Auto Monitor - 16-31 December 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. 23

16-31 December 2011

INTERVIEW ‘TOLL COLLECTION SYSTEM NEEDS A MAJOR OVERHAUL’ Malkit Singh Bal, President, AIMTC

Bookings open for Sunny Diesel

Nabeel A Khan New Delhi

Our Bureau Chennai

N

issan Motor India (NMI) has commenced bookings for its global sedan, Sunny diesel recently. The company presents XL and the XV in two variants.

The 1.5 litre, K9K engine, taken from the Renault—Nissan Alliance has an ARAI claimed fuel efficiency of 21.64 km to a litre with the power of 86 ps@ 3,750 RPM and torque of 200 nm@

2,000 RPM. The four-cylinder engine is mated to a five-speed manual transmission in both trim versions.

Nissan has adopted a uniform pan-India pricing strategy, whereby the ex-showroom price of the Sunny Diesel will remain the same across all states. The only variations will be in terms of VAT, Entry Tax, Octroi and other local taxes levied by states.

The Sunny diesel to be priced at `7,98,000 (XL) and `8,78,000 (X V ) (ex-showroom, New Delhi).

DATA MONITOR Domestic Sales Oct-10

Oct-11

Change

PV

229,647

183,142

-20.25%

CV

52,138

61,800

18.53%

3W

50,064

49,031

-2.06%

2W

1,125,052

1,147,621

2.01%

TOTAL

1,456,901

1,441,594

-1.05%

Exports Sector

Oct-10

PV CV

Oct-11

Change

30,715

33,524

9.15%

6,856

5,793

-15.50%

3W

24,087

29,633

23.02%

2W

136,735

158,302

15.77%

TOTAL

198,393

227,252

14.55%

* Source: SIAM/ ** all sub segments considered

72 Pages

AUTOMATION SPECIAL Pg 24-32

Emissions through use of electric cars win over petrol cars Distance travelled

` 50

AUTONOMICS

Fuel/ power consumed

Mileage/ Driving range

Rate of CO2 emissions Total CO2 emissions in a year

Note:

(LONG) WAY TO GO FOR ELECTRIC CARS IN INDIA

Petrol Car Electric Car

Pg 14

Eon to hit global roads by March’12

NEWS IN BRIEF

Sector

Pg 08

w w w. a m o n li n e. i n

H

yundai Motor India (HMI) will start exporting its entry level hatchback car—Eon to South Africa, Vietnam, Malaysia and South America before the end of the fi nancial year 2011-12. The car originally designed for the domestic market is expected to compensate company’s decline in exports due to the Euro-zone crisis.

“Talks are on in a couple overseas markets suitable for Eon. We would initially export it to South Africa, South East Asia and South America,” Director, Marketing and Sales, Hyundai Motor India, Arvind Saxena told Auto Monitor.

This year (Januar y to December), the Korean car maker hopes to sell over four million cars globally and India will contribute nine percent of the target.

However, in terms of production, India contributes 16 percent.

Going ahead, the car manu-

facturer willl continue to enhance its exports from as been able India as it has bal standto offer global nology ards of technology omand access components hich locally, which come helps it become competitive. In a similar tone,, HMI has recently starton of ed production ta Fe its SUV Santa in India. at Looking va i lt he preva ing pressuress in the market, the ll be company will espect careful with respect ansion. to further expansion.

Saxena said that the company has planned to increase the capacity of its Sriperumbudur plant, from 6.3 lakh units per annum to 6.7 lakh by next year.

This expansion will help fulfil the export demand of Eon. The company is confident of the

success of its small car in the global market due to the features offered. “As times have changed, you cannot be very basic while offering even the entry level car.

You have to offer style and the car should be well equipped, and that

is what peop people like about Eon.” Saxena poin pointed out. This correspondent, who w took a test drive of the overseas-bound overs Eon, felt that the inn innovative space management a and fluidic design is fairly imp impressive. The NVH in the vehicl vehicle, especially in the gear box m might be a concern.

However, the car has a spacious cabin an and gives a feeling of a mid-lev mid-level hatchback.

