Auto Monitor - 16-31 August 2011

I N D I A ’ S N O . 1 M A G A Z I N E F O R A U T O M O T I V E N E W S , V I E W S & A N A LY S I S

Auto Monitor Vol. 11 No. 15

w w w.amonl ine.in

16-31 August 2011

INTERVIEW PRICE HAS BEEN AN P IIMPORTANT FACTOR F Frank Ryan, VP, Sales and Marketing, Top1 Oil Products Company T

ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONICS SPECIAL Pg 08

Pg 15-33

120% 100% 80%

6% 33%

9%

36%

45%

60% 40%

67%

58%

46%

20%

` 50

AUTONOMICS DIESEL CAR SALES TO MORE THAN DOUBLE BY 2015-16

0% 2005-06

2010-11 Petrol

Diesel

Pg 14

2015-16 CNG

IPCL expands capacity, forays into aerospace

NEWS IN BRIEF Munjals unveil new brand identity

H

ero Honda (now Hero MotoCor p), w h ich recently unveiled its new corporate identity and logo in London, is planning to set up two new manufacturing plants in south and west India. The com-

pany, which introduced two new products (110 cc-Maestro and 150 cc-Impulse) under its new brand, said it will soon tie up with a European fi rm for technology support for its future product platforms. It has identified 30 countries for exports.

HM launches SCV ‘Veer’ at `3.3 lakh

H

industan Motors (HM) launched Veer, a 0.8tonne Small Commercial Vehicle (SCV)at a recent company AGM. The SCV is priced at `3.3 lakh (ex-showroom Kolkata) and is built on the ‘Ambassador’ platform. The vehicle is available in both diesel (BS III) and CNG (BS IV) versions, in two models—Veer and Veer LX.

Abhishek Parekh Mumbai

I

nvestment & Precision Castings (IPCL), a Bhavnagarbased investment castings major, is in the process of completing its capacity expansion process even as demand from automotive sector is beginning to get more ‘manageable’. The company has developed a vacuum castings process in order to make a major foray in the aerospace segment.

“Developi ng l ig ht weig ht components is a bigger concern in the aerospace as compared to automotive and hence there is a limited scope for investment castings-based components in that segment. However, the gestation period in aerospace is long and thus, it will be a while before we can observe a major off-take in vacuum castings,” said Chairman, Investment & Precision Castings, PA Subramanian. He added that the company is hoping to evolve as a long term supplier to the aerospace segment as the segment demands high value

D Domestic Sales Sector

Jun-10

Jun-11

Change

PV

181,464

189,000

4.15%

CV

52,627

62,009

17.83%

3W

38,868

40,550

4.33%

2W

934,975

1,071,425

14.59%

TOTAL

1,207,934

1,362,984

12.84%

Sector

Jun-10

Jun-11

Change

PV

37,432

44,892

19.93%

Exports

CV

5,419

6,962

28.47%

3W

20,426

32,565

59.43%

2W

139,077

169,446

21.84%

TOTAL

202,354

253,865

25.46%

precision components and this implies that the competition in the segment would be limited.

The demand from automotive sector is looking uncertain as vehicle sales have remained fl at for these past few months.

It may take a while to revive the sales of the cars and commercial vehicles. Also, the company is making an effort to tap the potential for exports and may not be affected significantly by the downturn in the domestic market, he elaborated.

The company is in the process of expanding its capacity by around 15 to 20 percent in this fi scal to cater to its key customers like Maruti Suzuki and Bajaj Auto. “We were unable to cater to the growing demand from overseas customers in Europe, as the domestic demand in the last fi scal was very high. We are hoping to cater to domestic and overseas customers even as we expand our capacity,” added Subramanian.

He added that the demand from the company’s biggest customer Maruti has been high and the company is evaluating various logistical and other solutions to

PA Subramanian, Chairman, Investment & Precision Castings

meet the demand in most cost effective manner.

IPCL is one of the leading manufacturers and suppliers of investment castings in India. It was set up by Bhavnagar’s Tamboli family in 1975 under technical collaboration with the US-based Arwood International. In 1983, the company entered into a technical collaboration with Germany’s Furstlich Hohenzollernsche Huttenverwaltung (now known as Zollern Group). Two years later, it signed another agreement with Japan’s Associated

Foundries Engineering for producing large piece weight investment castings.

The company is currently the leading supplier of investment castings to automotive, engineering and making a concerted bid to enter the aerospace segment. It manufactures a wide range of investment castings including complex investment castings in a wide range of material specifications and piece weight up to 150 kg. The company has also acquired additional technologies enabling it to produce its own ceramic cores and ceramic moulds.

Its Bhavnagar facility is a highly automated manufacturing line with dedicated production lines for customers and its current capacity is around 1,500 metric tonnes per annum. The anticipated growth in the automotive segment may imply that the company will continue to derive majority of its revenues from the automotive sector. The company’s consolidated revenues for year ending March 2011 stood at `68.25 crore and its net profit stood at `3.18 crore.

DCM increases capacity to match demand Nabeel A Khan New Delhi

* Source: SIAM/ ** all sub segments considered

64 Pages

Top gear: Share of diesel cars to increase faster over the next five years

CM Engineering, a grey iron castings manufacturer for engines, is expanding its capacity at Ropar plant to produce additional 75,000 tonnes at an investment of around `250 crore. Currently, the company is utilising over 90 percent of its existing capacity.

The current capacity of the plant is about 65,000 tonnes and it has produced around 58,000 tonnes in the fiscal ending March 2011.

The company is on the verge of getting the requisite approval from various government departments/ authorities including the Ministry of Environment and hopes to get all the clearances soon. The company states that its growth will be restricted by around 15 percent due to the capacity constraints this fi scal year. However, it hopes to grow by around 30 percent annually, once its additional capacity is available.

“It will take around 18 months to get the foundry started and then possibly, it will take a couple of years to break even at least. It is a very high investment and slow return business, so obviously the efficiency of the existing foundry is critical,” Managing Director, DCM Engineering, JK Menon told Auto Monitor. The construction of the new plant will start around October this year and the plant will start commercial production in January 2013.

In FY11, the company registered a growth of 30 percent to touch `410 crore against the previous year. DCM was initially planning to set up its plant in Chennai. However, during recession, it put all its plans on hold.

When it saw signs of recovery, the company resumed a fresh study and realised that Chennai is a market where it should eventually go. However, since the customers in the north and the west had suddenly increased capacity, it decided to fi rst expand in Ropar, near Chandigarh within

JK Menon, Managing Director, DCM Engineering

its existing facility by 2008-09.

Consecutively, the company has a 40-acre industrial plot in Chennai where it will start construction after completing its expansion in Ropar.

Menon, explaining the reason for deferring the expansion in Chennai, which is the hub for a commercial vehicle manufacturer, said, “For us, the biggest volume of orders in CV segment can come from Ashok Leyland and fortunately now, Ashok

Leyland has put up a plant in Pantnagar (Uttrakhand). This plant is expected to have production on a large scale and will require at least 50,000 tonnes of casting, and the most convenient way for them would be to look for a supplier from this region rather than sourcing from their vendor in the south.”

Currently, it is installing two new fully automated settling machines at an investment of `four crore that will increase the quality of the casting apart from increasing the volume. At present, DCM is primarily in to making grey iron castings. It is adopting a new technology—‘Compacted Graphite Iron’ for future requirements.

While talking about the profit margin crisis, Menon said, “Being a foundry, the rise in the cost of fuel and transportation impacts us and the only way to be profitable is to introduce a cost cutting measure.

Last year, we could not take up this initiative, however, we are now focusing on reducing the wastage of material inside the plant.”

CONTENTS CORPORATE Formula One to propel Mercedes-Benz equation

06

Mercedes-Benz India is planning a shift in its strategy in order to emphasis upon performancebased products so as to enhance its image as a safety and luxury provider

06 GLOBAL WATCH GM posts $2.5 bn profit

52

GM posted a global profit of $2.5 billion for the second quarter, helped by strong results in North America and a profit at its Opel/Vauxhall unit in Europe

Daimler China to combine sales and marketing

53

Daimler will integrate sales and marketing operations of Mercedes-Benz vehicles imported into China and those built by its JV with Beijing Automotive Industry Holding

Magneti Marelli kicks off pico eco injectors in Brazil

57

Magneti Marelli kicked off a new production line in Hortolandia plant, in Sao Paulo’s countryside, in order to double its pico eco injectors’ production capacity

GM plans new Cadillac range for 2012

61

GM plans to roll out two new Cadillacs next year: the long-aw aited full-size XTS and a small car code named the ATS

Increased adoption of model-based designs

17

The growing need for collaborative development globally in the automotive industry on systems and products is leading to greater adoption of model-based design

Napino mapping new opportunities

62

THE OTHER SIDE

18

Napino Auto & Electronics’ fourth facility will be operational in a couple of months and boost the company as a full-fledged solutions provider in the auto electrical space

Hella India Electronics plans to localise products

20

Hella India Electronics is planning to offer an entire range of electronic products in India and invest around Euro five million to support its new initiatives

Lucas-TVS to offer electrical solutions to mechanical components

22

Lucas-TVS is looking at leveraging its inherent capabilities in developing motors and other auto electrical parts and offer solutions in both the segments

SAE develops standards for wireless charging

24

The draft of the standards for ‘Wireless charging of plug-in hybrid vehicles’ being developed by the SAE International, will be ready by the first quarter of the next calendar

Exa Thermometrics to supply diesel fuel sensors for Nano

33

Exa Thermometrics has bagged order to supply 70,000 diesel fuel intake sensors every month for Tata Nano’s diesel version

Jean de Montlaur is responsible for directing all facets of FederalMogul’s business in India, including manufacturing and business operations

of the fortnight

Nissan unveils Sunny

Kiminobu Tokuyama, MD & CEO, Nissan Motor India unveiling the Nissan Sunny

Nissan India recently unveiled its mid-size offering ‘Sunny’ (‘Shani’-the sun god) to debut around early October this year. It is also working on a compact car to be priced below its existing ‘Micra’ and will be launching a Multi Purpose Vehicle (MPV) by next year to compete in the segment currently dominated by Toyota’s Innova. Nissan is planning to start production of the Sunny, based on the V platform, by the end of August.

“We have aggressive plans for exports of the compact cars as well as ‘Sunny’ but we are currently evaluating the market scenario before we increase our production further to around 400,000 units to cater to domestic and export markets,” said Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Nissan Motor India, Kiminobu Tokuyama. He added that ‘Sunny’ would be offered in a 1.5 litre petrol engine option in the C segment. Nissan has already sold around 16 million units globally since Sunny’s debut in 1966 and is currently offering the 10th generation of the sedan.

Nissan Motor India’s dealership network is likely to touch around 52 odd by the end of this year or early next year as it gears up to offer two to three additional models in the Indian market by next year.

Auto Monitor

IMAGE

Jean de Montlaur, VP & MD, Federal-Mogul Corporation

6

Auto Monitor

Formula One to propel Mercedes-Benz equation Shambhavi Anand New Delhi

M

ercedes-Benz India is planning a shift in its strategy in order to emphasis upon performancebased products so as to enhance its image as a safety and luxury provider. The German car maker plans to showcase more from its Formula One portfolio in the Indian market.

“We are the only manufacturer in the Formula One space in India apart from Ferrari. Our portfolio in this segment is extremely rich.

So we would be showcasing more on the racing side in the times to come,” Managing Director and CEO, Mercedes-Benz India, Peter Honneg said.

The company believes that a large portion of its customers’ profi les constitutes of young people who are interested in racing and performance-based products.

Hence, the company wants to boost its racing portfolio. It plans to ‘show more of what it has’.

Stressing upon the sign i f ica nce of showcasi ng performance, Honneg said that the AMG range has helped the company in creating a different impression even with the same products. “We might have SLS AMG, C63 AMG and more in our showroom across the country,” he added.

Going a step further in this direction, Mercedes-Benz India might hire racing tracks during off-season and conduct test drives for customers in order to make them experience the high

16 - 31 August 2011

CORPORATE

(L-R) Peter T Honegg, MD & CEO, Mercedes-Benz India; Rajiv Vij, MD, Carzonrent; Debashis Mitra, Director, Sales & Marketing, Mercedes-Benz India

performance that its cars can provide across the country.

Talking about the Indian market, Honneg said, “Sometime ago, almost 70 percent of our sales were coming from the metros and larger cities, they now contribute only 50 percent. We are witnessing a major growth from the Tier II and III cities across the country.”

The company plans to put up dealerships in every city that already has 50 units of Mercedes.

“While 50 is too little to survive and too much to die, it exhibits the potential that the particular city holds,” Honneg said.

Ninety Units Sold Mercedes-Benz has sold 90 customised C Class vehicles to mobility solution provider, Carzonrent. The company claims that this is the largest value single party transaction made by it in India.

With this transaction, the car rental company becomes

the country’s largest owner of Mercedes vehicles in the country with a fleet of 160 vehicles.

However, the company did not disclose the value of the deal.

“The luxury car market segment is growing rapidly. We earn 25 percent of our total revenue from this segment. We have partnered with large corporates, financial services, airlines and hotels, keeping in mind the potential that it offers,” Managing Director, Carzonrent, Rajiv Vij said. Emphasising on the positive impact that such a deal might have on Mercedes, Honneg said, “The Western and the Middle Eastern market have a huge number of Mercedes cars as taxis. In Singapore also, the numbers in the fleet have increased. The only impact that a similar move had on our sales was that a fewer number of people bought white cars, as taxis in Singapore are white.” He stressed that the usage by fleet owners only proves that the cars are extremely reliable.

Audi launches A6

G

erman luxury car manufacturer Audi launched a new variant of its executive class sedan Audi A6 in the price range of `37.7 lakh to `47 lakh.

The vehicle is available in petrol as well as diesel version.

“The launch of the new Audi A6 is in line with our top down strategy for India,” Head Audi India, Michael Perschke said. He claimed that with its wide array of technical innovations like lightweight technology, adaptive air suspension, LED headlamps, Audi drive select and start-stop system with energy recovery to name just a few, will set new standards in fuel

efficiency in the luxury segment.

The company plans to open 13 dealerships across the coun-

try. By 2011, it will have 18 dealers pan India, in markets like Coimbatore, Indore and Lucknow among others. It is also on an intensive recruitment drive and aims to hire around 600 employees over the next two years.

Aria 4X2 launched

T

ata Motors recent ly launched the Tata Aria 4x2, an extension to its existing Aria 4X4. Like its elder sibling, the new latest utility vehicle will also be available in three variants. The Aria Prestige at the top end, the Aria Pleasure and the base level Aria Pure variant priced at `14.26 lakh, `12.61 lakh and `11.61 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi) respectively. The vehicle will be made available in 85 cities through 150 showrooms in phase 1.

Speaking on the occasion MD, India Operations, Tata Motors, PM Telang, said, “As the fi rst Indian 4x4 crossover, the Tata Aria has broken a new path for Tata Motors. With the introduc-

tion of the Aria 4x2, we make the range comprehensive.”

The Aria is equipped with disc brakes on all four wheels resulting in superior braking

effectiveness and better control.

The Antilock Braking System (ABS) with Electronic Breakforce Distribution (EBD) aids steerability and control in emergency braking situations and on slippery surfaces.

8

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 August 2011

INTERVIEW

“Price has been an important factor”

US-based Top1 Oil Products Company has recently made inroads into the Indian lubricant market that is estimated to be worth nearly `25, 000 crore with close to eight percent coming from high quality synthetic and semi-synthetic products. The lubricant maker will market its high-end automobile and synthetic products in India matching its global price points, which could be a slightly higher than its competitors. The Indian market is generally perceived to be highly price sensitive, but the company is not much perturbed by this, as it claims that across the last 30 years, although all the new markets it has forayed into were price sensitive, it has continued to achieve success. Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Frank Ryan, however, insists that his firm has no plans to enter the low-cost lubricants segment.

Nabeel A Khan What are your expectations from the Indian market?

This is for the fi rst time we have launched our premium range of lubricants here and we are very optimistic about it. We have tied-up with Lucas Indian Service (LIS), as marketing partner that has a strong distribution network covering a wide range of automotive spare parts, which is very relevant for our products as well. We are known for producing lubricants for the niche market segment and new generation vehicles. We hope our high quality and innovative products will soon become popular in the Indian automobile market, which is one of the world’s fastest growing markets.

What kind of marketing deal do you have with your partner and do you think the pricing will not affect the business?

The marketing will be a collaborative effort in India. However most of the marketing expenditure will be taken care of by Top1 and those will be mostly below the line activities. We feel that this time, it is all about deeper penetration in the market. We are working on

the investment plans for marketing. Yes, sometimes price remains a factor. To be honest, in the last 30 years, we have heard this concern from every market that we have entered. Every market is quite sensitive when comes to the price and there are many different strategies to combat that. What we do, is that we put technology into a package and then communicate about how the technology relates to the value to the end consumer and that spells out into our business success. We see tremendous potential in the Indian lubricant market.

Do you think that you have entered India late or was it a strategic decision?

Of course we have to think and plan before taking a new step.

India was always a market where we were willing to enter and after examining the situation here, we decided to take a plunge and I think the choice of time was absolutely right. We have been working here for a number of years, looking at the market and analysing it. After weighing the potential here, we found that with the proliferation of the synthetic and semi-synthetic lubricants, the Indian market was ready to provide a huge opportunity.

Though it is a very small percentage, it is going to grow like many other markets in the world.

We are looking to position ourselves as ‘high value product at a very competitive price’ brand in the market place here. This would be the main strategy for us in order to catapult our launch into a success. India is a very dynamic country and we look at entering into a market which has a lot of growth potential.

Which segment is going ng to be your immediate focus?

The two-wheeler segment nt has maintained a steady growth wth in India and also has highestt volume so for these obvious reasons asons we will begin with this segment. ment.

At the same time, we are looking oking at especially motorcycles in n the two-wheeler market, passenger enger cars in four-wheeler and heavy duty vehicles.

Top1 products for motorcycles cycles will be available in the range nge of `285-750 per litre, while that hat of passenger cars are priced between ween `285 and `1,200 for every litre.

The per litre cost of heavy duty diesel vehicles’ lubricantss will be `310-370. We are expecting ing to see the largest number coming ming from two-wheeler market. Our company is not a motorcycle ycle specialist, but we have develeloped a new technology in this his range. It is clear that the lubriricant industry is undergoing ga tremendous transformation. n.

What is going to be your ur strategy to compete with the he already established players rs in this segment?

In the spirit of excellence, ce, Top1 always strives to provide ide the highest quality lubricants nts using the most innovative metheth-

ods and focusing on customer satisfaction and value. Also, having LIS as our marketing partner would certainly strengthen our presence in India. We already have a strong presence in the US and other western countries and we are targeting the same in India also.

Currently, the Indian lubricant market is estimated at about `25,000 crore including about `2,000 crore of high quality synthetic and semi-synthetic products. We target to capture a 10 percent market share of the high-end synthetic and semi-synthetic oil segment over the next three years.

Equipped w ith faci lmoder n it ies a nd automatic batch blending, Top1 factory consistently manufactures high quality world-class lubricants.

Can you tell us about your current and long term plans for India?

First thing that we wanted was a strong partner to establish our product here and in this direction, we have already signed up with LIS. We also have a distributor in the south—L G Balakrishnan & Brothers. So we will have a pan India presence. Once we start receiving enough demand, and when we are sure that we can produce the product with the same global standards, we will explore the option of localisation.

We have already set up our office after forming an Indian subsidiary. We have a very competent and professional team in place.

Right now, we have total of five to six people and we are looking for more people to manage our increasing business.

EDITORIAL Balancing Caution With Optimism

T

he gloomy atmosphere that is engulfi ng the world due to the recessionary trend in the US followed by the rating downgrade by Standard & Poor has had significant repercussions in almost every economy around the globe. Most of the countries are still clueless about how their respective economies are going to react in the future. And India has not been spared and the people did react to the situation. It came as a rude shock for the auto industry as it has already begun to moderate from the beginning of this year.

The government has stepped in to take initiatives to insulate the country from the cascading effect. Though it is too early to judge whether it will have any positive impact on the economy or not, the effort is commendable. No doubt that there will be little bit of slowing in the growth but it will not be as disastrous as it is expected by many in the industry.

In the case of auto industry, the worries can be on two counts—fi rstly the investments in to the country and secondly the sustenance of sales. As far as the money inflow is concerned, most of the large investments have already come in and the only big ticket left out is PSA Peugeot Citroen to which, a few state governments are fighting for. Well, it is not going to affect the domestic industry even if the investment is not going to happen in the near future since the existing players are strong and so is the demand. FDI has grown by four fold in June this year to $5.65 billion from $1.38 billion in the same month last year. And in the fi rst quarter, it swelled to $13.44 billion against $5.77 billion during the same period a year ago. The crude oil slipped to $78 per barrel, when we went to the press, from around $100 few weeks ago and if the government acts swiftly it can help the auto industry.

After the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy in September 2008, the Indian auto industry experienced a dip. However, it recovered within a quarter. Of course the CV segment was the fi rst to get affected and the last to recover, but the situa-

tion now is different, as it is the cost of economics that drive the growth and will eventually spur the demand for new generation vehicles. Even if there is going to be a dip, it will be a temporary phenomenon. Therefore the industry needs to take cautious and measured steps.

A recent Bloomberg report states that Indian companies made 1,056 international purchases valued at $94 billion during the last fi ve years. And as the Finance Minister put it, the fundamentals are strong and the mayhem may not create havoc in the country. The Indian economy is largely self sustaining and it is enough if the industry is cautiously optimistic.

The focus of this issue is Electrical & Electronics and we have covered some of the companies that are working on providing cost-effective solutions to the OEMs, including Altair, Hella, Lucas-TVS, Napino, ST Microelectronics and Visteon.

Wishing you much pleasure reading. Do send us your feedback.

T. Murrali t.murrali@infomedia18.in

FORTNIGHT’S QUOTES Elmar Degenhart, Continental CEO in Automotive News Europe on emerging markets growth

Joe Hinrichs, President & CEO, Ford Asia Pacific & Africa on Ford India’s new facility in Gujarat

“We are primarily taking on new people in China, Brazil, India and Russia. But the traditional sites in Europe are benefiting from BRIC countries because we network our resources intelligently, and use them globally”

“This is an investment in the future of Ford globally”

FOUNDER & EDITOR, NETWORK 18 Raghav Bahl

GROUP CEO, NETWORK 18 Haresh Chawla

PRESIDENT & EDITORIAL DIRECTOR, TV 18 Senthil Chengalvarayan

GROUP COO, NETWORK 18 B. Sai Kumar

EDITOR T. Murrali EDITORIAL TEAM Abhishek Parekh, Features Editor Nandita Rohit Kapadia, Senior Copy Editor SENIOR CORRESPONDENT Nabeel A Khan CORRESPONDENTS Shambhavi Anand, Bhargav TS, Akmal Rahman B CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Sirish Chandran, Bertrand D’Souza ASSISTANT ART DIRECTOR Varuna Naik SENIOR DESIGNER Mahesh Talkar CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER Mexy Xavier PHOTOGRAPHERS Neha Mithbawkar, Joshua Navalkar BUSINESS CONTROLLERS Pukha Dhawan, Lovey Fernandes, Akshata Rane

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14

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 August 2011

AUTONOMICS

Diesel car sales to more than double by 2015-16: CRISIL Research Greater fuel economy amid rising uncertainty on petrol price hikes makes diesel cars more viable

D

Sridhar C Head, Automobiles, CRISIL Research

Hetal Gandhi Team leader, CRISIL Research

Niyati Ruparel Team leader, Analyst, CRISIL Research

iesel car sales will almost double from current levels to 2.3 million units in 2015-16, estimates CRISIL Research. Diesel penetration—the proportion of diesel cars in total cars sold—will rise from the current 36 percent to 45 percent in 2015-16. Customers are more likely to prefer diesel cars, as the gap between petrol and diesel prices has widened. The greater fuel economy of diesel cars assumes significance with the increasing traffic congestion on Indian roads. Carmakers, in response, are launching diesel variants of their models, especially in the small car segment, which accounts for more than 60 percent of car sales in the country. Even if the government increases excise duties on diesel cars or reduces subsidies on the fuel, we still expect diesel penetration of not below 40 percent by 2015-16, given the big price gap between petrol and diesel.

120% 100%

The cost of owning a diesel vehicle is greater. First, diesel models, with their more complex engine design, are costlier than their petrol counterparts by `80,000-100,000.

