Team CVF spoke with Commercial Vehicle Industry stalwart, Mr. Shyam Maller (EVP – Sales, marketing and aftermarket, LMD, Trucks and buses at VECV), on the following key trends shaping the Indian Commercial Vehicle Market and VECV’s place in:

1. Change in industry landscape post GST

Shyam: The government’s progressive economic policies like GST have augured well for the industry. The initial hiccups, apprehensions and effects of GST have now significantly diminished. All stakeholders are coming to terms with the new ways of doing business. That said, the CV industry has come out of the aftermath of the disruptions created by demonetisation as well as BSIV transition too. We are seeing good growth in the TIV since September ’17. Fleet owners have returned to the market to purchase new vehicles. Truck utilization is already on the rise, which has given an impetus to the demand for medium and heavy commercial vehicles. We have already seen that vehicle turnaround time has reduced with the removal of state border check posts and octroi barriers. Electronic toll collection through the FASTag program has also enabled fleet operators to improve turnaround times. There is a huge growth in Tractors and multi axle segments, while tippers are catching up.

Post GST implementation, several companies across industry sectors are rationalising and rejigging their warehouse locations. Essentially, they are doing away with state warehouses and creating infrastructure/distribution hubs that serve 3-4 contiguous states. This has accelerated the hub-and-spoke system and we are witnessing increased deployment of tractors and multi axles vehicles. Also, we are seeing the emergence of more organised players, logistics companies as well as e-commerce companies that are foraying into offering logistics services to manufacturing companies for their inbound and outbound supply chain requirements.

 2. Push for Sustainable Transport & Electric Vehicles

Shyam: Clean and Safe Mobility is one of the key focus areas of the government which is committed to drawing up a long-term roadmap that will harmonise our emission standards (beyond BS VI) with the global benchmarks by 2028. Ambitious as it may sound, there is frenetic activity in the form of seminars, discussions and a draft policy is in the making around sustainable, non-fossil fuel based technologies. Hybrid, Full electric, Fuel Cell, Hydrogen, LNG to name a few are being bandied around. At present there is a lot of fog around what will emerge. Clarity is awaited on the infrastructure investments that need to be made by the government as well as the cost of power.

A few pilot projects are already being run in some cities for Electric cars in the aggregator segment. EESL (Energy Efficiency Services Ltd) – an energy services company set up by the Government of India has already awarded contracts to leading car OEM’s for nearly 10,000 EV’s to replace ( over the next 3-4 years) the petrol and diesel cars used by government agencies. The Indian intra city bus market is already seeing action with over 10 City based transport undertakings and Smart Cities floating tenders to avail the subsidy given by the Central Government under The Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid &) Electric Vehicles in India (FAME India Scheme). OEMs too are doing their bit in investing in technology and homologating electric buses. The country is at the cusp of a new revolution in transportation, and it is VECV’s endeavour to provide India with the best mobility solutions.

 3. Connected Commercial Vehicles

Shyam: The availability of faster communication networks, simple interface, advanced telematics solutions, and growing infrastructure will drive the market for connected vehicles market. In the near future, Asian countries like India and China should be prominent automobile markets for connected vehicles. Connectivity will be a boon for commercial vehicles. The progressive segment of fleet operators as well as logistics companies are already keen in having telematics in their trucks and are clear that this will be the differentiator for them as they bid transportation contracts with their clients. Drivers around the world are getting used to the expanding measure of advanced innovation in their vehicles. Latest advancements permit vehicles to have gushing music, continuous activity data about the blocked roads, traffic information, GPS and location tracking, predictive maintenance alerts, customized roadside help during the breakdown etc.

Eicher is leading the telematics wave in India. Eicher Live is an advanced fleet management system that allows the management of truck fleets by monitoring their movement, fuel consumption and maintenance needs. Nearly 2,000 plus trucks are already experiencing the benefits of the Eicher Live. It offers granular views, at the level of a driver, a vehicle and a time span. The smart and intuitive fuel coaching system provides real time guidance to the driver to drive in the highest fuel economy zone. The system throws up fault indicators to the driver in the form of visual signals, messages and alarms. Together with the fully equipped Eicher service network, this ensures preventive and corrective maintenance of the truck, thus delivering superior uptime.

The adoption of Telematics in the Passenger Bus segment is relatively slower. The lead of course has been taken by the Public bus transportation segment- particularly in the intra city bus services that make extensive use of ITES. The next segment that will be able to leverage the power of connected -ness is the school bus segment where all the key stakeholders like the parents, school and the fleet operator will be able to track their child/bus on a real-time basis.

 4. Stricter Emission Norms

Shyam: Over the years, India has embraced new technology in all spheres and particularly in the automotive segment where it has played catch up with developed countries in the areas of safety features, technology and emission standards. Attention towards safety and environmental concerns, regulations and policies such as FAME scheme and switch to BS IV norms has enabled India as a hub for cleaner vehicles. Leapfrogging from BS IV to BS VI is indeed a bold and calculated move by the government which is committed to the Paris Climate accord on reducing greenhouse gas emissions starting 2020. We at VECV, with the technology backing of the Volvo Group are committed to bringing in BSVI vehicles well in time. In fact, at VE Power Train we have already been manufacturing and exporting Euro VI compliant engines to Europe. Over 75,000 Euro VI engines have already been exported over the last 3 years.

5. Stricter Safety Norms

Shyam: Safety is one of the Core Values that we are passionate about at VECV. All our products undergo extremely rigorous quality and endurance testing programs. Not only are our products compliant with the safety regulations stipulated by the government, we go a step further in making our vehicles- whether they be Trucks or Buses – extra safe, comfortable and ergonomic for the driver as well as the passengers. Our dual panel cabins have been crash tested as per stringent norms (AIS 029 for Pro Series) to ensure complete driver safety. Further, the ergonomic design of our cabins are accompanied by 6 point adjustable seats with 3 point ELR seatbelts.

When it comes to Buses, VECV pioneered India’s first Safe School Bus in 1996 in association with IRTE (Institute of Road Traffic and Education). So much so that over the years Eicher School Buses have become the benchmark for safety. We were also the first player to have seat belts for every child in the school buses besides a host of 40 odd features to enhance comfortable and safe ride for the school going kids.

6. Disruption by start-ups in the logistics space and demand from e-commerce industry.

Shyam: The e-commerce market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 44.77 percent from 2016-20 to touch US$ 63.7 billion by 2020. Growth in e-commerce will lead to demand for logistics support. The contribution of e-commerce related logistics to the performance of the CV industry is significant and we see these companies pitching in for a share in the supply chain pie which is currently dominated by the traditional logistics companies, family owned large transporters.

Specialized needs in logistics is expected to accentuate the growth of application vehicles like Reefers, segment specific customised trucks, for e.g. Pharma, Frozen products. The Food processing industry with its forward and backward integration is a sector that looks promising.

7. What excites you to be a part of upcoming Commercial Vehicle Forum 2018 (taking place on 26 April 2018 at The Westin – Pune)?

Shyam: I have been a part of the last 2 editions of the CVF. Firstly, the event identifies the theme and topics for the panel discussions and deliberations around key issues, challenges facing the CV industry and those looming large (forward-looking). It gets together the best of the minds from the CV industry and the associated stakeholders for a meaningful exchange of views and ideas. Second, it is a great forum to meet up, network, and take notes and learnings from the success stories of the participants. There is so much disruption happening in the Auto Industry and I envisage the stakeholder boundaries to expand to have domain experts (in the coming editions of CVF) from AI, Mobile and aerospace contributing to the auto industry that is on the brink of seeing autonomous vehicles, drones and so on.