The highlight of the car is its comfort c quotient and perfe perfectly designed seats.

The sseats at the rear have reaso reasonable leg room compared to its many rivals in the ssegment. The engine delive delivering 56 ps@5,500 RPM o of maximum power and 7.65 kgm@4,000 RPM of torque kept the driver reminding its limitations and the car.

The company has sold around 20,000 Eons since its launch on 13 October. “It could have done even better, but looking at current market situation, we are satisfied”, Saxena concluded.

Fiem starts direct supplies to Honda Shambhavi Anand/Murrali T New Delhi

T

aking a major step towards going global, automotive lighting and mirror component manufacturer, Fiem Industries has added Honda Japan to its list of customers for some of its international twowheeler models. The company also plans to achieve a turnover of around `1,500 to 2,000 crore in the next five years.

“For the fi rst time, we are supplying directly to an OEM for their international models.

We are supplying components for 670 cc two-wheeler models, which will be sold in European, American and Chinese markets,” Executive Director, Marketing, Fiem Industries, Rajesh Mishra told Auto Monitor.

The supplies commenced in July this year and consist of an entire set of lighting components—head lamps, tail lamps and blinker lamps. Earlier, the company was supplying to Honda Vietnam and Honda Thailand

JK Jain, CMD, Fiem

through Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI).

The components mea nt for supplying to Honda Japan were developed by the in-house design and development centre of Fiem. The process was closely monitored by the Japanese manufacturer. This project is in line with Fiem’s ambition to supply directly to the global vehicle manufacturers apart from the supplying to Tier I companies. “Setting up all the

facilities in-house helps in three of the industries’ most important requirements—cost, quality and delivery. We need not depend on outside agencies and vendors for a lot of processes now,” Director and COO, Girish M Rakhe said.

The company is also planning to diversify into low cost LED home lighting and street lighting projects. According to Chairman and Managing Director, Fiem Industries, JK Jain, “The low cost LED display systems will achieve

`800 to `1,000 crore of the turnover target that we have set for the next five years.”

Jain, who has been recently bestowed with a Doctor of Honours (BM) by Open I nter n at ion a l Un i v er sit y, Colombo, also hopes to introduce these products to the market by April 2012. It is also working with some state governments to procure street lighting projects where solar power can be used to charge the lights during the day time and the power can be used for illuminating the LED bulb during nights.

“The entire process of development of these LED display systems, except making the bulbs have been carried out in-house and we also hope to get some patents in this field,” Jain added.

The passenger car segment will be one of the most important focuses of the company for the coming years. It already has Tata Motors, Hyundai Motors India, Skoda Auto India among its customers in the passenger car segment.

A to Z product range as per Customer’s designs, applications, sizes and Internationals Standards

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EDITORIAL A Mixed Affair

I

n less than three weeks from now, the world is going to witness the largest auto show, in terms of footfalls. All roads will lead to Pragati Maidan, the venue for the eleventh Auto Expo 2011. Preparations for the event had already begun a year ago, and though the anticipation and excitement for the action-packed week are soaring, some segments of the auto industry are not so jubilant due to the sales performance this calendar year.

Though the overall sales in the month of November registered 22 percent growth against the same month last year, the growth rate recorded in April-November period is 13 percent.

And whether the figures are encouraging or not is still not clear to many in the industry due to different segments reflecting differing growth patterns—for instance, the passenger vehicles segment declined by 0.5 percent during April-November 2011, when compared with the same period last year. Within this, the passenger cars registered de-growth of 3.5 percent while the utility vehicles grew by 11.05 percent and vans grew by 10.26 percent during the same period.

However, in November 2011, passenger cars and utility vehicles recorded growth at seven percent and 32 percent respectively. Vans witnessed de-growth at 8.29 percent. The commercial vehicle segment registered 20 percent growth during April-November 2011 as compared to the same period last year.

While medium & heavy commercial vehicles grew a little over nine percent, the light commercial vehicles grew by 29 percent. However, in November 2011 the CV segment witnessed an overall growth of 35 percent against the same month last year. Indications only prove that most of the truck-makers cannot provide a good number of trucks in good times and manage inventories during a slowdown.

