 2,700 crore last year in revenues, is expecting to grow to 3,000 crore this year. In his pursuit to grow the company’s topline, Harish Lakshman indicated that the Rane Group would explore multiple options.

66 Christian Saffer, Director Marketing (outgoing) & Frank Schloeder, Director Marketing (new), BMW IndiaOur success in the last few years shows very clearly that we have arrived. Ours is a very aspira-tional brand, says Chritian Saffer.

The Blue Oval Begins To Shine In IndiaFord’s Blue Oval has acquired a distinct shine in India. Ever since Joginder Singh has taken over as the President and Managing Director of Ford India, the Ford’s Blue Oval logo seems to be getting brighter. Now, there are reasons plenty for it.

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Editor Punnoose TharyanEditorial Advisors Salil Sharma, Alexander T., Annie Jacob--------------------------CONTACTFor editorial [email protected] advertising [email protected]+91-9958125645For subscription [email protected]

EDITORIAL OFFICE145 B/9, First Floor, Kishangarh, Next to United Free Church, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi 110070,Tel: 011-26122758/59, Tele Fax: 011-26122757--------------------------DISTRIBUTED BYCentral News Agency, New Delhi--------------------------

EDITORIAL CONTENTThe publisher makes every effort to ensure that the contents in the magazine are correct. However, he can accept

no responsibility for any effects from errors or omissions. Any unauthorised reproduction of Motown India content is strictly forbidden.--------------------------Motown India is printed, published, edited and owned by Punnoose Tharyan and published from 4058 / D-4, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi-110070. Printed at Pearl Printers, 52, DSIDC Shed, Okhla, Phase 1, New Delhi. This issue of Motown India magazine contains 100 pages including both covers and a 60 pages booklet.

Contents.indd 8 10/7/2013 5:06:19 PM

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The odd connect between luxury car sales and property pricesSALIL SHARMA, Partner, Kapur Sharma & Co., www.kapursharma.com

CANDID VIEWS


If one has to find out the sales of luxury cars (as defined to be costing around 1 Crore or more) as a percentage of total cars sold in India, one

would be surprised to know that it is as miniscule as 0.01 - 0.02pc. The reason to be surprised is that if you are a resident of one of the metros then you would be quite used to seeing a number of them zip past you. In context of the total car sales of above a million per annum, their share is still a small dot in the larger picture. The makers of such cars have started paying a disproportionate attention to India for past four to five years. The similar figure for countries like China would be much higher at around 10pc. The companies which rely on data like gross national product, growth rate, per capita income, etc are quite likely to give India a miss. This could be one of the explanations for the late entry of companies like Maserati, Lamborghini, Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Porsche, etc. into India despite the fact that a number of their models were being imported into the country through various routes both legally as well as illegally. It is important to understand who the buyer for such cars in India is before any luxury car manufacturer decides the marketing strategy of the country. In terms of geographical division, the north accounts for a much higher percentage of car sales than the rest of the country. The population of cars in Delhi would

be higher than the sum total of cars in Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata. The buyer for the luxury cars in Delhi is a person whose income is accruing from the number of properties which he owns. If one takes a peep into the psyche of a typical north Indian family, he would come to know that buying property / properties is the top priority for it, for the past two generations. The current generation is also encouraged to follow the same path and they are more than willing to do so because they have heard of a number of success stories of people around them who have made a fortune by acquiring property. It is this segment which finds these luxury cars to be the right vehicle to invest their unaccounted income (it is a known fact that every property deal generates 50pc of its value in cash) and in the process these ultra expensive cars become good status symbols for them. These multiple property owner could be the well educated family from the highest echelon of the society or it could be a family which has seen a change of fortune as a consequence of sale of its farm land to be converted into a weekend getaway for the urban professional. The common link between the two is the urge to own a luxury car. These families have also been going through the “wealth effect”. This phenomenon is defined as when the value of asset portfolios rises due to escalating asset prices, investors feel more comfortable and secure about their

wealth, causing them to spend more. The bull market in the real estate since early 2000 has had a profound effect on all property owners so much so that now there is general consensus that property prices have reached a plateau from which they can never fall. This feeling in turn is responsible for the insatiable demand for luxury cars. This cause and effect theory seems to be sputtering after six – seven years of success because the property market in pockets of south Delhi have already shown a correction of around 25pc from its peak. The other category of property owners who have been hit by this price correction, are the ones who were playing the arbitrage game of selling a prime property in say Panchsheel Park for around 50 Cr and buying a huge penthouse in the elite gated communities in Gurgaon for 25 Cr. These people are also buying high end cars after ensuring their future by taking fixed deposit in banks. If the said price correction continues then the difference between property prices in South Delhi and Gurgaon would be just enough for the fixed deposit and the buyer would have to settle for an entry level Mercedes or its equivalent rather than the super luxury model. The luxury car sellers in the country would be well advised to keep their ears to the ground to keep a tab of the property market.

(Views expressed by the author are personal)

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TUTU’S FINE TUNES


Vancouver, a piece of heaven on earth!

R.K. DHAWAN (TUTU)

I was recently invited by BMW India for a drive that took me to Vancouver, a coastal, seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia in Canada. In the past I had visited

innumerable countries in Europe but this was my first visit to Canada. Everything about Vancouver seemed perfect to me, whether it was the roads, the cleanliness, the people, the infrastructure and the modernity of it all. Vancouver is one of the most ethnically and linguistically diverse cities in Canada.

As I was driven from the airport to my hotel by a man who came into the country as a German immigrant, I realised he was extremely proud to be a Canadian. Today there are more people from China (Hong Kong) settled in Vancouver. It is also known as a ‘city of neighbourhoods’, each with a distinct character and ethnic mix. Historically, I learnt, people

of English, Scottish, and Irish origins were the largest ethnic groups in the city. Germans were the next-largest European ethnic group in Vancouver. But today the Chinese

are the largest visible ethnic group in the city, with a diverse Chinese-speaking community, and several languages, including Cantonese and Mandarin.

The city has its distinct ethnic commercial areas like Chinatown, Punjabi Market, Little Italy, etc. In the 1980s there was an influx of immigrants from Hong Kong in anticipation of the transfer of sovereignty from the United Kingdom to China. Other significant Asian ethnic groups include our own people from India (mostly Punjabis), Filipinos, Japanese, Koreans and Indonesians to name a few.

I spent just a couple of days in Vancouver exploring the tiny city. I was told by a person there that no two buildings look alike in the city. I gaped at the skyscrapers and tried to find how each was different from the other. The city has its own schools, hospitals and shopping arcades. Cleanliness is given top priority and if someone is found littering, he or she would have to pay Canadian $ 2000 as fine. For a city that experiences its long spells of rains, snow and sun, I was surprised to see that its roads were so well constructed and maintained. Along the highways I could see well maintained manicured lawns. These are maintained by the local administration. The trees are pruned regularly by machines and the landscaping was unbelievably beautiful. I can write an entire book on this wonderful city but my column restricts me from going overboard. In the next issue I shall write about the BMW car I drove during my visit.

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MOTOWN INDIA HIGHLIGHTS


Dr. Pawan Goenka is now Executive Director, M&M

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) has announced the appointment of Dr. Pawan Goenka to the Board of the company as Executive Director, the first ED appointment to the Board since 1992. He will now be designated Executive Director and President (Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors). The appointment as Executive Director and President (Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors) has come into effect from September 23. Dr. Goenka joined M&M in 1993 as General Manager R&D and made the company’s Auto Sector R&D into a potent product development organisation. He was responsible for the development of several new products including the Scorpio SUV. He became Executive Vice President-Product Development in September 2001 and, was promoted to the position of Chief Operating Officer of the Automotive Sector in April 2003. In September 2005 he was appointed President (Automotive Sector) and in April 2010 he became President (Automotive and Farm Equipment Sectors).

Cooper goes to court in Apollo Tyres merger dealCooper Tire & Rubber Company filed a complaint in Delaware Chancery Court in the US asking that subsidiaries of Apollo Tyres Ltd be required to expeditiously close the pending merger between the two tyre companies “in accordance with the terms of the definitive merger agreement”, stated a press release from Cooper.

The release stated that Cooper stockholders voted overwhelmingly to approve the pending merger on September 30, satisfying Cooper’s final affirmative condition under the merger agreement for closing the $2.5 billion, all-cash transaction. The pending merger was announced on June 12, 2013 after the boards of directors of both companies unanimously approved the sale of Cooper to a wholly-owned subsidiary of Apollo for $35 per share.

The release stated that Cooper is asking the court to compel Apollo to take actions so that the transaction may close. Among other matters, the complaint says that Apollo is seeking to delay an agreement with the United Steelworkers (USW). The USW represents Cooper employees at facilities in Findlay, Ohio and Texarkana, Arkansas. An arbitrator ruled on September 13 that, as result of the pending merger, Cooper and Apollo must enter into new agreements with the union prior to closing. By delaying resolution with

the USW, Apollo is breaching the merger agreement.

“Cooper has an obligation to protect the rights of our stockholders, who voted overwhelmingly in favor of the merger. With their approval, we have met our conditions for closing. The complaint filed today is a necessary step in the process to assure that the terms of the merger agreement are met as required and that we do everything possible to get the transaction closed promptly,” said Cooper Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President Roy Armes.

“The strategic rationale for the merger with Apollo is solid, and we look forward to finalizing the transaction,

which will create the seventh-largest tire company in the world,” Armes continued. “Apollo is an outstanding company. We are confident both organizations will work effectively together to take advantage of the many opportunities this compelling transaction will offer within the world’s largest tire market of North America as well as the fastest growing geographies including China and India. Cooper is well positioned in the competitive global tire industry with highly respected brands, an extensive dealer and distribution network, quality products, outstanding customer service and top technical capabilities.”

STOP PRESS

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Bentley Flying Spur launched in India for 3.1cr

British super-luxury car manufacturer Bentley Motors Limited has launched its all new super premium sedan Flying Spur priced at 3.1 crore (ex-showroom Delhi) in India. The new ultra-luxury model, which was unveiled at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show in March, is basically a four-door luxury sedan that is derived on the concept of Continental GT coupe. The launch took place at Exclusive Motors, the official dealer of Bentley in India. At the launch, Bentley has stated that it has garnered bookings for the model until February 2014 even prior to its launch in the country. The company is also hoping to sell about 50 units of the car within this financial year.The Flying Spur is the fastest road-going luxury sedan in the world, powered by Bentley’s 6.0-litre, twin turbo W12 engine that develops 616 bhp of power and 800Nm of torque, sprinting from 0-100km/h in just 4.6 seconds. The power is transmitted to all four wheels via a four-wheel drive system and the engine is mated to an 8-speed ZF automatic transmission.

Ashok Leyland launches Stile MPV for 7.49 lakhThere is now solid competition for the Innova MPV from the Toyota and the Ertiga from the Maruti Suzuki stable in the Multi Purpose Vehicle (MPV) segment. Ashok Leyland has finally launched the Stile. The prices for the MPV start at 7,49,990 (ex showroom Delhi) and goes up to 9,29,990. The vehicle is based on the Nissan’s NV200 platform. This is the second product offering from Ashok Leyland in the fast growing light vehicle business developed jointly with Nissan Motor Company. The Stile will roll out from Nissan’s manufacturing plant at Oragadam, near Chennai. Ace cricketer MS Dhoni will be the brand ambassador for the Stile vehicle.

Powered by a 1461cc turbocharged diesel K9K dCi engine, the Stile offers a fuel efficiency of 19.5 kmpl (as certified by ARAI). It comes with a five-speed manual transmission. The engine produces 75bhp of maximum power and 185Nm of peak torque between 1750-2750 rpm. The Stile addresses the 7-8 seater people transport segment that would be ideal for rural areas, hotel shuttles, taxi services, ambulances, panel vans, courier services, inter-city and intra-

city travel. The Stile will be available with a wide range of seating options of two and three rows (7 and 8 seats). With the Stile, the company has focused on the needs of both personal and commercial use of the vehicle. Other features include dual AC vents for effective air-conditioning for the rear cabin. A 2 years/50,000kms warranty further sweetens the package. The Stile will be sold through 130 Ashok Leyland LCV outlets which the company wishes to expand to 200 by March 2014.

“We are extremely delighted to launch the second product offering from the Ashok Leyland Nissan joint venture, which we believe, will change the dynamics of Indian MPVs,” Ashok Leyland Vice-Chairman V. Sumantran told reporters in New Delhi at the launch. “With Stile in our portfolio, we are now better positioned to cater to a wider customer base and range of transportation needs,’’ he added.

Cricketer M.S.Dhoni with senior Ashok Leyland officials Dr. V.Sumantran and Nitish Seth


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Expo Mart gears up for Auto Expo in Feb 2014

Automobile industry body SIAM, which is looking for a bigger show in terms of exhibition space and participants at the next auto show, has decided to organise the 2014 Auto Expo from February 5 -11 at the India Expo Mart in Greater Noida where all vehicle making firms will be showing their products. However, the component manufacturers will be having its component show at Pragati Maidan in New Delhi from February 6-9, 2014. The show in Greater Noida has been rechristened ‘Auto Expo-The Motor Show 2014’ while the component show is now the ‘Auto Expo-Component Show 2014. The expo will be organised jointly by all the three organisations – ACMA, CII and SIAM. In addition to that, other miscellaneous participants such as tyre manufacturers and lubricant firms are expected to be present at Pragati Maidan.

“In the next year’s auto show, the exhibition space will be 48,000-square metre as against 39,000 square metres in the previous edition. Also the number of exhibitors will be up from 35 to

around 41,” SIAM Deputy Director General Sugato Sen said at a press meet. “The expected footfall per day during the auto expo would be in the range of 70,000-75,000 people per day,” he added.

“We wanted to give international feel to the expo to be held next year, so we chose this venue (Greater Noida), ,” the newly elected SIAM President Vikram Kirloskar said. He added that the organisers were looking for a bigger venue for the next edition of the expo so that both automobiles and component makers could exhibit their products in one place. “We would like to have both vehicle and component makers at one place. It is very important for us,” Kirloskar said, adding that the tickets sales for the auto show would begin from November this year. “Tickets would be available online, offline as well

onsite. We are talking to various organisations including Book My Show, Barista and Delhi Metro for sale of tickets,” Kirloskar said.

The number of OEMs participation has also increased to 41 from 35 in the last edition of show with new entrants like Chrysler (Jeep brand) of the Fiat Group, DSK Hyosung and Isuzu Motors in the list. . There will be three different categories of participation for the Motor Show and these will be badged as ‘Visitors’, ‘Exhibitors/Media’ and ‘VIPs’.

Motown India magazine will also be one of the exclusive media partners for this show and would have a stall there.

L - R : SIAM senior officals - Vishnu Mathur, Sugato Sen, Arvind Saxena, Vikram Kirloskar and Vinnie Mehta (ED, ACMA)




Force Motors inaugurates new Engine Tech CentreForce Motors inaugurated its new Engine Tech Centre on September 7, 2013. The centre was inaugurated by Force Motors Chairman Dr. Abhay Firodia. The centre has been set up with an investment of 65 crores and was commissioned in nine months.

The New Engine Tech Centre catapults Force Motors into the league of leading automotive companies that have in-house testing facilities for current and future technical requirements, emission norms and other validation parameters. With state-of-the-art Chassis Dynamometer Emission Systems, Engine Dynamometer Emission Systems and Thermal Shock Testing Rigs, Force Motors now has the capability of conducting Euro-IV and Euro V tests with all the Indian and international test cycles and engine validation tools. It now has the potential to upgrade to Euro VI level emissions testing. With the new tech centre Force Motors has initiated 5 new major engine programmes to cater to the new vehicle development plan for the next 5 to 10 years.

The Chassis Dynamometer Emission System was inaugurated by ARAI Director S R Marathe. Speaking on the occasion Marathe fondly remembered the start of his career as a trainee at Force Motors Ltd. (then Bajaj Tempo). Director AVL Per Christensen inaugurated the Engine Transient Emission System and Mayank Agochiya, President of Ricardo India inaugurated the Thermal Shock Test Rig.

Besides the Chassis Dynamometer Emission System, the new Tech Centre also has seven new Engine Test Cells. The Engine Test cells

have trolley docking systems which greatly facilitate optimal utilisation and maximisation of uptime. The Chassis Dynamometer Emission lab has a large soak room which can house up to 6 Travellers or 10 SUV/UV’s at a time for soaking/ preconditioning the vehicle in controlled conditions as required by the legislation.

The Emission Test Lab is equipped with two Euro IV and Euro V Transient Emission Dynamometers and one Steady State Engine Dynamometer. The Transient Dynamometer conducts advanced European Transient and Worldwide Harmonic Cycles. The Steady State Engine Dynamometer can conduct European Steady State as well as Non-Road Mobile Cycles.

The Engine Performance and Endurance Test Cells; which are a sub part of the Test Lab also have a “Thermal Shock Testing Rig”, which enables Force Motors to conduct rigorous and accelerated endurance tests for proving the thermal and fatigue life of any engine component.