Second, maintenance charges, insurance premium and registration charges are greater for a diesel model

Complex engine makes diesel cars costlier, but fuel economy helps buyers recover premium Diesel cars are more fuel-efficient, offering 25 percent more mileage per litre than petrol cars. This is because diesel has greater energy content per litre than petrol. The calorific value of diesel fuel is roughly 45.5 MJ/kg (megajoules per kilogram), slightly lower than petrol which is 45.8 MJ/kg.

However, diesel fuel is denser than petrol and contains about 15 percent more energy by volume (roughly 36.9 MJ/litre compared to 33.7 MJ/litre). Accounting for the difference in energy density, the overall efficiency of the diesel engine is still some 20 percent greater than the petrol engine, despite the diesel engine also being heavier. The reduced fuel usage limits carbon emissions by diesel cars—studies by organisations like ACEA—European automobile manufacturers association estimate overall lower

6% 33%

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20% 0% 2005-06

2010-11 Diesel CNG

Petrol (In Rs)

2015-16

The Expanding Gulf: Trend in petrol and diesel prices

70 65 60 55 50 45 40 35 30

Widening price gap drives buyer preference for diesel cars A sharp rise in petrol prices in the past year further widened its gap with diesel prices. Petrol prices increased by 24 percent, with the deregulation of petrol prices in June 2010 that enabled oil-marketing companies to increase petrol prices in line with any sharp rise in global crude oil prices. Diesel prices, which are still regulated, rose by only seven percent. The price gap between the two fuels therefore widened by almost four percent from 2008-09 to first quarter of 2011-12. This strengthened buyer preference for diesel cars and UVs. CRISIL Research therefore expects diesel penetration in the Indian cars & UVs segment to rise by two-three percent to 38-40 percent in 2011-12.

Top Gear: Share of diesel cars to increase faster over the next five years

33 per cent 29 per cent

Q1

Q2

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2008-09

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2009-10 Petrol Prices

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Diesel Prices

Note: Difference implies difference of petrol prices over diesel prices carbon emission of diesel vehicles than petrol vehicles.

The cost of owning a diesel vehicle is, however, greater. First, diesel models, with their more complex engine design, are costlier than their petrol counterparts by `80,000-100,000. Second, maintenance charges, insurance premium and registration charges are greater for a diesel model.

Despite the higher cost of owning the vehicle, customers who use diesel cars for at least 15,000 km per year will break even in 3.5 years due to the gap between prices of petrol and diesel. Diesel vehicles are therefore more viable at the current price difference between petrol and diesel.

Given the growing uncertainty over further increases in petrol price, we expect buyer preference for diesel cars to increase over the next five years.

Diesel Car Launches To meet the rising demand for diesel cars, manufacturers are launching more diesel variants, especially in the smallcar segment. In 2010-11, this segment had a 60 percent share in total car & UV sales. Launches of diesel variants in this segment will mark a sharp shift in diesel penetration levels. A few years ago, diesel variants were largely restricted to the sedan

(A3-A6) models, which accounted for only 17 percent of total car & UV sales.

Car manufacturers have launched a number of diesel models in the last two months. Volkswagen, Nissan, GM and Ford launched Polo, Micra, Beat and Figo in the small-car segment with diesel variants as well. In 2010-11, more than one-fifth of small cars sold were diesel cars. Of the 2.5 million cars and UVs sold in the year, 910,000 were diesel-based. Launch of diesel variants in the volume-heavy small-car segment will increasepenetrationofdieselcarsoverthenext five years.

Sales of diesel cars & UVs will likely more than double to 2.3 million units in the next five years. CRISIL Research therefore expects penetration levels of diesel vehicles to rise to nearly 45 percent in 201516 from 36 percent in 2010-11. Any move by the government to reduce subsidies on diesel or impose additional excise duty on diesel cars could bring down penetration levels, and defer the break-even point of diesel cars by six-eight months. Despite that, CRISIL Research expects diesel car sales to remain at about two million.

(Please note that the views expressed here are those of CRISIL Research and not of CRISIL’s Ratings division.)

Cumulative cost savings by operating a diesel car over a petrol car Breakeven at 3.5 years

Year 1 ~Rs 22,000

Year 2 ~Rs 54,000

Year 3 ~Rs 85,000

Year 3 ~Rs 115,000

Difference in prices of petrol and diesel car Rs 80,000 - 1,00,000 Note: Cost of owning a vehicle includes interest expense, fuel cost, maintainence charges and insurance premiums

Recent & expected diesel model launches Segment Small/Compact cars

Mid-size cars

2010-11 Player Ford Volkswagen Nissan Volkswagen Maruti Suzuki

2011-12 Model Figo Polo Micra Vento SX4

Player Tata Motors Ltd. Maruti Suzuki

Model Nano Swift re-launch

Hyundai Ford Nissan General Motors Maruti Suzuki

Verna Fiesta Sunny Unnamed model Swift Dzire smaller version

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16 - 31 August 2011

15

ST Microelectronics innovates efficient technologies Shambhavi Anand New Delhi

S

T Microelectronics, one of the leading providers of semiconductors to the automotive industry, has designed a dual-clutch transmission controller which, it claims, will reduce fuel consumption significantly and help in enhancing mileage of a vehicle. However, it did not disclose the customer for which the product has been designed.

Elaborating on the way the dualclutch technology works, Regional Vice President, Greater China and South Asia-India Operations and Director, India Design Centre, ST Microelectronics, Vivek Sharma said, “Normally when gears have to be changed, clutch is applied.

This disengages the engine. The power for the car stops for that duration and has to start again when the clutch is released thereby consuming more fuel. But with dual-clutch the engine is never disengaged avoiding the complexity.

This contributes significantly to fuel consumption.”

Apart from fuel efficiency enhancing technology, it is also working on producing technology to enhance active security which can help in developing products that can prevent road accidents. “The poor condition of roads and lack of driving etiquettes lead to a very high number of road accidents in India. According to some studies, one person is killed in a road accident every four minutes. By deploying smart devices like mitigation systems, lane departure systems, radar technology among others this number can be brought down significantly,” Sharma said.

The semiconductor solutions provider develops chips for various industries including automotive. The chips are the building blocks for several electronic products used in powertrain (like engine control units), body (like dashboard), safety and infotainment systems.

Sharma also informed that the company is working on devices which can make two-wheelers safer. “We are working with a lot of clients for dashboards and other safety devices for motorcycles,” he said.

With the increased usage of smart devices and intelligent sensors in vehicles of this age, the consumption of semiconductors (which are the building blocks for such electronics) has gone up significantly. According to Sharma the worldwide consumption of automotive electronic systems is around $150 billion for which the consumption of automotive semiconductors is $20 billion. Also, if on an average a car costs $15000, there are semiconductors worth $300 in it.

Being driven by small cars, India is a price sensitive market and hence the usage of electronics is still low. There is a market of $100 million for automotive semiconductors against world’s $20,000 billion. Sharma said that this also showed the untapped market and thereby the potential of the country. With the increasing importance of safety features even in small cars like Nano, the scope for semiconductors will also increase tremendously.

The company is also bullish about the increased scope of semiconductors in the country because of the nature of the technology. The cost of the technology decreases with mass production.

“With time we are able to reduce the size of individual chips and put more functionality on each one of them, thereby reducing the cost. In case of the automotive industry, increased reliability is another feature which will help in creating demand for semiconductors. The compact assemblies will lead to lesser failure and low cost,” Sharma explained. Also, the popularity of hybrid and electric vehicles will add to the increasing demand of electronics and hence semiconductor based solutions.

Established in 1987, ST Microelectronics works in collaboration with global and local partners to develop solutions telecom, automotive, consumer, computer, industrial and distribution. The automotive sector contributes 17 percent to its total revenue. It has its headquarters in Geneva. In India, the company has two design centers, one in Greater Noida (Utta r Pradesh) and Bangalore (Karnataka) Karnataka) each, employing nearly 2,200 employees. The company has fabs (manufacturing units) spread across the world. In Asia

(left) Vivek Sharma, Regional Vice President, Greater China & South Asia-India Operations & Director, India Design Centre

Pacifi Pacificc it has fabs in China, C Singapore and Thailand. It has customers like Delphi, Bosch, Magneti Marelli among others. Though its R&D centre in

Greater Noida is the largest outside Europe, the company ruled out any immediate plans to set up a manufacturing facility in India.

16 - 31 August 2011

ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONICS

Auto Monitor

17

Increased adoption of model-based designs Abhishek Parekh Mumbai

T

he growing need for collaborative development globally in the automotive industry on systems and products is leading to greater adoption of model-based design. The trend is very positive for solution and tool providers like Mathworks.

But challenges remain in terms of meeting customer expectations, especially in mature areas like body electronics and in relatively newer domains like hybrid electrics and infotronics.

A significant part of the work done by the company is concerned with automotive electronics helping the automobile manufacturers meet fuel economy, emission and other safety and environmental regulations.

The company’s model-based design helps automobile manufacturers in reducing the overall weight of the vehicle by reduction in number of equipments like controllers, sensors and other networking gear in a vehicle even as it continues to have same level of ‘intelligence’.

“The major reason for inclusion or increasing the level of electronics in any vehicle has more to do with making the vehicle emission complaint. We are moving from people-based design to code-based design to a model-based design, whereby complex systems are developed by a team of professionals in order to arrive at solutions with ever more complexity in development and output,” said Automotive Industry Manager, MathWorks, Wensi Jin. He is responsible for supporting the industry adoption of model-based designs and MathWorks tools. Prior to joining MathWorks, he worked on real-time simulation and hardware in-the-loop test systems, fi rst as an applications engineer and then as a business development manager. He also worked as a development engineer focusing on automatic transmissions control systems at GM Powertrain.

The key purpose of deployment of the model-based system in the automotive industry is to simulate a system in a dynamic environment. The demands from the industry has lead to a situation where designers and engineers are looking to simulate not only the control systems but also what is being controlled by the control system. Thus they are moving towards intensive efforts like virtual powertrain, virtual transmissions and virtual engine and this helps in the reduction of errors during the prototyping stage and faster product development. A situation where a model-based design can be helpful is in the case of designing a virtual engine, and in such a scenario, an engineer can be fairly certain on the inputs going into manufacturing the engine, as well as the desired outcome. The process of working in collaboration so as to get the desired outcome in the fastest possible time even as inputs are inculcated in the design, is a critical and dynamic task.

“Model-based design process is being adopted for designing and manufacturing the most basic parts or systems to more and more complex parts and systems and the reason for the wider adoption is that it enables a collaborative effort in a user-friendly environment,” added Jin. He stat-

Wensi Jin, Automotive Industry Manager, MathWorks

ed that working in a model-based environment would help the engineering team in reducing the error and bring more predictability in prototyping. This implies that while the design team reaches the prototyping stage, the engine prototype is much better

designed than what would have been the case otherwise. More importantly, the process of communicating ideas on the product or system becomes much easier while working with a virtual model rather than a paper-based design or drawing.

Mathworks has separated the focus it provides to customers in case of work related to body electronics and infotronics. The former is a relatively mature area with well defi ned work processes and customer concerns, while infotronics or driver information is a relatively newer area.

“Growing system complexity is leading to more virtual designs and simulation-based working environments and is necessitating a model-based design,” said Jin. He added that model-based designs are fi nding high acceptability in design-

ing hybrid electric vehicles and electric vehicles and is one of the more promising areas of growth for any designing tool and service provider. It is an area where most vehicle manufacturers are working upon and are looking to arrive at practical solutions.

Another promising area is safety and security systems as there are multiple standards to be met by vehicle manufacturers in different parts of the world and intensive work is required in terms of products, software and electronics bodes would also lead to high usage of model-based designs. Going forward, we are likely to have deployment of the model-based designing process in automotive industry for highly specialised processes and systems, as well as for mass (collaborative) efforts in developing a vehicle or a system. Additionally,

the next major step forward, especially in the automotive segment, is likely to be increasing the quantum of verification related work conducted on model based designing environment or platform. Standardisation related work of systems and processes to meet safety & security standards, quality standards, emission standards and other similar regulatory regimes is also a key area of growth.

Most developmental work in the automotive industry is similar in developed and developing countries and allows for greater opportunities in collaborative environment using model-based designs. Service related offerings would be the key differentiator for any tools provider in the area of model-based designs and can be termed as a key growth driver in the emerging market like India.

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ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONICS

Napino mapping new opportunities Nabeel A Khan New Delhi he fourth plant of the Gurgaon headquartered Napino Auto & Electronics will be operational in a couple of months and it will boost the company as a full-fledged solutions provider in the auto electrical space. The plant, coming up in Manesar, will have a dedicated floor for R&D. In addition to Manesar, Napino has manufacturing facilities in Gurgaon and Haridwar.

Director, Napino Auto & Electronics, Vaibhav Raheja told Auto Monitor, “Without an R&D centre we were incomplete. And it was tough to move ahead on the path of growth. It plans to start supplying wiring harnesses and other electrical and electronic

design centre, tool room, injection moulding, die casting, sheet metal stamping and testing facilities to enable it to develop products from concepts revealed by OEMs. The company has so far been concentrating on the two-wheeler segment in India. However, now, it is planning to cater to the Indian four-wheeler market as Tier I suppliers. The company has already started supplying engine wiring harnesses to a bus manufacturer in India and is looking at options to strengthen its presence in this segment too.

Napino gets 22 percent of its total sales from the wiring harness and 74 percent from electronics and other electrical components including switches. Currently, the share of revenue from exports is around five percent. It registered a turnover of `570 crore in FY11 and

components to the four-wheeler manufacturers in about two years.

The company, a JV with Japanbased Shindengen (Electric Mfg Company), is investing about `30 crore in the new plant, which will also have an engineering and

hopes to touch `650 crore by FY12.

The utilisation of the capacity for wiring harness is at 65 percent with an annual production of 3.6 million wiring harnesses. While for electronics and electrical products, it is using around 85 percent of its installed capacity.

T

Inside the Manesar plant

16 - 31 August 2011

ABB to launch welding robots Bhargav TS Chennai

T

he Bangalore-based ABB (India), an automotive robots manufacturer and a solutions provider to vehicle manufacturers, is to soon introduce cost effective and Integrated Dressing (ID) industrial robot with an internal code of IRB 1620ID primarily targeted at the Indian automotive industry.

The company, which was incorporated in 1949 in India and renamed as ABB in 2003, has been importing robots from Sweden and China and providing local support in India through its aftersales service and training. It also has 14 manufacturing facilities and eight service centres in India to help its customers.

In the recent interaction with Auto Monitor, the company's Head of Robotics, Tore Lindstrom said that the new robot IRB 1620ID is designed and manufactured for a dedicated arc welding operation, which will enhance the productivity in a cost efficient manner.

This particular robot is designed for performing a single operation and has several advantages over other robots. Lindstrom said that the new robot range will have integrated cables inside the arm, which gives the customer the advantage of having the ability to control the movement of the cable.

Also, the reach of the robot is high and also completes the operation faster with a payload capacity of four kilograms.

The robot tagged IRB1620ID offers customers two options.

Firstly, for the same quantum of productivity, these machines consume less power compared to other robots. Secondly, if power saving is not a major criterion for customers, then there is a

potential to increase product iv it y by up to 30 percent.

Furthermore, the robot ca n be mounted in both floor and inverted positions, given its relatively lighter weight and provides an added advantage to customers.

Elaborating on software, Lindstrom said, "Simulation and offl ine programming software, RobotStudio, allows robot programming to be done on a computer from the office and also helps increase the overall productivity."

RobotStudio provides the tools to increase the profitability of the robot system by letting you perform tasks such as training, programming, and optimisation without disturbing production.

This provides numerous benefits like risk reduction, quicker start-up, shorter change-over and increased productivity.

RobotStudio is built on the ABB VirtualController, an exact copy of the real software that runs the robots in production. It thus allows very realistic simulations to be performed, using real robot programmes and configuration files identical to those used on the shop floor.

Recently, the company launched world's fastest robot IRB 460, which is 1.5 metre long and weighs only 25 kg. The company claims that the robot is capable of performing up to 2,190 cycles per hour; this four-axis robot is preferred for high-speed end-of-line palletising and bag palletising.

To help their customers better and more quickly, ABB has

Photograph: Bhargav TS

18

Industrial robot IRB 1620ID by ABB

come out with unique service package called remote servicing. Lindstrom said, "we can remotely monitor the robots with the help of GPRS network.

For instance, if there is a problem in our robot in India, we can fi nd the fault from our nearest office instead of sending our service engineer which saves time. All the robots are connected to us through GPRS network, which will immediately respond in case of an unplanned stop."

This also provides immediate fault analysis and fast assistance to ensure the robots are kept fully productive and this can also be utilised as preventive maintenance.

ABB is a leader in the industrial robots and also provides robot software, peripheral equipment, modular manufacturing cells and service for tasks Key markets include automotive, plastics, metal fabrication, foundry, electronics, machine tools, pharmaceutical and food and beverage industries. Therefore helping the manufacturers to improve productivity, product quality and worker safety. The company has installed more than 190,000 robots worldwide.

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ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONICS

16 - 31 August 2011

HIE plans to localise products Shambhavi Anand New Delhi

H

ella India Electronics, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hella KGaA Hueck, is planning to offer an entire range of electronic products

in its portfolio to the Indian market. The company, which recently ventured into non-automotive business like LED street lighting, airport lighting, indoor lighting, is planning to invest Euro five million to support its new initiatives.

“We have several products in

the category of body electronics, energy management and driver assistance systems. While a lot of products from our portfolio are already available to the Indian customers some of these products were not offered to them yet. We are planning to make a lot of these

Work in progress at Hella

products available to the Indian customers,” Managing Director, Hella India Electronics, Dr Naveen Gautam told Auto Monitor in an exclusive interview.

The company has several electronic products and intelligent battery management systems

Naveen Gautam, Managing Director, Hella India Electronics

AUTOMOTIVE TOOLING

Pin Milling Cutter (Rough machining of the crank pin) High rigidity assembly mechanism ensures high rigidity and ease in assembly. Unique cutting edge geometry used that results in lower cutting resistance leading to the prevention of burrs, prolonged tool life and an increase in overall performance.

that help in cutting down the fuel consumption. With the rising fuel prices and keeping in mind the cost sensitive Indian consumer, the company hopes that the demand for these electronic products exists here.

Some innovative and fuel efficient electronic products in its portfolio are body controllers, dc-dc converters, vacuum pumps (used by Reva). They also make fuel pump control units which reduce the fuel consumption by two to three percent (used by General Motors) and radar-based adaptive cruise control, among a range of other products.

“We feel that the demand is already there from the consumers’ side. We are in discussion with OEMs like Mahindra and Mahindra and Tata Motors among others for the body electronics, energy management and driver assistance system products. They are showing interest. The only question is whether the volume will be good enough for manufacturing them on the Indian soil,” Gautam said. He also added that if the volumes are promising, the company will not shy away from putting in investments. While HIE already produces traditional and electronic horns, accelerator pedal sensors, head lamp levelling actuators, air temperature sensors and switches in its Dhankot plant, it plans to localise body control management, DC/DC converters, passive entry and remote keyless entry (RKE) by 2014.

While it plans to bring new products to India, the company is also adding some new lines including one to produce electronic horns by September 2011 in its Dhankot based plant.

The company claims to have 70 percent market share of horns in India and also exports 25 lakh units to Europe, the US, Singapore and Thailand including other countries in Asia Pacific except China. The company will also put a new line for accelerator pedal sensors for Tata and Maruti.

It also plans to set up another electronic line for complex modules like body controls. The Dhankot plant of HIE which has a current floor area of 44,515 sq metre and has 650 employees; the plant has a capacity utilisation of 65 percent on the horn side. It also has validation and testing facilities.

The company has a design centre in Pune which employs 150 people and is spread across an area of 33,913 sq feet. The centre specialises in software development, hardware development mechanical development and testing for body control module portfolio for European and the US trucks, car access system, fuel control module, driver assist system and body control modules for emerging markets.

The Hella Group which is better known for its lighting products has three business divisions—lighting, electronics and aftermarket which contribute 40 percent, 34 percent and 26 percent respectively, to the revenue. Geographically, Germany, its home country contributes 17 percent and the rest of the Europe contributes 38 percent to the sales. The contribution of Asia pacific is 26 percent to its overall sales. The group which achieved a turnover of Euro 4.3 billion in FY10 spends around 8.3 percent of it on R&D.

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Auto Monitor

ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONICS

16 - 31 August 2011

Lucas-TVS to offer electrical solu- Altair to introduce tions to mechanical components ‘Director’ range T Murrali Chennai

T

he Chennai headquartered Lucas-TVS has drawn extensive plans to expand its business in both, the auto industry and non-automotive space. The company is looking at leveraging its inherent capabilities in developing motors and other auto electrical parts and offer solutions in both the segments. In the automotive space it is looking at offering electrical solution for the existing mechanical components like vacuum pump, oil pump and water pump that are driven by the engine.

Besides, it will soon be entering in to manufacturing viscous fan drives for CVs and utility vehicles.

Speaking to Auto Monitor, the Joint Managing Director, Lucas-TVS, Arvind Balaji said the company is in talks with few OEMs to provide electrical substitutes for mechanical applications.

“We have started this initiative about two years ago and now it is taking shape. We are also looking at catering to the needs of white good manufacturers and railways especially in the brushless DC motors category as these are very much aligned with our strengths,” he said. Initially the company will be manufacturing these products in one of the plants in Chennai and may think of a separate unit at a later date. Currently the company has two plants in and around Chennai—Padi and Maraimalainagar. Besides, it also has manufacturing facilities in Puducherry, Rewari, Chakkan and Uttarkhand.

As the demand for enhancing

vehicle efficiency is constantly on the rise, more and more mechanical components are replaced with electrical systems. Due to the company’s product line up encompassing both electrical and mechanical parts, Lucas-TVS has the unique advantage in understanding the complexities of both the streams of engineering, which enables it to offer affordable solutions and at a faster pace, he said.

Gradually, it included motors for several applications including engine cooling motors.

Talking about viscous fan drives, he said the company has established a technical licensing agreement with USUI of Japan.

For Lucas-TVS, foraying in to making viscous fan drives, is as an extension of its existing product portfolio, since it has been manufacturing engine cooling system comprising radiator fans, motors and shrouds and supplying to few OEMs. The company is looking at manufacturing viscous fan drives with both ring fans and ring-less fans. The new generation engines call for ring fans as it is better in containing NVH. While the basic components will be manufactured in one of its plants in Chennai, the final assembly will be done at its plant in a location closer to the customers. It is also in touch with electric power steering manufacturers to supply the motors.

The company began expanding its customer base in India and also concentrating on exports. Towards this, it has launched few new products including high efficiency alternators. From a miniscule per-

Our Bureau Mumbai

A

Range of products by Lucas-TVS

centage a few years ago, it could garner about 10 percent of its revenue from exports last year.

To match the demand, the company has been continuously enhancing its capacity. In addition to increasing capacity through the brownfield route, it is also looking to optimise productivity further by tweaking the existing line. A few months ago, LucasTVS introduced a programme called ‘Recharge’ in which, the associates (workers) along with the Managing Director, CEO and Joint Managing Director to look at options to address issues that hamper productivity, if any. This initiative helps the company to eliminate wastages that were not benefiting anyone, he said.

The company has been working on improving productivity by introducing innovative concepts in the shop floor. It began with changing the profi le of the work place, creating cellular manufacturing, introducing single piece flow and making the production as throughput process. Few years ago, it compressed the space occupied by each machine on the shop floor and added many more machines in the space created. On the flip side, it also helped in reducing the fatigue of associates.

ltair is working on a new series of tools for collaborative development and on the incremental improvement process for the automotive sector. It is in the process of introducing its ‘Director’ range of tools that can help in specific task and processes by combining customers’ in-house tools as well as third party tools.

This could allow the vehicle or component manufacturers to work in specific areas like NVH, safety, collision management and help in faster implementation of projects. This initiative is likely to allow the company to focus on specific user groups within the automotive industry.

The company is focussing on offering an enhanced level of service to its customers in a bid to differentiate itself as well as grow a lucrative part of its business in India. The company derives around 70 percent of its revenues from tools and solutions and remaining from services. The revenue from services would grow at a much faster rate as its installation base grows and customers start utilising the tools for higher value added work, using its software or products.

It has been working closely with vehicle manufacturers and suppliers on design optimisation, material dynamics and geometry and managing simulation driven development process. “We have been trying to apply the learnings in aerospace and formula one to our automotive customers,” said Executive Director, Global Automotive, Altair, Antony Norton.