While the CVs react based on the economy and the GDP, the passenger cars react mostly on the sentiments, which are very low now due to few factors including hardening of interest rates and general slowdown scenario.

Although the industry is trying to solve this jigsaw puzzle and present a rosy picture, there seems to be an unspoken trepidation in the industry. However, one has to focus on the long term growth story.

While one part of India is still grappling with several issues to meet both ends, the other part seems to take cautions and measured steps eventually influencing the performance of many industries including the automotive. Therefore, the passenger cars and CVs should make the most of it at the Auto Expo so that the sentiments are appeased.

In the case of two wheelers, the growth rate during AprilNovember is 16 percent. However, it witnessed 25 percent in November this year against the same month last year. And so there will be more action at the two wheeler pavilions than other stalls.

Alongside the Auto Expo, the third edition of the Automotive Dealership Excellence Award—ADEA, organised jointly by Auto Monitor and FADA to recognise and reward excellence in automotive retail, will be held on 9 January, 2011 in New Delhi.

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

T. Murrali t.murrali@infomedia18.in

FORTNIGHT’S QUOTES Yoon Yeocheol, Hyundai Vice Chairman on attempts

by UAW to unionise non-US auto workers

Sergio Marchionne, Chief Executive, Chrysler and Fiat on future of the Euro and its impact on the auto industry

“It will not be easy. Hyundai employees there don’t like it.”

“In the next 30 to 60 days, we should see the euro re-acquiring credibility, and certainly support in the international financial markets to move forward.”

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GROUP CEO, NETWORK 18 Haresh Chawla

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GROUP COO, NETWORK 18 B. Sai Kumar

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CONTENTS CORPORATE Schwing Stetter to invest in new facility

12

Schwing Stetter (India) is looking to invest `80 crore towards its new manufacturing facility in India for concrete mixers

Sundaram casts magnesium spin on components

15

Sundaram Clayton is planning to manufacture components using magnesium in place of more popular elements in components

Pilkington to introduce new technologies

20

Pilkington is evaluating new generation products for the Indian market and expanding facility at Vizag with investment of around `1,000 crore

Kuka Robotics riding automation drive in automotive sector

GLOBAL WATCH California proposes big boost in electric cars

50

Next-gen lamp for car interior lighting

52

Mazda emission cuts deliver cash savings

58

Vauxhall-UK tie-up builds momentum worth Euro 230m

59

The California Air Resources Board proposed new regulations to dramatically increase the number of electric vehicles on the Golden State’s roads by 2025

24

Kuka Robotics has bagged new orders from its existing customers in automotive and engineering sector

Federal-Mogul’s new ultra-thin lighting combines LEDs and a specially designed lamp lens to reduce the profile of interior lamps by up to 60 percent

24

Fleets and company car drivers will save even more money by choosing to drive Mazda6 diesel or Mazda2 petrol models following reductions to CO2 emission

Vauxhall Motors has awarded contracts to UK suppliers worth around Euro 230 million over the past 18 months making a significant contribution to the UK economy

70

THE OTHER SIDE

Siemens to develop solutions for SMBs, virtual dealerships

25

Siemens is working on products and business models to make software more attractive to the SMBs and automobile dealers

Indian construction equipment industry to grow six times in 2020

28

Excon 2011 proved to be a major draw from more than 600 exhibitors and 35,000 visitors over three days

Schuler-Feintool to launch budget tools

EVENT

30

Khanna joined the Wendt team as a product engineer in 1983 and was part of the initial core team that was responsible for turning around Wendt from a small unknown entity to an admired organisation.

Delhi govt bags urban transport award The Delhi Government and Delhi Integrated Multi-Modal Transit System (DIMTS) recently won the ‘Best PPP initiative in Urban Transport’ award for their project, ‘Corporatisation of Private Stage Carriage Buses in Delhi’ at the Urban Mobility Conference 2011 organised by the Institute of Urban Transport (India). The awards were given away by the Minister of Urban Development, Kamal Nath.