In addition to the new Engine Tech

Centre, Force Motors also conducts the BSIV transient emission tests and steady emission tests for heavy duty engines which are up to 440 kw in its current and existing Heavy duty Emission test Cells. Overall the Engine Testing Centre now houses 5 Emission Test Cells and 11 Performance and Endurance Test Cells. The tech centre also has a PTO Test Rig for Tractor Testing.

The tech centre has taken several measures to ensure the safety of the equipment and the crew working at the centre with additions like an Automated Test Cell CO2 Flooding system, Gas Monitoring, Detection System and a Gas leakage and Heat detection system.

The tech centre is equipped with latest test data integration systems wherein all the test data from Chassis Dynamometer Lab and test cells can be accessed via LAN and processed off line at the Engine Design Office.

The process of certification of the test facility as a certified test lab is currently underway at the National Test Agency ARAI.




Continental merges its business divisions International automotive supplier Continental has strengthened its Electronic Braking Systems (EBS) business in the Chassis & Safety Division effective September 1, 2013. The Suspension Systems and Chassis Electronics segments have been merged into the Electronic Brake Systems business unit from the Chassis Components unit, which has dissolved in its organisational form. In line with the expansion of its product portfolio, the business unit has changed its name from Electronic Brake Systems to Vehicle Dynamics.

“The reorganisation will strengthen our vehicle dynamics expertise in the direction of a system-based approach within the business unit. Integrating various functions into the same hardware components, or corresponding partitioning from a single will help to secure the future of our business,” said Frank Jourdan, Head of the Vehicle Dynamics business unit. Jourdan anticipates that the combination of lateral, longitudinal and vertical dynamics, together with existing experience in the area of vehicle and other testing, will bring future product and system potential.

Continental’s active chassis

control systems and electronic brakes take advantage of various opportunities to adjust a vehicle’s handling in the face of challenging road conditions such as road surface, shifting loads and cornering. The objective is to ensure optimum road contact under any conditions. This results in the driver experiencing a greater sense of comfort and safety, optimum cornering stability and sporty handling. Suspension/damping, motor control and steering all present opportunities to adjust the chassis to the driving situation. One option to achieve this is with a Chassis Domain Control Unit (CDCU). This central control unit coordinates electronic chassis- and safety systems that used to act independently of each other.

Air suspension systems are ideally suited to adjusting a vehicle’s damping and spring characteristics to actual driving conditions within milliseconds. Active damping control not only improves tyre contact with the road but also minimises body roll as well as pitching.

Electronic braking systems by Continental figure among the most reliable active safety technologies. They do duty by the millions (around 20 million annually) in every class of automobile as well as in trucks and motorcycles where they play a major role in regulating vehicle dynamics. A high degree of integration of functions and system components

distinguish these products. Electronic braking systems include ABS (Anti-lock Brake System) and ESC (Electronic Stability Control) with a multitude of opportunities to expand functions and to integrate. A high degree of integration and scalability, for example, distinguish the MK 100, the latest generation of electronic brakes. The ESC sensors can already today be integrated on the circuit-board of the controller. In the future, the control of the new generation of the electric parking brake will be integrated into the ESC which results in no separate controller being required for the triggering of the integrated parking brake. A result thereof is a minimisation of the number of controllers that need to be integrated and thus an increase of available storage space in the vehicles. In addition, integrated electro-hydraulic braking systems such as the MK C1 braking system offer a reduced number of individual components and generate braking force much quicker than common hydraulic systems due to their high degree of integration.

Frank Jourdan




Kawasaki India launches Ninja ZX 14R & ZX- 10R

India Kawasaki Motors (IKM) has launched two new models in the country--- the Ninja ZX–14R and Ninja ZX-10R. The bikes will be imported as completely built units (CBU) from Japan and will be retailed through the newly established standalone shop of Kawasaki at Wakdewadi in Pune. The bikes are priced at 16.90 lakh for ZX-14R and 15.70 lakh for ZX-10R, ex-showroom Pune.The Ninja ZX-14R ranks amongst the fastest production motorcycles ever offered to the public. The 14R comes with an in-line four, four-stroke, liquid-cooled and 1,441cc power-plant, this making up to 210bhp with Kawasaki’s renowned ram-air system feeding the engine more air as speeds rise. The bike uses a six-speed gearbox.Ninja ZX-10R is a circuit performance machine, with razor-sharp handling, aimed at professionals. Featuring a new engine, new frame and new suspension, Kawasaki’s newest one litre bike represents the first complete redesign since the Ninja ZX-10R’s debut, and offers a significant jump in base performance.

Lamborghini expects to sell 40 units in India every year: Stephan Winkelmann

Italian sports car manufacturer Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A expects to sell around 40 units of its cars in India. This was stated by Stephan Winkelmann, President and CEO of Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A. while inaugurating a Lamborghini dealership in the national capital christened ‘Lamborghini Delhi’. The new showroom, the second in India, is spread over an area of 4,000 sq ft, the dealership is located on Mathura road, New Delhi. In India, Lamborghini sells two model range -- Gallardo and Aventador, which are priced between 2.8 crore and 6.30 crore (ex-showroom Delhi).

The Lamborghini Aventador line-up includes the Aventador Roadster LP700 4 and Aventador LP700 4 while the Gallardo line-up includes

the Gallardo Coupe, Gallardo Spyder, Gallardo Superleggera, Gallardo LP560 4 and the Gallardo LP570 4 Edizione Tecnica. The company has sold 90 Lamborghini vehicles in India to date, a third of which were sold in the past two years.

“India is an important market for us. Hence we are looking to at expanding our network and look forward to continuing our success and commitment in India. The high net worth individuals, who are our target customers, are fast growing in India in the coming years, we expect our sales here to be about 30-40 units a year,” commented Winkelmann. “Among the major customers of the company in India are first generation entrepreneurs aged 30-40 years and second generation businessmen,” he added.

Stephan Winkelmann, President and CEO of Automobili Lamborghini S.p.A




Fiat launches the new Linea Classic for 5.99 lakh

Škoda Octavia prices start at 13.95 lakh

Fiat Group Automobiles India Private Limited (FGAIPL) has introduced a new car to celebrate the festive season, Linea Classic. Available in both 1.4 litre petrol version and a 1.3 litre Multijet diesel, the Linea Classic boasts of space, built quality and value for money. The length and wheelbase has been kept the same as the Linea, thus Fiat has not compromised on space and practicality. The petrol version is priced at 5.99 lakh and the two diesel variants, the Classic and the Classic+, priced at 6.96 lakh and 7.51 lakh respectively.The new FIAT Linea Classic features

equipments such as Hydraulic Power Steering, Programmable speed limit buzzer, Dual Parabola Headlamps,

Fire Prevention System and many more to add to its appeal. The petrol engine pumps out 88.7bhp of maximum power and 115Nm peak torque at 4500rpm and Fiat claims

a fuel efficiency figure of 14.9kmpl. Diesel engine produces 75bhp of power and a peak torque of 197Nm at 1750rpm. The diesel engine will return 19.5km for a litre of fuel.

Škoda Auto India has launched its all-new Octavia sedan with prices starting at around 13.95 lakh for 1.4 TSI Active (ex-showroom New Delhi). To be available in three engine options and three trim levels i.e. Active, Ambition and Elegance, the D-Segment sedan will be positioned between the Rapid and the Laura

in its current portfolio. Based on Volkswagen’s MQB (Modular Quer Baukasten) platform, the car will be assembled at the company’s existing facility at Aurangabad.

Powered by a 1.4-litre petrol, a 1.8-litre petrol and a 2.0-litre diesel, producing 183bhp, 177bhp and 141bhp respectively, the

sedan will be offered in three transmission options. While the base 1.4-litre petrol variant gets only a 6-speed manual as standard and the 1.8-litre petrol variant

gets a 7-speed DSG automatic, the 2.0-litre gets the option of a 6-speed manual or automatic gearbox.

Talking about the return of the Octavia to India, Sudhir Rao, Managing Director, Škoda Auto India said, “The Octavia had launched Škoda back in 2001 and today the Indian market is a critical component in the company’s global plans.”

Paweł Szuflak, Director, Sales & Marketing, Škoda Auto India said, “The new Octavia is our attempt to make the best car in its class and we are confident that it will redefine standards in its segment. By virtue of being built on the Group’s MQB platform, the new Octavia is larger and yet lighter than its predecessors.”

Fiat India MD, Nagesh Basavanhalli at the launch in New Delhi




Volvo Trucks President does a stunt on a FMX truck

Claes Nilsson, President of Volvo Trucks, did not hesitate to stand on a truck dangling more than 20 metres up in the air as he starred in a film shot at the main harbour in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Volvo’s new construction truck was put to the test. “Well, I have to admit I had butterflies in my tummy and I certainly did wonder more than once about what I’d let myself in for. I’m no mountain-climber and I don’t like heights. But I’d promised to do the stunt so I couldn’t very well back out,” said Nilsson. The film was shot from a helicopter. Everything had been prepared in advance down to the tiniest detail.

He had to spend almost two

hours standing on the front panel of a Volvo FMX construction truck that had been hoisted more than 20 metres above the water in Gothenburg harbour.

“Of course there were many retakes and filming is a time-consuming process. It was fairly

cold – about 8 degrees above zero – and the wind was blowing about 10 metres a second, so my hands got pretty cold after a while. But it all went very well. Safety was 100 per cent all the way, so I was never really afraid,” said Nilsson.

“The idea behind the film – called “The Hook” – is that we wanted to show that the truck’s front towing hook is dimensioned to handle far greater stresses than those to which it is normally subjected. It’s all about spotlighting the strength and quality of our construction trucks. And you can’t do that more clearly than by hoisting the 15 tonne truck up into the air via its own towing hook,” explained Nilsson.




Escorts enters Cambodia with Farmtrac tractors

Exclusive car event at Shriram Automall

Escorts Limited has announced its entry into Cambodia with the launch of its premium tractor range - Farmtrac. For the launch, Escorts has collaborated with TATA International which will operate as the distributor (TATA South East Asia (Cambodia) Ltd.) of the brand. With world-class technologies, impressive features, and stunning looks – these new tractors are set to revolutionise the Cambodian tractor market.

With a range from 25 HP to 110 HP and their four wheeled drive, the Farmtrac models are best suited for paddy, sugarcane, palm and rubber plantations in the country. These tractors come with standard 12x12 synchromesh transmission for suitable speeds and easier loader work.

S. Sridhar, Chief Executive Officer,

Escorts Agri Machinery said, “I am convinced that Cambodia in particular and South East Asia in general is poised for a gigantic leap forward in agriculture. With increase in international demand for agricultural products, the need to produce more from the existing land bank has only accentuated. This has led to increased farm mechanisation and adoption of new technologies. We have successfully explored this market and are overwhelmed with the tremendous response that we have received. The products that we are launching today are a reflection of how Escorts would continue to bring in apt technology to Cambodian agriculture to deliver prosperity to farmers across.”

Rajesh Kumar, Chief International Business, Escorts Agri Machinery

said, “With the launch of these powerful Farmtrac offerings, Escorts plans to establish itself as the leader in Cambodia market. Synonymous with reliability, the Farmtrac range of tractors from Escorts is fuel efficient, have long serviceability and low maintenance cost. Just like other countries in Southeast Asia, we are confident of getting a positive response from Cambodia market as well.”

Shriram Automall India Limited (SAMIL) organised an auto event at Manesar, Haryana recently. The purpose of the event was the ramping of exclusive demo and display cars. Among the displayed

brands were Tata, General Motors, Toyota, Chevrolet etc. The event witnessed a major response from a cross section of people. A number of cars were sold in the auto event. regular intervals.

LMT India opens facility in Pune LMT India has announced the start of its second global manufacturing plant in Pune, India. With three acres of land and a built up facility of 30,000sq ft, the plant is an integrated manufacturing facility that is designed to produce world-class hobs for automotive industry. Some of the niche products from LMT include hobs, line boring systems, plastic and composite machining, special tools for die and mold, heavy machining

tools and tapping and thread rolling and clamping systems

Citing the reason behind the opening of the new plant, S. Venkatasubramanian, Managing Director, LMT India Pvt. Ltd says, “India is one of the world’s fastest growing economies. In the year 2000, we were among the first international companies to float a 100pc subsidiary in India. India has always been our key target place.


Since 1961

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UK minister visits JLR Pune facility

John Edwards elevated at JLR

UK Minister for Trade and Investment Lord Green visited the JLR Pune facility. Lord Green was accompanied by delegates from 11 British trade bodies representing more than 20,000 UK companies. The visit aimed to identify further opportunities for UK and Indian businesses to work together. UK Trade and Investment Minister Lord Green said, “I am delighted to visit the Jaguar Land Rover local manufacturing facility in Pune, India. This is a great example of premium British design and engineering being delivered to discerning Indian customers. Jaguar Land Rover, with the help of its parent company Tata, has been a great automotive success story and it is fantastic to see its products on Indian roads.”

Jaguar Land Rover, the marquee British brands owned by Tata Motors, has appointed John Edwards into the role of Managing Director of the newly created Individual Products Division with immediate effect. The new division will be responsible for designing and creating a portfolio of brand extending products, ranging from high value halo vehicles to lifestyle merchandise products. In his new role, John will be responsible for the company’s ‘Engineered To Order’ division, accessories, licensing & merchandise activities etc.

Scania rolls out super luxury intercity coach

Scania Commercial Vehicles India (SCVI) has launched its intercity coach in India. This was done at the event organised by Siddhi Vinayak Logistics Ltd. (SVLL), one of the fastest growing companies in the field of transportation, to commence the start of their bus operations. The launch was done by Anders Grundströmer, Managing Director Scania Commercial Vehicle India and Senior Vice President Scania Group at a customer event organised by SVLL in Surat International Exhibition and Convention Centre.

Expressing his happiness over the launch of the next generation super luxury coach, Anders Grundströmer says, “This is the bus that the entire industry has been waiting for so eagerly, it represents the future of the bus industry. India has been one of our key focus markets and the country presents some very unique

opportunities for a commercial vehicle manufacturer like us. This order is one more affirmation of the trust and acceptance of our vehicles. This is the first step towards achieving our goal of being the most trusted transport partner to all our customers and SVLL is one of our most valued customers. We look forward to a long term partnership with them transcending into their trucking business as well.”

Based in Surat, SVLL is one of the largest fleet owners in the country. The company operates across diverse segments such steel, cement, tractors, chemicals, machinery and is a pioneer in the newer segments of commercial vehicle chassis carriers. With this legacy in place, the company has decided to venture into the bus segment under their ‘Connect’ brand with Scania as its chosen partner.




Mahindra Two Wheelers commences exports Mahindra Two Wheelers Ltd. (MTWL) announced its foray into the Latin American market with its two wheeler portfolio comprising of the Duro DZ, Pantero and Centuro motorcycles. The products were unveiled in Nicaragua and Guatemala City. Commenting on the development, Viren Popli, Executive Vice President, Mahindra Two Wheelers said, “International business is a key component of our growth strategy and we are pleased to venture into the Latin American market which is amongst the fastest growing markets in the world. Mahindra is a recognised name in Latin America where it sells its range of vehicles and we have strong local partners who are committed to ensure customer satisfaction and volume growth in these markets. We will continue to expand our footprint across the globe as we enhance our range of customer centric two wheelers, bringing more and more customers into the Mahindra fold.”

Sandeep Singh Senior General Manager & Head – Exports, Mahindra Two Wheelers Ltd. further added, “With these launches we have initiated operations in 11 markets spread across South Asia, Africa, Middle East and Latin America. We will continue to expand our presence across the globe while remaining focused on customer satisfaction and volume growth.”

Anu Vaidyanathan is Trek’s brand ambassador

Bosch Limited breaks ground for its new plant in Bidadi

Firefox Bikes, exclusive distributor of the world leading bike brand Trek, has announced the appointment of Anu Vaidyanathan, India’s first female triathlete to compete internationally, as the brand ambassador for Trek to promote women’s cycling in India.

Shiv Inder Singh, Managing Director, Firefox Bikes Pvt. Ltd said, “We at Firefox would like to harness this cultural revolution to promote the cause of woman cycling and who better to do it than Anu Vaidyanathan, the first female Indian triathlete to compete internationally in the most demanding of

competitions – The Ironman and Ultraman Triathlons.

Bosch Limited, the leading supplier of technology and services officially broke ground for its new plant in Bidadi. Chief Minister of Karnataka Siddaramaiah laid the foundation stone along with Dr. Steffen Berns, Managing Director, Bosch Limited. Also present on the occasion were D.K. Suresh, Member of Parliament, Bangalore Rural and H.C. Balakrishna Member of the Legislative Assembly, Magadi.

Sharing his views on the occasion, Dr. Berns, Managing Director, Bosch Limited said “This move to relocate our existing manufacturing plant in Bangalore area from Adugodi to Bidadi underlines our commitment

to India and especially to the state of Karnataka. We are extremely grateful to the Government of Karnataka for their support in facilitating this move. The developing industrial area in Bidadi will offer larger space and better infrastructure support for our future expansion. Though the current business situation is tough, this move will help us cater to the growing business needs of the Indian market in the long term.”

The company has acquired 97 acres of land in Bidadi for the construction of this new manufacturing facility and is investing over 250 crores for the initial development of the facility.