He added that Altair is gearing up

Anthony Norton, Executive Director, Global Automotive, Altair

from a design driven development cycle to simulation driven cycle leading to faster conversion of ideas into reality and subsequently, commercial production.

Altair has been actively working with automotive customers towards incremental improvements in designs and processes as well as new development.

Customers are assisted in achievement of incremental efforts using inhouse and third party tools and systems in an open and collaborative environment.

Vehicle manufacturers are increasingly looking at the growing complexities in electronics and electricals inside a vehicle, which requires rigorous testing and validation. Altair has been focussing on providing collaborative and design management tools to enable this process. Higher usage of non metallic material including composites in an automobile would lead to higher demand for testing and predicting material or product behaviour going forward.

Additionally, the company is also gearing up for intensive deployment of tools and solutions for testing and verification.

24

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 August 2011

CORPORATE

SAE develops standards for wireless charging T Murrali Chennai

T

he draft of the standards for ‘Wireless charging of plug-in hybrid vehicles’ being developed by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) International, will be ready by the fi rst quarter of the next calendar, according to SAE officials.

Most of the vehicle manufacturers across the world have involved themselves in some form or the other, in developing electric vehicles. However, infrastructure availability, in terms of electrical power output for recharging the batteries, is a major impediment for the growth of EVs. To address this issue, quite a few Tier I companies across the globe are working on several technologies includ-

A charging station sends energy through inductive coupling to an electrical device, which stores the energy in the batteries.

Since this technology is promising, it is necessary to have standards as safety is paramount.

Spea k ing to Auto Monitor, the Director of Ground Vehicle Standards, SAE International, Jack Pokrzywa said, the efficiency of the wireless charging Jack Pokrzywa, SAE International is about 95 percent, which ing ‘wireless charging,’ which is fairly good; however, the chalcalls for standards. lenge is to develop standards focusing on the safety aspects of it. “A dedicated committee with Wireless Charging representations from few counInductive or wireless chargtries including Japan, Korea and ing uses the electromagnetic Europe, is working on the parfield to transfer energy between ticular standard—J2954 TIR. It two objects in close proximity.

is in the very early stage but very promising. This will be available sometime during the fi rst quarter of next year and it is going to be like an information report on state-of-the-art technology and there will be new standards developed based on that,” he said.

Global Relevance Pokrzywa was in India to participate in couple of workshops on evolving standards co-organised

by SAE India. He said that though SAE is working on several standards for the automotive industry as a whole, it has been active, off late, in the use of alternate energy sources and EVs, not only in the US but across the world.

When asked if there is any specific reason for associating with SAE India on developing standards for EVs and wireless

charging, he said it is one among the many associations that the organisation is collaborating with. SAE follows a multiple approach while developing standards due to their relevance globally. For developing standards for EVs, the organisation is collaborating with few countries includingJapan,Taiwan,Korea,China and Europe.

Holistic Approach Elaborating on the development of standards for EVs, he said it is necessary to have a holistic approach since the vehicle, when connected to a wall plug to recharge batteries, becomes part of the electric grid. Therefore the electrification of the vehicle is the key. Hence the physical hardware such as connectors and sockets have to be standardised.

SAE International is associating with SAE India on developing standards for EVs and wireless charging.

The organisation is also collaborating with countries including Japan, China & Europe. It has signed an MoU with IEEE-SA to establish a strategic partnership in vehicular technology related to the Smart Grid Besides, there is communication protocol within the vehicle, which facilitates an information exchange between the vehicle and the grid, including when and how it is taking place and at what time of the day. In addition, there will also be some information on when the customers get best rates in the 24-hour cycle.

Therefore the standards have to cover the entire spectrum, he said. It may be recalled that SAE International has signed an MoU with IEEE Standards Association (IEEE-SA) to establish a strategic partnership in vehicular technology related to the Smart Grid.

Defining Standards In the case of battery, which is the focal point of the automotive industry today—with respect to increasing its run-per-charge— the standards have to cover the entire system because of the criticality. “We have roughly 25 to 30 different standards in progress for EVs. We have already produced, developed and approved standards for connectors for the North American market and some parts of the world,” Pokrzywa said.

Currently, majority of the EVs available now use direct drive motors. However, some companies are working on transmissions for EVs hoping to enhance the efficiency ratio. When queried about SAE’s work in developing standards, he said technologies like this show up in discussions.

“I don’t think we are working on any standards at the moment for these kinds of technologies or battery swapping,” he said. The company will look at developing standards on those technologies that stabilise and sustain in the market.

26

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 August 2011

ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONICS

Just park & charge… wirelessly!

No plugs. No charging cords. Electric vehicle owners will enjoy the convenience and efficiency of automatic wireless charging.

C

ommitted to keeping consumers connected, Delphi makes hybrid and electric vehicles accessible and practical for the average consumer. One of the goals of the revolutionary and safe Delphi Wireless Charging System, currently in development, is to allow drivers to simply park their electric vehicle over a wireless energy source that sits on the garage floor, or is embedded in a paved parking spot—no plugs or charging cords needed.

The system for these automatic wireless charging products was developed in cooperation with Delphi charge port coupler

WiTricity Corp, a wireless energy transfer technology provider.

T he relat ionsh ip combines Delphi’s expertise in global engineering, validation and manufacturing of highpower electrica l/electronic components for the automotive industry with WiTricity’s patented wireless energy transfer technology.

Director, Global Hybrid & Electric Vehicle Business & Technology Development, Delphi Packard Electrical/ Electronic Architecture, Randy Sumner shares his perspective on Delphi’s leadership role in Delphi wireless charging system

the technology and how it will help facilitate the establishment of a safe and convenient global charging infrastructure for electric vehicles.

Other companies are working on adapting wireless charging technology to automobiles, so what is unique about the Delphi-WiTricity system?

The Delphi Wireless Charging System offers more practical and f lexible installation than traditional inductive systems.

It safely and efficiently transfers power over significantly larger distances and can adapt EV wireless charging parking

to natural misalignment often associated with vehicle positioning during parking. The Delphi system uses a modern technology—highly resonant magnetic coupling. Its charging source can be embedded in a parking lot or garage pavement, and can work with vehicles having different ground clearances. Other systems use traditional inductive technology, working over a small air gap, and requiring very accurate parking alignment.

Is this type of wireless energy transfer safe to humans and animals?

The system transfers energy using an oscillating magnetic field, which is safe for humans and animals. The magnetic fields emitted will meet or exceed industry safety guidelines.

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Drivers will simply park their electric vehicle over a wireless energy source that sits on the garage floor, or is embedded in a paved parking spot and the system will automatically transfer power to the battery charger on the vehicle. What happens if either surface is covered with snow or water? Does snow or rain impact

Illustration of how the Delphi wireless system works

the wireless energy transfer?

Environmental factors such as snow or rain would have no effect on the wireless energy transfer.

What advantages does wireless charging in general have over plug-in charging?

Wireless charging would involve no cords or connections, only requiring the driver to park their electric vehicles over a wireless energy source without ever leaving their car.

It would be a very convenient charging option, but would still need to co-exist with plug-in charging solutions such as the Delphi Portable Electric Vehicle Charger for situations where drivers may find themselves not near an available wireless charging source.

How complex would the wireless charging infrastructure be, compared to plug-in charging?

It would not be much more complex. Instead of having the electronics in the ’charging box‘, we would have a similar box in it with electronics to drive the magnetic coils.

How long would it take to fully charge a car with this wireless unit? Would it be suitable for larger vehicles?

We expect the wireless charging system to deliver a charge at the same rate as most Level 2 plug-in chargers, which is approximately four hours.

Does Delphi plan to sell this product in the aftermarket?

Our fi rst area of focus is to

WiTricity Corp WiTricity Corp was founded in 2007 to commercialise a new technology for wireless electricity invented two years ago at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

A team of physicists, led by Professor Marin Solja i , developed the theoretical basis for this novel method for wireless electric power transfer in 2005, and validated their theories experimentally in 2007. Their demonstration of wireless power transfer showed a 60-watt light bulb being illuminated from a power source over two metres away, and their results were published in the prestigious journal Science in July 2007.

As the exclusive licensee of this MIT intellectual property, the company was founded

by Prof Solja i and several colleagues from MIT. develop safe and efficient wireless charging units for vehicle OEMs. Working jointly with the OEMs, we will incorporate this technology into their next-generation electric vehicle architecture. Once OEM vehicle solutions are accomplished, we expect to then turn our attention to ancillary design activities such as existing vehicle retrofit options for aftermarket opportunities.

When do you expect to see this technology go to market?

We are in the early stages of integrating this charging technolog y into electric vehicle architectures, but we believe that it offers a valuable and unique solution to the growing electric vehicle market. With the support of automotive manufacturers, we could see this technology on their next-generation electric vehicles.

What progress have you made since announcing your relationship with WiTricity last September?

We are excited by our testing and validation of the system and have confi rmed that system performance meets automotive market requirements.

We just recently displayed our all-electric test vehicle equipped with the Delphi wireless charging system at the 2011 SAE World Congress.

We believe we have a valuable and unique wireless charging solution that offers the most potential for widespread use in the automotive market.

With the support of automotive manufacturers, this technology can be integrated into the next generation of electric vehicles.

28

Auto Monitor

AI to bank on HMI, connectivity & sensorics T Murrali Chennai

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hennai-based Automotive Infotronics (AI), the 50:50 joint venture between Ashok Leyland and Continental AG, has conceptualised a threepronged strategy to take the company to the next level in the growth trajectory. The company that successfully developed on-board telematics and a multiplex system for the vehicles sponsored by JNNURM, will be concentrating on three areas—Human-Machine Interface (HMI), connect iv it y a nd sensorics.

CEO, Automotive Infotronics, Dr Aravind S Bharadwaj told Auto Monitor that after commercially releasing the telematics and multiplex systems, the company sees tremendous opportunities in a vehicle as different systems within the vehicle need to communicate with each other for the overall performance. However, the challenge is to establish the communication at the least possible cost, while maintaining the customers’ expectations and ensuring safety. With the vehicles getting more complex, driven by Products developed by AI

16 - 31 August 2011

ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONICS

regulations, as well as the increasing expectations from end-users in terms of enhanced driving comforts and economical aspects including profitability, the manufacturers have no options but to provide the requirements at a competitive cost.

Elaborating on the strategy, Bharadwaj said the company, in the case of HMI, is looking at developing an ‘Indian driver workplace’ covering the entire aspect of the drivers’ requirements. The system that the company develops will help the driver to be very alert while being more productive, eventually helping the fleet operator to derive better profitability. “While developing products, we had looked at passenger and fleet operators. However, the driver, who spends his time in the vehicle, also needs to be taken care of.

We have enough data that shows the number of times the driver has to shift gears in a day ending up in severe fatigue. Therefore better ergonomics is essential.

Besides, the controls have to be in close proximity to him for improved performance. This is our objective in developing driver workplace” he said.

“If we prove the products in India, then it can be extended to other global markets easily. This is because the domestic customers do not compromise on quality while expecting the best price points. And they have the right to expect,” he said. This is where the growth for the company in terms of HMI segment will come in, he pointed out adding that the system addressing the whole gamut of issues including the nearness to the controls that eventually enhances the overall productivity of the driver and driving behaviour.

S e c ond l y, Automot iv e Infotronics will look at ‘Connectivity’ as its focus area since the communication between the vehicle and the outside world is essential for improved transport economics and better maintenance of vehicles. The company is currently developing ‘low cost telematics on-board unit, which will be launched in fi rst quarter of next year. Combined with the

Aravind S Bharadwaj, CEO, Automotive Infotronics

multiplex system the whole unit, in the future, one can offer several benefits to almost all the stakeholders in the business since it not only tracks but also indicates the driver / fleet operator on the defects in the vehicle. Besides, it also alerts the service centre about issues like the spare parts requirements. Instead of the vehicle going to the service centre for diagnosis, the system enables the garages to reach to the end customer and provide the solution. This prognostic approach will help avert major breakdown thereby upping the uptime of vehicle substantially. In addition, it will also help the vehicle manufacturers with tips to take corrective action, if necessary, arising out of common problems. These facilities will significantly enhance the operating economics of the fleet operators, he said.

Thirdly, it will look at ‘sensorics’ as electronics is integrated in almost every component of the vehicle. “The body controller is the gateway, which controls all the other electronic controllers.

Similarly the telematics controller can just be another node in the body controller,” he said.

The cluster with body controller, a multiplexing system developed for one of its clients— Ashok Leyland—for its U-Truck platform will be out in October.

This will be the vehicle manufacturer’s unique electronic architecture. According to him the instrument cluster is not just a unit that gives information like speed, temperature and pressure,

but actually a data centre. “Our cluster has a USB drive, which can even help retrieve logged-on data for about 30 days. It also has a gear shift advisory system helping the driver to drive the vehicle for optimal performance. These inputs help the fleet operator to understand the drivers’ driving habit and take corrective action,” he said.

To a question whether these systems can be retrofitted, Bharadwaj said it is possible and the company has already proved it by fitting multiplex systems in few buses in APSRTC fleet. This is part of JNNURM compliance requirements. When asked if the company would look at providing similar solutions to passenger cars, he said, “nothing prevents us from catering to passenger cars but CV is our bread and butter. For instance, the telematics can be used in radio taxis to enhance performance. We would like to be Continental’s Centre of Excellence in CV segment in the region,” he added.

Last year, the company introduced ‘Flex CAN (Controlled Area Network) Cluster’ for the European market. Flex CAN cluster is designed by Automotive Infotronics and manufactured and sold by Continental in the European and other matured markets. It is a flexible instrument cluster designed for off-road applications (tractors, snow-mobiles etc). The cluster is based on CAN and is flexible enough to be modified for different OEM applications based on specific demands from the customer.

Multiple variants of the original design had already been created, he said.

Yet another product that the company has commercialised and is currently working on upgrades is an ‘Engine Control Panel’ for gensets manufactured by Ashok Leyland. This is an integrated instrument panel monitoring engine parameters like temperature, pressure, fuel level, the RPM and the total number of hours the engine has run. In addition, it also safeguards the engine as the cluster can be pre-programmed with remote start and stop applications.

Procurement programme leads to technology upgrades in buses Our Bureau Mumbai

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he bus procurement for upgradation of civic infrastructure around the country has meant greater technology adoption in buses, especially low floor city buses.

Bus manufacturers including Tata Motors, Ashok Leyland and Swaraz Mazda as well as their respective bus body builders have been at the forefront in this quest for affordable and yet modern technology solutions in the buses supplied to State Transport Undertakings (STUs).

Tata LPO 1618 RESLF Bus

“We have adopted several advanced technologies including automatic transmission, sliding doors as well as other features not seen in the Indian market and that too at a lower cost than was the case earlier,” Director, JCBL, Rishi Agrawal had told Auto Monitor in an earlier interaction. JCBL has already supplied in excess of 300 buses low floor city buses under its ‘Cerita’ brand to Maharashtra State Regional Transport Corporation (MSRTC) mainly for requirements of Mumbai and Thane transport bodies.

“The specifications under the JNNURM (Jawaharla l Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission) programme that was unveiled two years back has been the main driver for the upgradation of electronics and electrical systems in the buses. Some of these are visible, other systems and controls are not so apparent. Though these buses cannot be strictly termed as next generation ones, they are equipped with higher quality electronics and electrical systems as compared to earlier buses sold to STUs and private bodies,” said an official from Automobile Corporation of Goa, a Tata Motors affi liate and a leading bus body builder.

Essentially, there are four major factors in manufacturing a bus including safety, panelling, design and comfort which have to be taken into account.

Additionally, there are certain customer specific requirements and features that are to be taken into account depending on usage and other operational issues. This implies that features in a low floor city bus would vary significantly from a school bus and hence the level of controls and electronics available to driver also varies.

Moreover, safety and comfort standards required in a school bus despite being basic, need to be of a certified quality while the same standards may be of significantly higher order for a low floor city bus including air conditioning, low (an multiple) entry points, seating and standing area, lighting, easy driver control for fatigue reduction, low and high beam head lamps among others.

The bus body code under implementation specifies material and quality standards to be adopted in manufacturing the buses for the bus body builders.

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30

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ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONICS

16 - 31 August 2011

SMG to set up seven plants globally Nabeel A Khan New Delhi

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amvardhana Motherson Group (SMG) is looking at giving major fi llip to its electrical and electronics business, which includes an addition of three new plants for its wiring harness business globally to its existing 27 plants. Mirror operations would also add three more plants to existing 17, while one more plant is planned for lighting systems in addition to the existing two plants of group’s JV with Magneti Mareli of Italy, Magneti Marelli Motherson Auto System (MMM).

The group has two plants for Heating Ventilation AirConditioning (HVAC) systems for cars and one each for bus and CVs. These plants will come up in Thailand, Brazil Hungry and

India and all of them will be commissioned during the current fiscal. The company sees robust growth in the coming years and as per the targets released in 2010, SMG wants to be a $10 billion group by 2015.

“We are the pioneers in usage of camera technology in the mirrors for ‘Blind Spot’ detection.

Similarly, in the wiring harness side also, with the increasing features more and more electrical circuits are getting added,” COO, Motherson Sumi Systems, the flagship company of the group, Pankaj Mital told Auto Monitor.

It weighs a substantial opportunity in the Indian market also, as this market is becoming feature conscious and there is a gradual shift towards a preference for higher end car segment. With India becoming a hub for global car exports, the same global qual-

ity is expected from the Indian component manufacturers as well. Electronics is going to play a major role in the feature packed cars where the equipment has to communicate with each other and controlled electronically.

The major areas in which SMG operates are wiring harnesses, automotive lighting, rear view mirrors, HVAC systems for passenger cars, commercial vehicles and buses. The combined contribution of these categories to the Group turnover is nearly $two billion.

Technological Innovation The company is quite bullish about new technologies in the mirrors for giving better systems to its customers and for that, it has the global R&D centre in Germany which is supported by regional centres. In the case of

Wiring Harness

joint ventures, the basic research is conducted by its collaborators who are global technology leaders. It is also very versatile when it comes to guest engineering to co-develop the products with the customers from the initial stage and for doing VA-VE activities.

Samvardhana Motherson

Pankaj Mital, COO, Motherson Sumi Systems

Reflectec (SMR), an SMG subsidiary, develops and manufactures most of the integrated electric and electronic components inhouse, which is the key to have control on cost structure and to be able to create and offer innovative solutions.

SMR has also developed a camerabased intelligent ‘Driver Assistant Systems’ providing increased safety by detecting the area around the vehicle and alerting the driver of hazardous situations at and before overtaking makeovers. It has set up teams of software, hardware and image sensor experts, technology partnerships and professional equipment to develop the required solutions from scratch. The first working prototypes of a camera-based ‘Blind Spot Monitoring System’ based on object detection was built in 2002 after years of research and testing.

The system, which is today known as Volvo’s ‘BLIS’ is the only mass produced camera-based intelligent blind spot detection in the world. SMR is working on an evolution of this technology. The new system generation is modular and applicable to 30 different assistant and comfort features, some even with video displays.

The heart of most of these applications is the highly integrated Digital Signal Processing (DSPs) and system-on-chip technology to enable the highest performance at affordable costs.

The application of one megapixel cameras and LVDS (Low-Voltage Differential Signalling) video data stream with up to three gigabyte-per-second, provide maximum information about the surroundings of the car. The systems are in dialogue with the vehicle network through a CAN (Controlled Area Network) bus.

SMR is convinced that by integrating several assistant features into one system, significant cost advantages can be achieved.

The research team in Stuttgart, Germany is currently testing various applications of the new system on test cars.

In the lighting space automobile manufacturers are moving towards multicolour technology for rear lamps and are adopting projector system and dual chamber reflectors for headlamps.

MMM is providing lighting solutions for all the alternatives, including 4K in which four different materials can be injecting at a same time while moulding. Apart from bulb and LED lighting, the use of light guides for higher end vehicles is increasing and can be provided to the customers.

The company is moving towards High Intensity Discharge and LED systems as it reduces the overall wattage of the lamps eventually containing consumption of power and CO2 emissions. This way, Magneti Marelli Motherson is able to provide more environment-friendly solutions to the Indian market as well.

32

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ELECTRICAL CORPORATE & ELECTRONICS

16 - 31 August 2011

“Consumers want to stay connected, in and ics instrumentation, we are well placed to cater to their needs.

Visteon India, one of the largest Tier I companies in the country, is in to manufacturing components along four product lines, such as climate systems, electronics, interiors and lighting.

The electronics division of the company is working on the integration of features that were previously distributed in several electronic modules into fewer, or a single module. Country Head, Electronics & Interiors, Visteon India, Varadan Devanathan, says the company is striving to make the human-machine interface more intuitive and enhance the driving experience.

T Murrali World over and in India, OEMs are looking at reducing weight and enhancing efficiencies to stay competitive and electrical/electronic play a key role. What does Visteon India has to offer?

OEMs are looking at technology suppliers to play an active role in enhancing efficiency of electronic components in cars.

As a global player in the vehicle electronics space and with key expertise in electronics, climate control systems, interiors and lighting, Visteon is well positioned to fi nd efficiencies across the cockpit system.

Visteon is working on the integration of features that were previously distributed in several electronic modules into fewer or a single module. As electronics computing power increases and the device size decreases, more features can be provided in a given space. Also, Visteon is innovating on continued application and growth of vehicle communication protocols that allow fewer wires and smaller and lighter harnesses.

An example of such efficient technology is the recently integrated centre panel showcased on Visteon’s Growth Market Car, a technology demonstration

vehicle developed keeping India and emerging markets in mind.

This scalable and modular system combines audio, climate, and driver information functions is a cost-effective package that requires lesser weight.

Audio systems are rapidly shifting to digital media platforms with the use of mobile players and USBs as input devices, which is leading to the decline of use of CDs. Visteon has developed the mechanismless audio system which is smaller in size and light-weight.

This also improves the reliability of the audio system. Visteon’s low cost audio system for the Tata Nano is an example of such an innovation.

What are the technologies that Visteon is working on now?

Working with our customers, Visteon is striving to make the human-machine interface more intuitive and enhance the driving experience.

In India, we are currently working towards developing state-of-the-art display technologies and capabilities such as larger size, high resolution, colour TFT display systems. We are also looking at extending that technology into a three dimensional look and feel to simulate physical gauges and buttons for global OEMs.

What is the current contribution of your technical centre in automotive electrical and electronics and how has it grown since inception?

Varadan Devanathan, Country Head, Electronics & Interiors, Visteon India

These systems boast of faster display capabilities required for animations, high quality video, or for fast movement of simulated gauges. One useful application example could be the tachometer gauge movements appearing without blur or jitters.

On a global level, we are developing technologies to ensure high connectivity within the vehicle, enabling drivers and passengers to use web and smart devices in the vehicle, such as, smart phone interface and integration, applications for smart phones or computers.

Visteon has two main engineering centres in India: the Visteon Technical and Services Centre in Chennai, which develops embedded software for automotive electronics and Visteon engineering centre in Pune, providing engineering services.

These centres are an integral part of the electronics product development’s global team and play a pivotal role in development of several products for the Indian and global market.

The software office at the Visteon Technical and Services

Centre in Chennai is the largest software centre for Visteon.

The presence of global technical centres in India gives us a significant competitive advantage in terms of cost and speed of response as well as undertaking customised development for Indian requirements.

Electronics replaces several mechanical systems like power steering. What are the other systems that, in your view, can be replaced with electronics / electrical models?

Electronics and electrical systems offer immense possibilities to replace mechanical systems in many areas of a vehicle. We can look at areas such as keyless ignition, ignition requiring no mechanical key or an ignition switch and electronic gear shift

With electronic content in automobiles increasing, what options do trends give Visteon to enhance business in India?

We can see an increase of electronic components in cars.

Visteon is well placed to leverage this growth with our expertise in technology for applications in areas such as smart phone integration, web connectivity, digital audio and radio, vehicle web applications, and navigation systems.

We have entered into electronic instrument clusters for two wheelers and as two wheelers migrate more toward electron-

An integrated control panel

16 - 31 August 2011

ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONICS

Auto Monitor

33

outside the car” Exa Thermometrics to supply as potential areas for reducing mechanical systems.

One of the megatrends that Visteon identified is

diesel fuel sensors for Nano Bhargav TS Bangalore

E

Inside the Visteon lab

While some of your global competitors steer clear off the small vehicle programmes, Visteon developed ACDI for small vehicle segments. What’s next on these lines?

connectivity, which cannot be approached without electrical and electronics. Please let us know Visteon India’s journey so far and the roadmap ahead.

Visteon has unique capabilities in the small car segment.