The cluster scheme was conceptualised and drafted by DIMTS in 2007. The process involved dividing 657 routes of Delhi into 17 clusters. Each cluster is to be serviced by a single operator. The routes will also be serviced by DTC and both are assigned a unified time-table.

While evolving the cluster system, DIMTS took into account the feedback of the most important stakeholders, the public, by inviting response through a public notification.

The main objective of the scheme is to have high quality bus network, passenger-guided and responsive to changes in demand due to economic growth and demographic shifts, a universal bus network providing service availability on all scheduled routes to people from all sections of the community, a cost-effective network that minimises user tariffs and recourses to public subsidy. An integrated network that is simple to use, has high standards of reliability, comfort and customer service.

Auto Monitor

of the fortnight

Schuler India has joined hands with Feintool to introduce ‘economical’ version of fine blanking presses in India costing 20 percent less than the fully loaded machines

Rajesh Khanna, Chief Executive Officer, Wendt India

8

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 December 2011

INTERVIEW

‘Toll collection system needs a major overhaul’

The recently elected President, All India Motor Transport Congress (AIMTC), and Managing Director, Bal Roadlines, Malkit Singh Bal speaks to Auto Monitor on his key priorities for the apex body of truckers as well as major issue facing the road transportation segment in the country.

Abhishek Parekh What are the key issues facing the truck owners/operators?

A major issue facing the truck operators include ease of toll collection, carriage by road act, differing duties on petroleum products across states and withdrawal of anti-dumping duties on tyres. We (AIMTC) are looking to make representations on these issues and take them on a war footing.

Some of these issues have been long overdue and have been plaguing the industry for quite a while. How different is your approach going to be in tackling them?

These issues have become complicated as there are multiple interests and multiple stakeholders attached to them. Such issues take time to resolve. For instance, the issue of service tax on transporters was raised for the first time in 1993 and got sorted out after much deliberation, strikes and various other efforts only around 2006-07. Similarly there are other matters and we as an association need to keep fighting, keeping a united front.

One of the major issues is the present system of toll collection. We have already made several representations before the government on the issue of multiple toll collection points and how it is adversely affecting the traffic movement and growth of the logistics sector. The current system of toll collection is leading to corruption and high

handedness on the part of toll collecting agencies. Truck drivers are threatened and treated badly by toll collectors, not to mention the long waiting period at each of these toll points. The collection activities immediately commence on the day any road is opened for vehicular traffic or in case of existing two-lane road widened to a four or six lane one, without any systematic strategy of recovering the amount spent by concerned government body on the particular road reconstruction project. In most instances it is even difficult to ascertain whether toll collection points are ‘genuine’ or otherwise.

Such a system cannot be encouraged and has to stop.

We have made a representation to concerned government bodies and are already in dialogue to work out some modalities of issuing an annual permit for toll free movement of vehicles across the country.

This can be on similar lines as the existing system of national permit, which allows a truck to move from one state to another without an additional application or permit. We are willing to discuss on how much cost can be collectively borne by all truck operators as an annual charge spread out over several years with balance borne by the state or central government. Private vehicles can freely ply across the country without any burden of toll. Moreover such an annual or lumpsum ‘toll’ will lead to plugging of any loopholes in revenue collection for infrastructure projects. Moreover a truck will be able to ply at a higher speed and

cover 40 to 50 percent extra distance if all toll collection points are removed and this will lead to additional business for us.

Is the smart card-based automated toll collection a better solution under the circumstances that you have describe?

There are various issues to tackle as far as any such automated system is concerned and even that is not easy to implement with different interested parties and different funding structures for various roads across the country.

Moreover, we are open to dialogue with the government for any suitable solution to remove this ‘evil’ system of toll collection as is being witnessed today.

Are there any other representations that you are planning to make?

We are looking to make representations on various issues that are affecting our business hoping to arrive at suitable solutions.

Third party insurance and removal of barriers to imported tyres are other areas where we are in the process of making representations.

Removal of anti-dumping duties of imported tyres is a burning issue and we are looking for a resolution of this matter as tyre manufacturers are wilfully raising prices in the aftermarket and we are unable to buy imported tyres available at lesser cost due to high duties levied on them. Additionally, we are looking to ensure that there is a ceiling on excise duties on diesel across different states to remove the distortion it causes in fuel prices and our operational economics.