MapmyIndia brings real-time traffic information to its maps

MapmyIndia, India’s leader in digital maps, GPS navigation and web mobile location apps, has announced the launch of its real time traffic services on the free MapmyIndia App on Windows Phone, Windows 8 for tablets / PCs and Android platforms. Users can activate the service by updating the map application on their respective phones. Available to users across the country, the service will deliver accurate, comprehensive and real-time traffic information. The updated app will allow users to look at traffic situation in real time and plan routes accordingly. MapmyIndia will aggregate this data from a vast variety of sources, including an extensive network of probe data on ground. It also has tie-ups with various Government agencies for real time events/incidents based data.

Rakesh Verma, Managing Director, MapmyIndia said “Location is at the heart of everything we aim to do in MapmyIndia. Through the use of location-based technologies, MapmyIndia has been empowering consumers, enterprises and

Governments in India, increasing productivity in the process. It’s our constant endeavor to introduce new features such as live traffic updates on your phones, which will benefit Indian consumers tremendously as it has done for consumers in rest of the world. ”

Joseph Landes, General Manager – Developer and Platform Evangelism, Microsoft Corporation (India) Pvt. Ltd. said, “There is tremendous usability for intelligent apps that leverage location based services. We are excited to add real time traffic update capability to the MapmyIndia app for Windows 8 and Windows Phone devices.”

New Delhi-based MapmyIndia (CE Info Systems (P) Ltd.) is India’s leader in premium quality digital map data, Navigation, Tracking and LBS products, and GPS & GIS based systems integration services. MapmyIndia is backed by leading high-tech and private equity firms, such as Qualcomm Ventures, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB), Sherpalo Ventures, Nexus Venture Partners and Zenrin Co. Ltd.

NNG and ANS launch personal navigation device

NNG and Ayana Navigation Solutions (ANS) have introduced a new Personal Navigation Device (PND) especially designed for Indian roads. The high-quality and powerful ANS Navigator A-501 device, a 5-inch model, runs on the renowned iGO primo software by NNG, a global leader in the GPS navigation industry. The new PND is pre-loaded with the latest India maps and a total of over 7 million Points of Interest (POIs). Fitted with the Integrated Quick Search (IQS) feature, iGO primo enables every driver to begin trips with no delay. IQS offers a search mechanism that allows the driver to program his destination in just a few seconds: by entering no more than the first 3 letters of his destination, the software starts searching simultaneously across all available databases such as POIs, Favorites, Point Addressing and more. While driving, the Intuitive Navigation feature in iGO primo merges all available resources such as map and POI data, registered driving speed, and the ability of fast recalculation in a single superior navigation experience. It interprets the user’s behavior and offers fast solutions: in response to reduced driving speed, the software calculates detours.


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Audi Q3 assembly operations kick off in India

Piaggio hands over legendry Aprilia RSV4 to John Abraham

Royal Enfield bikes take part in Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride

Royal Mavericks, Delhi’s Royal Enfield motorcycle group organised the first ever Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride (DGR) in India on September 29, 2013 in the capital. The ride consisting of 72 Royal Enfield bikes and over 113 participants was flagged off from FIO Kitchen & Bar, Mehrauli and travelled all the way to India Gate concluding at Radisson Blu, Mahipalpur. The riders were seen in their formal, retro and Indian traditional attire for DGR. The ride was for a cause to raise money towards battling cancer. DGR is a unique motorcycle ride and event that takes place simultaneously across the world on September 29. This time it was organised in 110 cities across the globe. This year it was a first for New Delhi. The Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride was originally started by “cafe racer” motorcycle enthusiasts, who met together dressed up in very smart formal / vintage wear to match the iconic retro styling of their motorcycles, for a quick fun ride and to celebrate the stylish classic vintage look of a bygone era.

Audi has started production of the Q3 compact-class SUV at its Aurangabad plant, in Maharashtra. After the Audi A4, Audi A6, Audi Q5 and Audi Q7, the Audi Q3 is the fifth model to be produced in India by the Ingolstadt carmaker.

“Local production of the Audi Q3 is part of our long-term growth strategy in India, one of the most promising auto markets in the world,” said Dr. Frank Dreves, Audi Board Member for Production. “The infrastructure in the plant, efficient working processes, qualified workforce and a well-developed logistics environment, along with the growth potential of the Indian market, were the factors that

motivated us to expand the product portfolio at the Aurangabad plant.”

The Audi Q3 will be produced in the newly constructed hall at the group plant Škoda Auto India Private Limited (SAIPL) in Aurangabad, which covers a floor area of 20,000 square meters (215,278 square feet). The Audi Q7 is also produced in the same hall.

Piaggio Vehicles Private Limited has handed over Bollywood star and passionate biker John Abraham the legendary Aprilia RSV4, which has won 294 Grand Prix races at the Road Racing World Championship. With this, John Abraham expands his sports bikes collection. “This is one of my best moments ever. Aprilia RSV4 is a dream bike and I wanted to own one for quite some time. I thank Piaggio for handing me the phenomenal Aprilia RSV4, much sought after by several in the biking circuit,” said Abraham. Aprilia is the reigning World Superbike Champion, the championship where

it won the Rider and Manufacturer world titles in 2012. With 294 Grand Prix races won in Road Racing World Championship, Aprilia holds the record for the most wins of any European manufacturer in the history of maximum motorcycle competition.




TVS launches Jupiter scooter for 44,200

FADA clamours for enhanced marginsWith auto sales plummeting to an all-time low, the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) has maintained that shrinking margins have been quite worrisome for them. The dealers are demanding higher margins from car makers citing higher rental for showrooms, declining sales, increased interest rates and high labour cost are putting pressure on their business. This was the unanimous view that emerged at the 49th Annual Session of FADA held in New Delhi. FADA has said it wants average margin on sales of vehicles to go up to 5pc from 2.5pc at present.

Mohan Himatsingka, President, FADA, said, “The Indian auto market is currently going through

the most turbulent phase in its history. Virtually, all segments of the market are engulfed by recession. The grim situation finds reflection in the 2013 India Dealer Satisfaction Study by JD Power that finds that only 44pc of my fellow dealers expect to make profit during the FY 2013-14. It is a wake-up call for all of us, particularly for our principals, to initiate measures for healthy manufacturer-dealer relations and improving the viability of the automobile dealerships.”

Speaking on the occasion, Chief Guest - Joginder Singh, President & MD, Ford India, noted, “While India is passing through turbulent times for over a year, the long-term outlook is bright, as Ford foresees

it.” He expressed the view that the centre of gravity was shifting from North America & Europe to Asia and Asia Pacific.” Singh expected the global auto market to grow from 82 million vehicles to 110 million vehicles annually by the end of this decade, of which India would account for 9 million vehicles, thereby becoming the third largest market in the world. He exhorted the automobile dealers to stay focussed on long-term and to recalibrate according to the changing scenario. “Ford remains bullish about Indian market and will be investing further US$2 billion in the next few years In India. In addition, Ford global suppliers are set to enter India in a big way,” he added.

TVS Motor Company has launched a new scooter TVS Jupiter. TVS Jupiter is powered by a next generation noise-free, all-aluminum, low-friction engine that delivers a mix of power, superior acceleration and best in class fuel efficiency. The metal bodied, TVS Jupiter is styled to enthuse the male consumer. It delivers high performance ride quality and superior ride comfort making it a perfect, sensible runabout. The scooter has been priced at 44,200, ex-showroom Delhi. J S Srinivasan, Vice President Sales, TVS Motor Company launched the scooter in New Delhi.

Electric or kick start fires up the 110 powertrain which generates maximum power of 8bhp at 7500 rpm while producing maximum torque of 8Nm at 5500 rpm, which synthesise to deliver a robust four stroke ride experience. The scooter offers TVS patented Econometer which guides riders in both ‘Eco Mode’ and ‘Power Mode’. The engine delivers best-in-class fuel economy when the rider is in ‘Eco’ mode. This helps the rider to manage and achieve highest possible fuel efficiency from TVS Jupiter.

J S Srinivasan, Vice President Sales, TVS Motor Company, at the launch in New Delhi


INDIA REPORT


Brave auto industry sits through the annual SIAM meet Photography: Mohd Nasir

This year at the Annual Convention 2013 organised by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), the mood was sombre. With general elections round the corner, no major policy announcement from the government was expected. Yet, in his speech, Union Minister of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises, Praful Patel who was the Chief Guest at the event mentioned that he along with SIAM delegates would hold consultations with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P. Chidambaram to discuss the possibility of a stimulus for the automotive sector.

With the rupee at an abnormally high level vis a vis the dollar, crude oil prices sky rocketing and inflation rearing its ugly head, the best the industry leaders could do was to spend their time networking. Monsoons had wrecked havoc on the general infrastructure all over India. In the country’s capital city, as leading CEOs drove from their homes and hotels to the prestigious Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi, they experienced an early morning bumpy ride despite their top end Audis, BMWs and Mercedes Benz cars smoothening out some of the rough knocks that the cratered roads had delivered. The automobile industry is one of the largest employers and contributes almost 25pc of manufacturing GDP.

The theme of this year’s Annual Convention was “Contribution

S. Sandilya, past President, SIAM presenting a momento to Praful Patel, Union Minister of Heavy Industries, while Vikram Kirloskar, the new SIAM President (extreme left) and Vishnu Mathur, Director General, SIAM look on.

Philipp Von Sahr of BMW India addressing the gathering during a SIAM session

Dr. Pawan Goenka of M&M in an animated conversation with Dr. Ravi Kant of Tata Motors during a panel discussion

India Report.indd 44 10/7/2013 6:02:13 PM

INDIA REPORT


of Auto Industry in Economic Development’. Most of the dignitaries, who spoke about the auto industry’s role as a critical force in improving India’s connectivity and living standards, sought a stimulus package for the automobile sector from the government.

“The automobile industry is going through turbulent times and I feel that there is genuinely a case for stimulus for the auto sector. This slowdown has not only resulted in the decline in production but also has led to job cuts. I am continuously holding talks with the government. Going forward, we would be having a joint meeting with the stakeholders of this industry along with the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister. Hopefully, we will be able to come out with a resolution,” Patel told reporters on the sidelines of the annual convention of SIAM.

S. Sandilya, President (now Past president), SIAM and Chairman, Eicher Motors Ltd, set the ball rolling by speaking about the importance of the Indian automotive industry and steps required to arrest the decline in the sector. He noted, “The deceleration of the industry is

Karl Slym of Tata Motors addressing the gathering during a panel discussion.

ARCH RIVALS YET CLOSE BUDDIES: Abhay Firodia of Force Motors and Rahul Bajaj shake hands while Dr. Pawan Goenka of M&M and I.V.Rao of Maruti Suzuki look on.

Rajiv Bajaj of Bajaj Auto is all ears. With Abhay Firodia of Force Motors during a panel discussion

Joginder Singh of Ford India Prasan Firodia of Force Motors

primarily due to both external factors as well as domestic structural issues. The automobile industry is one of the highest contributors of revenue

and employment in the country, and needs a more moderated tax and excise duty structure in order to ensure further growth of the


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INDIA REPORT


industry. I am confident in the long term growth of the industry, and feel that if the government and shareholders work together, India will have a unique opportunity to emerge as a leading global player.”

Dr. Pawan Goenka, Past President, SIAM & President (Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors) & Executive Director, Mahindra & Mahindra initiated the first session- Special Plenary: “Automobile: Connecting People & Services to Enhance Quality of Life’, and mentioned about how the automobile sector helps to improve quality of life and bring about economic upliftment, by facilitating growth and development and providing comfortable and convenient provisions for personal mobility and goods movement. He also spoke on the steps the industry and the government needs to take to improve the services and neutralise the vices of the sector. He touched upon how the industry has taken numerous steps in the last decade to increase fuel efficiency, and now needs to focus on incorporating more stringent safety norms.

Bajaj Auto Managing Director Rajiv Bajaj however said the auto industry itself was responsible for the current situation as most of the woes globally and in domestic market are self inflicted. The cause for most faults lies in flawed strategies of companies and not “government’s unremarkable policies”, he added.

Philipp von Sahr, President, BMW India, wrapped up the session by speaking on the stellar contribution of the automobile industry in the

Lowell Paddock of GM India

Subodh Bhargava (L) shaking hands with Deepak Jain of Lumax

IS THAT A NERVOUS SMILE?: Pawan Munjal of Hero MotoCorp with Rahul Bajaj

Lowell Paddock and P.Balendran of GM India in conversation with Abhay Firodia

economic development and the need for cooperation amongst companies to expand global markets. “The automobile industry is going through a challenging phase and there is an urgent need for government intervention with transparent and stable policies to ensure the growth of the sector,” he concluded

Despite the tough times, many of them were confident of the long-term potential of the country. “If you want growth, your policy should be able to support growth. If you want political issues to prevail

over economic sense, then you should not be complaining about failure of economy and problems of the industry,” said Abhay Firodia, Chairman, Force Motors at the SIAM convention.


INDIA REPORT


ACMA’s 53rd annual session talks growth in uncertain timesThe Automotive Component Manufacturers Association (ACMA), the apex body of the Auto Component Industry in India, hosted its 53rd Annual Session & National Conference recently. At the annual convention, everybody reached a consensus that the auto-components industry is currently challenged with strategising and executing plans to sustain and grow in a business environment characterised by increased Volatility, Uncertainty, Complexity and Ambiguity (VUCA).

A strong domestic macro economy and robust market conditions had sheltered the auto-components industry from the short-term negative impact of the ‘global VUCA-effect’ that hit industries across the world in the aftermath of the recent international economic crisis. Beginning FY2011, the Indian economy started slowing down. Since then, the automobile and auto-components industry have steadily been exposed to the pressures of a global and a local VUCA effect simultaneously. To focus on the challenges at hand and to collectively strategise in dealing with the situation, this year’s annual session was themed ‘Achieving High Performance in Turbulent Times – Creating Advantage from Adversity’.

Chief Guest Praful Patel, Union Minister of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises, Government of India inaugurated the Session. In his address to the industry, Patel said, “There is an urgent

need for the automotive industry – auto components and the vehicle manufacturers to work innovatively to turn adversity into an opportunity.” Acknowledging the need for immediate Government intervention to sustain this important segment of the manufacturing industry, he expressed full support of the Ministry of Heavy Industry in overcoming the current challenge. “A stimulus package, on the lines of that announced during the earlier 2009 downturn is the need of the hour,” he added.

ACMA’s Annual Session was also graced by industry leaders including

Ajay Shriram, President – Designate CII & Senior Managing Director and Chairman of DCM Shriram Consolidated; and Vikram Kirloskar, President SIAM & Vice Chairman, Toyota Kirloskar. Leaders from the automotive world including Dr. Pawan Goenka, President – Automotive & Farm Equipment Sectors, Mahindra & Mahindra; Baba Kalyani, Chairman & MD Bharat Forge; Karl Slym, MD, Tata Motors; Mallika Srinivasan, Chairperson & CEO, TAFE; and Michael Hanley – Global Auto Leader, Ernst & Young shared their perspectives on successfully navigating the downturn.

Praful Patel, Union Minister of Heavy Industries with Harish Lakshman (L), new ACMA president and Surinder Kanwar, the outgoing ACMA president


INDIA REPORT


Harish Lakshman to steer Rane’s global driveReport: Avishek Banerjee, Photography: Mohd Nasir

The rise of third-generation entrepreneurs in the Indian automobile industry is by now well documented. As a corollary to this, a number of young and dynamic guns are making a mark in the auto component industry in order to take their company global. These young entrepreneurs have been to some of the best business schools and have become bosses of some of leading Indian companies. One among them has been given the onerous task to head the Auto Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA. He is Harish Lakshman who is also the Vice Chairman of Rane Engine Valve Ltd (REVL) and the Managing Director of Rane TRW Steering System Ltd.

In an exclusive interview with Motown India magazine, Lakshman said, “It is a moment of great pride for me to serve such a reputed association which has a long history. I am fortunate to head it at a young age. Even though I have been appointed at a challenging time, my objective would be to talk to all the stakeholders involved (with us) whether it is the government, vehicle manufacturers, suppliers, etc to ensure that during this difficult period we help each other out. We are trying to get the government to support our industry during difficult time. Similarly, we are trying to have some understanding with the

Harish Lakshman, Vice Chairman, Rane Engine Valve Ltd (REVL) & Managing Director, Rane TRW Steering System Ltd.


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OEMs as they are also going through difficult times. We provide support to each other. For the membership, we are trying to help them improve their cost structure like cluster programmes. We are trying to help our members become more profitable and keep our head above water.”

Harish Lakshman is an engineer from BITS Pilani and an MBA from the Purdue University. He has also been the ACMA Chairman for the Southern Region for the period 2009-11.

He acknowledged his company could have grown faster than the current CAGR. However, he was quick to elucidate that the companies (under the Rane umbrella) focussed on enhancing the quality of its product lines and bringing in world-class manufacturing practices rather than looking for quick bucks (read turnover).