India is the largest producer of small vehicles and our presence in this market for over 15 years has enabled us to adapt technology and develop solutions specifically for this market.

Our product portfolio includes cost effective audio systems and instrument cluster systems for small cars and two wheelers. In fact, we are one of the only suppliers that has the whole range of displays in production globally: from small integrated displays to fully reconfigurable displays.

To showcase our capabilities in this segment, Visteon developed a technology demonstration vehicle called the Growth Market Car. The car shows how technologies can be integrated in a modular and scalable design, to enhance the driving experience, while still meeting cost and packaging requirements of vehicle manufacturers in India.

Connectivity is one of the core areas Visteon is actively working on. We see this as a key trend going forward where consumers will want to remain connected to the outside world through their own personal devices, in and outside the car.

We are innovating on products to provide seamless connectivity within a car and to develop open architecture platform in the vehicle that will enable the use of consumer devices to interact seamlessly with and within the vehicle on a wireless platform.

As a leading company developing highly scalable open architecture, Visteon is a founding member of the global GenIVI alliance, paving the way in infotainment vehicle integration standards.

In India, we have also developed products for Bluetooth connectivity, voice recognition, navigation, and web/digital radios.

xa Thermometrics, a Bangalore-based temperature sensor manufacturer, has bagged orders to supply diesel fuel intake sensors to supply Tata Nano’s diesel version. The size of the order is an estimated 70,000 units monthly. The monetary value of this order wasn’t revealed but Exa Thermometrics has confi rmed that it will be the sole supplier of this sensor for the Nano’s diesel version. All of these 70,000 diesel fuel intake sensors will be supplied from the company’s plant in Bangalore.

Speaking exclusively to Auto Monitor, the company’s General Manager, Sales and Marketing, Mohit Mathur, said “The diesel fuel intake sensors which we manufactured should go in to Tata Nano diesel version. We will supply the sensors to Mann and Hummel and they will make the air filter and the sensor would be integrated into it and then the entire module will be sent to Bosch and finally to Tata Motors.” It provides NTC Thermistor based sensing solutions for HVAC, automotive, electro-domestics, life-sciences, health and leisure, aerospace and newly emerging applications in the fields of biotechnology, defence, and medical diagnostics.

Currently, the company manufactures the sensor and encapsulates it into metal housing and plastic housing and then puts a terminal connector before supplying to the customers.

Mathur said, “Our fundamental technology base enables virtually any NTC thermistor system to be developed for our global

Range of sensors from Exa Thermometrics

OEM customers. We have the capability for the entire process technology starting from nanoparticle transition metal oxides, through to semiconductor sintering, multiple electroding, dicing and calibration,” he added.

The company also manufactures electronic modules, which is basically a PCB and integrated with sensors in the control unit of HVAC (Heating Ventilation Air Condition) units. “So we do only the control units where the application is related to temperature. The electronic control unit of module is manufactured by us and we give the integrated solutions to the customers.”

Currently the company is supplying these kinds of HVAC sensors to Tata Motors and Mahindra.

According to Mathur, in the automobile industry the main application of the sensors was in engine coolant and in air conditioning units. The users can program the settings of the air conditioner as they desire, which saves energy, unlike the fi xed thermostat. Earlier, the air conditioner worked on a con-

stant temperature, but now the user can manage the temperature settings according to the requirements.

In European countries, the sensors are used for defrosting the mirrors for better visibility and heating the seats according to the temperature inside the vehicle. Because sensors are costlier as compared to thermostats, the Indian industries are not using the sensors effectively.

But sensors basically monitor the temperature of the unit and cut off the unit when not being used, to save energy.

The company has also revealed that it will be supplying air inlet temperature sensors to Visteon soon. The main application of the sensor is to detect the temperature of the engine and has to control the amount of fuel sent inside the cylinder during starting the engine. This will basically help in reducing the fuel consumption while staring the engine at various conditions.

The company registered `50 crore turnover last year and expecting `65 crore this year.

34

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 August 2011

CORPORATE

CRRI: Charting six decades of success Our Bureau New Delhi

C

entral Road Research Institute (CRRI) will focus on increasing the life-cycle of the roads and take more green initiatives in construction of roads, Director, CRRI, S Gangopadhyay told Auto Monitor.

The institute which celebrated its 60th anniversary recently has the challenging task ahead as developing roads for everyone’s needs as well as maintaining and managing the vast road network (3.3 million km) poses serious challenges not only to the planners, decision makers, highway engineers but also on the researchers due to the higher user expectations and ever increasing traffic volume and axle loads (the current traffic

growth rate is of the order of 10-12 percent per annum).

Meeting Challenges “With rapidly changing conditions, the road transport sector is expected to grow at a rate of about 10 percent. The expected investments in the road sector are about `five lakh crore in the next five to six years. The infrastructure needs, especially roads, will be unprecedented and therefore there will be a surge in the demand for new and improved design methods and techniques, high performing materials, and innovative construction and maintenance methods to meet these challenges. CRRI is fully geared and has the necessary knowledge base, capacity, expertise and capability, to meet today’s and future

requirements of the nation in the development and the management of new generation of roads, highways, expressways, flyovers, bridges and interchanges,” S Gangopadhyay said.

CRRI is contemplating a shift in its approach to meet the expectations of the users and the road industry. The other challenges which it is gearing up to tackle, are economical and efficient transport operations, improvement in road users’ behaviour, road safety related issues, environment impact assessment of road projects, mitigation of air and noise pollutions and congestion and jam free traffic f low in cities and urban areas, conservation of naturally occurring road building materials and better understanding of pavement behaviour.

CRRI has constructed a flyash road in Delhi with strong durability and is planning to implement it at other places. This technology is also eco-friendly.

Keeping the above changing needs in view, the institute will focus on research & development in the next five-year plan (12th plan). The plan will focus on areas including development and

application of technologies for sustainable development, development and design of an advanced driving simulator, evaluation of economic loss due to idling of vehicles at signalised intersections and

CRRI is currently actively involved on a large number of R&D studies and consultancy projects. Some of the notable activities being carried out are:

•

• • • •

Supra Institutional Project of CSIR ‘Development of Management System for Maintenance Planning and Budgeting of High Speed Road Corridors’ Development of GIS based National Highways Information System Creation of wide range of Expansion Joints Testing Facility Road Safety Audit of 1200 km of NHs Formulation of R&D studies to be implemented through the use of Accelerated Pavement Testing Facility

mitigation measures and highway capacity manual for Indian operating conditions.

The institute has utilised flyash for construction of roads and embankments. It has already constructed a road with flyash in Delhi with strong durability and is planning to implement it wherever possible. This technology is also eco-friendly.

Going The Extra Mile Counting the achievement of the institute over the last six decades, Gangopadhyay said “CRRI and CRRI scientists have earned several accolades over the years and have been conferred several prestigious awards and recognition. Some of these awards include the CSIR Technology award for development of socially relevant innovative techniques for utilisation of waste material, especially flyash, for construction of roads and embankment.”

The Institute was also awarded second prize of the National award in consultancy services in the year 1999 by Consultancy Development Centre, New Delhi. Many scientists of CRRI have received best research paper awards from Indian Roads Congress and many such professional bodies.

CRRI is working on a grand vision to utilise the energy generated due to running of vehicles on road to produce electricity. If it is done successfully, it will be a great boon. On the completion of 60 years, the institute is envisioning to add newer innovation to make roads safe and user-friendly.

Impressive cleaning results

EcoCFlex

Dürr Ecoclean’s EcoCFlex is a highly efficient cleaning system combining proven cleaning methods with the flexibility of a fully integrated 6-axis robot. Suitable for removing large quantities of oils, swarf, greases and emulsions from automobile parts such as cylinder

heads, crankcases, transmission housings, ABS mouldings etc. For detailed information please visit our website or contact us: Phone: +91 20 30 58 50 01, Mail: info.india@ecoclean.durr.com. www.durr-ecoclean.com

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Japan to focus on Tamil Nadu as economic destination Our Bureau Chennai

T

he Government of Tamil Nadu considers Japan as a very important partner.

There is enormous potential for co-operation between Tamil Nadu and Japan, said IAS, Principal Secretary, Industries Department, Government of Tamil Nadu, Dr N Sundaradevan.

He was addressing a seminar on ‘Business opportunities for co-operation between Tamil Nadu and Japan in the infrastructure sector,’ organised by the Confederation of Indian Industr y (CII) a nd Japa n External Trade Organisation (JETRO) recently.

He stated that the state government would extend its full support to attract more Japanese foreign direct investment (FDI) both in manufacturing and infrastructure. Japan has identified Tamil Nadu as one of the most potential states for its investments and for this the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) has signed a bilateral economic co-operation agreement with Tamil Nadu, he said.

JETRO has signed an economic co-MoU with the State Guidance Bureau. The Prefecture (state government) of Hiroshima, and Mizhuho Bank have also signed agreements with the Guidance Bureau. Other Prefectures like Kanagawa and Aichi are also planning similar agreements.

Dr Sundaradevan said 240 of the 725 Japanese companies were in Tamil Nadu and many more investors “are looking at Tamil Nadu as an attractive investment destination”. He said the Joint Steering Committee of METI and the state government have identified several infrastructure projects.

The projects include, new industrial parks, Japanese industrial townships, logistics parks near Ennore and Sriperambudur, solar power parks, promotion of a fuel corridor, including power projects and offshore coal and LNG handling, investment in the proposed petroleum and pet rochem ica l invest ment region between Cuddalore and Nagapattinam, development of the minor ports and waste water treatment.

The Tamil Nadu government has plans for establishing a Japanese industrial cluster near Chennai. He invited the Japanese companies to participate in this initiative.

Executive Vice Chairman, Guidance Bureau, Industries Department, Government of Tamil Nadu, M Velmurugan presented the investment opportunities in infrastructure sector in the state. He said that opportunities were abundant in areas of power, including renewable energy, roads and minor ports development, water augmentation and waste water treatment, logistics and industrial parks.

Detailed presentations on each of these sectors were made by senior officials of the concerned departments.

Co-chairman, International Networking Forum, CII, Southern Region and Whole-time Director Simpson & Co, PS Rajamani said there were tremendous investment opportunities for the Japanese companies in Tamil Nadu in areas like infrastructure, manufacturing and services.

Japan’s technology and investment in infrastructure sector can help bridge the supply gap in India’s infrastructure sector.

He said Japan’s IT hardware can complement India’s strength in software, while India’s edge in pharmaceutical, biotechnology and auto components industry can complement the Japanese proficiency in heavy engineering, automobiles, machinery and chemical industry.

India can benefit from the export of agricultural products since Japan was a huge importer of food. “Japanese investment and technology could also play an important role in promoting SME clusters in the country’’, Rajamani iterated.

There were also opportunities both for Indian and Japanese companies for co-operation in

various segments of services sector including fi nancial, tourism, healthcare and IT, he added.

Director, Manufacturing and Environment Industry Planning Div i sion, Ma nu fac t u r i ng and Environment industr y Department, JETRO, Tokyo, Masaki Takahara said, that the export of infrastructure with advanced cutting edge technology and know-how was a major business now. “The focus is not just on sales of equipment but on the entire system”, he said.

Director Genera l, JETRO Chennai, Shinya Fuji said that more than 40 percent of the profits of the Japanese companies were from the South, especially Tamil Nadu. Now there were 240 Japanese companies in Tamil Nadu and the number was set to increase. Tamil Nadu

(L-R) M Velmurugan, IES, Executive Vice Chairman, Guidance Bureau, Industries Dept., Government of Tamil Nadu; Masanori Nakano, Consul General of Japan, Chennai; Masaki Takahara, Director, Manufacturing and Environment Industry Department, JETRO Tokyo; N Sundaradevan, IAS, Industry Secretary, Government of Tamil Nadu & PS Rajamani, Co-Chairman, International Networking Forum, CII-SR

has been attracting large global investments and the state has

very fast industrial growth and urbanisation.

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ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONICS

Google releases report on search trends Our Bureau Mumbai

Most Searched Car Launches/Variants

G

oogle India recently released a report on the automotive sector in India providing deep insights into consumer search trends in the sector. A compilation of consumer search behaviour in the auto category (cars and bikes) in the last two years, ‘Google India Auto Report’ underlines how Indian consumers are increasingly relying on the internet to make auto purchase decisions.

“The report shows how crucial the internet has become in influencing purchase decisions of the consumers. In the last two years, we’ve seen great traction amongst the players in the auto vertical as they continue to embrace digital advertising to engage cars and bikes shoppers online. We have seen over 150 percent growth in revenues from the auto sector in 2010 and we expect the share of auto advertising spends on digital media to grow significantly in the next few years” said Vice President and Managing Director, Google India, Rajan Anandan.

The boom in the auto industry in India was reflected in the search behaviour of Indian users on Google. According to the report, the auto vertical registered 110 percent and 84 percent growth in 2009 and 2010 respectively on Google. The trend continues to show upward trajectory this year with the auto category showing a growth of 72 percent in the fi rst six months of 2011 over same period last year. The auto vertical is now also the fastest-growing vertical compared to other key verti-

(Jan-May 2011)

cals like consumer electronics, fi nance and travel.

The online search behaviour of consumers mirrors the offl ine world, as query volumes on Google search see a 38 percent increase over the fi rst half of the year, as Indian consumers tend to make auto purchases during the festive season. Indians are also more research oriented when it comes to auto related purchases, with 65 percent Indians using the internet as the fi rst place to do their research before deciding on the vehicle of their choice.

This is ahead of consumers in mature markets like the US and Europe where only 62 percent of users use internet as their fi rst stop.

For entry and mid-segment cars in the price range of (`twosix lakh), the highest selling car category by volumes in India, was also the most-searched category registering over 50 percent YoY growth in query volumes. In terms of type of queries, vehicleshopping queries accounted for over 49 percent of all cars related queries. Diesel cars queries saw a jump in query volumes registering 114 percent growth in 2010.

Diesel car queries saw a jump of 52 percent in the period of AprilMay 2011 even as petrol prices increased by `five-per-litre.

The search queries also reflected a trend in India’s grow-

ing appetite for luxury cars with SUVs emerging as the second most searched cars category registering over 61 percent growth YoY, followed by luxury cars in the price range of (`15-30 lakh) which emerged as the fastest growing car category showing a growth of 141 percent from June 2010 to May 2011 over the same period in ’09-’10.

Searches for bikes makes and models also show robust growth ahead of cars, with bike related queries growing 96 percent in 2010. Premium level bikes/ motorcycles i.e. bikes in 150 cc plus segment saw maximum query volumes and registered 90 percent YoY growth (from Jan 2010 to May 2011 compared to same time last year). Deluxe (bikes in 125 cc to 150 cc) are the fastest growing category registering 193 percent growth in query volumes. Entry-level bike category also showed a strong growth trend growing at 90 percent YoY. A mongst ot her notable trends, car fi nance queries also saw steep increase of over 51 percent in 2010. Indians used Google to fi nd out more details about car models, to visit auto websites, do price comparison, used car research and new launch research. Auto parts queries formed 26 percent of all car queries again highlighting

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2.

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8.

9.

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Maruti Alto K10 Ford Figo Hyundai i10 - next gen Maruti Kizashi Chevrolet Beat Nissan Micra New Hyundai Verna -Fluidic VW Polo Toyota Etios Maruti SX4 Diesel

Most Searched Auto Brands ( Jan-May 2011) 1.

2.

3.

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5.

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Maruti Honda Hyundai General Motors Tata Motors Toyota Ford VW Polo Fiat Others

Note: Data compiled on basis of search query volumes for car models five weeks prior and five weeks after the launch

Highlights z

Indian consumers are ahead of US and Europe in using the internet to research for car & bikes purchases

z In

terms of search query volumes, the auto vertical has taken off in last two years and is growing faster than key verticals like travel, consumer electronics & fi nance

z Vehicle shopping queries account for 49 percent of all auto related

queries on Google z Entry & mid-segment cars in the price range of (`

two to six lakh)

are the most searched z Diesel cars are big in demand and registered triple digit growth in

2010, search queries for diesel cars saw 52 percent growth in April to May 2011, when petrol fuel prices increased by ` five per litre z SUVs

are the second most searched car category, followed by luxury cars which is the fastest growing car category

z Search

queries for bikes saw over 96 percent in query volumes

in 2010 the use of internet to fi nd more details about auto parts, dealer and service centre network.

The report also looked into the search habit of mobile internet users for the auto vertical.

With an estimated base of over 40 million mobile internet users,

mobile searches for auto related queries also reflected a strong growth momentum - growing at over 300 percent in 2010.

The trend of using smart phones for doing product related searches is also showing a significant growth.

14th-16th September, 2011 - The Zuri White Sands Resort, Goa The first exclusive Strategy Workshop on the Logistics Industry, ‘Future Supply Chain Strategies’, conducted in 2010 by Frost & Sullivan’s Transportation and Logistics Practice, established a unique platform for the logistics service providers (LSPs) and end users to deeply explore the state of supply chains in key industries, identify the challenges, ways to address them, and above all, envision the potential strategies for future supply chains of these industries.

This year’s workshop titled “Future Supply Chain Strategies - THE WAY AHEAD” would serve as a platform to bring together all logistics end users and service providers under one roof and discuss the need for a combined effort from both the groups through collaborations, trust, and building relationships. Investments made through collaborations between service providers and end users would result in visibility and real-time information, and lead to the ideal future supply chain. This workshop aims to deliver a roadmap for this.

Frost & Sullivan welcomes you to be an integral part of this Interactive – Path Finding – Only One-Of-its kind Strategy Workshop!

Event Registration Fee: For 1 Person: INR 100,000/- + Service Tax @ 10.30% For 2-3 Persons: INR 90,000/- (per person) + Service Tax @ 10.30% Includes strategy workshop sessions participation, compendium, stay at The Zuri White Sands Resort, Goa during the summit, along with breakfast, lunch, cocktails, and dinner at the venue, pick up and drop facility from the Goa Airport

Platinum Sponsors

Associate Sponsors:

Key Benefits of Participating in the Workshop • •

Gain insights and learn about specific tools for actionable strategies for critical supply chain issues A platform to ideate and evaluate along with peers and leaders from key industries on the best possible methods and practices for future supply chains and develop practical, feasible, and sustainable models of supply chains for the future that can be implemented

Media Partners:

Whom to Expect The workshop intends to assemble a network of today’s best thinkers, visionaries, and thought leaders from across the following key sectors: •

Logistics Service Providers

•

Logistics Service End users Leading Companies from the Key Industry Sectors within the country including, - Automotive, IT Hardware and Telecom Equipment, Pharmaceuticals, and Retail

•

Logistics Infrastructure Providers Leading Providers of Logistics Infrastructure within the country, - Operators of Logistics Parks and Free Trade Warehousing Zones, ICD, CFS, and ports

To Register and know more about the event contact: Subir Shah; P: +91 22 6607 2031; M: +91 99875 41051; F: +91 22 2832 4713; E: subirs@frost.com Srinath Manda; P: +91 44 6681 4382; M:+91 98848 72788; E: srinathm@frost.com Priya George; P: +91 6681 4371, M: +91 98403 55432; E: priyag@frost.com For more information please visit: www.frost.com/FutureSupplyChainStrategies2011

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41

Open automation technologies to reduce costs Our Bureau Chennai

O

pen technologies, standards and components can be used for automation in the manufacturing sector to reduce cost of production and increase productivity. They are free, and need no royalty, patent or license. The industry can adopt these technologies, creating a complete Indian ecosystem, stated Managing Director, Ethernet Power Link Standardisation Group, Germany, Stefan Schonegger.

Schonegger’s presentation was titled, ‘Introduction to Open Automation and Network as its back bone’ at a conference on ‘Cost optimisation using open technologies in plant and machine automation’, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Southern Region, recently.

Rane profit up by 16 percent Our Bureau Chennai

R

ane Holdings, the investment arm of the Rane Group of companies, one of the leading auto components manufacturers in the country announced its unaudited consolidated financial results for the quarter ended 30 June, 2011 recently.

The company registered a sales & operating Income of `411.43 crore for the current quarter as against `353.54 crore for the same quarter of the previous year. The company’s profit before tax was registered at `26.13 crore, up by 16 percent over same quarter last year.

Executive Chairman, Rane Holdings, L Lakshman observed that in first quarter of the current fiscal, production by all OEMs in the auto industry grew by about twenty percent in comparison with the corresponding quarter of last year resulting in growth in customer demand.

Continental acquires Modi Our Bureau New Delhi

C

ontinental, one of the leading internationa l automotive suppliers and tyre manufacturers, has acquired 100 percent shareholding in Modi Tyres Company (MTCL), a subsidiary of Modi Rubber.

Further to the announcement in April, Continental has now received the necessary regulatory clearances and has completed the acquisition. The purchase price for 100 percent of the shares of MTCL is approximately Euro18.5 million. Both parties have agreed to keep other commercial details of the transaction confidential.

MTCL, now a subsidiary of Continental Corporation, will be renamed as Continental Tyres India. The new entity will focus on local production and distribution of bias and radial truck and bus tyres as well as radial passenger car tyres in India.

Continental Tyres India will have its registered office in Delhi with manufacturing facilities both in Modipuram and Partapur.

Currently, an integration team is working with the new employees on achieving an optimal start with a full set of resources from Continental.

He added that the present proprietary components used in industrial automation were not able to provide the flexibility and scalability without increasing costs, “which is the most critical requirement in manufacturing industry now”. He believed that irrespective of the size, any industry organisation could achieve benefits from open technologies like indigenization of critical business processes, reduction in the overall cost, standardisation technology, reduced complexity and multi-vendor solutions to avoid vendor lockups. He said the benefits for the device manufacturers included the absence of royalty and the possibility of building product features on top of the existing network.

For the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and system integrators, there are no

license costs for technologies.

They could make a free choice of components, or make their own devices and standardise device integration.

For the plant operators, open source technologies allowed standardisation of technologies rather than suppliers. They provided advanced concepts of production and reduced cost through supplier competition, said Schonegger.

Convenor, Manufacturing Panel, CII Chennai Zone, a nd G ener a l Ma nager (Manufacturing), Carborundum Universal, R Anantharaman, said that through the adoption of open systems, the manufacturing sector companies can achieve lower costs through long-term savings due to maintenance, interoperability, upgradeability, scalability and availability

(L-R) Stefan Schonegger, MD, Ethernet Powerlink Standardization Group; V Sekar, Co-Convenor, Manufacturing Panel, CII, Chennai Zone; R Anantharaman, Convenor, Manufacturing Panel, CII, Chennai Zone & Mahalingam, Director, Kalycito Group

of trained manpower. “Unlike closed proprietary systems, open systems don’t lead to vendor lockup situations”. He said the Indian companies could optimise the cost of automation systems by leveraging existing standards and open components.

CEO & Managing Director, Ka lycito Infotech, Bhagat h Singh Karuna karan stated, “With control over incremental costs, they can be extended to solve more complex requirements of a manufacturing plant,’’ he added.

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16 - 31 August 2011

Recovery systems reduces energy consumptions

E

nerg y Recover y (ER) systems are specifically designed to transfer the energy recovered from air compressors to the customers’ process. A properly designed heat recovery unit can recover anywhere from 50-94 percent of available thermal energy (as lowgrade heat) to heat air or water (up to 90°C or 140°F). Preheated water can be used in the application process to reduce the use of traditional energy sources reducing the amount of CO2 emissions.

Compressed air is one of the most important utilities for the industry. It is also one of the largest consumers of energy.

Therefore, any savings made in compressed air systems have a significant impact on costs and on the environment. While com-

Energy recovery systems by Atlas Copco

pressed air systems in general account for about 10 percent of total industrial electricity consumption, this can amount to as much as 40 percent of the electricity bill for certain plants.

The way to achieve the highest energy savings is to recover wasted energy through radiation losses by the use of heat recovery

systems. As much as 94 percent of the electrical energy used by an industrial air compressor is converted into heat and loss through radiation in the compression process. The remaining six percent is converted into compressed air heat losses. In view of this, Atlas Copco has been innovating in energy-efficient compressed

To achieve the highest energy savings is to recover wasted energy through radiation losses by use of heat recovery systems. Around 94 percent of the electrical energy used by an industrial air compressor is converted into heat & loss through radiation in the compression process air solutions for many years.

Hot water recovered from the

compressed air system can be used for many process applications. Hot water and steam are used in many dairy processes.

Steam is commonly used for pasteurisation, scalding, cleaning and sterilising cooking vessels and drying products. In larger dairies, huge amounts of hot water and steam are required in continuous processes. Here, the hot water energy recovery system of the compressor can provide substantial energy savings.