What is your take on driver shortage in the industry?

Shortage of trained drivers is

an open and much debated issue.

Around 10 percent of the vehicles are lying idle for want of drivers.

And the issue will worsen in the coming years. In my experience, it is more an issue of attitude change as the professional ‘driver’ has lost all his dignity. That is what we need to address in the logistics industry.

Interestingly, we (Bal Roadlines) have not faced any major issue of getting trained drivers for our fleet of premium Volvo trucks but face the shortage of drivers for ordinary haulage trucks. Hence the issue appears to be one of pay scale and dignity. We have been communicating with our state level and regional associations to establish or support driver training programmes but results so far have not been very encouraging.

What is your outlook on the freight rates and goods movement across the country?

The Indian economy has been adversely affected by global economic downturn. These are very uncertain times for us as goods transporters. But we feel it is a temporary phenomenon and freight market will gradually

improve in the coming months. As truck operators, we have a tendency to evaluate our fleet expansion and consolidation plans periodically and the current scenario is not as alarming as it is being portrayed in some quarters. We have to wait and watch how issues pan out in the coming months and we are hopeful that things will improve from the current scenario.

10

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 December 2011

CORPORATE

Rane Group celebrates platinum jubilee Our Bureau Chennai

S

tepping in to 76th year the Chennai headquartered auto component conglomerate Rane Group has reiterated that the next ten years will be a decade of accelerated growth with more focus on developing new products, intellectual properties and exports. The group that serves the entire gamut of the automotive industry with several products including valve trains, brakes and steering systems, will also look at emerging opportunities in defence and aerospace. It aims to double its turnover of `2,200 crore reported in 2010-11, in about five years.

L Ganesh, Chairman, Rane Group

Chairman, Rane Group, L Ganesh said the 2000-10 was a decade of excellence with four companies getting the coveted Deming Application Prize (DAP) and one receiving Japan Quality Medal (JQM). The CAGR during the last decade was around

10 percent while the same in the next decade will be “much more,” he said. In order to focus on the accelerated growth, the group will be creating an environment, which will encourage an innovative culture, create an exciting work place that will be both challenging and learning opportunity for the employees.

The group gets around 15 percent of its revenue from exports and the plan is to enhance it up to 25 percent. And towards this objective, it has evolved a three-pronged strategy—focus on OEMs, Tier I companies and aftermarket. Of the total exports last fiscal, over 90 percent of revenue came from OEMs and Tier I customers while the rest

from the aftermarket. Now the group will renew its focus on aftermarket. In order to create more intellectual properties, the group will increase its spend on R&D to 1.5 to two percent from the current range of 0.5 to 1.7 percent. Recently Rane Holdings has acquired 26 percent stake in SasMos HET Technologies, a company engaged in manufacturing interconnection systems (cable harness) for various applications in defence and aerospace industries. “We feel that there is some synergy and believe that it will be one of the focus areas for Rane,” Ganesh said.

Chairman, Rane Holdings, L Lakshman said the ‘customer first’ principle laid down by the found-

ers of the group became the DNA and the DAP and JQM are only the continuation of this founding principle. “Organisations, as they evolve, start off at the opportunistic level—merely catering to a market need, but progressively the improvement journey begins and as they pass through several milestones, they end up as institutions.

The leadership style and aspirations also play a major part. What characterises them are the underlying processes related to customer improvements and employees.

Full marks to Rane employees who have risen to the occasion and helped the company in its journey towards operational excellence,” he said.

KEL, KMCL to merge operations Our Bureau Mumbai

K

inetic Engineering (KEL or KE) and Kinetic Motor Company (KMCL or KMC)

are set to merge operations in order to optimise the potential of respective automotive businesses as well as create opportunities for entry of strategic investor in the company. The merger, pend-

ing the approval of Bombay High Court, is aimed at rationalisation of business to achieve substantial synergies including fi nancial strength and flexibility as well as fi nancial consolidation of oper-

ating activity and investment in one entity, according to a company statement.