He affirmed, “If you look at the Rane Group, we have a long history and have been one of the largest auto component manufacturers in the country. Between the year 2000-2010, what happened was that India opened up the economy and a lot of multinationals started coming in. At that time, we realised that we don’t have the necessary quality and delivery parameters and customer satisfaction levels that a multinational can offer. We started on our Total Quality Measurement (TQM) journey in the year 2000. Between 2000 and 2010, a lot of emphasis has been on making sure that our quality and customer satisfaction levels is comparable to MNCs whether they are Japanese, German or American. There was a lot of focus on inward-looking aspects of the business. As the auto component market grew

significantly, we also grew well. We grew by 15pc. But we could have grown at 20-21 pc or even more aggressively. But we consciously took a decision that rather than growing aggressively, we will focus on improving the fundamentals of our businesses through TQM which we achieved.”

The confidence is exuded by a person who already had a stint with US-based TRW, which is also its JV partner in its steering business. At the Purdue University, they had a special programme for manufacturing management. From there, he decided to have a two-year stint at TRW wherein he got the opportunity to shuffle within the various businesses of TRW. After every 6 months, he was stationed at a different plant in different part of the US making different products.

“I worked in different areas of expertise like Operations, Strategy, and Supply Chain. I had a very comprehensive kind of a perspective of various kinds of TRW business.

So the advantage was that I got a very good insight into how a global company works and how global plants are run and how the various aspects are managed. That was a tremendous learning experience for me. What you learn at a business school in a classroom is one aspect and what you actually see physically in companies’ plants is a very enriching experience. There were a lot of learnings that I was able to bring back at Rane like best-in-class practices, etc.”

It is to be mentioned that the Rane Group has several group companies manufacturing auto parts such as Rane TRW (steering systems and seat belt systems), RBL (brake linings), REVL (valve train components), and RML (steering & suspension systems), Rane NSK (steering columns).

The globetrotter Lakshman is immensely inspired by Jack Welch (former GE CEO) when it comes to formulating business practices and ensuring corporate governance. “Jack

Rane steering plant at Pantnagar

Welch inspired me to dream big at Rane. When he took over GE in 1981 and became the youngest CEO in GE’s history, the legendary leader made a resolution to transform GE into the world’s most competitive enterprise and he was successful in doing so. Welch is a strategic thinker, business teacher, corporate icon and management theorist. If leadership is a craft, then surely Welch could be called a wizard. With his unique leadership style and character, Welch made history during his two-decade journey at GE. While most leaders talk a good game on leadership, he actually lived it,”

He stated that he has been credited with putting together the group’s strategic planning process. “Before I joined Rane, the strategic planning was very rudimentary. After I came over there, I put together a proper structured planning process. We came up with a 5-year strategic plan and one year operating plan. We created a vision for the company. From the vision, we finalised our goals and based on the goals we did a SWOT analysis, Porter’s Five

Forces Analysis. And then you use those models to analyse the issues in the business and the actions you can take. And then we arrived at strategies.”

Shedding some light on that, he maintained, “What the company is doing or what the company is going to do over the next 5 years, which are the goals, and which are the strategies which we are going to achieve our goals. All that is very similar to the GE model (implemented by Jack Welch). So it was something new for many of our employees and we had to go through a lot of training programmes. We got some faculty to come in and walk us through. So it took two-three years to redefine it. Eventually, we came out with flying colours. I was heading hands-on Rane TRW Steering. At Rane TRW we got the first Deming’ and were the first company in group to get the Japan quality medal. So it was under my leadership that we got that award.”

Thanks to him, most of the companies under the Group have

evolved over the years and now its JV partner are into reverse engineering when it comes to seeking design and technical inputs. “Our joint venture with TRW is more than 25 years old and there is a lot of engineering capabilities in the JV. Of course the original technology came from the JV and we have learnt the expertise from them. But I must say that the technology has been fully absorbed in India. Today, we are developing a lot of new technologies on our own in the steering market for commercial vehicles etc. There have been examples of where TRW has used our engineers to develop some low-cost designs for the North American market. Rane TRW is supplying worth 100 crore to Renault (for the Duster brand) in Europe. The product was developed in close collaboration between an engineering centre in Europe along with our engineering centre in Chennai. We are one of the largest steering suppliers to them. We are a 100pc engine valve supplier to them.

Now we are also developing a lot of products for the CV market where we are launching next-generation hydraulic steering systems.”

Growth plans

If TQM or operational excellence was the hallmark of 3,000 crore Rane Group during 2000-10, the current decade is all about accelerated growth. “Having streamlined our operations in the last decade, we are confident that our capabilities are as good as the multinational giants. So the next 10-20 years we want to focus aggressively on growth. So that is why we have laid the vision of aggressive growth over the coming decade. In the last decade or so, we have achieved a

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model of operational excellence through TQM and many of our locations are now world class. Going forward, we want to accelerate our growth rate. In order to achieve this objective, we are now focussing on creating an environment which will not only encourage an innovative culture, but also trying to create an exciting workplace, which will be both challenging and learning opportunity for our employees.”

Rane Group, which clocked 2,700 crore last year in revenues,

is expecting to grow to 3,000 crore this year. In his pursuit to grow the company’s topline, he indicated that the Rane Group would explore multiple options such as taking over assets abroad, diversifying its portfolio, stepping up direct exports to OEMs, taking the partner’s route to boost overseas sales, expediting its presence in the global replacement markets. And he maintained that all its investment plans remain on track despite the ongoing market turbulence. The Group, as a whole, was initially planning to pump in 550 crore for the next 3 years. “In the FY 2013-14, we were supposed to invest 250 crore out of the 550 crore.

However, that 250 crore we have scaled back to 125 crore by 50pc. Based on the market scenario, we will redraw our capex plans,” said Lakshman.

Exports thrust

Just like its OEMs, Rane is also training its guns on the export market to take advantage of Rupee Depreciation and domestic market slowdown. It is to be noted that Rane, through TRW, supplies to Ford. Chrysler, VW and is on course to make dispatches to General Motors.

In Europe, it is currently supplying to VW, Deutz. It is infact one of the largest supplier of the complete steerings systems for Renault in Europe and South America.

“Of late, exports have been a focus area for us given the current market situation. Exports account for nearly 17-18pc of our total business and are primarily catering to North American and European markets. So we are now trying to increase that to about 25pc in the next 24 months for the Rane Group. Out of our total exports, North American accounts for 55pc of the business and 45pc is derived Europe, mainly OEs.”

product divErsification

As far as portfolio diversification is concerned, Lakshman said that Rane TRW Steering Systems Ltd (RTSSL), a 50:50 joint venture Company of Rane Group and TRW Automotive (NYSE: TRW) has already announced that it will expand RTSSL to include manufacture of airbags at its plant which currently manufactures seat belt systems in Singaperumal Koil near Chennai. This expanded Joint Venture further strengthens RTSSL’s position in providing state of the art occupant safety solutions to its customers, meeting its objective to help protect people.

The investment is a proactive step to prepare for the trend of increased vehicle safety. This expanded Joint Venture will meet TRW’s global manufacturing standards and will make 3.2lakh units per annum initially, with a ramp up of manufacturing capacity to 8.1lakh units in three to five years’ time. The total investment is around

35crore in the next five years to manufacture both airbags and seat

belts. The manufacturing facility will utilise driver and passenger airbag technology developed by TRW in Germany. The airbags will be assembled out of the Chennai Plant; and the intention is to leverage the Rane Group supplier network in a phased manner.

“We have already been making seatbelts for the last 15 years and if you see even in the Indian market it took a time to gain adoption. But now it’s standard in every vehicle. The next generation of safety technology will be airbags. It is something which is legislated everywhere else in the world whether it is the US, or even China. In India, it is offered in a vehicle in any car that is 8-9 lakh. That’s a small percentage of the overall pie. But at some point of time, the Indian government will consider this because of the safety standards and the increasing awareness of the safety, some form of legislation will come in which will ensure airbags are fitted in all cars. When that happens, there will be a huge increase in the market size for opportunities. We have partnered with TRW who are the global leader for airbags. So when the market is ready for airbags, we will be ready to supply them,” affirmed by Lakshman.

As he takes the company global, Lakshman signs off, “We want this to be a decade of accelerated growth. We want to grow profitably too. We continue to focus on our profitability. Hopefully, our portfolio mix of international sales to domestic sales will increase in the coming years. As of today, it is only exports. But in the future we will even have some manufacturing footprint outside India. That could be through acquisitions.”

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Minebea banking on its high-precision bearings

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As the Indian automotive industry becomes the global hotspot for multinational firms, the component suppliers based here are reaping the harvest. Within the component industry, the country’s ball and roller bearings sector is showing an unprecedented boom. Sensing such new business opportunities in India, Minebea Company Limited, the world leader of miniature and small sized ball

bearings, has made its official entry in the country. The company’s Indian arm will be known as NMB-Minebea India Pvt. Ltd. To helm its Indian operations, the Japanese firm has roped in Ashok Ashta as its Managing Director and CEO.

In an exclusive interaction with Motown India magazine, Ashta said, “We expect that the Indian

market will be indispensable for us. The government

of India has announced

Report: Avishek Banerjee, Photography: Mohd Nasir

its target to increase the share of manufacturing in GDP to 25pc. To meet this target, we expect that the range of manufacturing in India will increase and there will be an upward trend to higher quality too. Minebea will be able to contribute to this improvement of quality in Indian manufacturing through our high precision components. Consequently, India will certainly naturally emerge as a top 10 market globally by 2020, and could well be our top market shortly after that.”

Even though the bearings market (both industrial and automotive) in the country has become cluttered with multiple players, the Japanese company is confident of clocking a US $100 million turnover in the near term. Ashta added, “In any market where we set up our operations, the

singlemost priority is to reach the US $100 million sales.

As a sales and marketing organisation, our first target is to reach US $100 million annual

sales (in India). I would like to see Minebea making

active contributions to raising the

quality of Indian manufacturing and being recognised for it

by industry as well as the public at large.

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The confidence exuded by the ex- Toyota Kirloskar honcho is stemmed from the fact that the Indian bearings market has been growing at the same pace as the Chinese market and now accounts for about 4pc of the world bearings market (worth US$ 56 billion) and is estimated at US$2.2 billion ( 11,500 crore). The automobile industry is the largest growth driver for OEM market as it accounts for almost 45pc of total bearing market at 5,175 crore. This market is characterised by requirements of high-quality, stringent delivery norms and lower margins. The engineering sector, which accounts for 28pc (at 3,220 crore) of total share, holds the second growth driver.

So what is the USP of Minebea? “While Minebea is not so well known in India, it is a force to reckon with in the global space. In terms of our portfolio, Minebea has a global

“In any market

where we set up

our operations, the

singlemost priority is

to reach the US $100

million sales. As a

sales and marketing

organisation, our first

target is to reach US

$100 million annual

sales (in India),” says

Ashok Ashta

Ashok Ashta, Managing Director & CEO, NMB-Minebea India Pvt. Ltd.

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marketshare of over 70pc in the miniature bearings and small size bearings of OD 22mm or less. And that is quite a remarkable feat. Minebea’s principal competitive advantages are its ultra-precision machining and mass-production technologies. Customers’ today demand ball bearings manufactured with 0.001-micron precision, which Minebea is able to provide. Another key competitive advantage for Minebea is its vertically integrated manufacturing system, which encompasses processes-including design and research; production and maintenance of dies; production of parts for in-house use; and assembly and testing. This system gives Minebea a sharp edge in

terms of quality, supply capabilities, manufacturing costs and lead time. Any company that is looking for high-quality ball bearings (in the sphere that we operate in) will automatically come to us.”

The Japanese component maker foresees a huge potential for its products range that includes ball bearings, stepping motors and small DC motors, micro actuators, load cells and sensors with volumes based on customers demand. Even though it does not supply directly to car or CV manufacturers, its products are sourced by most of the leading global auto component firms like Bosch, Denso, Delphi, Continental, Hella, etc. Going forward, it is actively looking to

cater to OEMs like Mercedes-Benz India, Hyundai, Maruti Suzuki India, Bharat Benz, Scania, Toyota Kirloskar Motor, Scania, etc through their aforementioned Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers. In the initial phase, it is only eyeing passenger vehicle and commercial vehicle segments.

When asked whether the company is late in its entry into India, the Japanese-speaking MD affirmed, “We are not late anyway. In fact, it is still early days for the quality of products that Minebea offers. Even though our products will be sold with a premium price tag, we are the best in the size that we operate. Indian manufacturer, who are actively looking at shifting away from such low-grade components,

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will come to us.”In its bid to expand its operations,

Tokyo Stock Exchange-listed company is planning to make some robust investments. That could involve establishing a greenfield facility or taking over a domestic firm. The company is also mulling to ink a strategic alliance with a local partner. Ashta shared, “Our investment plans hinges largely on our manufacturing operations. Once there is a demand for our high- quality products, we will finalise our capex plans. We have not yet taken a call. My understanding is that as India is moving to higher standards of manufacturing, the demand will go up. And then we will be able to pump in some amount.” He further added, “We will be looking at both organic and inorganic growth equally. Globally, we are always on the lookout for acquisitions. If there is some opportunity in India, we will definitely grab it. If there is something in India that has a synergy with our production capabilities in precision engineering, then I do foresee an acquisition. But again, the amount depends on the buyout. An alliance with a local partner cannot be ruled out as we’re always searching for appropriate units. In both the scenarios, we might explore export opportunities.”

However, Minebea India is cautiously optimistic because of the downturn in the market coupled with the government’s policy paralysis. “The slowdown in the economy has affected all sectors including manufacturing. For the automobile sector, the government made clear that it is a priority sector and established clear support policies. It would be good to have clear messages at implementation level of government’s policies on other

thrust areas in manufacturing.”Meanwhile, NMB-Minebea

India Private Limited (NMB- Minebea India), the company has recently established its corporate office at Gurgaon with branch offices in Chennai and Pune.

Until now, Minebea’s marketing activities had been carried out through its representative office in Chennai. The company will also be zeroing in on its sales promotion in collaboration with its distributors, agencies and subcontractors by creating a network. Plans are afoot to set up an R&D centre too. For the time being, it plans to serve the local market mainly through imports from its manufacturing facilities in Singapore and Thailand. Some electronic components will also be sourced from its production unit in China.

“Our objective in entering the Indian market is to leverage the growth potential in the automobile, aerospace, medical and textile market which are fast emerging sectors. For established part makers like Minebea, India offers us the added advantage of a broad producer canvas to choose from. We will also be hiring more manpower, with the expansion of our operations in India,” noted Ashta.

Founded in 1951, Minebea is a leading Japanese comprehensive precision components manufacturer

supplying high quality, reliable, multi-functional miniature and small sized ball bearings, motors, and electronic devices etc. to customers in diverse industries such as automotive, aviation, appliances etc. around the globe, with an annual turnover of about US$ 3 billion. Minebea is the world’s leading manufacturer of miniature and small-sized ball bearings, up to 22mm in external diameter, and has a global market share in excess of 60pc in this segment.

“NMB-Minebea India Pvt. Ltd. should be a company that stakeholders, especially clients and our staff, are proud to be associated with. It is said that in Japan there are at least 100 Minebea products in every home, sometimes even more than 200. I would like to see that kind of ‘Minebea Everywhere’ in India too,” signs off Ashta.

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Ford india

Report P. Tharyan Photography Mohd. Nasir

Ford’s Blue Oval has acquired a distinct shine in India. Ever since Joginder Singh has taken over as the President and Managing Director of Ford India, the Ford’s Blue Oval logo seems to be getting brighter. Now, there are reasons plenty for it. One, the top honcho seldom misses a chance to

bend down and kiss the logo every time he unveils a Ford vehicle somewhere in India. Two, when he goes out for meetings at his dealership, he makes it a point to take out his handkerchief and wipe the Blue Oval logo on the vehicle in the showroom, reminding his men that they are the custodians of the Blue Oval legacy. Three, offlate Ford is on an expansion drive in the country and the demand for its

the Blue oval begins to shine

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newly launched Ford EcoSport has touched record levels.

For a man who has been an out and out Ford man, it’s definitely the right time for him to take on the reins of Ford India. “In case I cut myself and my blood came out, you will get to see Blue Oval and not red corpuscles. I have been with the company for such a long time,” says Singh with a smile. Speaking to Motown India in an exclusive interview at his corporate headquarters in Gurgaon near New Delhi, Singh notes that his company is investing big time in India.

“I think with Sanand (the company is investing around US $ 1 billion in a new plant in Gujarat) we are 40pc there. We still have a 60pc to go (in terms of investment). Next year we shall be investing even more. We are Continued on page 62

Joginder Singh, President & MD, Ford India

investing for the future,” he says.

Singh’S ‘CirCLe oF deSTinY’

Singh has had an interesting journey in life so far. He went abroad on a scholarship to England when he was barely out of school. “That was a great start to life. I had gone to study in the UK. Not only did I go through academic and industrial experience, but also the experience of living alone in a faraway country. It was a very cross cultural emotion that I had experienced. I came back to India and worked in South India in Bangalore. I then went back to the UK. While I was in England, I had the opportunity to travel extensively to western and southern Europe. I joined Ford in Europe which at

that time was headquartered in the UK. I got great exposure to a great melting pot of cultures. With Ford, I went to Ford US and then to Canada, then back in the US and back in India. It’s a circle of destiny, if you may say,” he recalls.