The chemical industry and refineries are major users of steam. Some applications are thermal steam crackers which require highly superheated steam at typically 40 bar.

Re-boilers and stripping employ superheated medium pressure steam at typically 10 bar. Heat tracing and other applications require superheated low pressure steam at typically 2 bar. In some processes, a great deal of hot water is recovered after the steam condenses. Hot water from compressors is used as make-up water to supplement the losses.

Large amounts of steam are used in the pharmaceutical industry and in manufacturing processes. Fermentation temperature control, drying and sterilisation processes are part of the daily routine of the pharmaceutical industry. The CIP (Clean In Place) cleaning method, SIP (Sterilization In Place), direct contact sterilisation in bioreactors and fermenters, and steam barriers against bacteria are commonly employed in these manufacturing units. The heat energy recovered from the Atlas Copco air compressor contributes to a higher bottom line.

Colouring of fabric makes use of considerable volumes of hot water at 80° to 90°C. Energy Recovery systems of Atlas Copco’s compressors can directly offer the hot water to the process. For yarn and fibre treatment steam is used for heat-setting manmade fibres to achieve dimensional stability, increased volume, and wrinkle and temperature resistance.

Significant volumes of compressed air are used in the wood pulp and paper industry. Vast amounts of steam are also used in the industrial processes.

Typical applications are bleaching, digesters, pulp machines and black liquor evaporators.

Steam is used for humidification since it is clean and inherently sterile. Clean room humidification in electronics assembly, chip manufacture and in pharmaceutical industry is a common practice. As this steam is used as a utility, continuous replenishment of water is required. Hot water from the air compressor can pre-heat the replenished water, and consequently, reduce the energy consumption of the steam boiler.

Highly superheated steam (typically 40 bar) is used for motive applications such as steam turbines that are used as prime movers for captive power generation and for several machines.

Preheated boiler feed water reduces fuel consumption in boilers resulting in significant savings.

Committed to sustainable productivity, Atlas Copco ensures reliable, lasting results with a responsible use of resources; human, natural and capital.

(Courtesy: Atlas Copco)

16 - 31 August 2011

TECHNOLOGY

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43

Dürr builds paint shop for Audi D

ürr is building a paint shop in Hungary for Audi AG. The plant at the Györ in Hungary offers the highest quality at low operating and energy costs. The volume of Dürr’s share amounts to almost Euro 60 million.

The well-proven RoDip M rotational dip coating is used in pre-treatment and electro dipping. The rotational movement of the car bodies thus allows inclined sections at the entrance and exit of the dip tank to be eliminated. The consequence of this, in addition to space savings, is a reduced consumption of energy and chemicals due to smaller bath volumes.

The spray booths in the primer and topcoat areas are equipped with the innovative EcoDryScrubber spray booth

Federal-Mogul’s cable makes hybrids, EVs safer

F

ederal-Mogul Corporation has developed a protective product for high voltage cables that will help protect occupants of electric and hybrid electric vehicles in the event of a crash. The new material, called CrushShield, surrounds and protects electrical cables, keeping the electrical system isolated from the rest of the vehicle. CrushShield is one of the fi rst cable products in the market to meet the requirements of new US federal vehicle safety regulations and is already in production for a market-leading hybrid electric vehicle.

Crushshield

The new US Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard regulations (FMVSS 305), which take effect on September 1, 2011, require manufacturers of hybrids and electric vehicles to ensure that, in the event of an impact, the electrical energy storage, conversion and traction systems do not threaten the safety of the vehicle occupants. Either the systems must be electrically isolated from the vehicle’s chassis or their voltage must be below specified levels that are considered safe from electric shock hazards.

Similar safety regulations are expected to be introduced in other global markets.

The company’s CrushShield encases the wire harness so that the battery cable remains isolated from the conducting structure of the vehicle. CrushShield incorporates a rugged, multi-layer fabric with a unique substrate design, which together absorbs and disperses energy. Its construction helps manufacturers of existing hybrid and electric vehicle models meet the new regulations without requiring electrical component or wiring redesign.

“This innovative product demonstrates Federal-Mogul’s depth of technical expertise in systems protection.” said Senior Vice President, Federal-Mogul Vehicle Safety and Protection, Ramzi Hermiz.

CrushShield was developed by a collaborative team working in Exton, Penn., US; Shonan, Japan and Crépy-en-Valois, France.

system for dry separation of wet paint overspray. This system, which requires no water and chemicals, saves 60 percent energy through air recirculation, and the paint booth’s cross-section is reduced by 35 percent. In 40 painting lines across four continents, this technology is already being installed or work on them has already begun.

Interior and exterior painting with primer and topcoat is fully automated with robots. The seven painting stations are equipped with 31 type EcoRP L133 painting robots from Dürr and 21 type EcoRP L033 or EcoRP L030 handling robots. Paint application at the painting stations is performed using the latest electrostatic atomizer generation from Dürr—the EcoBell3. Before applying the primer and basecoat

the car bodies are cleaned in two cleaning stations by six EcoRS60 robots with sword brushes.

Dürr’s scope of delivery in this contract, issued by Audi in the fi rst quarter of 2010, also includes the process control system as well as the internal conveyor technology complete with the associated electronics. In addition, Dürr is responsible for overall coordination of the project.

Starting in 2013, Audi will paint up to 125,000 vehicles per year in this plant.

Dürr is a mechanical and plant engineering group that holds leading positions in the world market in its areas of operation. It generates a good 80 percent of its sales in business with the automotive industry. It furthermore supplies the aircraft, machinery, chemical, and pharmaceutical

industries with innovative production and environmental technologies. The Dürr Group operates in the market with three divisions. The Paint and Assembly Systems div ision supplies production and painting technology, especially for car bodies.

Machinery and systems from the Measuring and Process Systems division are used in engine and transmission manufacturing and in fi nal vehicle assembly, among other areas.

The third division, Clean Technology Systems, is focused on processes to improve energy efficiency and on exhaust air purification. Dürr has been active

Dürr EcoDryScrubber

in India for nearly 50 years, with a local presence for over 20 years.

Dürr’s wide array of activities in India also includes industrial cleaning and automation solutions and consulting. Dürr has made India an important hub for their worldwide Engineering activities offering its customers international know-how and local experience.

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16 - 31 August 2011

Our Bureau Chennai

T

he CII Institute of Logistics organised a two-day conference on ‘Building Warehousing Competitiveness: The Key to Logistics Success’ on 28 and 29 July, 2011 in Chennai. More than 300 delegates attended the conference from various industries. The Minister of State (IC), Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, Government of India, Prof KV Thomas, inaugurated the conference.

The two-day conference discussed various measures such as upgrading the Indian logistics industry in terms of technology and resolving the infrastructure as well as regulatory issues with

a focus on warehousing.

Delivering his inaugural address, the minister said that the Union Government has plans to create a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to undertake studies on foodgrain storage handling and transportation. Besides, the Planning Commission is also conducting a comprehensive study to suggest measures for the development of a modern storage infrastructure to boost the growth of the warehousing sector; the centre has also introduced a negotiable warehouse receipt system in the country.

The minister added that with a view to providing the much-needed renovation to the warehouses, the diversification of services have been initiated on a wide scale aimed at improv-

Photograph: Akmal Rahman B

Warehousing infrastructure: Key

(L-R) Dilraj Singh Gandhi, Principal Consultant, Consulting, PricewaterhouseCoopers; Mark Drabenstott, Secretary General, Global Coalition for Efficient Logistics; Prof KV Thomas, Minister of State for Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution; R Dinesh, Event Chairman, Building Warehousing Competitiveness & JMD, TVS & Sons; Mike Nithavrianakis, British Deputy High Commissioner, British High Commission & KV Mahidhar, Head, CII Institute of Logistic

ing the agro-supply chain. “The efficiency of the private sector and the fundamentals of the public sector can be combined and the risks can be shared,” he said. The logistic market is valued at `5.6 trillion in 2010 and it is likely to touch around `17 trillion by 2015.

The two-day event, had around eight exhibitors including Coign Consulting, Chep India, Indospace, TCI, and TVS Logistics. Participants from several segments including the officials of Tamil Nadu Wa rehousing Cor porat ion, Voltas, Fenner, Blue Star, Ashok Leyland, Harley Davidson, TAFE, TVS Lucas, Delphi and Godrej were present.

On the fi rst day, there were three sessions during which, speakers from various industries talked about their experience with warehousing. The session bought forth issues like transformation of warehouses from end-to-end distribution, regulatory issues faced in the warehousing sector and warehousing for aftermarket applications. On the second day, the conference covered issues like managingfinishedgoodsinventory, essential infrastructure, technology and advanced systems for warehouse management.

Warehousing Potential Warehousing accounts for about 20 percent of the domestic logistics market and is expected to grow at a rate of 35-40 percent annually, displaying high potential for growth over the next few years. “It is imperative for the sector to not only modernise but also adopt best practices to achieve a world-class infrastructure platform,” Event Chairman & Joint Managing Director, TVS & Sons, R Dinesh said while addressing the event.

Br it ish Deput y Hig h C om m i s s i on e r, Mike Nithavrianakis, spoke about warehousing competitiveness in the UK and said that commercial opportunities were enormous and both countries should address the significant opportunities for mutual benefit.

In order to identify efficiency of the Indian logistics sector, CII has inked an agreement with Switzerland-based non-profit organisation GCEL last December. Through this initiative, the CII and GCEL will undertake a study on the efficiency of the Indian logistics industry and the various ways to help develop the industry, as it involves a large amount of trade.

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45

to faster logistics growth D u r i ng t he e v ent , Pr incipa l Consu lta nt, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC), Dilraj Singh Gandhi released an exclusive report titled ‘Building Warehousing Competitiveness’, prepared by CII-Institute of Logistics and PWC. Addressing it, he said, “From a mere combination of transportation and storage services, logistics is fast emerging as a strategic function that involves end-to-end solutions that improve efficiencies.

In this report, we have tried to encapsulate our analysis on the warehousing services in India, their current challenges and future opportunities and discuss ways to improve and make warehousing more efficient.”

In the past few years, the space and size of the warehouses

CII has inked an agreement with Switzerland-based GCEL. Through this initiative, both will undertake a study on the efficiency of the Indian logistics industry and the various ways to help develop the industry.

Also, creating multiple warehouses will help the companies to take the product closer to the customer & deliver the product much faster—this method is called as ‘depot to customer network’

in automotive industry are growing as it is developing at a rapid pace in India. Manufacturing companies are facing difficulties for managing the warehouses due to the unprecedented growth. The transition time for the supply chain has also reduced compared to few years ago, as the technology is implemented from taking orders, distributor confirmation for releasing the dispatch to invoice processing—all these creates pressure on warehouses. To overcome these complications, it is necessary for warehouses to modernise, as the pull-push and internal processing is becoming much faster.

According to the President, Chep India, Pranil Vadgama, another challenge in the supply chain in India is the huge volume of the inventories as the industry is growing. To overcome this, collaborations in the supply chain via equipment pooling will help the companies to drive the efficient flow of materials and information.

Regulatory Issues The event also discussed the regulatory issues on warehousing, Director, Cogin Consulting, Arif Siddiqui, spoke about the leveraging the regulatory framework to optimise growth opportunities in the sector and other issues in the warehousing industry.

The conference also discussed warehousing for aftermarket applications. Addressing the issues, the Group Head, Mobis India, Mukund Srinivasan spoke about the pan India opportunities in warehousing and added that creating multiple warehouses will help the companies to take the product closer to the customer, which will help in delivering the product much faster and more easily—this method is called as ‘depot to customer network’.

Other key factors for aftermarket warehousing are that it should have RFID (Radio Frequency Ident if icat ion) tech nolog y and bar coding with TDS (Tax Deduction at Source) so that it will be able to improve warehousing operations faster. “Just having a

warehouse management system with ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) but without properly designed warehouse automation can become a major constraint” said the Chief Operating Officer, TVS logistics, KB Nagaraju.

According to CII-Institute of Logistics and a PWC study, the dynamic market requirements have made it imperative for Indian warehousing players to overcome challenges and maintain, improve and sustain competitiveness. Various measures such as skill development, policy initiatives and government measures, IT adoption and increased investments in the sector can be effective in increasing the competitiveness of the Indian warehousing players. However, this journey can be smoothened

Delegates at the conference

and simplified if the challenges and concerns are addressed with collaborative efforts among all stakeholders including the government and its agencies, policy-makers, entrepreneurs,

investors, logistics service providers, manufacturers, farmers and sellers. The mutual integration among them will rewrite the success story for the logistics and warehousing industry.

46

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 August 2011

STUDY

Rise in farm credit to push mechanisation levels in agriculture sector Revati Kasture Head, Industry Research, CARE Research

Tractor penetration

35

5.0

Vishal Srivastav Analyst, CARE Research

30

4.0

West-India to drive growth Improving irrigation facility and good monsoons in the last four-five years have boosted agriculture produce and consequently tractor demand in western India.

Maharashtra was among the highest growing tractor market during the last fi ve years. CARE Research foresees the high growth momentum to continue in the western region as Maharashtra and Gujarat are expected to witness a healthy growth scenario in the coming four-fi ve years. Low penetration levels, increased farm income and increasing demand from infrastructure activities would drive this growth.

During the last two-three years, the demand in the southern regions have been adversely affected by f loods in Andhra Pradesh (AP) and Karnataka

0

FY11

FY01

FY91

FY71

FY81

5

Penetration per thousand hectares (RHS) Source: CARE Research Estimates

Trend in tractor domestic sales

0.60

35% 30%

0.50

25%

0.40

20% 15%

0.30

10%

0.20

5% 0%

0.10

-5%

0.00

-10% FY05

FY06

FY07 FY08 Tractor sales (LHS)

FY09

FY10 FY11 Growth (RHS)

Source: CMIE and CARE Research

Trend in power contributed by tractors Proportion of mechanical and nonmechanical power sources in agriculture 1.20

2.0

1.00

Kw/hectare

1.5 1.0 0.5

0.60 0.40

FY06

FY11E

FY01

FY96

FY92

FY86

FY82

FY76

FY72

FY11E

FY06

FY01

FY96

FY92

FY86

0.00

Non-mechanical P ower Mechanical Power

Source: Power Availability in Indian Agriculture, 2000 CIAE Bhopal, Agricultural Research Data Book 2003, IASR New Delhi and CARE Research estimates

80

Trend in power contributed by tractors

70

Har

60

Pun

50 40 30 20

UP

North

Guj

Utt 10

India average

AP

MP J&K Him

Or

South

Jar East Chh

Raj Mah West

Kar

WB

Ker

Ass

0

Expected growth scenario next 4-5 years

Low

High

Low

High

Low

CARE Research estimates, large tractors (greater than 41HP) would continue to drive industry growth and register a rise of around 11-12 per cent during FY11-FY16 period. Continued buoyancy in southern and western markets due to lower penetration levels and increasing demand from non-agriculture application would drive this growth. Mid-size tractor segment (31-40HP) which dominates industry demand is expected to witness marginal growth of around three-four percent on CAGR basis, while the demand for small tractor segment (less than 30HP) is estimated at a CAGR of five-six percent during FY11-FY16. Cannibalisation mainly from large tractor segment is expected to pull down the growth levels of mid-size tractor segment in coming years.

EBITDA To Benefit From Input Costs

TN

Bh

Large Investments Expected Strong recovery in tractor demand during FY10 & FY11, after a bleak performance in FY09, raised the utilisation levels of all the key players considerably in FY11. Gauging the huge opportunities in the domestic market, almost all major tractor manufacturers have announced expansion plans for the next two-three years. It is estimated that around `1,8002,000 crore has been lined up towards investments in capacity expansion and product development in the next twothree year period. CARE Research foresees the industry growth levels to come down from the current levels as the utilisation rates are expected to drop for the next two years. However, modest rise in domestic sales coupled with healthy export growth would be able to maintain the utilization rates at healthy levels.

Demand Towards Tractors

0.80

0.20 0.0 FY82

After surpassing hiccups in FY09, the tractor industry was back on the roll in FY10 registering a strong growth of 31 percent. The growth momentum continued in FY11 as the industry observed a healthy rise of around 22 percent in its domestic unit sales. Healthy monsoons in most parts of the country, rise in minimum support price (MSP), favourable farm credit scenario coupled with shortage of agricultural labourers owing to the rise in employment opportunities in rural areas through National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) led this growth.

10 1.0

FY76

Tractor industry remains buoyant

15

FY72

The rise in tractor penetration also improved the mechanisation levels significantly in agriculture sector. CARE Research estimates the share of mechanical and electric power in overall power used in agriculture sector has increased from 83 per cent in FY01 to 86 per hectare in FY06 and further is estimated to have increased to around 90 per hectare in FY11. The share of tractors in mechanisation devices which is the primary driver influencing the rise in mechanization in agriculture sector has increased from around 48 per cent in FY01 to around 60 per cent in FY11.

2.0

Tractor population (LHS)

Units (in mn)

Tractors drive mechanisation levels

20

0.0

Kw/hectare

T

he government of India is committed towards increasing the production and efficiency levels in the agriculture sector and has recognised improvement in farm mechanisation as one of the important factors that would push the efficiency levels in agriculture.

The movement ca lled ‘Green Revolution’ started in1960, laid down significant steps towards development of the agriculture sector that included concessional credit for buying tractors, which consequently boosted tractor demand.

Furthermore, rise in the awareness levels, substantial improvement in agricultural credit disbursements combined with increase in the income levels has fuelled the growth in tractor demand.

CARE Research estimates that the overall tractor population has increased from around 0.15 million units in 1970 to around 4.2 million units in FY11 and its penetration level has increased from around one tractor per thousand hectares in 1970 to around 29 tractors per thousand hectares currently.

Units (in mn)

25 3.0

which are the two major tractor markets in Southern India. However, CARE Research believes that the lower penetration levels combined with rising coverage of non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) in agriculture credit would lead to improvement in credit availability and thus boost the tractor demand during the next five years.

Historically, the northern region has dominated the tractor demand. Punjab, Haryana and western UP have the highest tractor penetration levels in India.

However, during the last two years, floods resulting in crop loss have subdued the demand growth to some extent in this region. CARE Research expects growth in tractor demand to slow down in these regions in the next four-five year period.

Eastern UP, which is among the largest agriculture belts in India is expected to drive northern India sales owing to low level of penetration.

CARE Resea rch foresees t he replacement demand, increased infrastructure activities and shortage of farm labourers owing to creation of various alternative employment opportunities through NREGA to push the tractor demand in Northern regions at moderate levels in the next fi ve-year period.

High

Low

The growth in the top line of the tractor industry is expected to percolate to the bottom line, as margins in FY12 are estimated to witness a marginal rise of around 10-20 BPS. Although the rise in input prices kept the industry margins under strain in FY11, CARE Research foresees input prices to marginally soften in FY12, benefiting the industry margins by some extent.

High

Source: : CMIE and CARE Research Note: Har: Haryana, Pun: Punjab, UP: Uttar Pradesh, MP: Madhya Pradesh, J&K: Jammu and Kashmir, Utt: Uttarakhand, Him: Himchal Pradesh, Bh: Bihar, Jar: Jharkhand, Or: Orissa, WB: West Bengal, Chh: Chhattisgarh, Ass: Assam, TN: Tamil Nadu, AP: Andhra Pradesh, Kar: Karnataka, Ker: Kerala, Guj: Gujarat, Mah:Maharashtra, Raj: Rajasthan

(The report is prepared by CARE Research, a division of Credit Analysis & Research.

Views expressed are personal.)

16 - 31 August 2011

Auto Monitor

TECHNOLOGY

47

Microfinishing: The process of perfection

Milind D Kelkar MD, Grind Master Machines

D

esigners of Auto parts are resorting to more and more varied and stringent parameters to be satisfied by surface finishing in a bid to meet noise and pollution norms as well as decreased warranty claims, eg a mundane finish like 0.4 Microns Ra, which can be achieved by grinding, is suffi xed by the word ‘Microfinished’ to ensure 200,000 KM Warranty from the same part.

In the mid-1930’s, it was discovered that automobiles transported to the west coast from Detroit, had a much higher rate of wheel bearing noise, such as chatter and clicking than did the cars sold closer to Detroit. It was discovered that the bearing races (which were only ground) brinnelled during shipping due to the constant vibration of the railroad carrier.

The weight of the vehicle and vibrations of the shipping carrier caused the stationary needle bearing to compress the non micro-fi nish surface. The needle bearing thus rolling over the brinnelled low spots, causes an undesirable clicking noise.

An examination of the texture left on a metal surface as a result of machining operation will reveal tool marks, fragmented metal and chatter. When a metal or steel part is machined, the surface becomes fragmented and also annealed if a heat generating grinding process is used. This type of surface will not support high bearing loads.

It can cause poor performance or bearing failure.

Loads are equally distributed if the shaft bearing journal have correct geometry and surface texture. Roughness on a bearing journal breaks up the supporting oil fi lm and allows the surface to contact each other and cause pre-mature wear. Waviness in roundness geometry is referred to as Chatter or Lobing and it is another factor which increases the bearing loads. The combination of roughness and waviness geometry are most detrimental to bearing life.

Newer more fuel-efficient smaller engines produce higher bearing loads than engines produced a decade ago. Engine test studies have shown that some bearing surfaces with slight cross hatch fi nish specifications help engines maintain maximum hydrodynamic oil fi lm on journals, but oil seal surfaces generally do not require cross hatch fi nishing. A cross hatch fi nish on an oil seal may cause a vane-type pumping action to pump oil past the seal. An oil seal with a straight- line fi nish is much more effective.

Roughness average (Ra) surface measurement are nearly always shown on engineering drawings where surface fi nish is specified, but it is not the only surface measurement that indicates a good bearing surface.

Ra can be misleading. Both the surfaces shown in sketch below have same Ra value, but surface with flat areas makes a better bearing surface with good oil retention.

Bearing ratio Tp is extremely important since it illustrates the amount of bearing area one can expect from a surface.

Grinding operations of crankshaft main bearings and connecting rod journals, camshaft lobes and bearing and transmission shafts will produce bearing journals with many different types of errors, including errors in roundness, waviness, chatter, taper, barrel, hourglass, etc. Even though a bearing journal has optimum surface fi nish, the hydrodynamic oil fi lm cannot be maintained if any of these conditions exist.

Microfinishing IMPCO spent half a century to develop the process that enables manufacturers to accurately remove the amorphous material layer and thus to control surface finish, bearing ratio, geometry, and even size of bearing journals. The patented IMPCO Generating Bearing Quality (GBQ) process is used by manufacturers responsible for nearly 90 percent all crankshafts produced in North America. GBQ Microfinishing has been proven to assure efficient, troublefree, long-term performance.

The worldstar series by IMPCO is a benchmark for production machine tool reliability & automakers worldwide fi nd this essential in the production of long life, high performance engines, both gas

GBQ Microfinishing has proven to assure efficient and long-term performance

& diesel with minimal warranty costs. Grind Master Machines is an exclusive Licensee of IMPCO in India & China.

(The author is associated with Grind Master Machines. Views expressed are personal.)

48

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 August 2011

STUDY

Volkswagen Plastics Technology relies Doris Schulz

C

onforming to the motto less is more, Volkswagen Plastics Technology in Braunschweig in Germany has started using a single-layer painting system for a new interior component. The process not only reduces the consumption of resources and pollutant emissions, but the semi-transparent metallic painting also lends the already-shiny injection moulded part a sophisticated look.

However, the painting system demands an absolutely clean, residue-free surface. This has been achieved with the aid of a dry CO2 snow jet cleaning technique which is gentle on materials.

In order to economise on resources and costs as well as

The CO2 snow jet system has been integrated into a large paint booth measuring 5.5 x 4 x 3 metres (LxBxH) together with a turning station and needs much less space than a power washer with a dryer

reduce environmental damage, Volkswagens production plants implement the latest technologies such as cogeneration units,

biogas plants, fi ller-free body paints and thermal afterburners to recover energy from solventpolluted exhaust air. In the

Component-specific cleaning programmes are filed in the robot controls for approximately 20 different work pieces. To prevent recontamination, all dirt which has been removed is extracted

development and manufacture of interior components such as panels, trims, ventilation grilles and air diffusers, Volkswagen

Offers 4 weeks comprehensive course Batch 4 05 - 30 Sep 2011, Bangalore

fi nds ways of further increasing sustainability at its Plastics Technology in Braunschweig.