The merger ratio proposed is four shares of Kinetic Engineering will be issued for every 31 shares

of Kinetic Motor Company held by its shareholders. Post the merger, the stake of the promoters in Kinetic Engineering would stand at 52.85 percent, from a current stake of 57.49 percent. The balance shareholding will be held by public and fi nancial institutions.

KE will move the application to the Stock Exchanges for their approvals after which an application will be made to the Bombay High Court for approval.

The board of KE has also approved two other key resolutions including appointment of Sulajja Firodia Motwani as a Vice Chairperson of KE. It has also passed a proposal to seek approval from the Reserve Bank of India for the extension of the Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds issued by KE worth $18 million (`90 crore) by one year, extending the date of conversion/ redemption from February 2013 to February 2014.

The two-wheeler business in Kinetic Motor Company was hived off to a new alliance company with Mahindra and Mahindra. KMC has transferred its operating assets relating to two-wheeler business from KMC to Mahindra Two-Wheeler (MTW) in November 2008, for cash and for a 20 percent strategic stake in MTW. “Kinetic Engineering has made good progress over the last two to three years in establishing itself as a strong player in the automotive systems industry with a key specialisation in powertrain. We have an enviable order book from strong players like Tata, Mahindra & Mahindra, Piaggo, MNA, among others. We intend to build KE’s current automotive systems business to a size of `500 crore per annum in the next three years and also aim at creating further value through the strategic tie ups such as the stake in MTW,” said Chairman, KE, Arun Firodia.

KPMG has been appointed as the tax and structuring advisor for the merger process, while SSPA has been appointed as the valuer to the merger and IDFC Investment Banking arm will be providing the fairness opinion.

Corrigendum On page 1 of the 1-15 December issue, the name of the company Talbros had been incorrectly mentioned. The error is deeply regretted.

12

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 December 2011

CORPORATE

Bhargav TS Bangalore

S

chwing Stetter (India), a wholly-owned subsidiary of German-based Schwing Gmbh, the manufacturers of Ready Mix Concrete (RMC) equipment, will be investing `80 crore towards its new manufacturing facility. The company has started working towards its new plant, which is proposed to be set up near the existing plant in Chennai.

The manufacturer currently has a facility to manufacture batching plants, tower plants, RMC and concrete mixing plants at Irungattukottai near Chennai, and two plants for manufacturing

truck-mounted mixers, pumps and concrete placing booms.

Together, the three plants have a capacity to manufacture units worth `1,300 crore.

In a recent interaction with Auto Monitor the company’s Managing Director, Anand Sundaresan said, “Our investment will be for a new manufacturing facility, which is close to our existing facility and we will be increasing our truck mixture capacity by eliminating the bottle necks in the current plant.”

During this expansion mode, Schwing Stetter will be expanding its existing facility to increase the productivity. It will also be shifting its fabrications division to the new facility. “During the expan-

Photograph: Bhargav TS

Schwing Stetter to invest in new facility

Anand Sundaresan, MD, Schwing Stetter India

sion phase, we have planned to expand our truck mixture division in the existing facility where we see some capacity constraints.

Also we have started expand-

ing our production capacity and increasing our sales and service divisions,” Sundaresan said.

While the company is currently importing the boom pump, it is planning to manufacture the same indigenously so that the cost of the pump would come down. He said, “We are in the process of indigenising as much as possible so that we can bring down the cost, which will help us gain more market share. We have introduced a new design on truck mixers that contains a lot of technical innovation and we call it as C2 version internally.”

Asking about the plans for the R&D centre, Sundaresan said, “The company is planning for a new R&D centre, since the gov-

ernment is providing more tax benefits. Therefore we are seriously looking into it. Currently, we are getting all the latest technologies from our parent company in Germany and we are closing working with them.”

Keeping Indian preferences in mind, the company is designing their products that are required to travel in narrow and rough road conditions. In the new generation vehicles, the power is generated from the chassis itself, which helps the customers to reduce their maintenance cost and the need for an additional slave engine is also eliminated. Due to these factors, the users are able to obtain better fuel efficiency.