Singh worked in Ford offices based in Europe, US and Canada. “The experience at Ford was not just one function but a multi functional experience. The way Ford has been set up is that even if you are in one functional area, the range of experiences you get is across the different skill teams. The unique exposure for me as an individual was that I was able to see what the best of Ford is across the globe,” he says.

The Ford India President delved

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opening the highways to all Mankind

t he “Opening the Highways to All Mankind” advertisement originally was placed in the Saturday Evening Post on Jan. 24, 1925. It detailed Henry Ford’s original vision of providing affordable, safe transportation to everyone.

In 2007, the ad came to the attention of Ford CEO and President Alan Mulally and other senior leaders. After years of declining sales and profits and in the face of a looming financial crisis, the company once again used the ad as a vision for its transformation from survival to profitable growth.

The ad came to signify a compelling vision for the company and its employees as they implemented the One Ford plan, which involves aggressively restructuring, accelerating the development of new

products, strengthening the balance sheet and leveraging global assets.

“Henry Ford was talking about one Ford, one plan, one team and working together – and that is exactly our One Ford plan,” said Mulally. “We are using this same vision to Go Further today in developing high-quality, fuel-efficient, safe and smart products that customers want and value – and that are affordable – so that we can continue opening up the highways to all mankind.”

The image in the ad shows a family overlooking a hilly landscape dotted with cars and Ford manufacturing facilities in the background. The text details Ford’s vision for extending safe and efficient transportation to everyone through an efficient organisation committed to profitable growth, continuous improvement and service to customers.

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Continued from page 60

upon the ‘One Ford’ concept that keeps together the huge Ford organisation. “I see my role in India as bringing the best of Ford into India whether it is a product, whether it is a factory, whether it is a process or whether it is the best practice I see in different parts of the world. By doing that we can operationalise some of the visions that have been articulated in Ford in the past,” he emphasises.

Singh recalled the 1925 Ford advertisement taken out in the newspapers in America. The image in the advertisement showed a family overlooking a hilly landscape dotted with cars and Ford manufacturing facilities in the background. The caption underneath was ‘Opening the Highways to All Mankind’. “When you think about that, you think about India. Nowhere is that purpose of statement, that vision, more applicable than in this country. That is true for the automobile industry and for Ford in general. With the different experiences I have had, trying to bring the best of Ford to India will help us realise this vision that Henry Ford had. So I am able to connect quite well given the experience I have had on how to bring the best of Ford to India and at the same time enable us to live that dream that Henry Ford had. To me that is the very fundamental value add that I am bringing to the Ford operations in India be it in my prior role or in the current role,” he states.

Prior to becoming President and Managing

Director of Ford India, Joginder Singh served as the head of Ford Business Services Centre in Chennai. According to him, the global Business Services operations was bringing in the best practices and standardisation thereby helping the company’s operations worldwide. “It is a global centre. We introduced the standardisation across the globe which is very consistent with the ‘One Ford’ principle that we live by since Mr.Alan Mulally joined us and brought that revolution within the company. Having sown that seed and set that foundation we are on a journey to becoming a centre of excellence. Whether you look at purchasing, marketing and sales, our logistics area, the way we do warranties, processing, accounting, the way we do financial analysis, standard practices, common practices, all of this signify that we are serving the global operations. Over the last 10 years if one has to look, we have had an India focus, then we had a regional focus and now we have a global focus. Those guys have big plans now,” he notes.

‘one Ford’ PrinCiPLe

Elaborating on the upcoming factory in Sanand in Gujarat, Singh mentions that it is being built with the best of Ford.” It is the state of the art and anything that you can think like automation, flexibility, or the ability to produce at mass scale. All

of that is encapsulated

in Sanand. The Chennai factory was the state of the art with respect to 3 wet paint technology. Sanand takes it to the next level. Not only can we do 3 wet paint technology but also rotational dip technology. That is the next level when it comes to painting our cars. That is only one example. Also in terms of green standards Ford has, Chennai has a lot of green manufacturing. Sanand takes it to the next level. It has the best green technology when it comes to constructing a factory. That is on the factory side. In terms of products, EcoSport is a great example. You see what ‘One Ford’ does. Take it as a menu of opportunities for India. Take the SYNC technology that we have. It was developed by Ford with Microsoft. It works for India because Indian customers need such a technology. Take the EcoBoost technology, the best combination for power and fuel economy . The EcoSport has been built on a global platform, it is a second generation, it is the same platform that is running around in South America and China and when we go Thailand it will be the same platform. It is leveraging of our global asset under the ‘One Ford’ principle. It is also got the design language of the Ford global design language. That wonderful marriage between leveraging ‘One Ford’ and the global assets and then bringing it into India and the Indian way, to me that is the formula for success going forward.

As we go forward, this formula or this recipe will hold us in good

stead. Our future

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products will also be based on the same formula---global platforms, global design language, but inside very much what Indian customers need and want,” he explains.

Admitting that India is a very challenging market, Singh confesses that it is one of Ford’s lowest revenue per unit markets. According to him, ace marketer Jim Farley (Ford Global Marketing Chief) who is so great at marketing products and consumer engagement, also acknowledges the Indian market. “Indian consumers want smart features, smart technology, they want the best fuel economy etc, and they do not want to pay too much for it either. They are very demanding that. We respect that and honour that. Customer is king, customer is queen. We accept the challenge. We have to enable our strategies and plans to meet that challenge. One part is to leverage the ‘One Ford’ strategy. The second part is to scale operations. When you pump out more units then you reduce the per unit cost. The way we are building scale in India is that we want to satisfy not only the domestic market, we want to satisfy the export market as well. We have had a great success with the Figo on that. The objective for us it to not only repeat the success we had with Figo for the EcoSport but to take it to a new level. We have already announced that we would expand our footprint for exports out of India. One, it is great for India, it earns foreign exchange for the

country, but at the same time it is really a great testimonial on India’s competitiveness and the ability to produce products with the right quality. We have announced that the EcoSport will be exported not only to markets of Asia, Middle East and Africa, where Figo is mainly present but also to mature markets (US and Europe). It is a higher standard and expectations are different. We are committed to meeting those expectations out of Chennai. For us it is just awesome that we can build that scale. The third part is flexibility. India is not only a challenging market but also a dynamic one,” he points out.

It is not that the company is investing only in Sanand, the company has also been progressively investing in Chennai too, introducing more flexibility into its operations there. “Chennai can produce left hand drive as well as right hand drive on the same line. It can produce a compact SUV and

a sedan on the same line. Same is on engines. We can produce a petrol and diesel engine on the same line. A couple of years ago when everybody went to making diesel vehicles, the king and queen customer in South Africa was asking for petrol. So Tom S. Chackalackal (Executive Director - Manufacturing, Ford India) scaled up petrol and all our petrol Figos were on the ship to South Africa. Between domestic and exports and between diesel and petrol, left hand drive and right hand drive, we have been introducing flexibility very progressively. Sanand will take flexibility to a different level. We are building our own scale by including export and domestic, We are building flexibility into our operations to respond to a changing customer behaviour or a changing government regulation, and we are trying to improve our cost base through the opportunity to leverage global assets through our One Ford principle,” he says emphatically.

Joginder Singh during the unveiling of the Ford EcoSport

Cover report


The company is also betting big on localisation. “As we invest money here, we have our relationship with our global suppliers. That is again a feature of One Ford. Our global suppliers are coming to India to help us. What they are doing is that they are developing their own supply chain here in India. Progressively, it is a strategy and a journey for us. We learnt with Figo and we applied those lessons, the Ikon before that, now we are applying those learning with EcoSport in a very big way. When the suppliers come, not only do they bring their investments, they are also bringing with them a level of design thinking, a level of innovation thinking, which in my mind will add a lot of value to the country. It is beneficial to Ford obviously because

as we localise these technologies it reduces cost for us. It also produces a competitive advantage to us in the long run. Over a period of time even the most complicated technologies will be through our suppliers and the supply chain capabilities. We are here for the long haul,” he says.

The inVeSTMenTS WiLL KeeP CoMing

Singh notes that around seven to eight years ago the commitment from the board of director of Ford Motor Company to India was US $500 million. “We doubled it to $1 billion around four-five years back. In 2011 we signed an MoU in Sanand. We doubled it to $2 billion. Currently we have stepped up the

way we are spreading our footprint in the country. When Figo was first launched our dealership strength was around 138. This was three years ago. Last month it had gone up to 265. By mid decade it would be 500. It will be mostly in tier II and III cities. That is where the growth is in India. In the month of August 2013 we opened five dealerships in the tier II and III cities. I was up in Solan in Himachal. He has set up a dealership in the hills. It is a 3S outlet. We are spreading our wings,” reveals Singh..

Giving details of the Sanand progress, he says that the company is spending a billion dollars. The company’s engine plant, paint shop and stamping area are all getting ready. There are 4,000 people on site helping build the factory. “We

Cover report


have begun hiring. Next year we shall ramp up the hiring in a big way. We are targeting to be operational next year. We are on track. I had the opportunity to meet all the government officials there and thank them for the help they have extended. It’s been a great journey for us. Once Sanand becomes operational next year, our total capacity will obviously increase. Between the expansion we have done in Chennai and Sanand, we shall do 4,40,000 vehicles and 6,10,000 engines annually. More than 25pc of our cars are going to be exported. More than 40pc of our engines combined are going to be exported. We are busy looking at export opportunities from Sanand. In Chennai we have already got our little yard at Chennai port and our gleaming EcoSports are parked over there waiting to get on to the boat. We have already started shipping the EcoSport. We use Ennore as well. Our plan is to use Mundra Port, we had our people visit there and see how to improve the logistics connection, and we are working with our government on that. Sanand is very much on track. Our suppliers are also setting up business in Sanand. The government has set aside separate land and we know that some of our vendors have already

been in touch with the government. It is all progressing very well,” says Singh.

Talking about the recent stopping of booking for EcoSport vehicles, he clarifies that it has stopped only for petrol units and high end diesel variants. The rest of the bookings are open and the dealers are taking orders. “We have temporarily

we are working overtime in the factory and in some areas we have added additional crew. We are really optimising the capacity we have in Chennai to address the issue along with our suppliers. It is really a 24X7 effort going on. We are very gratified and very humbled. The level of enquiries, it is more than 50,000 now. We are working very hard and we are very

sorry for the customers who are waiting. We are gratified

that customers continue to express a very high level of interest in the EcoSport. It is still at unprecedented

levels. The footfalls in our dealerships are just

wonderful. Not only are the footfalls heavy,

but they continue to be heavy and they

are across a wide range of demographics.

People who are coming in are not just checking out the EcoSport, but also the other Ford products. They are showing interests in our other name plates also,” he highlights.

“Our journey in India is a long one. We are here to stay and not try running a sprint. We are running a

marathon and the country is challenging. We have to make sure that we align our business plans according to the challenges that exist in the country. You have to

be resilient, have stamina and think long term. We have to be have an aggressive growth strategy which is product led. Apart from us, our suppliers are investing money, our dealers are doing that and even our global suppliers are coming in,” he concludes. It’s time for the Blue Oval to shine even brighter!

Ford 1.0-litre EcoBoost engine

stopped bookings. The waiting time for our customers was getting too long. We really had to address our production side. In some areas

TêTe-à-TêTe

Report: P.Tharyan

BMW India

BMW India is a subsidiary of the BMW Group. The company is headquartered in Gurgaon near New Delhi. BMW India also has its own manufacturing facility in Chennai with a capacity to manufacture 11,000 units per annum on a double shift. The Chennai plant produces the BMW 3 Series, the 5 Series, the 7 Series, the X1, the X3 and the MINI Countryman. The latest addition to this portfolio is the BMW 1 Series launched early October 2013. The company also imports several other models through the CBU route.

Christian Saffer & Frank SchloederChristian Saffer has completed his three year term as Director Marketing BMW India. Frank Schloeder is his successor

Christian, how has your experience been in India from the time you first came from Germany three years ago?Being in India has been a special experience for me. I am a person who is able to adapt to a new culture very easily. I remember the first day I arrived here. It was not at all a culture shock for me. People I had talked to had described India as a tough place to work in, but for me it was not like that. Of course, it was a challenge. India is a completely different story compared to any other European, US or Japanese markets. I have survived and it’s been full three years that I have lived here and now I shall be going to BMW headquarters in Germany. My three years are over and I shall be ready to take on a new opportunity. But before that I shall be travelling within India. This proves that I

have adapted to this country and its culture. I have had some very interesting and valuable experience here in India.

Do you expect the 1 Series car to be a game changer of sorts here in India? Let’s see what the future brings. I am totally convinced about the product. I think Philipp (Philipp von Sahr, President of BMW India) also pointed out during his speech (at the launch of 1 Series in Mumbai) that it’s the best car when it comes to dynamism, efficiency and sportiness. And that is why the expectations are high. At the end of the day, of course, the customer decides but it’s for sure that the 1 series is a great car and we expect a lot out of this launch.

The 1 Series is the most affordable car in your portfolio as its stands

today. Are there going to be more surprises down the line in terms of your pricing? To be very honest you never know. At the moment you are right, the 1 Series is the least expensive car in our portfolio starting at 20.9 lakh. The cars here in India are relatively expensive compared to European markets as a result of import duties etc. Of course, I foresee cheaper prices in future. I cannot tell you when but if the government brings down taxes and other import duties, then we can definitely offer the cars at a cheaper price. We also never compromise on our quality or technology. We are a luxury manufacturer so people have certain expectations from our products and we never compromise on quality, technology and styling.

Unlike your competitors, you


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Frank Schloeder (L) with Christian Saffer

have been majorly selling rear-wheel drive cars that are run on automatic transmissions. Don’t you think you need to make your cars tailor-made for Asian markets which look for front wheel-drive cars running on a manual transmission?Our success in the last few years shows very clearly that we have arrived. Ours is a very aspirational brand. People who buy our cars may not be really thinking about whether it is a rear wheel drive or a front wheel drive vehicle. There are many attributes to our cars. Our cars offer sheer driving pleasure, sportiness, dynamism, styling, technology etc. Not everyone may know about the rear wheel drive, but once you drive a BMW car and you experience what the difference is between a rear wheel drive and a front wheel drive car, then people simply love it. Then they understand why we so strongly believe in rear wheel drive cars.

Frank, is this your first posting to India? Is this your first time in India too?I have already been in India twice. This is my first assignment in India. I am here for the next three years. When you speak in Europe about going to India, you get many different opinions. You have the big fans of India telling you “Lucky you” and telling you that India is the best country to go to. Then you have people who tell you that they are frightened to go to India. But these are the people who do not know India well and have never been here. All I can say is that when you arrive in India, you are welcomed so warmly. It’s a fantastic country with such a rich culture. I am now happy to take on this new challenge here in India.

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Christian you have been in India for three years heading the marketing division of BMW India. What have you to tell your successor Frank of the diversity of this country, it culture and its people?Yes, I agree, India is a very diverse country when it comes to languages and people. I even find a huge difference between two cities like Delhi and Mumbai when it comes to people. To be successful in a country like India, you need to adapt to its culture. I still ask a lot of questions in my pursuit to understand this country better. Also, when it comes to our customers, they are very demanding, and rightly so. If you can afford a car like the BMW, you can be very demanding.

What kind of people forms your customer base? Are they simply rich or more than that?It’s much more than that. Of course the nouveau rich remain the target audience of BMW, that is very clear, but there are others too. Just recently, a friend of mine bought his first BMW. This person is around 55 plus in age. He has been working hard his entire life. And now he is kind of rewarding himself at the end of his professional career, with a new BMW. I will not put him in the list of nouveau rich or a born rich category.

He worked hard his entire life and at the end of his professional career it is time to reward himself. This is also a very import part of our clientele. Yes, we have a lot of rich kids i.e. kids of rich fathers buying our cars. But you also have successful businessmen, self employed people, professionals, etc as part of our clientele. They may be rich but I would not say they are multi millionaires. Thus, our buyers come from diverse backgrounds.

A lot of car makers in India adopt different methods to sell their cars in the country. Does BMW also have such a policy to sell its cars, especially in areas beyond the tier I cities?BMW follows one common strategy for marketing its products. We communicate only in English. We feel 99pc of our target audience understands English. We feel that we need not have to adapt to the rural areas in any different manner. BMW is a German company and we have a clear strategy when it comes to entering a market. Everybody knows BMW. In every country we communicate in a similar way. Our customers worldwide understand the language of BMW.

BMW car fans have been quite obsessed with design philosophy

“To be successful in a country like India, you need to adapt to its culture. I still ask a lot of questions in my pursuit to understand this country better. Also, when it comes to our customers, they are very demanding, and rightly so. If you can afford a car like the BMW, you can be very demanding,” says Christian Saffer

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of your ex-design Chief Chris Bangle, who is renowned for coming up with kidney- shaped grille cars. But now a new design chief is slowly shifting away those trademark kidney- shaped grille cars to a slightly altered design. Don’t you think it’s a risky proposition? Or is it part of an evolution?It’s part of an evolution. If you look at the design of our cars for the last 30 to 40 years, it was always some evolution and some revolution. It’s just a process of design change because people are changing. Every day you are observing something new. In the last 10 years I too have changed in my views and tastes. That is the reason why our company too has to change with the changes happening with our target audience. Sometimes you need an evolution and sometimes a revolution.