Everyday, Plastic Technology processes approximately 45 tonnes of granulate material to manufacture injection-moulded parts. A range of about 450 interior components of different colours are produced and installed into various passenger vehicle models and the Multivan T5 around the world. Some of these a re injectionmoulded parts with a high-gloss finish and can be installed without needing to be coated. One of the latest vehicle models produced by Europes largest car manufacturer is fitted with a high-gloss panel made from ABS-PC blend (ABS: Acrylonitrile-Butadiene-Styrene; PC: Polycarbonate) which is subsequently painted with a semitransparent high-gloss metallic paint. This paint is applied to the component as a single layer without an undercoat, so the surface has to be flawless. The tiniest dust particle or water mark would cause rejects. Therefore, we needed a cleaning solution which is efficient, gentle on materials and guarantees consistent results, explained Uwe Strauss, Painting Systems / Plastics Technology Planning at Volkswagen in Braunschweig.

The Solution

IMTMA’s “FINISHING SCHOOL IN PRODUCTION ENGINEERING” will train young engineers on all aspects of Production Engineering. ŸEngineering Drawing ŸLimits/Fits & Tolerances ŸGD & T ŸSoft Skills

ŸProcess Planning ŸSelection of Cutting Tools ŸCNC Programming ŸImproving employability

ŸCNC Machining ŸCAD/CAM ŸInspection & Metrology

This course will enhance skill sets of fresh engineers in Mechanical Engg. with a blend of Practical sessions, Hands-on training on CNC Turning & Machining Centres with industry visits.

Eligibility : Fresh engineers (BE/Diploma) in Mech engg or allied disciplines and New recruits / Trainee engineers / Practicing engineers from industries Venue : IMTMA Technology Centre, BIEC, Bangalore

For further details and registration please contact :

Mr. Anuj Kumar Phone : 080-66246514/66246600 E-mail : anuj@imtma.in Website : www.imtma.in

The classic alternative wetchemical cleaning with a powerwash system was mainly rejected for reasons of cost-effectiveness and sustainability.

However, due to its high space requirements, it would have been impossible to install such a cleaning system upstream of the paint shop.

In tests with conventional dry-ice cleaning systems, it was observed that the coarse ice pellets damaged the sensitive surface of components when used as a cleaning medium. “The CO2 snow jet process from advanced clean production GmbH was founded in Stuttgart, Germany (acp). It gave us an alternative, so we told one of the company’s employees about what we needed. It wasn’t long before we were sent a proposal for a solution, and tests confi rmed that we could achieve optimum cleaning results with the process,” Strauss recalled. With the CO2 snow jet technique, liquid carbon dioxide is used instead of dry ice pellets. Carbon dioxide gas is produced as a by-product in a variety of manufacturing processes in the chemical industry; it is environmentally neutral and gentle on resources.

Dry & Gentle The modularly-constructed CO2 snow jet system made by acp achieves its effective cleaning

16 - 31 August 2011

Auto Monitor

STUDY

49

on CO2 snow jet technology

The various parts are cleaned in batches

power via the supersonic twocomponent ring nozzle integrated into the compact cleaning head.

Liquid carbon dioxide is guided through the nozzle and expands on exit to form a mixture of snow and gas. Oil-free compressed air is fed to the core jet as a jacketed jet, accelerating the non-toxic, noncombustible CO2 snow crystals to supersonic speed. When the easily-focused jet impacts on the surface to be cleaned, the snow crystals liquefy and then sublimate. The sublimation impulse causes any particulate contamination present to detach and be carried away.

In the liquid phase, carbon dioxide also acts as a solvent which removes organic contamination. At the same time, the low degree of hardness of the snow crystals ensures gentle and reproducible cleaning results on the high-gloss surface of the component. During the test phase, we also carried out test series with other components made of different materials. This proved that the CO2 cleaning process can be implemented for our entire range of work pieces, reported Strauss.

Cleaning Integrated In line with Volkswagen Plastics Technology requirements, acp designed a robotic cleaning system with a nozzle array containing seven cleaning heads. The component-specific programs fi led in the robot controls ensure that each of the approximately 20 different workpieces is cleaned fully-automatically according to its geometry. Oil-free compressed air and liquid carbon dioxide stored in tanks are fed to the array via a hose system.

The robot installation is integrated into a booth measuring about 5.5 x 4 x 3 metres (LxBxH).

The cleaning cell located at the rear wall has a continuous extraction unit. This prevents cleaned parts from becoming re-contaminated by dirt as it is removed. A turning station, which can be switched on separately, is located in the booth downstream of the cleaning process, allowing suspension gear to be rotated by 180 degrees. acp provided us with ideal support both during the test phase and afterwards when we started implementing the cleaning system, enabling us to integrate it into the painting process within the space of just three months, said Strauss.

High Cost-efficiency The CO2 snow jet system has been running in three-shift series operation at the Volkswagen works in Braunschweig since August 2010. Several thousand plastic parts are cleaned by it every day.

The work pieces are suspended on special painting racks directly at the injection-moulding plant.

Workers wear gloves while han-

dling high gloss parts, Strauss explained. The racks are mounted on trolleys, transported to the painting line and fed into the

A single layer of semi-transparent paint is applied to the injection-moulded panel which already has a high-gloss finish. This demands an absolutely particle and film-free surface

cleaning, they are fed through a station fitted with two ionizing rods. After being transported along a short stretch designed as a clean room, paint is then applied to the components by two robots in the painting booth. On leaving the evaporation zone, the parts are then dried at around 80°C. “With the CO2 snow jet system from acp, we have not only found a cost-effective and reliable cleaning solution, but also succeeded in reducing the workload on our staff, decreasing environmental pollution and also lowering our reject rate by another three percent, summarised Strauss.

painting chain. The fi rst station in the line is the cleaning unit.

To prevent any dust from sedimenting on the work pieces after

(The author is associated with Volkswagen Plastics Technology, Braunschweig, Germany. Views expressed are personal.)

16 - 31 August 2011

Auto Monitor

EVENT

51

PaintExpo 2012 to boost latest painting technologies The leading international trade fair for industrial coating technology is to be held from 17-20 April, 2012 in Karlsruhe, Germany.

F

or companies with inhouse painting facilities as well as job-shop coaters, increasing material and energy efficiency in coating processes are top priorities. Appropriate solutions will be presented at the fourth edition of the PaintExpo, whose exhibitor list already includes at least 230 companies.

The exhibition programme at the leading international trade fair for industrial coating technology, which will be held at the Karlsruhe Exhibition Centre from 17 through 20 April 2012, ranges from pre-treatment to quality control.

Regardless of the industry sector for which metals, plastics, glass, wood and other materials need to be coated— strong demand for improved efficiency and, at the same time, enhanced quality and ecology is being felt in all market segments. Increased flexibility is an additional issue which concerns companies with in-house painting operations. On one hand, this involves smaller and smaller manufacturing lot sizes in many areas. On the other hand, painting systems are in demand which can be flexibly expanded and set up for various processes.

Companies with inhouse painting operations and coating job-shops will fi nd solutions to these challenges at the PaintExpo. Registered participants come from the fields of equipment and application technology—and nearly all of the market and technology leaders are included in the exhibitor list. As a result, the upcoming event will not only encompass the world’s most comprehensive offerings for liquid painting, powder coating and coil coating, it will also present innovative developments and new trends in all of the sectors represented at the exhibition.

Optimising Processes In order to reduce energy and material consumption, efforts are being made to decrease the number of steps required when coating parts made of metal and plastic in various industry sectors One of the solutions to this problem involves primerless liquid painting systems. These make it possible to replace the conventional three-coat system consisting of primer, base coat and clear coat with a twocoat fi nish. This results in more demanding requirements for the surface of the substrate, and thus for pre-treatment as well.

Nano-technology is playing an ever greater role in paint production as well, amongst others the nano sol-gel process.

Applications for these paint systems include, for example, the application of transparent, highly scratch-resistant protective coatings on high-gloss anodised, decorative aluminium parts. The significance of UV paints continues to grow as well—for plastic as well as metal substrates. In the field of solvent-based paint systems, the trend is moving towards higher and higher solid content levels in order to reduce the solvent percentage.

An optimised application technique which assures great-

est possible transfer efficiency is a prerequisite for reduced material consumption. This is made possible by paint guns and high-speed rotary atomizers with a spray jet which is matched to workpiece geometry.

Electrostatic application processes are even more efficient, and necessitate electrical isolation when processing hydro paints.

New electrical isolation systems which are located directly on the robot arm not only minimise paint loss and rinsing agent consumption, they also reduce time required for colour changeovers as well.

Another approach to reducing material consumption and increasing fl exibility involves intelligent paint logistics with flexible paint feeding systems.

For example, pipe-clearing technology makes it possible to recover unused paint from the feed lines and to dose defi ned quantities of paint to the application equipment.

GLIMPSES OF PAINTEXPO 2010

ELITE MOLD

Add: No.17 Yongjiang(s)Road Beilun Zone.Ningbo.China P.C.: 315806 Sales Tel: Tracy Lin +86-13706848069 +86-574-86148158 After-sales Tel: Steven Lin +86-13566032563 +86-574-86117178-804 Fax: +86-574-86117138 Email: tracy@cmmould.com.cn www.elitemould.cc

52

Auto Monitor

GLOBAL WATCH

16 - 31 August 2011

International auto round-up AMERICA

GM posts $2.5 bn profit GM posted a global profit of $2.5 billion for the second quarter, helped by strong results in North America and a profit at its Opel/Vauxhall unit in Europe.

GM’s global net income for the April-through-June period nearly doubled from $1.3 billion in the year-earlier quarter. It was GM’s sixth consecutive quarterly profit since exiting bankruptcy in mid-2009. Revenue grew 19 percent to $39.4 billion. GM reported profits in all its operating regions, including Europe where it has been struggling to restructure its Opel unit. Net income in North America rose 41 percent from the second quarter of 2010 to $2.2 billion. It posted a

$102 million net profit in Europe for the second quarter, reversing a $160 million loss a year earlier. European revenue rose to $7.5 billion from $6 billion. GM said its European unit incurred restructuring costs of approximately $100 million, which was around $200 million less than in last year’s second quarter.

Ford to sell parts plants Ford has secured an agreement to sell the Automotive Components Holdings’ plant in Saline to French auto supplier Faurecia. Another agreement is in hand for ACH’s lighting plant in Sandusky, Ohio, signed in recent months. ACH, a wholly-owned subsidiary of

Ford, currently operates four plants—down from 17 when the carmaker first formed the group to take over plants sold back to Ford by Visteon in 2005.

The company continues to seek buyers for its climate control plant in Plymouth, Michigan.

ACH completed the sale of its Michigan, fuel tank plant to Inergy Automotive Systems earlier this year. Paris-based Inergy is currently leasing the facility while it builds an all-new operation in the Detroit suburb. The Saline facility is one of the biggest interiors parts plants in the region, covering more than one million square feet of manufacturing space and employing 2,300 people.

Toyota to build electric SUV with Tesla Toyota will build an electric RAV4 small SUV at its Woodstock, Ontario, plant starting next year, the company said. Its partner, Tesla Motors, will build electric powertrains for the vehicle at its Palo Alto, California facility and ship them to Canada. Toyota is paying Tesla around $100 million for the electric powertrain, which includes the battery, motor, gear box and power electronics. Toyota and Tesla agreed to work together on the electric RAV4 as part of a partnership they formed in 2010.

The Japanese automaker offered to invest $50 million in Tesla, a manufacturer of premium electric cars, and Tesla agreed to buy

part of a Fremont, Califprnia, plant shuttered early last year and produce electric cars.

Chrysler recalls minivans over air bag issue Chrysler is recalling nearly 300,000 minivans in the US over concerns that air bags may deploy inadvertently, the automaker said.

The company is recalling 299,718 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan, Chrysler Grand Voyager and Chrysler Town & Country minivans to replace a module in the United States. The Auburn Hills automaker also is recalling 50,251 vehicles in Canada, 3,748 vehicles in Mexico and 13,633 export models. The company said a leak from the air-conditioning and heating system might cause the Occupant Restraint Control module to fail, which could lead to an inadvertent air bag deployment without warning or the illumination of the air bag warning light.

This is the second recall of the minivans since November. Last year, Chrysler recalled the minivans to replace a drain tube and grommet to fi x the potential for water to condense and enter the air bag module.

GM to build XTS sedan under Cadillac brand GM will invest $117 million to ready its assembly plant in Oshawa, Ontario, to build the new Cadillac XTS luxury sedan, while securing 400 jobs at a factory that had been hard-hit by layoffs. The XTS is more stylish than the discontinued Cadillac STS and DTS sedans and is meant to lure buyers of European luxury makes. Production is planned to start in the fi rst half of 2012, GM said. The plant laid off more than 1,000 workers during the brutal downturn in the North American auto market in 2008 and 2009, when GM fi led for bankruptcy protection. The XTS will be built on GM’s Epsilon front-wheel-drive platform. It’s likely to get the same powertrain as the concept shown at the Detroit auto show in 2010: a 3.6litre V-6 combined with a plug-in hybrid system.

ASIA

Toyota notifies suppliers on rising output Toyota has told its suppliers in Japan to prepare for ramped up production in 2012 and following years, according to a report in the Detroit News. Another report in Kyodo News citing unidentified Toyota officials, said that the plan for 2012 calls for production of 8.9 million vehicles—a record for Toyota—with 3.5 million vehicles produced in Japan and 5.4 million units overseas. Nolasco declined to confi rm the numbers. Toyota said it plans to make 8.04 million vehicles around the world in 2011, and sell 7.9 million vehicles.

16 - 31 August 2011

Auto Monitor

GLOBAL WATCH

53

International auto round-up EUROPE

Continental manager investigated for corruption A manager for car-parts maker Continental, is under police investigation for alleged corruption, the Frankfurt prosecutor’s office said. The 60-year-old from Frankfurt, who served as a company representative to eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, is accused of having accepted a total of around Euro 70,000 ($100,000) in bribes while negotiating and awarding contracts for car replacement parts and equipment.

Mercedes expects six percent growth this year Daimler expects to increase sales of its passenger cars by nearly six percent this year after reporting record July retail volumes for its Mercedes-Benz brand of luxury cars. Sales of Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz brand rose 2.7 percent to 100,391 vehicles in July, the automaker said. Since the beginning of the year, the company has sold 710,922 cars, a rise of 8.6 percent over 2010 figures. Last year, Daimler sold almost 1.28 million Mercedes and Smart vehicles.

Sales of the Mercedes-Benz brand in China sank 2.5 percent last month to 14,248, which the company attributed to lower demand for its aging C class—its biggest model-line by volume.

Sales in the fi rst six months however, rose 41.7 percent to 106,422 units. Daimler said it expected ‘clear growth’ in sales in China during the third quarter, when the facelifted C-class version hits the local market. In its German home market, the automaker sold 23,098 cars in July, a fall of 1.9 percent. Between January and July, Mercedes-Benz delivered 146,111 cars, a rise of just 0.1 percent. Overall in western Europe, sales of Mercedes cars fell 1.9 percent last month to 46,241 units.

Half-year sales of the brand grew 0.4 percent to 323,084 units. Sales of Daimler’s Smart brand rose 2.1 percent in July to 8,521 cars. Since the beginning of the year, the automaker has sold 63,322 cars, a rise of 7.2 percent. In July, the overall sales for Mercedes-Benz Cars grew 2.7 percent to 108, 912 units. Between January and May the total reached 774,244 units, a rise of 8.5 percent.

Audi’s new-car sales reach July record Audi sold a record 106,000 cars in July, 16 percent more than

ASIA

Daimler China to combine sales and marketing Daimler will integrate sales and marketing operations of Mercedes-Benz vehicles imported into China and those built by its JV with Beijing Automotive Industry Holding, according to a report in the Automotive News Europe. The move will help both companies make better use of their marketing resources and strengthen the German luxury brand in China. At present, only the C-class and E-class sedans are built and sold by Beijing Benz Automotive, a 50-50 JV between Daimler and BAIC. All other models are imported into China

by Mercedes-Benz China.

a year earlier due to demand in Europe for the new A6 and in the United States for the A7, as well as strong growth in China, according to a report in the Automotive News Europe. Since the beginning of the year, the company has sold a total of 758,950 cars, a rise of 17.4 percent over 2010 figures. Audi sales were helped significantly by buoyant growth in its biggest export markets, China, the US and the UK, while sales in Germany also grew at a double-digit rate. In Germany, the automaker’s second-largest single market, Audi’s July sales rose 13.8 percent to reach 21,423 deliveries. In total, Audi has sold 146,514 cars in Germany since January, a rise of 15.4 percent.

Overall in Europe, Audi also saw strong sales, selling 57,700 cars in July. Since the beginning of the year, Audi has sold 440,550 cars in the region, a rise of 12.7 percent. In its fourth-largest market, the UK, the brand delivered 8,155 cars in July, a rise of 14.5 percent. From the start of the year, Audi has sold 71,515 units in the UK, a rise of 12 percent over last year’s figures.

Aston Martin squeezes profit from old technology Aston Martin, whose best seller is the $113,400 Vantage coupe, plans to develop additional models off an eight-year-old platform.

The approach reflects the limits on Aston Martin, which can’t

tap development resources of a big parent like Volkswagen’s Lamborghini and Fiat’s Ferrari.

Aston Martin, sold by Ford to a group of private investors including Kuwait’s Investment Dar in 2007, is outgunned in the luxurycar segment. A lack of resources at Aston Martin has led to a portfolio of similar models. Of 15 current vehicles, all but the fourdoor Rapide and Cygnet city car are two-door coupes or roadsters.

Aside from the one millionpound One-77 supercar and the Cygnet, which is derived from Toyota’s iQ, all cars are based on the same aluminium platform fi rst introduced in 2003 with the DB9. Aston Martin has made a virtue of necessity by using its

so-called vertical-horizontal platform as the basis for more and more high-end models, including the 330,000-pound Zagato, which will start deliveries next year. The

strategy has pushed up the average price of Aston Martin cars 49 percent to 104,000 pounds last year from 70,000 pounds in 2007.

By recycling technology and using engines from Ford, Aston Martin can keep costs and development times down.

is the only supplier to offer a complete technology package with options for

High Performance, Environmental Safety & Corrosion Protection

METAL FINISHING PLANTS State-of-the-art fully automatic plating plants & effluent treatment plants.

ANTI CORROSION COATINGS Acid Zinc, Alkaline Zinc, Zinc Alloy Systems,Trivalent Passivates & Top Coats.

DECORATIVE COATINGS Copper, Nickle, Chrome, Gold & Silver Systems.

HARD CHROME SYSTEMS We are industry leaders in hard chrome plating systems. Our systems are way superior in all respects. Be it efficiency, durability, wear resistance or cost.

PHOSPHATING CHEMICALS Zn, Mn, Fe tricationic phosphating SURFACE CONDITIONING CHEMICALS Neutral cleaners, Chrome free passivations for Al.

GROUP An ISO 9001-2000 Certi ed Company

Caring for

t he

v En

11- A, Abdul Gaffar Khan Road, Worli Sea Face (North), Mumbai - 400 025. India.

Tel.: +91 22 24936261/62, +91 22 24908867. Fax : +91 22 24935629.

Email : ronukgroup@ronukgroup.com

www.ronuk-ronuplate.com

nment - Alway iro s

!

56

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 August 2011

ADVERTISERS’ LIST CORPORATE

Pg No. ........Advertiser ...................................................................................Tel ..................................................E-mail ...................................................................... Website 44 ..............AB Diachem Systems Pvt Ltd ......................................................+91-11-25155456 ...........................info@anandbros.com .............................................. www.anandbros.com 54 ..............ADEA Awards ..............................................................................+91-22-30034650 ..........................prachi.mutha@infomedia18.in ............................... www.adea.in 24...............ARB Bearings Limited .................................................................+91-9810677476............................vinod@arb-bearings.com ........................................ www.arb-bearings.com 28 ..............Ashfa Corporation ......................................................................+91-22-25107461 ...........................ashfa91@hotmail.com ............................................ www.ashfacorp.com 11 ...............Assab Sripad Steels Ltd ...............................................................+91-44-24951980 ..........................chennai@assabsripad.com...................................... www.assabsripad.com 26...............Dr. Dinesh & Ramesh Engr. Pvt Ltd ............................................+91-79-25893704 ..........................hpatel@drecasting.com .......................................... www.drecasting.com 35...............Durr Ecoclean .............................................................................+91-20-30585001 ..........................info.india@ecoclean.durr.com ................................ www.durr-ecoclean.com 12...............Ecocat India Pvt Ltd....................................................................+91-129-4266500 ..........................alok@ecocatindia.com ............................................ www.ecocat.com 42,43 ..........Electronica Hitech Machines Pvt Ltd ..........................................+91-20-30435400 ..........................marketing@electronicahitech.com ......................... www.electronicahitech.com 22,40..........Engineering Expo .......................................................................+91-9819552270............................engexpo@infomedia18.in ....................................... www.engg-expo.com 13...............Escorts Limited ...........................................................................+91-129-2293990 ..........................shivam.sawhney@escortsed.com ........................... www.escortsgroup.com 5 ................Francis Klein & Co Pvt Ltd ..........................................................+91-80-22272781 ..........................sales@francisklein.in .............................................. www.francisklein.in 38 ..............Frost & Sullivan ..........................................................................+91-44-66814371 ..........................priyag@frost.com .................................................... www.frost.com 47...............G W Precision Tools India Pvt Ltd ...............................................+91-80-40431252 ..........................info@gwindia.in ...................................................... www.gwindia.in 19...............Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd. ......................................................+91-22-67962751 ..........................trmktg@godrej.com ................................................ www.godrejtoolings.com 16...............GS Auto International Ltd ...........................................................+91-161-2511001 ............................................................................................................ www.gsgroupindia.com BIC .............Guhring India Private Limited ....................................................+91-80-40322500..........................info@guhring.in ..................................................... www.guhring.in 23 ..............Harison Motors (P) Ltd. ...............................................................+91-9011569600 ...........................dd@harisonmotors.com.......................................... www.harisonmotors.com 4 ................Hueco Electronic (India) Pvt Ltd .................................................+91-20-30455161 ...........................salesindia@hueco.com............................................ www.hueco.com 48 ..............Indian Machine Tools Manufacturers’ Association .....................+91-80-66246514 ..........................anuj@imtma.in ....................................................... www.imtma.in 52 ..............Indian Machine Tools Manufacturers’ Association .....................+91-80-66246600..........................imtma@imtma.in .................................................... www.imtma.in 17...............ISMT Limited...............................................................................+91-20-66024901 ..........................sachin.joshi@ismt.co.in........................................... www.ismt.com 53 ..............Jyoti CNC Automation Pvt. Ltd. ...................................................+91-2827-287081 ..........................info@jyoti.co.in ....................................................... www.jyoti.co.in FIC..............Kamal Envirotech Pvt Ltd ...........................................................+91-9650600413 ...........................enquiry@kamalcedsolution.com ............................ www.kamalenvirotechgroup.com 57 ..............Komax Automation India Pvt. Ltd. .............................................+91-124-4599100...........................info.dei@komaxgroup.com ..................................... www.komax.com 49...............Komet Precision Tool India Pvt Ltd ............................................+91-80-280780000 ........................info.in@kometgroup.com .......................................

