Mr. Dimitrov Krishnan vice-president and head Volvo CE India
“At Volvo CE, we are proud to be driving advances in the technology of existing road building machines, like pavers with sensors. Over in western India, a Volvo P4370B paver helped contractor Deshmukh & Co. finish a 130 km road from Aurangabad to Dhule, in just four months.We are widely regarded as one of the leading innovators in the field of construction equipment”
Tell us something about manufacturing facilities, product range and technical efficiency at its command to incorporate latest developments into its product range on a continuous basis to stay ahead in the business?
As one of the world’s largest construction equipment manufacturers, we have 13 factories worldwide, including our facility here in Bangalore. Our full product range includes: excavators, wheel loaders, pavers, compactors, Artics & Rigid haulers.
Our presence in India dates back over 20 years, with our first office opening in 1997 employing a team of just three people. Since then we have grown to be the largest global construction equipment brand in this country. Today Volvo CE employs a team of hundreds and operates a world-class manufacturing plant in Bangalore. We also have one of the most experienced and wide-reaching network of distribution partners.
The most popular product in India from the Volvo CE line are our excavators and wheel loaders for earthmoving and material handling respectively. In road building, our compactors and pavers enjoy widespread use among contractors. Several products that are popular here are built at our Bangalore factory and we are proud to support the government’s ‘Make in India’ initiative.
At Volvo CE, we are proud to be driving advances in the technology of existing road building machines, like pavers with sensors. Over in western India, a Volvo P4370B paver helped contractor Deshmukh & Co. finish a 130 km road from Aurangabad to Dhule, in just four months.We are widely regarded as one of the leading innovators in the field of construction equipment.
What more you expecting from the government for the growth of the Industry?
At Volvo Construction Equipment, we are see growing demand for bigger classes of earthmoving equipment across the world. In India, the demand for construction and earthmoving equipment on the whole is growing. For all Volvo Construction Equipment products, we expect strong growth at close to 40-50% level.
We believe the industry has enough momentum to continue growth for the next three to four years. The election years typically slows decision making in the government, thus, we are expecting slightly reduced demand. We do believe, however, that the growth cycle that started in India is irreversible. There will be continued growth and we expect the new government to commit to growth.
Any potential challenge could come from global developments; for example, a spike in oil prices, which could impact economic growth in India.
Where do you see the bulk of your business coming from?
For Volvo CE, in India we are seeing most activity in the road building sector with numerous projects progressing. Understandably we are seeing the highest levels of demand for excavators, compactors and pavers for this application and its associated industries.
Road construction has been the key demand driver for CE market in India in 2017 & 2018. We see this trend continuing in the future as well. Most of the projects are national highway construction and need highly productive products to speed up the construction activity. Our products like Pavers P6820C, P7820B, Soil compactor SD110, Excavators EC200D, Ec210D, EC300D, etc. are all suitable for highway construction. We have recently launched the DD100B during BaumaConexpo India in December 2018. This new compactor will definitely help contractors achieve high level of quality and productivity.
The government continues to place priority on building roads and bridges—allocating budget to build 35,000 km of road under phase one of the Bharatmala project, along with allocations for urban rail and airport expansion projects. The drive to improve infrastructure will unquestionably facilitate further growth in the economy and the construction equipment industry. As a company, Volvo Construction Equipment (Volvo CE) has deep roots in India and an established sales and support network. We are well-positioned to play our own part in the India’s development and are excited to do so.
What are the business opportunities you see for yourself in the industry in coming times?
Volvo CE is the only major manufacturer with a leading presence in the three major construction equipment sectors in India: general construction, mining and road building. Part of the reason we enjoy this exclusive position is because our equipment not only withstands the extreme Indian climate but its performance in these conditions exceeds that of other equipment. While we try and drive innovation and new technology, we never lose sight of what the customer care about most – uptime. As a manufacturer we are 100% focussed on increasing ROI for our customers and that means faster cycle times and longer periods between maintenance or stoppages.