Christian, how will you sum up your stint in India?A It was a challenge definitely. I learnt a lot. I think I learnt much more in the last three years in India than I learnt in 10 years in Europe. I met a lot of lovely people, very emotional people. I made many friends here in India. It’s been a very memorable experience I have had in India. I shall always cherish all the great moments I have had in India for the last three years.

Frank, what are the challenges that you are likely to face in your

new job here?In the beginning I have to learn a lot. I have to know a lot more about the Indian culture. I have to also learn about things that work here and things that do not work here. At the moment, the Indian market is experiencing difficult times. We have to see whether this is just a temporary issue or whether the market will continue to experience this for a long period. Based on this we shall have to adapt our strategies and come out with the right measures. But in the beginning,

I have to learn, learn and learn! The key to marketing is to listen to the customer. Its only then can you provide the right solution to him. Before coming to India, I bought a lot of books on India and I am still reading them. The only thing I can say at this moment is that India is moving in the right direction and in the long run it will continue to do well. I am happy to take over a well established team with great talent here in BMW India. I have to build up on what has already been achieved here in India by BMW.

The new BMW 1 Series

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Report & Photography: Abhijeet Singh

Visteon

Visteon is a leading global automotive supplier with $15 billion global sales in 2012 and operations in climate, electronics and interior products. Visteon’s family of businesses include Halla Visteon Climate Control Corp. (HVCC), majority-owned by Visteon and the world’s second largest global supplier of automotive climate components and systems, Visteon Electronics, a leading supplier of audio/infotainment, driver information, centre stack electronics and feature control modules and Visteon Interiors, a global provider of vehicle cockpit modules, instrument panels, consoles and door trim modules. Visteon has facilities in 29 countries and employs through its various businesses, including unconsolidated operations, approximately 55,000 people.

Subu NagasubramonyManaging Director, Visteon India Operations & Climate Products - Asia / President - Asia Pacific, Halla Visteon Climate Control Corp.

What reasons and factors brought Visteon’s attention towards the Indian automobile sector?There are multiple reasons for Visteon’s interest in India. Back in 1991, when economic liberalisation of the country was setting in, we (as a part of Ford Motor Company) signed our first joint venture with Maruti Suzuki. At the time, lots of OEMs, including the Ford Motor company, started looking at India as a potential destination, and all of them wanted to test out the market conditions here. Hence, our reasons for coming to Asia were to be visible in the radar of the global OEM’s wishing to set up shop in India. And as a part of a global OEM itself Visteon had ambitions to enter Asia in a big way and grow in the market. Today, we have a strong presence in the Asia Pacific region, which was all driven during that period of economic liberalisation. In 1986 we established Halla Climate Control,

a joint venture between Mando Machinery and Ford Motor Company in Korea. Manufacturing was on of the main factors, as that is what we focus on from day one. When our main Chennai plant was established it was a Ford auto components plant, and then after the global separation

it became Visteon.

Why did Visteon separate itself from Ford Motors globally?Business is an entity that constantly keeps changing, it is never stagnant. Visteon was part of Ford Motor Company, but later the management


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and share holders decided to spin Visteon out as a separate company. The separate identity of Visteon would enable it to go out and pursue other customers as well hence making it independently strong in the market. And today the strength of Visteon comes from the diversity of its customers, for example, Hyundai, Ford, Renault, Nissan, Maruti Suzuki, Mahindra & Mahindra and many more.

Visteon has been present in India for almost two decades. How has been your growth through the years?In 1993 we started manufacturing in our plant in Bhiwadi focusing on the Maruti Suzuki business. The year 1998 was the start of the Chennai plant, when Ford and Hyundai decided to set up shop here. This was the time when we started manufacturing all the three products---- electronics, climate and interior---- all at the same time from day one. Then we opened the Pune operations unit for both interiors and electronics. We started the software operations in Chennai in 2001 with a mere eight employees, which today has risen up to 500 plus employees. We have grown and added to our capabilities in terms of manufacturing sites, engineering sites and software centres. We have five manufacturing sites, three software centres and this is not the end of it, as requirements continue we will keep expanding in this market. Consider electronics, we started off very small making mechanical clusters for the Santro, and currently we make 200-300 clusters a day. Today we make somewhere around 1.5 million clusters annually. In the last four years we grew seven times in Subu Nagasubramony

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Visteon e-Bee

Visteon is well known for its innovations in the automobile climate, electronic and interior sectors. A new concept the company designed, called the e-Bee, has all its innovations packed in one basket. The e-Bee is essentially a Nissan Leaf which has been loaded with all new Visteon technologies, somewhat like a parts bin for manufacturers to choose from. The e-Bee was showcased at a technology show held by Visteon in the company’s Chennai plant.

ClIMAte SySteMAn integrated climate system module consolidates all refrigeration systems and HVAC unit into a single module located not inside but outside the cabin. This frees up more space inside the cabin and also returns

superior energy efficiency. Then there is Halla Visteon’s compact and lightweight electric compressor, for hybrid and electric vehicles, which provides independent operation from the driving motor.

eleCtronICSInfotainment systems form an integral part of customer involvement with their vehicles. Visteon’s infotainment software enables consumer electronics to integrate both with cloud-based and local content to the car by aggregating music and data from multiple sources. The driver information system delivers high-performance graphics and video features including driver awareness systems and camera inputs. The directional speakers integrated in the driver

and passenger’s headrest not only provides individual music experience, but also conserves power of the vehicle.

InterIorSThe interior trim was Visteon Injected Expanded Polypropylene (VIEPP) which reduces weight by up to 40pc. Based on retracting core tooling system and chemical expansion agent parts could be made without any paint. Also Visteon has performed back injection technology allowing use of a 400 micron TPO foil to trim complex component shapes. Then is Digital Decoration-01, which involves the use of laser marking with no paint on several materials. These are just a few of several other new and efficient technologies presented by Visteon at their technology show.

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revenue and year on year that number is growing over 30pc with booked businesses. We expanded the exclusive plant that we set up for electronics. It is a state-of-the-art facility with every OEM praising it as the best possible plant for electronic auto components in India. It is an ISO certified 100pc clean-room with ESD, temperature and humidity control. We have our own assembly lines, we create our own clusters, audios, climate heads, etc at our plant. We had established that separate facility in 2009 and have expanded that three times till 2013. A lot of people came across and mentioned that why did you not make the plant big enough. That is the kind of growth we made which we could not even anticipate.

What kind of changes have you observed in the Indian automobile market and demands from oeMs?The demands from OEMs reflect demands from the customers. In India there is a huge middle-class population aspiring and wanting to own a personal vehicle with cool features, advanced electronics with easy human-machine interaction and connectivity. Another important aspect is the comfort of the atmosphere inside the vehicle, where our air-conditioning systems come into play. Then are the performance and the fuel efficiency of the vehicle. The demand is coming from every corner, be it comfort, or personalisation, or features, or the design of the car. And then is the fuel efficiency which is a very vital topic and will always be an area of constant development for automobile manufacturers. We have a lot of products which support these parameters of car manufacturing. And then there is

the importance of being green, it is an unsaid expectation. Nobody mentions that they want a green car, but when a customer goes to buy a car and the OEM provides green features, the customer likes those options. There are some green technologies which are enforced by the government, like the Bharat IV or Bharat V emission norms, which are regulations and manufacturers have to strictly adhere to. Beyond these regulations are green technologies which have an impact on customer expectations from their new car. Hence, expectations run into all these areas--- green, eco friendly, fuel efficient, comfortable, HMI, electronics, interiors, and we happen to play in all these segments. We have also seen a dramatic change in the fit and finish and quality levels expectations. Every year the quality

level steps up a notch in every program. For us it is not much of a challenge because being a global player we have already designed to those levels. Even if sometimes an OEM does not ask for those specs, we overwrite those and mention that these are our standards to which we would test to. In terms of fit and finish, the OEMs have become a lot more conscious, and they are asking us to do more quality studies with the users and tell them what the users want. This is where we as a global player can contribute better.

you mentioned quality studies with the customers. What are these and how do you go about these research studies?These are called Consumer Pursuit Quality studies or CPQ as we call them. OEMs and we enter into an

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agreement and together we go out to study the quality perception of the end consumer. These studies are for different products such as interiors and electronics. We select a set of test consumers who experience the touch and feel of sample interiors and provide us feedback. We collect all this information and put it all together into actionable data. Then we take the results of these studies into the design of our products. These researches are both qualitative and quantitative. We study that whether consumers want round vents or square vents, they like a digital speedometer or analogue,

do they like amber illumination or white illumination. We do all these researches directly with the end consumers in clinics where we call them, line up ten cars, remove badges and cover them thus removing any brand bias. Removing the brand bias gives us pure statistical data which tells us what customers actually want from their cars. Then are the features, OEMs have limited amount to put in a certain feature, and our research tells them exactly what features will get them the highest consumer perception that they see value in. Value based analysis is what we do and OEMs appreciate that a lot. We

have done a lot of such studies in India and globally.

How are your exports and imports panning out? We are mostly importing some parts from our intra-company imports and also exports as well. We have a few other clients also from whom we import. Our manufacturing business is primarily focused on domestic business. Our software business is 100pc export oriented. There is always a balance between exports and imports.

the market is going down a steep slope. How has this affected

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Visteon’s imports, exports and domestic business?The market downfall has affected us just as it has affected everybody else. The rupee depreciation affects every business in so many ways, and import happens to be one of them. We are hoping that it is a short term trend and things will look back up again. We do focus on natural hedging, in the sense export more and import less, but you need scale. Export just for the sake of export is not what we are looking at. We prefer export when there is a benefit to our manufacturing global footprint. We look to balance imports and exports through long term action planning, to be sustainable globally. Our business is not just in India, we have business in Korea, North America and Europe. Some currencies move up, some move down, hence we cannot keep changing our manufacturing footprints and import and export strategies based on such fluctuations in the market. For the domestic market again we hope it is a short term trend and believe things will improve. Indian market has huge potential and we are positioning ourselves to tap into that potential in

the future. We are working on the short term issues through but we do not think that will define Visteon in India. We are not changing any of our investment strategy or customer strategy or product strategy. We believe it is one of those waves which keep on coming and going and we stand committed to this market.

In terms of the skills of the workforce and technicians, how would you define your employees?We think our people are very capable intellectually. They are dedicated and trainable. The only issue is our system, which brings up our people through education to work in automotive companies or in fact any other industry, could improve. We want them brought here, train them, engage them in our discussions and fully get them plugged in with us and not merely work eight hours shifts and going back. We want them engaged in industrial activity. Safety is an important parameter for us and we

keep the very high always. People happiness is one of the key factors in our company. But as we mentioned earlier, we would be happier if some of the training of our people happened through our education system. If you consider the software, which happens to be our key export, our workers are possibly the best engineers in the industry and have been praised by every OEM. If you consider audio unit for the next Volvo, or the cluster for the next Ford vehicle, or Jaguar’s re-configurable cluster, all of these are done here. These people have to be very capable to be sitting here and doing 100pc of the work from here.

lastly, how do you portray the future of Visteon?We want to be the supplier of choice for all our OEMs here. We want to be known for the highest safety standards in our operations and for the best quality products. We wish to be the most responsive supplier to our customers and be known for making them successful. We want to bring our automotive intellect into everything that we do, not just be a parts supplier but add value to what we do for the customer.

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Report: Avishek Banerjee, Photography: Mohd. Nasir

Hella India Lighting

Hella India Lighting (HIL) is a subsidiary of HellaKGaA Hueck& Co, Germany and is into manufacturing and marketing of automotive lights of commercial vehicles along with Agro and other Special Original Equipment (SOE) groups like construction, mining etc. Hella originally established itself in India in the year 1959 as a joint venture with JMA. With a manufacturing location in Derabassi, near Chandigarh, the company works closely with local SOE customers such as Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland, Volvo, Mahindra & Mahindra, AMW, JCB, Mercedes-Benz, SAME, CLAAS and with Independent After Market (IAM) customers to develop and manufacture head lamps, tail lamps, aux lamps, fog lamps, work lamps, day time running lamps with bulb & led technology and various types of switches. The company is ISO/TS 16949 certified. HIL has recently launched its company vision as “Technology of Tomorrow for the Life of Today, on Indian Roads”. The company has launched an ambitious ‘Nation Wide Road Safety Mission’ as part of its core strategy.

Rama Shankar PandeyMD, Hella India Lighting (HIL)

How do you see the automotive lighting industry in India evolving over the years?When Tata started rolling out trucks in India, we also began our alliance with them. So we initially started as a JV with JMA and started making horns and lights in the initial phase. The Indian auto lighting witnessed a gradual evolution even though we lost pace with global technology in the middle of our course of action. By this, I am specifically referring to the CV industry in the country. The design and technological properties (of the lights) remain the same as earlier. So we can bring in a lot of design and technical capabilities in the upcoming products of our clients and change the landscape further.

How important is the Indian

market for HIL globally? And with the recurrent economic slowdown, are you redrawing your expansion plans?

It is true that the automotive industry has been cyclical and ideally it is best not to forecast anything (growth) at this moment.

So a firm has to be very agile and flexible in order to take on these cyclical effects of the industry. The long term potential of the Indian

automotive industry is huge and we will not go slow on our investment plans. Within Asia, even though our market development activities started later vis-à-vis China, we are taking full advantage of Hella’s global network to achieve the ‘Technology Jump’ while building our production and development infrastructure in the country. Our parent company in Germany has figured India among the strategic key markets in the world. So we are definitely building up our

infrastructure here.

How much does the automotive vertical contribute to your overall business?


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We are only in the automotive space in the current period. We are having a small vertical in the special application called “Hella Industries”. But this is still very nascent and yet to take shape. So we are focussing only in the automotive vertical.

Which specific segment in the automotive industry gives you the maximum volumes? And is there a segment which you find very promising?For us, the biggest contribution comes from the automotive industry. So the maximum volumes are derived from trucks and buses. With the entry of high-end players like Volvo, Scania, and Mercedes Benz, a lot of buses are offered with next-generation lighting technologies. Many models equipped with projector lamps in these buses are supported by us. So we are pretty hopeful that the CV industry will witness the adoption of many high-end technologies. In addition to that, we are catering to other segments like SUVs and cars through our Aftermarket channel.

You have recently developed a highly indigenised light emitting diode (LED) lamp for commercial vehicles. Could you talk a little bit about that?Yes, we have developed India’s first fully-built light emitting diode (LED) lamps for CV application at its Chandigarh plant. We realised that we can make a big difference (in CVs) by ensuring that there is safety on the road. So it’s a product which is ahead of the curve and is also affordable because of the heavy local content. The special features of the newly-developed product include up to 90pc less power consumption, superior lens and

optic material, ultra-wide visibility optic, high UV resistance, completely water-proof IPK system, and extra-high vibration and temperature control. It also carries a five-year

warranty for commercial vehicles, which is a real bonanza for vehicle operators. The product is fully tested and certified before being supplied to the customers. Even though the

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purchase price of the product will be higher, the maintenance costs are very minuscule. This product has been approved technically by reputed CV OEMs in India, and Ashok Leyland has started using the same. We are holding similar discussions with other OEMs too. The product is now undergoing trial with fleet operators like VRL Logistics.

HIL has also adopted a new strategy to reorient its future activities towards ensuring road safety in India? Could you shed some light on that?Since 2008-09, we were a bit struggling as we wanted to come out of our JV with JMA. As we became a Hella-owned company,

we were striving for profitability as we had accumulated losses in crores at that point of time. So we were initially focussed on improving the bottomline by improving sales and winning back our lost customers. This was achieved by improving the quality of our plant (at Chandigarh) and get into a profitmaking mode. By 2011, we improved our financial health and by then our parent company also expressed a lot of interest in the Indian market. So thenceforth, we reoriented ourselves and laid out some well-defined plans wherein we met most of our customers to know their demands and needs. We then came up with a strategy that dealt with the menace of road deaths (in India). The latest statistics reveal that there are more

than one lakh deaths occurring due to road accidents. Hence the company is committed to road safety by launching safety enabling products, enhancing awareness of risks involved in night driving and also by attracting the attention of NGOs, Industry associations like ACMA-Automechanika, and Government departments like NHAI, to the seriousness of the problem. This is in line with the company motto of ‘Technology of Tomorrow for the Life of Today’. So we made a vision statement that by 2020, we should impact reducing the number of road accidents by 10pc.

Where do you build your products? Are you planning to have a dedicated facility for auto

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lighting solutions?We are running our manufacturing unit at Dera Bassi near Chandigarh. The state-of-the-art facility has been refurbished with fresh investments worth €2 million. We are able to produce 75,000 headlamps and 70,000-75,000 tail lamps per month and can also churn out 80,000 LED lamps per year from this facility. The plant supplies to Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland and other leading CV makers. We simply follow the ‘Blue Ocean’ strategy to explore virgin market space like developing LED application in CV’s, Agro & Construction segment where Indian market has a lot of potential. Nearly 53 pc of the output is catered to the aftermarket vertical and roughly 15pc (out of the total production) is exported to countries like Europe, Singapore, Dubai, South Africa, Germany, etc. We have also garnered sizeable orders from Hella US,

So the German OEMs are giving you the maximum orders?We are getting excellent response from German OEMs. They are in fact our lead customers for bringing high tech products for ‘Road Safety’. As the competition is increasing in the CV industry, there is a trend among Indian OEM’s to adopt global benchmark on using lighting components. One of the successful example is Ashok Leyland started using fully built LED tail lamps for their new Intermediate Commercial Vehicle (ICV) platform. We have a balanced customer portfolio. Going forward, I foresee enhanced business opportunities not only from German automakers, but from European ones and others too.