25 ..............Larsen & Toubro Limited ............................................................+91-9967800456 ...........................SM.Haridas@larsentoubro.com ............................... www.larsentoubro.com 3 ................M And M Auto Indus Ltd .............................................................+91-124-4763200...........................corporate@mandmsprings.com.............................. www.mandmsprings.com 30 ..............Marks Prayor Marketing Technology Pvt. Ltd.............................+91-20-66743300 ..........................info@markspryor.com ............................................ www.markspryor.com 34 ..............Mecolam Engineering Pvt Ltd ....................................................+91-80-25732919 ..........................info@mecolam.com ................................................ www.mecolam.com 32,33..........Meiban Engineering Technologies Pvt Ltd .................................+91-80-26860600 ..........................sales-turning@meibanengg.com ............................ www.meibanengg.com 1 ................Micromatic Grinding Technologies Ltd .......................................+91-120-2712137 ...........................info@micromaticgrinding.com ............................... www.micromaticgrinding.com BC ..............Micromatic Machine Tools..........................................................+91-80-41492285 ..........................mmtblr@acemicromatic.com ................................. www.acemicromatic.com 51...............Mipox..........................................................................................+91-80-65830898..........................rag-rao@mipox.co.jp............................................... www.mipoxindia.com 29 ..............Misumi India Pvt Ltd ..................................................................+91-20-66470000 ..........................sales@misumi.co.in ................................................. http://in.misumi-ec.com 20 ..............MMC Hardmetal India Pvt Ltd ....................................................+91-80-23516083 ..........................mmcindia@mmc.co.jp ............................................ www.mitsubishicarbide.com 50 ..............MMI India Pvt Ltd .......................................................................+91-22-42554719 ..........................bhupinder.singh@mmi-india.in .............................. www.productronica-india.com 36 ..............Napino Auto & Electronics Ltd. ..................................................+91-124-2290050 ..........................info@napino.com .................................................... www.napino.com 51...............Ningbo Elite Mold Manufacture Co.,Ltd .....................................+86-574-8614-8158 .......................tracy@cmmould.com.cn ......................................... www.elitemould.cc 7 ................Oetiker India Pvt Ltd ..................................................................+91-2192-250107 ...........................akeswani@oetiker.com ........................................... www.oetiker.com 45...............Omron Automation Pvt. Ltd. ......................................................+91-80-40726400..........................in_enquiry@ap.omron.com .................................... www.omron-ap.com 31...............Padmini VNA Mechatronics Pvt. Ltd...........................................+91-124-3207398 ...........................sales@padminiengg.com ........................................ www.padminivna.com 6 ................Patvin Engineering (P) Ltd ..........................................................+91-22-27780310...........................patvin@patvin.co.in ................................................ www.patvin.co.in 18...............Precision Components Corporation ...........................................+91-40-65229339 ..........................info@dynatherm.in ................................................. www.dynatherm.in 27 ..............Rane Holdings Limited ...............................................................+91-44-28112472 ..........................v.usha@rane.co.in ................................................... www.rane.co.in 8 ................Rohan Standox Autolack.............................................................+91-22-65803331 ..........................sales@spraytec.net ................................................. www.spraytec.net 55...............Ronuk Group ..............................................................................+91-22-24936261 ...........................ronukgroup@ronukgroup.com ............................... www.ronuk-ronuplate.com 9 ................Shriram Transport Finance Company Limited ............................+91-22-40959595 ........................................................................................................... www.stfc.in 28 ..............Sreelakshmi Traders ...................................................................+91-44-24343343 ..........................sreelakshmitraders@gmail.com.............................. www.sreelakshmitraders.com 61...............Starragheckert Machine Tools Pvt. Ltd. ......................................+91-80-42770600..........................sales.in@starragheckert.com .................................. www.starragheckert.com 26...............Tej Control Systems Pvt. Ltd. ......................................................+91-22-25838191........................... tivs@tejcontrol.com ............................................... www.tejivs.com 15...............The Indian Electric Co.................................................................+91-20-24475845 ..........................iecmktg@indianelectric.com .................................. www.indianelectric.com 41...............The Supreme Industries Ltd. ......................................................+91-9892569003 ...........................protec@supreme.co.in ............................................ www.supreme.co.in 39...............Varroc Engineering Pvt Ltd .........................................................+91-240-2556227 ..........................varroc.info@varrocgroup.com ................................ www.varrocgroup.com 37...............Windsor Machines Limited .........................................................+91-79-25841591...........................sales.imm@windsormachines.com ......................... www.windsormachines.com 21...............Yamazaki Mazak India Pvt Ltd ...................................................+91-2137-668800 ..........................sudhir_patankar@mazakindia.com ........................ www.mazak.com Q Our consistent advertisers

(UTTARAKHAND)

16 - 31 August 2011

GLOBAL CORPORATE WATCH

Auto Monitor

57

Magneti Marelli kicks off injectors line in Brazil

M

agneti Marelli inaugurated a new production line with an investment of around Euro 10 million in Hortolandia plant, in Sao Paulo’s countryside, in order to double its pico eco injectors’ production capacity. The production is expected to touch around 6.5 million injectors per annum.

The pico eco injector has been specially developed to be applied in bi-fuel engines. It provides better fuel spraying during injection cycle, improving fuel burn and consumption and decreasing engine emissions. The injector was named pico eco due to its low environmental impact, as it contributes to reduce fuel consumption by up to three percent and as much as twenty percent of the emissions in passenger vehicles.

Magneti Marelli is present in the Brazilian automotive market since 1978, initially with a share in DFV’s carburettors division, operating under the name Wecarbras. Over the years operations have evolved with the development of technologies and products such as electronic carburettors, ECUs and the fi rst electronic fuel injection system, introducing the Magneti Marelli brand into the country.

The company acquired Brazil’s leading shock absorbers brand—Cofap, also incorporating the exhausts brand Kadron strengthening its main brand and enhancing its portfolio. Under its aftermarket business line, the company has sold more than five million shock absorbers with Cofap brand, securing a leadership in this particular market, holding the largest distribution chain of the country.

With the release of the SFS (Software Flexfuel Sensor) in the early 2000s, which powered the country’s fi rst flexfuel car, the company once again revolutionised the national auto industry.

Today the company holds an almost 50 percent slice of the bi-fuel Brazilian market. Other technologies derived from the SFS have also been designed, such as the ECS (Ethanol Cold System), a cold start system which will come into production next year, the Tetrafuel and the pico eco injector. Such innovative developments have earned the company several awards nationally and internationally.

Currently Magneti Marelli supplies its equipments to the whole Fiat Dualogic line and the Volkswagen I-Motion series, detaining almost 90 percent of the automatic transmission market in Brazil. In order to ensure the continuous development of technological innovations, the company invests heavily in the sector. “Between 15-20 percent of the overall budget for research, adaptation and development of products is aimed at technological innovations: products that aren’t requests from specific car makers, but are rather innovative developments by Magneti Marelli itself developed across the board and which can be marketed by any assembler”, stated Chief Executive, Magneti Marelli Group, Virgilio Cerutti. This influx is intended for the company’s five research and development centres located in Minas Gerais (Contagem, Itaúna e Lavras) and São Paulo (Amparo, Hortolandia, Maua, Santo André and São Bernardo).

In Brazil, Magneti Marelli is one of the top three automotive

suppliers. After Italy, Brazil is Magneti Marelli’s second chief market, in terms of revenue and number of employees, besides encompasses all of Marelli Group’s business lines.

one of China’s leading manufacturers of automot ive components, recently signed an agreement aimed at setting up a joint venture in China for the production of automobile

JV for shock absorbers in China

shock absorbers. The equal joint venture is expected to be operational by the end of 2011.

The JV will double the produc-

Mag net i Ma rel l i a nd Wanxiang Qianchao Company,

tion over the next three years, from the current three million shock absorbers produced by Wanxiang mainly for domestic customers to over six million catering to domestic as well as global carmakers in China.

The industrial facilities will be located near the city, Hangzhou, which is also an important logistical-industrial hub, situated 180 km southwest of Shanghai, where the Wanxiang group developed a strong industrial presence.

The JV’s product strategy will be aimed at the design, production and marketing of passive shock absorbers with new technical features—powershock, full displacement valves, position and frequency dependent damping characteristics and intelligent shock absorbers using Magneti Marelli’s electronic shock absorbers technology. In this area,

Magneti Marelli brings technologies such as the ‘Synaptic Damping Control’, which provides efficient active ride control system.

Magneti Marelli provides technology for shock absorbers with dual mode operation christened Dual Stage Valve (DSV), which allows selection between high comfort driving mode and high accuracy driving mode.

DSV technology offers a low cost approach for ride control in small and medium-sized vehicles, as well as sports applications.

Wanxiang Qianchao is a leading auto component manufacturer in China and a part of the Wanxiang Group Corporation, with 40,000 employees and turnover of 10 billion dollars in 2010, operating in various business sectors including fi nancial services, agricultural products, renewable energy and real estate.

58

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 August 2011

N AMERICAN ASSEMBLY

AUTOFACTS Global Automotive Outlook PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

North America Assby Tracking 6-2011 (Tracking by Brand & Nameplate) June 2011 Ownership Org/ Brand & Nameplate

Volume

Last 3 Months YOY

Assembly

YOY

% Chg

Share %

Share Chg

Volume

Year to Date YOY

Assembly

YOY

% Chg

Share %

Share Chg

Volume

YOY

Assembly

YOY

% Chg

Share %

Share Chg

AutoAlliance International (USA)

11,870

-25.6%

1.1%

(-0.4)

30,405

-29.8%

1.0%

(-0.4)

56,923

-18.2%

0.9%

(-0.3)

Ford Mustang

9,896

-19.0%

0.9%

(-0.2)

24,901

-26.1%

0.8%

(-0.3)

40,508

-17.0%

0.6%

(-0.2)

Mazda Mazda6

1,974

-47.0%

0.2%

(-0.2)

5,504

-42.7%

0.2%

(-0.1)

16,415

-20.9%

0.3%

(-0.1)

BMW (Germany)

24,604

87.1%

2.2%

1.0

71,750

90.6%

2.3%

1.1

135,546

81.5%

2.1%

0.8

BMW X3

10,859

-

1.0%

1.0

31,516

-

1.0%

1.0

58,393

-

0.9%

0.9

BMW X5

9,843

7.9%

0.9%

0.0

28,640

9.7%

0.9%

0.1

54,144

4.5%

0.8%

(-0.0)

BMW X6

3,902

-3.1%

0.3%

(-0.0)

11,594

0.5%

0.4%

(-0.0)

23,009

0.6%

0.4%

(-0.0)

Chrysler Group LLC (USA)

172,944

7.3%

15.3%

0.8

513,233

19.5%

16.4%

2.5

1,001,022

24.0%

15.4%

1.9

Chrysler 200

9,566

-

0.8%

0.8

33,977

-

1.1%

1.1

60,696

-

0.9%

0.9

Chrysler 300

6,720

60.7%

0.6%

0.2

19,099

48.5%

0.6%

0.2

27,193

13.4%

0.4%

0.0

Chrysler PT Cruiser

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.2)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.2)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.2)

Chrysler Sebring

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.4)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.4)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.4)

Chrysler Town & Country

11,832

-23.6%

1.0%

(-0.4)

29,652

-31.6%

0.9%

(-0.5)

56,005

-20.6%

0.9%

(-0.3)

Dodge Avenger

4,782

-21.3%

0.4%

(-0.1)

20,352

5.0%

0.7%

0.0

38,704

21.8%

0.6%

0.1

Dodge Caliber

8,537

-6.6%

0.8%

(-0.1)

19,202

-21.0%

0.6%

(-0.2)

32,306

-24.8%

0.5%

(-0.2)

Dodge Caravan

15,167

-15.0%

1.3%

(-0.3)

42,315

-4.9%

1.4%

(-0.1)

85,781

1.3%

1.3%

(-0.1)

Dodge Challenger

5,362

24.3%

0.5%

0.1

12,611

11.0%

0.4%

0.0

21,849

-2.2%

0.3%

(-0.0)

Dodge Charger

9,513

-14.0%

0.8%

(-0.2)

23,015

-26.6%

0.7%

(-0.3)

49,601

-9.9%

0.8%

(-0.2)

Dodge Dakota

1,415

-32.1%

0.1%

(-0.1)

5,846

11.3%

0.2%

0.0

12,251

25.1%

0.2%

0.0

Dodge Durango

7,884

-

0.7%

0.7

21,765

-

0.7%

0.7

43,919

-

0.7%

0.7

Dodge Journey

9,605

Dodge Nitro

1,514

-39.0%

0.1%

(-0.1)

6,451

-3.9%

0.2%

(-0.0)

12,816

0.3%

0.2%

(-0.0)

Dodge Ram Pickup

-

-

-2.1%

-

0.9%

-

(-0.0)

-

22,993

-

-11.3%

-

0.7%

-

(-0.1)

-

50,403

-100.0%

-15.3%

-

0.8%

(-1.2)

(-0.2)

Dodge Viper

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

Fiat 500

5,898

-

0.5%

0.5

19,845

-

0.6%

0.6

25,855

-

0.4%

0.4

Fiat Freemont

4,067

-

0.4%

0.4

9,214

-

0.3%

0.3

10,724

-

0.2%

0.2

Jeep Commander

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.1)

Jeep Compass

10,850

158.1%

1.0%

0.6

30,481

153.5%

1.0%

0.6

56,971

166.4%

0.9%

0.5

Jeep Grand Cherokee

14,732

106.9%

1.3%

0.7

41,746

407.5%

1.3%

1.1

80,092

156.9%

1.2%

0.7

Jeep Liberty

4,302

-37.9%

0.4%

(-0.2)

16,910

-16.6%

0.5%

(-0.1)

34,029

-0.5%

0.5%

(-0.0)

Jeep Patriot

6,706

-10.4%

0.6%

(-0.1)

21,941

27.5%

0.7%

0.1

44,736

60.3%

0.7%

0.2 (-0.0)

Jeep Wrangler

3,459

-42.9%

0.3%

(-0.2)

13,535

-20.3%

0.4%

(-0.1)

30,219

1.9%

0.5%

Jeep Wrangler Unlimited

5,903

-28.6%

0.5%

(-0.2)

22,201

-13.2%

0.7%

(-0.1)

50,040

12.5%

0.8%

0.0

Ram Pickup

23,723

-20.6%

2.1%

(-0.6)

76,970

-4.6%

2.5%

(-0.2)

166,753

106.6%

2.6%

1.2

Volkswagen Routan

1,407

33.6%

0.1%

0.0

3,112

-35.7%

0.1%

(-0.1)

10,079

-5.7%

0.2%

(-0.0)

Daimler AG (Germany)

15,191

25.2%

1.3%

0.3

43,505

25.2%

1.4%

0.3

79,066

14.7%

1.2%

0.1

Freightliner Sprinter

759

25.7%

0.1%

0.0

2,177

26.1%

0.1%

0.0

4,314

26.4%

0.1%

0.0

Mercedes-Benz GL-Class

3,520

20.5%

0.3%

0.0

10,080

20.5%

0.3%

0.1

17,520

5.6%

0.3%

(-0.0)

Mercedes-Benz M-Class

9,152

29.5%

0.8%

0.2

26,208

29.5%

0.8%

0.2

47,728

18.9%

0.7%

0.1

Mercedes-Benz R-Class

1,760

13.8%

0.2%

0.0

5,040

13.8%

0.2%

0.0

9,504

8.2%

0.1%

(-0.0)

250,575

Ford Motor Company (USA)

8.5%

22.2%

1.4

681,219

10.2%

21.8%

1.7

1,319,082

12.4%

20.3%

0.7

Ford Crown Victoria

9,576

78.5%

0.8%

0.4

25,897

77.0%

0.8%

0.4

48,105

78.8%

0.7%

0.3

Ford Econoline

10,975

-7.7%

1.0%

(-0.1)

32,947

-2.0%

1.1%

(-0.0)

76,630

13.4%

1.2%

0.1

Ford Edge

15,944

13.0%

1.4%

0.1

40,920

2.3%

1.3%

0.0

85,539

7.0%

1.3%

(-0.0)

Ford Escape

29,386

14.4%

2.6%

0.3

84,345

15.7%

2.7%

0.3

165,415

14.3%

2.5%

0.1

Ford Expedition

4,843

-15.1%

0.4%

(-0.1)

14,121

11.0%

0.5%

0.0

28,338

22.8%

0.4%

0.1

Ford Explorer

14,639

96.2%

1.3%

0.6

43,815

109.0%

1.4%

0.7

80,225

102.1%

1.2%

0.6

Ford Explorer Sport Trac

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.1)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.1)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.1)

Ford Fiesta

11,566

18.8%

1.0%

0.1

31,882

105.2%

1.0%

0.5

61,364

295.0%

0.9%

0.7

Ford Flex

2,661

-47.9%

0.2%

(-0.2)

8,729

-28.4%

0.3%

(-0.1)

14,963

-39.3%

0.2%

(-0.2)

Ford Focus

24,091

4.9%

2.1%

0.1

66,861

22.5%

2.1%

0.4

92,517

-5.0%

1.4%

(-0.2)

Ford F-Series

71,013

10.1%

6.3%

0.5

182,170

4.8%

5.8%

0.2

364,888

16.2%

5.6%

0.4

Ford Fusion

28,388

7.2%

2.5%

0.1

72,414

2.3%

2.3%

0.0

147,719

8.6%

2.3%

(-0.0)

Ford Ranger

10,236

25.5%

0.9%

0.2

26,952

13.8%

0.9%

0.1

52,272

24.9%

0.8%

0.1

Ford Taurus

6,803

2.3%

0.6%

0.0

21,102

1.3%

0.7%

(-0.0)

39,646

-14.8%

0.6%

(-0.2)

Lincoln Mark LT

24

-35.1%

0.0%

(-0.0)

94

-44.0%

0.0%

(-0.0)

194

-57.3%

0.0%

(-0.0)

Lincoln MKS

996

25.4%

0.1%

0.0

2,964

-28.5%

0.1%

(-0.0)

5,914

-33.3%

0.1%

(-0.1)

Lincoln MKT

532

141.8%

0.0%

0.0

1,263

-17.4%

0.0%

(-0.0)

2,751

-30.7%

0.0%

(-0.0)

Lincoln MKX

3,592

63.7%

0.3%

0.1

9,178

68.1%

0.3%

0.1

18,005

37.1%

0.3%

0.1

Lincoln MKZ

2,957

69.7%

0.3%

0.1

7,024

33.8%

0.2%

0.1

17,026

46.2%

0.3%

0.1

Lincoln Navigator

983

-19.6%

0.1%

(-0.0)

2,646

-8.7%

0.1%

(-0.0)

5,513

14.9%

0.1%

0.0

Lincoln Town Car

1,370

32.5%

0.1%

0.0

4,372

38.7%

0.1%

0.0

7,916

10.8%

0.1%

0.0

Mazda B-Series

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

Mazda Tribute

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

1,523

4.6%

0.0%

0.0

3,977

-27.1%

0.1%

(-0.0)

Mercury Grand Marquis

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.3)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.3)

165

-99.2%

0.0%

(-0.3)

Mercury Mariner

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.2)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.3)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.3)

Mercury Milan

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.1)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.2)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.2)

Mercury Mountaineer

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.1)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

Fuji Heavy Industries (Japan)

19,983

-13.4%

1.8%

(-0.3)

48,025

-17.3%

1.5%

(-0.3)

116,059

-1.2%

1.8%

(-0.2)

Subaru Legacy

12,099

-15.9%

1.1%

(-0.2)

31,852

-5.2%

1.0%

(-0.1)

74,110

7.2%

1.1%

(-0.0)

Subaru Tribeca

551

36.7%

0.0%

0.0

1,509

42.8%

0.0%

0.0

3,398

15.7%

0.1%

0.0

Toyota Camry

7,333

-11.7%

0.7%

(-0.1)

14,664

-37.4%

0.5%

(-0.3)

38,551

-15.1%

0.6%

(-0.2)

General Motors Company (USA)

272,582

3.3%

24.2%

0.3

830,148

13.8%

26.5%

2.8

1,617,254

15.8%

24.9%

1.5

Buick Enclave

6,253

-16.0%

0.6%

(-0.1)

19,829

0.9%

0.6%

(-0.0)

39,850

1.9%

0.6%

(-0.0)

Buick LaCrosse

17,765

154.7%

1.6%

0.9

28,894

32.7%

0.9%

0.2

45,899

15.6%

0.7%

0.0

Buick Lucerne

319

-89.8%

0.0%

(-0.3)

6,520

-27.5%

0.2%

(-0.1)

15,882

32.6%

0.2%

0.0

Buick Regal

1,299

-

0.1%

0.1

6,011

-

0.2%

0.2

7,471

-

0.1%

0.1

Cadillac CTS

555

-90.0%

0.0%

(-0.5)

13,172

5.9%

0.4%

0.0

31,113

7.4%

0.5%

(-0.0)

Cadillac DTS

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.2)

2,761

-65.7%

0.1%

(-0.2)

6,515

-36.8%

0.1%

(-0.1)

Cadillac Escalade

1,643

-23.2%

0.1%

(-0.0)

4,641

-26.4%

0.1%

(-0.1)

9,369

-28.9%

0.1%

(-0.1)

Cadillac Escalade ESV

795

-25.8%

0.1%

(-0.0)

2,060

-19.0%

0.1%

(-0.0)

3,744

-32.4%

0.1%

(-0.0)

Cadillac Escalade EXT

183

-47.6%

0.0%

(-0.0)

595

-29.3%

0.0%

(-0.0)

1,323

-7.2%

0.0%

(-0.0)

Cadillac SRX

7,237

6.0%

0.6%

0.0

21,230

9.3%

0.7%

0.0

41,556

14.0%

0.6%

0.0 (-0.0)

Cadillac STS

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.1)

821

-34.5%

0.0%

(-0.0)

1,907

-19.5%

0.0%

Chevrolet Avalanche

2,395

-8.6%

0.2%

(-0.0)

6,798

-14.6%

0.2%

(-0.0)

12,583

-1.3%

0.2%

(-0.0)

Chevrolet Aveo

5,393

11.0%

0.5%

0.0

17,303

22.0%

0.6%

0.1

31,945

15.3%

0.5%

0.0

Chevrolet C2

2,370

-49.0%

0.2%

(-0.2)

10,254

-37.1%

0.3%

(-0.2)

21,841

-28.4%

0.3%

(-0.2)

Chevrolet Camaro

11,242

4.9%

1.0%

0.0

29,585

-4.0%

0.9%

(-0.1)

59,354

4.6%

0.9%

(-0.0)

Chevrolet Captiva

2,809

-24.9%

0.2%

(-0.1)

8,419

8.6%

0.3%

0.0

16,524

13.8%

0.3%

0.0

16 - 31 August 2011

Auto Monitor

N AMERICAN ASSEMBLY June 2011

Last 3 Months Assembly Share %

YOY Share Chg

59

Year to Date

Ownership Org/ Brand & Nameplate

Volume

YOY % Chg

Chevrolet Cobalt

-

-100.0%

-

(-1.2)

-

-100.0%

-

(-1.5)

-

-100.0%

-

Chevrolet Colorado

3,486

-13.0%

0.3%

(-0.1)

11,109

18.9%

0.4%

0.1

20,459

7.6%

0.3%

(-0.0)

Chevrolet Corvette

1,439

-1.5%

0.1%

(-0.0)

3,770

-19.5%

0.1%

(-0.0)

6,840

-25.6%

0.1%

(-0.0)

Volume

YOY % Chg

Assembly Share %

YOY Share Chg

Volume

YOY % Chg

Assembly Share %

YOY Share Chg (-1.5)

Chevrolet Cruze

27,632

-

2.5%

2.5

81,159

-

2.6%

2.6

152,444

-

2.3%

2.3

Chevrolet Equinox

22,267

51.1%

2.0%

0.6

61,637

51.0%

2.0%

0.6

124,579

51.3%

1.9%

0.5

Chevrolet Express

8,174

15.6%

0.7%

0.1

21,318

12.4%

0.7%

0.1

39,924

21.5%

0.6%

0.1

Chevrolet HHR

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.5)

10,915

-36.9%

0.3%

(-0.2)

29,460

-15.3%

0.5%

(-0.1)

Chevrolet Impala

13,890

-14.2%

1.2%

(-0.2)

49,747

1.4%

1.6%

(-0.0)

103,741

4.9%

1.6%

(-0.1)

Chevrolet Malibu

10,745

-53.3%

1.0%

(-1.1)

54,437

-15.0%

1.7%

(-0.3)

101,760

-10.6%

1.6%

(-0.3)

Chevrolet Silverado

50,078

12.4%

4.4%

0.4

139,557

31.1%

4.5%

1.0

265,009

20.7%

4.1%

0.4

Chevrolet Suburban

5,919

-2.9%

0.5%

(-0.0)

15,304

-11.9%

0.5%

(-0.1)

28,557

-6.2%

0.4%

(-0.1)

Chevrolet Tahoe

9,893

-1.7%

0.9%

(-0.0)

26,632

-2.0%

0.9%

(-0.0)

51,821

-2.1%

0.8%

(-0.1)

Chevrolet Traverse

7,931

-39.8%

0.7%

(-0.5)

30,550

-18.5%

1.0%

(-0.2)

60,783

24.6%

0.9%

0.1 0.1

Chevrolet Volt

-

0.0

3,269

-

0.1%

GMC Acadia

6,623

-1.8%

0.6%

(-0.0)

21,682

23.5%

0.7%

0.1

45,539

24.1%

0.7%

GMC Canyon

942

-31.2%

-

0.1%

-

(-0.0)

-

3,145

1,283

-2.7%

-

0.1%

0.0%

(-0.0)

5,790

-17.4%

0.1%

(-0.0)

GMC Savana

1,463

-19.3%

0.1%

(-0.0)