You have kickstarted the Hella Value Partners (HVP)

programme in 2011. Does that mean the aftermarket vertical is indispensable for you? As I mentioned earlier, the aftermarket vertical is indispensable not only in India but worldwide too. In fact, it is one of the three key pillars of growth. We are growing our retail base from 8,000 franchised outlets currently to nearly 45,000 outlets in the next two years. Through the Hella Value Partners (HVP) programme, select key partners across the region are awarded the status of HVP and are fully backed by Hella with direct access to the company’s expertise in the areas of sales support, marketing expertise, product and technical know-how support and reliable logistics service. We don’t believe in the principal-agent relationship with our dealers. They are like our business partners.

Could you talk a little bit about

your R&D centre at Chennai?Our Engineering centre of Hella India Automotive (HIA) at Chennai is working for both domestic and overseas markets for lighting development. It is into design, development, simulation and allied activities in automotive lighting domain. So there are more than 120 engineers who are working on next-generation solutions for the global auto lighting industry.

Lastly, do you foresee a lot of growth in India in the next few years in your line of business?What kind of revenues are you looking at in HIL?When I started as Director on the board of HIL in 2009, the company finished 2008-09 with 28 crore-annual business. During last fiscal year we closed at 74 crore and in the current fiscal, we should be clocking close to 90 crore in revenues.

Technology


Innovative new project gives used eV batteries second life to power homes

A collaborative project in North East England is developing an innovative solution to the problem of successfully exploiting the potential of used batteries from electric vehicles (EVs). The venture explores the possibility of harnessing power in EV batteries as energy storage in a domestic or workplace environment, either for charging

vehicles, providing an emergency power source or feeding power back into the grid.

“Although the performance of lithium ion batteries used in EVs dwindles in their original application after eight to 10 years, they maintain around 80pc of their operational capability, and the challenge is to successfully harness

this potential,” says Geoff Watson, Zero Carbon Futures technical manager. “The project between SR Technology Innovations and Tadea, commissioned by Zero Carbon Futures has developed a multi-functional demonstrator unit that can store power from photovoltaic (PV) panels to power the home, charge EVs, feed back into the grid

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or help manage your power supply to minimize exposure to peak tariffs. The system can also be charged from the grid itself, making it a truly multi-purpose energy storage tool.”

As EV adoption becomes more widespread, the problem of finding a useful second-life for the batteries becomes increasingly important. Once commercialised, the system offers immediate benefits to vehicle manufacturers, EV and home owners, but in the medium to long term can help reduce the cost of EVs and battery hire, as battery life can be extended by three-times that of its first in-car usage. The demonstrator kit will be utilised in the North East’s Future Technology Centre, a national centre for low carbon vehicle technologies, and the results assessed to help establish the true potential of this technology.

“The generation of green energy is of growing worldwide focus, and this could represent an efficient storage solution for small-scale solar and turbine energy,” explains Dr. Colin Herron, Zero Carbon Futures managing director. “For example, power collected during the day could then be released into the home for use at night, or used to charge an EV ready for work in the morning. Installation in line with PV panels can greatly reduce the demand on the national grid and, in the long term, offer considerable savings on energy bills in domestic and commercial application. A secondary source of energy can mean an end to power cuts, the potential for a welcome long-term reduction in energy bills and increasing integration of EVs into the home.”

The battery second-life system can be used independently of EV ownership, which maximises the

potential benefits of the project once commercialised. As Tim Scott, managing director of SR Technology Innovations explains: “The system is an extension of our work on hybrid vehicles and electronic control systems technologies. It combines a number of discrete energy solutions and the next step will be to integrate these into a smaller, single package which would be more appropriate for a domestic application and will significantly reduce the cost for the full system. The technology will become increasingly compatible as Europe increases its reliance on green energy production and more homes install photovoltaics.”

Zero Carbon Futures is a low carbon technology company with a vision to embrace the opportunities offered by the new developments surrounding low carbon transport. The company’s current projects range from large-scale electric vehicle charging infrastructure programmes through to research on propulsion systems, hydrogen and smart home technologies including vehicle to home technology. Right now Zero Carbon Futures is also developing a dedicated Low Carbon Technology Park in the heart of England’s biggest automotive zone

to bring industry, academics and manufacturers together to undertake this research.

SR Technology Innovations collaborated, as technical lead, with Tadea and Zero Carbon Futures to develop this system to demonstrate 2nd life use for EV batteries. The project extends SR Technology Innovations’ work on hybrid vehicle and hybrid power system architectures, aimed at improving control philosophies and the integration of power electronic subsystems.

Technology


BMW i8, a progressive plug-in hybrid sports carAt a driving event at the BMW Group’s Miramas test track in France, the BMW i presented a prototype of its second production vehicle, the BMW i8. This plug-in hybrid model is the most progressive sports car of our time, extending the basic BMW i philosophy of sustainability to a new vehicle segment. The BMW i8 made its world debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show. It will arrive in BMW showrooms in 2014

Pairing an exceptionally lightweight, aerodynamically optimised body with BMW eDrive technology, a compact, turbocharged

1.5-litre BMW TwinPower Turbo gasoline engine and intelligent energy management, the BMW i8 marks the next stage in the evolution of the Efficient Dynamics strategy. Its revolutionary approach achieves an unprecedented balance between performance and fuel efficiency. Thanks to its carbon-fibre-reinforced plastic (CFRP) passenger cell, the BMW i8 sets new standards

for a plug-in hybrid vehicle in terms of low weight. It can operate solely on electric power, which means no tailpipe emissions, and offers the dynamic performance of a sports car, with an expected 0 to almost 100kmph sprint time under 4.5 seconds.

The BMW i8 was designed from the outset as a plug-in hybrid sports car, with the emphasis on

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agile performance and outstanding efficiency. Its characteristic BMW i LifeDrive architecture provides the best possible basis for lightweight design. Its main components are the aluminum Drive module, which incorporates the internal combustion engine and electric motor, the battery, the power electronics and the chassis components, along with structural and crash functions, and the Life module, which essentially comprises the 2+2-seater CFRP passenger cell. This architecture also gives the BMW i8 a very low centre of gravity and a near-perfect 50:50 axle load ratio, both of which increase its agility.

The BMW i8’s plug-in hybrid system is specific to this model.

Developed and produced by the BMW Group, it marks the next step in the evolution of the Efficient Dynamics programme. A compact three-cylinder petrol engine with BMW TwinPower Turbo technology is combined with an electric drive system and a lithium-ion battery which can be recharged at a standard household power socket. The 231 hp gasoline engine sends its power to the rear wheels, while the 131 hp electric motor powers the front wheels. This configuration offers all-electric driving capability with a range of up to approx. 35km and a top speed of approximately 120 km/h. With both drive systems engaged, it also offers road-hugging all-wheel-drive performance with

powerful acceleration and dynamic torque vectoring during sporty cornering. The more powerful of the two powerplants drives the rear wheels. The hybrid system supplements this with power from the electric motor to deliver typical BMW driving pleasure combined with groundbreaking efficiency. Calculated using the EU test cycle for plug-in hybrid vehicles, the average fuel efficiency of the BMW i8 at model launch will be less than 2.5 litres/100 km, which equates to approximately 40km per litre, with CO2 emissions of less than 59 grammes per km.

BMW i is also setting benchmarks in the quest for zero CO2 emissions in urban driving. The research and

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development work carried out since 2007 as part of project i has laid the foundations for revolutionary mobility solutions strongly influenced by environmental, economic and social change around the world. The BMW Group is pursuing an integrated approach, as embodied in the BMW i brand, which aims to achieve the necessary balance between individual needs and the global mobility requirements of the future. The BMW i focus is squarely on all-electric and plug-in hybrid mobility. Groundbreaking design, intelligent lightweight engineering, typical BMW driving pleasure coupled with zero tailpipe emissions, intelligent energy management and resource- and energy-saving production processes are all combined into an innovative premium-quality package.

The LifeDrive architecture specially developed for BMW i vehicles offers the ideal platform for turning the tide of spiraling weight while at the same time achieving distinctive styling exclusive to BMW i. With a

length of 4,689 mm, a width of 1,942 mm and a height of 1,293 mm, the BMW i8 has the proportions of a sports car. Its dynamic personality is also stressed by a long bonnet, conspicuous aerodynamic features, an elongated roofline, short overhangs and a long wheelbase of 110.2 inches (2,800 mm). Characteristic BMW i form language wraps up this groundbreaking combination of sporty performance and efficiency in a charismatic 2+2-seater design.

The BMW i8 is also the world’s first volume-produced vehicle to be

equipped with chemically hardened glass. This innovative technology, to date used mainly in Smartphone manufacturing, results in very high strength. The partition between the passenger compartment and boot of the BMW i8 consists of two layers of chemically hardened glass, each of which is just 0.7 millimeters thick, with acoustic sheeting sandwiched between. In addition to excellent acoustic properties, a further advantage of this solution is weight savings of around 50 percent compared with conventional laminated glass.

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Ford’s new paint technology detects dirtHere’s the dirt on Ford’s new paint technology: There isn’t any. The new Ford F-Series models are the latest vehicles to benefit from the company’s industry-first dirt detection technology to ensure optimal paint and surface quality. The system uses high-resolution cameras and reflected light to digitally identify surface imperfections finer than a grain of salt in final vehicle assembly, and to cue operators where to polish and buff out imperfections.

By using dirt detection technology, Ford improved paint quality and reduced customer complaints of vehicle surface finish by 82pc one year, as measured by customer warranty data for F-Series models produced at the company’s Dearborn Truck Plant in Dearborn, Michigan in the US.

“This system ensures better paint jobs and surface finishes for Ford customers around the world,” said Tom Dougan, project manager, global paint applications at Ford.

How it worksFord’s dirt detection technology takes microscopic scans of each painted vehicle surface, and then cues final assembly operators to address repairs where necessary. In the past, paint and surface inspections were based on

human-eye examination.The 3D imaging system applies

varying degrees and angles of light while scoping the paint surface of vehicle bodies to identify dirt in paint and other irregular paint conditions. High-resolution images – 3,150 images are captured in 15 seconds for every vehicle made – are stitched together for a full 3D image that is digitally compared to a perfect computer model.

The dirt on the dirtDirt particles in paint are difficult to manage with conventional quality control methods. Minute particles can enter a shop floor from multiple environmental sources, machinery or workers, which makes paint quality one of the toughest variables to control in production. Along with Dearborn Truck Plant, the automated inspection system is now being

used in the United States at Ford’s Kentucky Truck Plant.

“This is one of the most exciting integrations of optical science and digital technology in the automotive industry,” said Dougan. “By combining innovations in vision technology, processing speed and software, Ford continues to invent new technologies that give our customers better paint quality and surpass competitor offerings.”

Globally, dirt detection technology is used at three Ford assembly plants. Here are the plants and the vehicles built there: Valencia Assembly Plant, Valencia, Spain: Ford C-MAX (Grand C-MAX and compact models); Dearborn Truck Plant, Dearborn, Mich.: Ford F-Series and the Kentucky Truck Plant, Louisville, Ky.: Ford Expedition, Ford Super Duty

The technology launches later this year at these plants:Louisville

Assembly Plant, Louisville, Ky.: Ford Escape; Chicago Assembly Plant, Chicago: Ford Taurus, Ford Police Interceptor, Ford Explorer; Oakville Assembly, Oakville, Ontario, Canada: Ford Edge, Ford Flex. In 2014, Ford will launch dirt detection technology at the following plants: Flat Rock Assembly Plant, Flat Rock, Mich.: Ford Mustang, Ford Fusion; Kansas City Assembly Plant, Claycomo, Mo.: Ford F-Series

Technology


honda plans all new turbocharged V6 engine for racing in 2014Honda Performance Development, the racing arm of American Honda Motor Co., Inc., is continuing its commitment to customer LMP1 endurance sports-car racing with the 2014 introduction of an all-new, turbocharged V6 engine, to be followed in 2015 by a range of bespoke energy recovery options, for FIA World Endurance Championship competition.

After several successful seasons supplying the normally aspirated Honda LM-V8 engine to private teams in both the WEC and American Le Mans Series, HPD engineers and designers made the decision to offer their partner teams access to updated technology which the company believes will be necessary to successfully compete on the world stage, under the ACO’s new LMP1 energy-based power train regulations.

The new engine, to be designated the Honda HR22T, is based on the same architecture used in the Indianapolis 500-winning, 2.2-litre direct injection turbocharged V6 engine used in IZOD IndyCar Series competition since 2012, designed to be coupled with a new energy recovery system developed in concert with HPD technical partner Magneti Marelli.

“This is an exciting new program

for HPD and our customer teams in the World Endurance Championship, as it brings manufacturer-level engine technology to privateer teams,” said Steve Eriksen, HPD Vice President and COO. “A small-displacement, direct injection, turbocharged engine with a range of energy recovery options will provide private teams with the technical sophistication they need to compete under the challenging new LMP1 regulations.”

A completely revised rules package being introduced for the WEC in 2014 opens the door for HPD to introduce this new powertrain system, specifically tailored to meet the needs of private teams engaged in top-level endurance sports-car racing competition.

Starting in 2014, rather than any set engine displacement or air inlet restrictor limits, the technical regulations for the series will specify a maximum fuel-flow rate into the engine, with or without energy recovery systems.

“The new rules say that if you are a private team, you can either run without energy recovery systems or choose to add the level of energy recovery that best suits your needs. This will allow our customers to choose the ERS solution that meets their needs – everything from no

energy recovery up to the full eight Megajoule maximum,” Eriksen said. “This new regulation direction that is more conscious of environmental technologies will encourage HPD to participate from the perspectives of both developing future technologies and nurturing engineers.”

HPD’s highly successful LMP2 program – which has recorded multiple ALMS championships, won its class title in the inaugural 2012 WEC and has twice won at the 24 Hours of Le Mans – will likewise continue in 2013 with the cost-capped ARX-03b chassis and production-based Honda HR28TT twin-turbocharged direct injection V6 engine, the only engine in its class to feature such production-relevant technology. The engine/chassis package remains eligible to compete in both the WEC and the newly combined United Sports Car Racing series in North America.

One of the most successful prototype chassis designs in recent years, the HPD ARX series has posted 58 victories and six endurance-racing championships since its introduction – and debut LMP2 victory – at the 12 Hours of Sebring in 2007. At the 2013 Strakka Racing took its HPD ARX-03c Honda to victory in the LMP1 Privateer category; and HPD-equipped teams

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have won the LMP2 class at Le Mans twice in the last four years (2010 and 2012).

The most recent wins for the ARX came in the American Le Mans Series event at Canadian Tire Motorsports Park in Bowmanville, Ontario, where Muscle Milk Pickett Racing won overall in an LMP1 ARX-03c, while Level 5 Motorsports claimed the LMP2 class with an ARX-03b.

In addition to the new engine and its energy recovery system, HPD and chassis technical partner Wirth Research are also developing a coupe version of the successful ARX chassis series that will provide a fully integrated solution for the new V6 Honda powerplant and ERS.

The landmark 50th win for the ARX design came last year at the ALMS season-ending Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta, scored by Level 5 Motorsports. HPD has also been the most successful competitor in the LMP Green X Challenge, with 21 Green X Challenge awards under the HPD and Acura banners since the program, recognizing “clean, fast and efficient” performance, originated in 2006.

Honda Performance Development (HPD) is the Honda racing company

within North America. Located in Santa Clarita, Calif., HPD is the technical operations center for high-performance Honda racing cars and engines. The company is marking its 20th anniversary in 2013.

As an engine supplier to the IZOD IndyCar Series, Honda has scored 202 race victories in both CART and IZOD IndyCar Series competition since 1994.

HPD takes part in both the American Le Mans Series – where the company swept all manufacturer,

engine, team and driver awards in the 2012 ALMS LMP1 and LMP2 categories – and the FIA World Endurance Championship, winning the inaugural LMP2 World Championship in 2012 along with the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

HPD offers a variety of race engines for track applications from prototype sports cars to karting; and showcases “fun-to-drive” products for professional, amateur and entry-level racers.

Technology


Toyota on course to launch its first hydrogen fuel cell vehicle in 2015Having first unveiled its FCV-R concept at the 2011 Tokyo motor show, Toyota has continued to make progress towards its planned introduction of an affordable FCHV saloon model in Japan, the USA and Europe by 2015. Development of the production model has seen a focus on significant cost reduction, durability, reliability and improvements in well-to-wheel CO2 emissions.

The FCV-R concept is 4,745mm long – 35mm longer than an Avensis saloon – 1,510mm high and 1,790mm wide. Tested by Toyota (in line with official Japanese

JC08 criteria) it has achieved a maximum driving range of about 420 miles, producing no CO2, NOx or particulate matter emissions. The only by-product of the hydrogen fuel cell when driving is water vapour.

Creating a car that’s a practical proposition for today’s motorists has required particular attention to the design of the fuel cell and the hydrogen fuel tank. Toyota has succeeded in downsizing the fuel cell stack by achieving the highest fuel cell power density yet – 3.0kW per litre. A marked increase in the fuel cell stack’s energy efficiency has allowed for the size of the

vehicle’s fuel tank to be reduced, so that the latest design features two tanks rather than the four originally envisaged. This also allows different materials to be used, which has a positive impact on overall costs.

The twin fuel tanks and the fuel cell stack are located beneath the vehicle floor, which means there is no impact on the cabin and load space.

Toyota expects FCHVs to reach full mass-market commercialisation during the 2020s, by when it aims to be selling tens of thousands of vehicles annually. This market growth will be supported by the

wider roll-out of fuel cell vehicle technology; the development of hydrogen refuelling infrastructure that will bring filling stations within easy reach of greater numbers of people; and cost reductions that go hand-in-hand with a maturing technology.

Toyota’s fuel cell stack technology has consistently enjoyed performance leadership, the company having launched its R&D programme in 1992. Since then it has secured significant improvements in every aspect of FCHV operation. As mentioned above, the fuel cell to be used in Toyota’s production FCHV currently achieves the world’s

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highest power output density at 3kW per litre. Compared to the fuel stack Toyota deployed in its 2008 FCHV-adv model, the new unit has twice the power density while being half the weight and half the size.

The progress made in energy efficiency is also revealed in the vehicle’s range, which, according to Toyota test data (in line with the

official Japanese 10-15 test cycle), has improved from about 205 miles to more than 350 miles. At the same time, the fuel cell has a greater operating range, with the use of new materials in its construction making cold start possible at temperatures as low as -30°C.

Cost issues have also been tackled, with the current fuel cell

system, including the stack and high-pressure hydrogen tank, one-tenth the cost of that used in the FCHV-adv. Toyota aims ultimately to reduce this by a further 50 per cent. Currently a vehicle price tag of less than £70,000 is thought attainable, but Toyota is working to reduce costs even further before bringing its first model to market.

Audi A8 lights illuminate in a defined sequenceIn the new Audi A8, the turn signal light consists of lighting elements that illuminate in a defined sequence; this makes it easier for others to perceive the driver’s turning intentions, even under difficult conditions.

The turn signal lights will now indicate the turning direction in an innovative way, which has the potential to significantly enhance traffic safety. That is because the lights provide a visual signal that can be clearly and quickly perceived, even at long distances and in poor visibility.

Each of the enhanced headlights contains 18 light-emitting diodes arranged in a strip that is subdivided into seven blocks. Each tail light contains 24 LEDs in eight segments, which are used to dynamically indicate the turning direction. During

flashing, the blocks are sequentially activated at 20 millisecond intervals, from the inside outwards in the desired turning direction. After 150 milliseconds, all segments are bright; for another 250 milliseconds they illuminate with full intensity. Afterwards, the turn signals go dark before repeating the lighting sequence.

Considering their capabilities, the Audi Matrix LED headlights can be regarded as a cutting-edge innovation. In each headlight, 25 light-emitting diodes generate a highly variable high-beam light. When the on-board camera detects other vehicles ahead, the Audi Matrix LED headlights mask the relevant sections of the high-

beam by dimming or shutting off individual diodes. Very bright illumination is preserved in the remaining zones.

The Audi Matrix LED headlights also feature navigation-based cornering lights and, in cooperation with the night vision assistant, a marker light that warns the driver of pedestrians in the dark and which also alerts the pedestrians. Audi presented the upgraded A8 in September at the IAA International Motor Show in Frankfurt.

Technology


concept coupé and Drive-e powertrains from Volvo carsThe new Volvo Concept Coupé, which was revealed in Frankfurt motor show, showcases the capability of the company’s new Scalable Product Architecture – and the new, super-efficient four-cylinder Drive-E powertrains are now available in six Volvo models. Concept Coupé is the first in a series of three concept cars that demonstrate the new design direction of Volvo Cars. They are paving the way for the introduction of the all-new XC90 next year.

The first three engines from Volvo Cars’ new two-litre, four-cylinder Drive-E Powertrain family are launched during the autumn of 2013.

Initially, the new S60, V60 and XC60 are available with three engines from the new

engine family: the 306 hp petrol turbo T6, the 245 hp T5 and the turbo diesel D4 with 181 hp. The T5 and the D4 are also available in the

new Volvo V70, XC70 and S80. To deliver the desired responsive, smooth and fuel-efficient

drivability, the engines are teamed either with a new eight-speed automatic gearbox from Aisin or an enhanced six-speed manual, tuned for improved fuel economy.

“We are creating a new product portfolio that blends a strong

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heritage with innovative technology and emotional design. Every core area is brought into a new dimension, also injecting more emotion into the rational properties that are the heart and soul of Volvo,” said Lex Kerssemakers, Senior Vice President, Product Strategy and Vehicle Line Management at Volvo Car Group.

Concept Coupé and Drive-E powertrains introduce the new Volvo CarsVolvo Cars’ strategy is to use electrification to create the most powerful versions in the new four-cylinder Drive-E engine family, taking

power figures up into V8 territory. The concept car in Frankfurt was equipped with Volvo Cars’ ingenious plug-in hybrid technology. A high-performance petrol engine teamed with an electric motor on the rear axle gives Volvo Concept Coupé a total output of about 400 hp and over 600 Nm of torque.

“Our successful V60 Plug-in Hybrid has already proved that the most efficient car can be one of the most fun to drive, and the pleasure is guilt free. And today we can confirm that the new XC90 also will come a plug-in hybrid at the top of the range,” said Lex Kerssemakers.

World-first i-ART

The high-performance petrol engine T6 is fitted with a supercharger and turbocharger combined, while i-ART delivers seamless and frugal diesel performance. Developed together with Volvo strategic partner Denso, i-ART features pressure feedback from each fuel injector. This ensures that the ideal amount of fuel is injected in each of the cylinders during each combustion cycle.

“Our four-cylinder engines offer higher performance than today’s six-cylinder units and lower fuel consumption than our current, already efficient four-cylinders,” said Lex Kerssemakers.

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charlie the hamster at the wheel of a Volvo FMX truck

The film “The Hamster Stunt” has been a major success on Youtube and has been viewed more than 3.4 million times in just one week. It shows how the new Volvo FMX, equipped with Volvo Dynamic Steering, is steered by a hamster on rough, twisting tracks in a quarry.

Volvo Dynamic Steering is a new system from Volvo Trucks that allows the driver to steer a heavily laden truck without effort. At low speeds, an electric motor replaces the driver’s muscle power. The

system’s developers aimed to deliver perfect steering feel in all operating conditions.

“At low speeds, a heavily laden vehicle is so easy to manoeuvre that it can be steered with just one finger. When driving on the highway, this dynamic steering system offers unbeatable directional stability,” explains Jan-Inge Svensson, the engineer behind the development of the system’s software at Volvo Trucks.

Volvo Dynamic Steering

Volvo Dynamic Steering is based on a conventional mechanical steering system where a steering shaft links up to a steering gear. A hydraulic servo unit generates force that helps the driver turn the truck’s road wheels. In Volvo’s system an electronically controlled electric motor is added, which is attached to the steering shaft. This electric motor works together with the hydraulic power steering and is adjusted thousands of times per second by the electronic control

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unit. At low speeds, the electric motor adds extra force and at higher speeds, the electric motor automatically regulates the steering and compensates for irregularities that feed through to the steering wheel, caused for instance by side winds or bumps in the road surface.

The electronic control unit is the brain of the system and is continuously fed information by sensors in the truck. “There are sensors in a number of different locations and together they provide a comprehensive picture of what is happening to the truck. For instance, sensors on the wheels and the transmission’s output shaft measure the vehicle’s road speed, while another sensor identifies which gear is currently engaged,” relates Sten Ragnhult, who was responsible for developing the system’s hardware at Volvo Trucks.

Disruptions from unevenness in the road, for instance cracks and potholes, are damped. As a result the steering feels more stable since the driver does not have to keep compensating with the steering wheel.

On the highway, the precise control gives a feeling of increased directional stability, which in turn offers the driver a relaxed driving experience with full control at all speeds. The dynamic steering system eliminates virtually all minor steering wheel adjustments that are otherwise so much a part of highway driving.

The system can compensate for road camber or a side wind, allowing the driver to steer straight ahead without having to “counter-steer” with the steering wheel, a major benefit that contributes to both safer and more comfortable driving. The Volvo FM and Volvo FH can also

be equipped with Volvo Dynamic Steering.

THE HamsTEr sTunTIn the film “The Hamster Stunt” the technology is put to the test by allowing Charlie the hamster to steer a truck. A specially designed hamster treadmill is attached to the steering wheel and Charlie runs in his wheel, changing directions to get at his prize – a carrot. The tiny animal’s mere body weight is sufficient to steer the truck. The accelerator and brakes were operated by experienced stunt driver Seon Rogers.

“We had to go slow and steady and make sure that Charlie ran in the right direction,” says Seon Rogers.

Charlie was chosen in a careful casting procedure.

“Just like people, animals have different personalities. So we knew we had to interview a lot of different hamsters. By putting them through various trials, handling them and getting to know them we soon discovered which hamster would be the best for the job,” explains animal trainer Grace Dickinson, who took care of Charlie on set in Spain.

Charlie, who at the time of the shoot was a mature six months, trained for just over four weeks ahead of the event. He spent time running in the specially-built hamster treadmill, and he also

learned to concentrate in a noisy, unfamiliar environment.

“Charlie’s our star! He demonstrated that he has the best strength, confidence and attitude to learning new ideas. And he’s very food-oriented so he’s willing to follow the target, which is a carrot,” says Grace Dickinson.

However, although all the prerequisites for success were in place, it was by no means certain that everything would work out as planned. Hamsters are often unpredictable and nervous.

“It was a big challenge. The driver had to hold the carrot in just the right way so he could lead the hamster. If he held it too high or too low Charlie would lose interest,” explains Grace Dickinson.

During the film shoot Charlie was treated like the star he is. Together with his trainer he had his own “trailer” in a tent on site. Everyone involved in the film was made fully aware that Charlie, who loves a lie-in in the mornings, should have plenty of time to wake up gently and prepare for his role.

Technology


Bosch develops motorcycle stability control

Bosch has developed motorcycle stability control (MSC), the first brake control system for motorcycles to ensure the best possible stability in all riding situations. It supports the biker during both braking and accelerating, and while riding straight as well as while cornering. The motorcycle’s handling – and thus all the pleasure of riding – remains unchanged. The system will already be available at the end of 2013 with

the KTM 1190 Adventure and 1190 Adventure R 2014 models.

“Almost one in two fatal motorcycle accidents occurs in a bend,” says Gerhard Steiger, president of the Bosch Chassis Systems Control division. “The Bosch MSC motorcycle stability control can help further reduce the number of accidents.” In 2010, more than 5,000 motorcyclists died in road accidents in Europe alone. Studies show that

ABS on its own can prevent around one-quarter of all motorcycle accidents that lead to injury or death. The new stability control will increase this number even further.

Improved safety – also in bends“The technical basis of the MSC

is the ABS enhanced system for motorcycles,” says Fevzi Yildirim, head of the Bosch centre of competence for powered two-wheeler safety in Japan. “The new

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functions are made possible by an extensive array of sensors and sophisticated software.” This system offers motorcycle manufacturers and their demanding customers a whole range of safety functions:

The lean and pitch angle-dependent ABS control improves riding stability in all riding situations as well as braking effectiveness. The traction control regulates the maximum engine torque so that even on variable or slippery road surfaces, the driving force is efficiently transferred to the road and the drive wheel does not lose its grip.

When braking heavily in curves, the MSC reduces the motorcycle’s tendency to return to an upright position. This involuntary righting of the machine leads to a larger cornering radius, which often results in the motorcycle leaving its lane. In these situations, the eCBS electronic combined brake system creates the best possible distribution of brake force between the wheels, and thus stabilizes the bike during cornering.

The MSC also reduces the risk of “lowsiders.” These are accidents in which the motorcycle capsizes during cornering and the wheels slide out toward the outside of the bend. They occur when too much brake force is applied during cornering and the wheels are not able to transfer sufficient side force onto the road. MSC counteracts this by detecting the risk of a lowsider and limiting the maximum brake force. The eCBS function distributes this maximum available brake force between the wheels, ensuring the best possible brake performance under cornering conditions.

The eCBS function ensures optimum distribution of brake force at all times – even when the biker

mistakenly uses only one of the two brakes, or brakes with too much force.

The wheelie-mitigation controls the engine torque, preventing the front wheel from lifting uncontrollably and at the same time ensuring maximum acceleration.

The rear-wheel lift-up mitigation function keeps the rear wheel on the road by reducing the maximum brake force on the front wheel when riding on surfaces with high friction coefficients. Riding stability is maintained, taking pitch rate and longitudinal acceleration into account.

Electronic systems identify the limits of driving dynamics

The motorcycle stability control uses an extensive array of sensors to register the driving dynamics of the machine. Wheel sensors measure the rotational speed of the front and rear wheels, and an inertia sensor module computes the vehicle’s lean and pitch angles more than 100 times per second. By analyzing the sensor data, the difference in speed

between front and rear wheels, as well as other motorcycle-specific parameters such as tire size, tire shape, and sensor location, the ABS control unit calculates the physical limits of brake force on the basis of lean angle. If the motorcycle stability control recognises that a wheel is starting to lock, the ABS control unit activates the pressure modulator in the hydraulic brake circuit. This lowers the brake pressure and builds it up again within a fraction of a second, with the result that exactly as much brake pressure is applied as is necessary to keep each wheel from locking.

For motorcyclists, the Bosch MSC can be a lifesaver. However, just like ABS, it cannot suspend the laws of physics. In particular, extreme misjudgment of the riding situation and major errors on the part of the biker can still lead to an accident. Nonetheless, the system supports bikers in borderline situations, helping them get more out of their motorcycles, while keeping them much safer at the same time.


Industry overvIew

Based on SIAM figures

Company %Maruti Suzuki 39.37

Hyundai Motor 27.57

Nissan Motor 6.86

Tata Motors 5.04

Honda Cars 4.92

Toyota Kirloskar 4.65

Volkswagen 4.42

Ford 2.57

General Motors 2.36

OTHerS 2.24

Skoda Auto (0.71%)

Fiat India Automobiles (0.54%)

Mahindra & Mahindra (0.50%)

renault India (0.40%)

Hindustan Motors (0.09%)

passenger VehiCle manufaCturers in india (total domestic sales + exports - August 2013)

1,89,638 units

Company %Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. 29.41

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. 20.99

Tata Motors Ltd. 15.66

Toyota Kirloskar Motor Pvt. Ltd. 10.61

Ford India Pvt Ltd. 10.26

renault India Pvt. Ltd 8.32

General Motors India Pvt. Ltd 3.65

OTHerS 1.10

Force Motors Ltd (0.44%)

Hindustan Motors (0.29%)

Honda Cars India Ltd. (0.25%)

Skoda Auto India Pvt. Ltd (0.05%)

Hyundai Motor India Ltd. (0.05%)

Nissan Motor India Pvt. Ltd. (0.02%)

utility VehiCle manufaCturers in india (total domestic sales + exports - August 2013)

60,318 units


Industry overvIew


Company %Hero MotoCorp 34.68

Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India 23.29

Bajaj Auto 21.01

TVS Motor Company 11.19

India Yamaha Motor 4.60

OTHerS 2.73

Mahindra Two Wheelers (1.33%)

Royal Enfield (1.21%)

Piaggio Vehicles Pvt.Ltd. (0.18%)

H-D Motor Company India (0.01%)

Suzuki Motorcycle India 2.50

two wheeler manufaCturers in india (total domestic sales + exports - August 2013)

13,26,243 units

Company %Bajaj Auto 50.05

Piaggio Vehicles 24.80

TVS Motor 10.52

Mahindra & Mahindra 8.23

Atul Auto 4.77

Scooters India 1.44

Force Motors 0.19

three wheelers in india (total domestic sales + exports - August 2013)

67,141 units


Company %Tata Motors 52.46

Mahindra & Mahindra 32.50

Ashok Leyland 5.42

Force Motors 3.93

VeCVs - eicher 2.57

Piaggio Vehicles 1.51

SML Isuzu 0.79

Mahindra Trucks & Buses 0.73

Hindustan Motors 0.09

light CommerCial VehiCle manufaCturers in india (total domestic sales + exports - August 2013)

40,617 units

Company %Tata Motors Ltd. 53.36

Ashok Leyland Ltd. 28.35

VeCVs - eicher 12.40

SML Isuzu Ltd. 2.72

Asia Motor Works Ltd. 1.76

Mahindra Trucks & Buses Ltd. 1.01

VeCVs - Volvo 0.39

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. 0.01

medium & heaVy CommerCial VehiCle manufaCturers in india (total domestic sales + exports - August 2013)

17,422 units


Industry overvIew

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