5,899

12.0%

0.2%

0.0

14,012

26.3%

0.2%

0.0

0.1

GMC Sierra Pickups

21,269

16.4%

1.9%

0.2

56,187

16.6%

1.8%

0.2

106,095

10.6%

1.6%

0.0

GMC Terrain

9,369

58.7%

0.8%

0.3

27,286

66.7%

0.9%

0.3

57,052

73.6%

0.9%

0.3

GMC Yukon

4,764

12.9%

0.4%

0.0

12,868

5.5%

0.4%

0.0

26,268

8.1%

0.4%

(-0.0)

GMC Yukon XL

3,115

15.2%

0.3%

0.0

8,401

4.3%

0.3%

0.0

17,345

4.0%

0.3%

(-0.0)

Hummer H3

-

-

-

-

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

Hummer H3T

-

-

-

-

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

Saab 9-4X

3,325

-

0.3%

0.3

8,369

-

0.3%

0.3

9,631

-

0.1%

0.1

Saturn Outlook

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

Saturn VUE

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

Honda Motor Company (Japan)

62,900

-38.5%

5.6%

(-3.7)

176,272

-45.3%

5.6%

(-4.8)

510,635

-21.8%

7.9%

(-3.1)

Acura CSX

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

1,170

-2.5%

0.0%

(-0.0)

Acura MDX

3,181

-38.0%

0.3%

(-0.2)

9,392

-37.3%

0.3%

(-0.2)

27,125

-14.9%

0.4%

(-0.1)

Acura RDX

839

-37.6%

0.1%

(-0.0)

2,055

-55.1%

0.1%

(-0.1)

7,440

-26.5%

0.1%

(-0.1)

Acura TL

2,021

-8.3%

0.2%

(-0.0)

5,608

-22.9%

0.2%

(-0.1)

15,361

-11.8%

0.2%

(-0.1)

Acura ZDX

30

-87.7%

0.0%

(-0.0)

90

-93.5%

0.0%

(-0.0)

551

-87.2%

0.0%

(-0.1)

Honda Accord

12,964

-46.4%

1.1%

(-1.0)

36,447

-51.9%

1.2%

(-1.3)

107,417

-28.4%

1.7%

(-0.9)

Honda Civic

16,047

-35.1%

1.4%

(-0.8)

44,709

-43.2%

1.4%

(-1.1)

114,274

-26.4%

1.8%

(-0.8)

Honda Crosstour

1,327

-52.7%

0.1%

(-0.1)

2,885

-73.6%

0.1%

(-0.3)

8,657

-62.6%

0.1%

(-0.3)

Honda CR-V

11,983

-35.5%

1.1%

(-0.6)

33,387

-43.2%

1.1%

(-0.8)

99,602

-18.0%

1.5%

(-0.5)

Honda Element

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.1)

1,201

-75.1%

0.0%

(-0.1)

7,500

-13.8%

0.1%

(-0.0)

Honda Odyssey

7,371

-27.7%

0.7%

(-0.3)

20,296

-32.4%

0.6%

(-0.3)

57,853

-0.1%

0.9%

(-0.1)

Honda Pilot

7,137

Honda Ridgeline

-

Hyundai Motor Company (South Korea) 50,603

-27.1%

0.6%

(-0.3)

20,202

-33.1%

0.6%

(-0.3)

58,915

-0.3%

0.9%

(-0.1)

-100.0%

-

(-0.1)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.1)

4,770

-60.5%

0.1%

(-0.1)

30.7%

4.5%

1.0

149,026

32.0%

4.8%

1.1

299,689

42.5%

4.6%

1.1

Hyundai Elantra/i30

10,913

-

1.0%

1.0

35,791

-

1.1%

1.1

66,013

-

1.0%

1.0

Hyundai Santa Fe

7,818

-3.9%

0.7%

(-0.0)

24,541

5.4%

0.8%

0.0

50,952

10.2%

0.8%

0.0

Hyundai Sonata/i40

19,888

1.1%

1.8%

(-0.0)

52,933

-9.4%

1.7%

(-0.2)

108,987

6.7%

1.7%

(-0.0)

Kia Sorento

11,984

10.0%

1.1%

0.1

35,761

14.7%

1.1%

0.1

73,737

19.2%

1.1%

0.1

Mitsubishi Motors Corp (Japan)

4,719

403.6%

0.4%

0.3

10,293

120.4%

0.3%

0.2

22,204

69.5%

0.3%

0.1

Mitsubishi Eclipse

1,555

161.8%

0.1%

0.1

3,230

54.8%

0.1%

0.0

5,416

54.0%

0.1%

0.0

Mitsubishi Endeavor

2,463

934.9%

0.2%

0.2

4,706

580.1%

0.2%

0.1

6,666

155.2%

0.1%

0.1

Mitsubishi Galant

701

567.6%

0.1%

0.1

2,357

24.6%

0.1%

0.0

10,122

45.2%

0.2%

0.0

Nissan Motor (Japan)

102,480

20.5%

9.1%

1.4

258,638

4.6%

8.3%

0.2

550,570

13.1%

8.5%

0.3

Infiniti QX series

-

-

-

-

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.1)

Nissan Altima

24,904

15.5%

2.2%

0.3

68,381

-3.5%

2.2%

(-0.1)

149,783

5.1%

2.3%

(-0.1)

Nissan Armada

1,703

-37.3%

0.2%

(-0.1)

4,720

-35.3%

0.2%

(-0.1)

10,604

-11.7%

0.2%

(-0.0)

Nissan Frontier

5,186

17.4%

0.5%

0.1

13,260

3.8%

0.4%

0.0

28,319

12.4%

0.4%

0.0

Nissan March

2,767

-

0.2%

0.2

6,906

-

0.2%

0.2

10,020

-

0.2%

0.2

Nissan Maxima

5,801

-8.8%

0.5%

(-0.1)

16,285

-14.9%

0.5%

(-0.1)

35,093

-5.5%

0.5%

(-0.1)

Nissan NV-Series

2,463

-

0.2%

0.2

5,374

-

0.2%

0.2

8,332

-

0.1%

0.1

Nissan Pathfinder

2,802

43.9%

0.2%

0.1

7,152

-1.1%

0.2%

(-0.0)

18,109

36.1%

0.3%

0.1

Nissan Pickup

5,188

98.3%

0.5%

0.2

11,728

82.7%

0.4%

0.2

23,001

77.1%

0.4%

0.1 0.2

Nissan Sentra

15,972

24.6%

1.4%

0.3

40,875

21.3%

1.3%

0.2

86,099

30.8%

1.3%

Nissan Tiida

22,661

250.2%

2.0%

1.4

31,982

85.8%

1.0%

0.5

50,527

65.2%

0.8%

0.3

Nissan Titan

2,253

2.7%

0.2%

0.0

6,057

-5.0%

0.2%

(-0.0)

13,988

-3.0%

0.2%

(-0.0)

0.0

16,805

Nissan Tsuru

6,969

4.1%

0.6%

-9.9%

0.5%

(-0.1)

37,181

1.0%

0.6%

(-0.0)

Nissan Versa

1,513

-90.0%

0.1%

(-1.2)

23,262

-42.1%

0.7%

(-0.6)

66,532

-16.3%

1.0%

(-0.3)

Nissan Xterra

2,088

3.0%

0.2%

0.0

5,291

-14.9%

0.2%

(-0.0)

11,942

-5.8%

0.2%

(-0.0)

Suzuki Equator

210

61.5%

0.0%

0.0

560

30.2%

0.0%

0.0

1,040

46.5%

0.0%

0.0 (-1.5)

NUMMI (USA)

-

-

-

-

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

-

-100.0%

-

Toyota Corolla

-

-

-

-

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.0)

-

-100.0%

-

(-1.1)

Toyota Tacoma

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.5)

Tesla Motors (USA)

164

115.8%

0.0%

0.0

469

115.1%

0.0%

0.0

938

116.6%

0.0%

0.0

Tesla Roadster

164

115.8%

0.0%

0.0

469

115.1%

0.0%

0.0

938

116.6%

0.0%

0.0

Toyota Motor Corporation (Japan)

83,092

-32.2%

7.4%

(-3.7)

186,713

-45.5%

6.0%

(-5.2)

531,872

-15.4%

8.2%

(-2.3)

Lexus RX Series

3,711

-50.9%

0.3%

(-0.4)

9,428

-57.0%

0.3%

(-0.4)

30,314

-30.2%

0.5%

(-0.3)

Toyota Avalon

2,680

-52.1%

0.2%

(-0.3)

6,695

-56.9%

0.2%

(-0.3)

18,221

-16.8%

0.3%

(-0.1)

Toyota Camry

18,159

-29.3%

1.6%

(-0.7)

36,862

-48.2%

1.2%

(-1.1)

92,126

-37.2%

1.4%

(-1.0)

Toyota Corolla

15,790

-17.4%

1.4%

(-0.3)

31,457

-41.0%

1.0%

(-0.7)

91,754

-1.6%

1.4%

(-0.1)

Toyota Highlander

8,223

11.0%

0.7%

0.1

16,440

-21.7%

0.5%

(-0.2)

46,310

20.7%

0.7%

0.1

Toyota Matrix

1,836

-47.7%

0.2%

(-0.2)

3,451

-63.7%

0.1%

(-0.2)

8,091

-62.8%

0.1%

(-0.2)

Toyota RAV4

3,840

-76.7%

0.3%

(-1.1)

16,085

-63.4%

0.5%

(-0.9)

60,897

-7.2%

0.9%

(-0.2)

Toyota Sequoia

1,873

-22.8%

0.2%

(-0.1)

3,664

-37.6%

0.1%

(-0.1)

8,128

-26.7%

0.1%

(-0.1)

Toyota Sienna

10,316

-21.1%

0.9%

(-0.3)

20,690

-42.2%

0.7%

(-0.5)

57,254

-9.4%

0.9%

(-0.2)

Toyota Tacoma

7,837

57.9%

0.7%

0.2

18,145

31.0%

0.6%

0.1

50,656

84.0%

0.8%

0.3

Toyota Tundra

4,922

-58.2%

0.4%

(-0.6)

14,065

-59.0%

0.4%

(-0.7)

43,955

-25.9%

0.7%

(-0.3) (-0.2)

Toyota Venza

3,905

-20.6%

0.3%

(-0.1)

9,731

-40.2%

0.3%

(-0.2)

24,166

-33.6%

0.4%

Volkswagen (Germany)

55,963

49.5%

5.0%

1.6

128,855

30.3%

4.1%

0.9

256,762

33.2%

4.0%

0.7

Volkswagen Bora

30

-98.6%

0.0%

(-0.2)

96

-97.9%

0.0%

(-0.1)

180

-98.2%

0.0%

(-0.2)

Volkswagen Golf/Jetta Variant

14,563

63.1%

1.3%

0.5

35,054

46.5%

1.1%

0.3

73,401

57.8%

1.1%

0.4

Volkswagen Jetta

33,979

63.1%

3.0%

1.1

81,791

46.5%

2.6%

0.8

171,267

57.8%

2.6%

0.8

Volkswagen New Beetle

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.5)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.5)

-

-100.0%

-

(-0.5)

Volkswagen Passat

7,391

-

0.7%

0.7

11,914

-

0.4%

0.4

11,914

-

0.2%

0.2

Total Light Vehicle

1,127,670

1.8%

100.0%

-

3,128,551

1.6%

100.0%

-

6,497,622

8.6%

100.0%

-

60

Auto Monitor

PRODUCT INDEX

16 - 31 August 2011

Products .......................................................... Pg. No.

Products .......................................................... Pg. No.

Products .......................................................... Pg. No.

Abb motors eff 1 ........................................................15

Dual head lamp relay .................................................4

Precision ....................................................................51

Acc. Padel sensor assy. ...............................................31

E-coatings solutions ...................................................FIC

Precision grinders ......................................................1

ADEA - Automotive Dealership Excellence Awards .....54

Egr valve .....................................................................31

Press tools ..................................................................19

Advanced auto crimping ............................................57

Electronic control unit ...............................................31

Press tools engineering services.................................19

Aluminium castings....................................................26

Encoders.....................................................................45

Programmable logic controller ..................................26

Anti corrosion coatings ..............................................55

Engine valves..............................................................27

Protective packaging and cushioning solutions .........41

ATV (all terrain vehicles) .............................................23

Exhibition - Engineering Expo ....................................22,40

Proximity sensors .......................................................45

Auto parts ..................................................................16

Expandable mono block-reamers ..............................49

Automatic painting system ........................................6

Extension springs .......................................................3

Automotive electrical components ............................39

Factory automation....................................................29

Automotive wire harness ...........................................36

Fibre glass automobile ...............................................34

Axles ...........................................................................16

Financial services .......................................................9

Bbl brake moters........................................................15

Five axis machining centers .......................................61

Bbl/kec flame proof motors .......................................15

Flange mounting b5/b35 motors................................15

Bearings for automotive ............................................24

Four axis horizontal machining centers .....................61

Belt and roller ............................................................57

Front axles..................................................................16

Bolts ...........................................................................16

Fuel pumps ................................................................4

Brake linings ..............................................................27

Gravity die castings. Low pressure die castings .........26

Brake shoe .................................................................13

Gun drills ....................................................................BIC

Capacitors discharge ignitors .....................................36 Car paints ...................................................................8 Car polish ...................................................................8 Castings ......................................................................26 Ced/ktl coatings .........................................................FIC Clamps........................................................................7 Clutch plates...............................................................13 CNC .............................................................................53 CNC hmcs ...................................................................53 CNC lathes ..................................................................BC CNC machines ............................................................53 CNC oval turning centers ............................................53 CNC turn mill centers .................................................53 CNC turning center .....................................................53 CNC vertical machining center ...................................53 CNC/vmc machines.....................................................21 Combination switches ................................................36 Commercial vehicle loan ............................................9 Compression springs ..................................................3 Counters & power supplies ........................................45 Countersinks ..............................................................BIC Csm-CNC machines ....................................................43 Cutting tools ...............................................................20 Cylindrical grinders ....................................................1, BC Decorative coatings ....................................................55 Diamond tools............................................................BIC Die casting dies ..........................................................19 Die casting engineering services ................................19

Quality steel ...............................................................11 Reamers .....................................................................BIC Rear axles ...................................................................16 Rectifier ......................................................................4 Regulator....................................................................4 Resistor assembly. ......................................................36 Safety lig.....................................................................45 Scalewatcher ..............................................................44 Sealer dispensing system ...........................................6 Seat assemblies ..........................................................39 Seat belt systems ........................................................27 Self adhesive tapes .....................................................28 Siemens motors efi 1 ..................................................15

Hard chrome systems .................................................55

Silicon carbide based particulate filters.....................12

Hartford-vmc/hmc machines .....................................42

Solid carbide drills .....................................................47,49

Hollow bars ................................................................17

Solid carbide drills with ic ..........................................47

Horizontal CNC machines...........................................53

Solid carbide mills......................................................47

Horizontal machining center .....................................53

Solid carbide reamers ................................................47

Hot ,cold & warm forged machined parts .................39

Solid carbide reamers with ic.....................................47

Ic engine valves ..........................................................39

Solid carbide special drills .........................................47

Ignition modules ........................................................4

Solid carbide special mills..........................................47

Induction heating equipment ....................................18

Solid carbide special reamers ....................................47

Industrial automation ................................................26

Solid carbite tools ......................................................20

Industrial cleaning .....................................................35

Solid mono block reamers .........................................49

Industrial control & sensing devices ..........................45

Special boring bars.....................................................49

Injection moulding machine......................................37

Special boring bars.....................................................49

Inspection system ......................................................26

Special fine boring tools.............................................49

Kec ac motors .............................................................15

Special line boring tools .............................................49

Kec dc motors ............................................................15

Special purpose machine ...........................................19

Kec slipring crane duty motors ..................................15 Level controllers .........................................................45 Lubricants ..................................................................13 Machine tools .............................................................5 Machinery steel ..........................................................11 Marking solutions.......................................................30 Measuring & monitoring relay for 1ph/3ph ...............45 Metal cutting tools .....................................................47 Metal finishing plants.................................................55 Metfin compounds .....................................................28 Milling cutters ............................................................BIC

Special reami..............................................................49 Spray guns ..................................................................6 Spray painting equipment .........................................8 Standard fine boring tools .........................................49 Strip steel ...................................................................11 Super finishing film - variofilm...................................51 Surface conditioning chemicals .................................55 Switching relays..........................................................45 Taps ............................................................................BIC Tempurature controllers ............................................45 Thermocompression moulds .....................................19 Threading tools ..........................................................49

Modular tooling system .............................................BIC

Timers ........................................................................45

Non-ferrous castings ..................................................26

Tool bits .....................................................................11

Dimensional inspection .............................................26

Nuts ............................................................................16

Tool steel ....................................................................11

Drilling tools...............................................................BIC

Paint circulatin system ...............................................6

Torsion springs ...........................................................3

Paint pumps ...............................................................6

Tungsten carbide metal cutting tools ........................25

Pbegl geared motors ..................................................15

Turning machine solutions.........................................32, 33

Pcd &carbide reamers................................................49

Turrets ........................................................................BC

Phosphating chemicals ..............................................55

Vaccum pump ............................................................31

Photo electric sensors ................................................45

Ventilators ..................................................................28

Pipe extrusion line for pvc/ppr/pe .............................37

Vertical line series ......................................................53

Plastic moulded components ....................................39

Vertical machining centers.........................................BC

Powder coating system ..............................................6

Vision sensors.............................................................45

Power chucking cylinders ..........................................BC

Vmc-linear series ........................................................53

Power steering systems ..............................................27

Wire forms ..................................................................3

Die-casting .................................................................51 Dies ............................................................................51

Looking for a Supplier?

We will make your search simple. Just type AM (space) Segment of the Supplier and send it to 51818.

eg. AM (space) Castings and send it to 51818.

FIC : Front Inside Cover BIC : Back Inside Cover BC: Back cover

(UTTARAKHAND)

16 - 31 August 2011

GLOBAL CORPORATE WATCH

Auto Monitor

61

GM plans new Cadillac range for 2012 G

M plans to roll out two new Cadillacs next year: the long aw aited full-size XTS and a small car code named the ATS, according to a report in the Detroit News.

The new offerings will help bolster the luxury brand lineup as it takes on the industry’s more fi rmly established leaders, Mercedes-Benz and BMW. The full-size XTS will launch in spring 2012 and replace the outgoing DTS, which ended production earlier this year at GM’s Detroit-Hamtramck plant. It also replaces the now-defunct STS. The compact ATS is due next summer and will be built at GM’s Lansing Grand River plant, alongside the popular mid-size CTS. GM previously announced it would invest $190 million into the 970-worker plant, add a sec-

Honda recalls 2.5M vehicles worldwide for stalls, shifting problems Honda announced a massive 2.5 million worldwide recall of three models, to address complaints of engine stalls and vehicles that shift out of park.

The recall includes 1.51 million vehicles in the United States.

Honda will update software that controls the automatic transmission to ease the transition between gears and prevent damage. It has received 113 complaints from US motorists, including 45 for engine stalls and 11 for vehicles shifting out of park. The recall

covers the 2005-10 four-cylinder Accords, 2007-10 CR-Vs and 2005-08 Elements. The automaker also is recalling the vehicles in Canada, Mexico, China, South America and parts of the Middle East. Without the updated software, the automatic transmission secondary shaft bearing in the affected vehicles can be damaged if the transmission is shifted quickly between each of the reverse, neutral and drive positions, as may be done in an attempt to dislodge a vehicle stuck in mud or snow. A damaged bearing can cause the engine to stall or lead to difficulty engaging the parking gear.

Renault plots Chinese production by 2016 Renault is drawing up a strategic plan to launch production in China in 2016. The company currently sells few vehicles in China, mainly the Koleos SUV built by Renault Samsung in Korea. Renault’s likely partner in such an enterprise would be Dongfeng Motor, which already has a successful JV with Nissan, Renault’s alliance partner. In the first six months of 2011, Nissan was the second-best selling brand in China with sales of 386,079 units, according to JD Power & Associates. By contrast, Renault sold only a few thousand imports in China.

ond shift and about 600 jobs.

The small Caddy, the luxury brand’s first foray into the C-segment market in decades, will be developed as a ‘driver’s car’, and unlike the compact Chevrolet Cruze, it will sport a rear-wheel drive to make it more of a performance vehicle. That will allow the ATS to go head to head with more established models such as the BMW 3-Series and Mercedes C class, in what is the luxury market’s largest segment. “We’re going to take buyers out of an only foreign, and in some cases an only German, entry,” said GM North American President, Mark Reuss, speaking at the Centre for Automotive R e s e a r c h’s Ma nagement Briefing Seminars.

“We’re going to offer a uniquely American solution to that,” he

added. GM’s previous attempts to compete in the small car market have not fared well. The compact Cadillac Cimarron in the 1980s and the mid-size frontwheel-drive Catera— offered

from 1997 to 2001—were entrylevel Cadillacs. Both failed to win consumers.

Cadillac tested the waters again in Europe w ith the compact BLS, but it ceased pro-

duction in 2009 after only a few years. A rear-drive compact car such as the ATS is considered crucial if Cadillac is to be a truly global brand. “It’s yet another step in Cadillac’s journey to rival BMW,” said Aaron Bragman, an analyst with IHS Automotive in Northville. “This is what they need to do be taken seriously globally.” Bragman added that GM is taking a page from Toyota Motor Corp. by focusing on just a couple global brands: Chevrolet and Cadillac.

Buick and GMC will remain regional brands.

GM will invest $117 million at its plant in Oshawa, Ontario, to build the new XTS, creating or saving 400 jobs. It also plans to reveal a final look at the XTS production model in the next couple of months.

62

Auto Monitor

THE OTHER SIDE

Getting Personal with Jean de Montlaur, Vice President & Managing Director, Federal-Mogul India, Federal-Mogul Corporation If not in the industry, where would you be?

If I was not working in this industry, I would be an architect. I have experience working with architects in the restoration of historical monuments, and I appreciate the high technology utilised in restoration work so as to maintain the original design and intent of the building. There are certain parallels with this industry in which, at Federal-Mogul, we focus on developing leading technology and innovation to improve key attributes of the vehicle, such as fuel economy, emissions reduction and safety What car do you drive? What do you dream of driving?

I drive a Range Rover. One car that I would very much enjoy driving is a 1980 Aston Martin V-8 Your most recent indulgence…

I recently purchased for my home a bronze tiger sculpture by the 19th century Japanese artist Nikuhitsu What are you currently reading?

I am reading ‘A Rumor of War’, which is an autobiography by Philip Caputo, who was a US Marine in the Vietnam War What is Mr de Montlaur, doing when not talking about the industry?

I appreciate art and I enjoy creating art—painting, drawing, photography and so forth Outdoor activity you would miss office for…

I have a vineyard, where I grow grapes for wine. I enjoy being there or working on the restoration of my historical country house and English garden Where did you go for your last holiday?

I went to Israel and travelled from south to north You get angry when…

I get angry when simple things that should happen do not What is the one thing you would like to change about you?

I am learning greater patience and working to become more philosophical

Illustration: Sachin Pandit

Best thing to have happened to you…

The best thing to happen to me is my three grown children

16 - 31 August 2011

In Person Jean de Montlaur is the Vice President and Managing Director for Federal-Mogul India. He is responsible for directing all facets of the business in India, including manufacturing and business operations.

Previously, Montlaur was Managing Director, Sintertech (France), Federal-Mogul Powertrain’s sintered product division, and Operations Director at its Veurey, Pontde-Claix and Oloron, France, facilities.

Mogul, Montlaur was a corPrior to joining Federal-Mogul, porate Vice President and General Manager for er business group Visteon’s French customer and Global Director of the Visteon Interior Product Line Team (PLT). In this role, he was de management responsible for the worldwide ng leading prodof interior systems, including uct development, productt line business strategy and operations forr the company’s wide basis. Prior Interiors Group on a worldwide to joining Visteon in 2003,, Montlaur held nd marketing, provarious positions in sales and rchasing, business gram management and purchasing, eneral management strategy, operations and general nies including Delphi with major global companies aleo.

Automotive Systems and Valeo. achelor’s degree Montlaur earned a bachelor’s in engineering from the École Centrade de Paris, France, and d master’s degrees in applied mathematics from the University of Paris VII and in business administration from Institute Français de Gestion, both in Paris.

Regn. No. MH/MR/WEST/20/2009-2011. RNI No. MAHENG/2000/11414 Licenced to post at Mumbai patrika channel sorting office G.P.O. Mumbai 400 001.

Date Of Mailing:16th & 17th Fortnightly Issue. Date Of Publication: 13th of Every Month

64