PRS Permacel to double label capacity, mark presence Our Bureau Mumbai

P

RS Permacel, a leading automotive graphics manufacturer, is looking for a deeper penetration in OEM and aftermarket segment. It is currently a leading supplier to all major two-wheeler manufacturers in India.

It is looking to increasing the presence of the graphics business in the aftermarket through a distributor, rather than setting up its own network. The company is looking to increase its turnover to around `140 crore over the next two to three years from around `90 crore currently.

“We have been supplying safety critical solutions like fi re retardant tapes for application in cars and buses for tackling

NS Shenoy, President & MD, PRS Permacel

scenarios like fi re or leakage thus increasing passenger comfort and safety. We have come to witness that some of the components like interiors or cables in vehicles have been subjected to very harsh treatment or weather related variations in Indian conditions and we are looking

to provide additional OEM solutions that are suitable under these conditions for increasing passenger comfort and safety.” said President & Managing Director, PRS Permacel, NS Shenoy. He added that these applications are customised in certain cases but can have a market of their own.

The company operates three divisions: industrial, automotive and brand protection segment.

It supplies identification labels, insulation products and speciality tapes for the automotive and industrial sectors. It has been one of the earliest players in the automotive graphics business having indigenously developed for Ford Tractors and Massey Ferguson Tractors in early seventies by PRS Permacel. It provides lacquerable graphics to Japanese two-wheeler manufacturers like Suzuki,

Honda, Yamaha and Kawasaki.

It has been supplying solutions like graphics, speciality labels and name-plates for passenger vehicles in India from Suzuki, Mahindra, Ford, Opel, Daewoo and Hyundai. The company has its inhouse pre-press and design facilities supported by a professional design set up and R&D team.

It has received quality award from FINAT, a worldwide association for self-adhesive labels for the ‘STX graphics’ for Yamaha’s export model STX. T he compa ny suppl ies graphic-related products and solutions including automotive labels, graphics for two-wheeler, four-wheeler, g raphics for cars, jeeps, tractors and other vehicles.

“Auto component suppliers

are looking to protect the customers who are unknowingly buying counterfeit products. The suppliers’ resources for brand building and protection are better spent in protecting the products from getting counterfeits available in the market rather than competitors alone,” said President & Managing Director, PRS Permacel, NS Shenoy. He added that most companies with reputed brands are realising that if the counterfeiters are not stopped in the local market the menace of counterfeiting could play with the reputation of their brands globally.

It already serves leading players in the automotive aftermarket by providing solutions to recognise counterfeits and provide add it iona l solut ions for brand protection.

14

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 December 2011

AUTONOMICS

(Long) Way to go for electric cars in India T Sridhar C Head, CRISIL Research

Hetal Gandhi Team Leader, CRISIL Research

he consistent rise in fuel prices and the need to reduce dependence on oil and cut emissions make a strong case for electric cars in India. Running costs for these cars are a tenth of that of a petrol car; load on power grid is miniscule and emissions too are lower, though marginally. Electric cars, however, constitute less than a percent of the domestic cars & UVs market now, as they cost double than a comparable petrol car. If the government shifts to cleaner fuels for generating power, while incentivising R&D, electric cars may turn cheaper and make start making inroads in India over the next two decades.

Emissions through use of electric cars win over petrol cars Distance travelled

Fuel/ power consumed

Mileage/ Driving range

Rate of CO2 emissions

Total CO2 emissions in a year

Why Electric Cars?

Adoption of electric cars in India will be driven by three factors—savings on running costs (given the sustained rise in fuel prices), lower load on power grid and emission reductions.

Running Cost Savings

The government plans a `740crore Research & Development fund for electric vehicles in the XIIth Five Year Plan and an interministerial panel to monitor the implementation of the project.

The fund would just be the first step to induce OEMs to introduce more electric car models in the coming years

According to CRISIL Research estimates, an average Indian car travels 15,000 km annually. The running costs of an electric car are about 11 times less than a comparable petrol car. The savings thus accrued will help an electric car buyer to recover the premium paid (an electric car is costlier than a comparable conventional car by `1-1.5 lakh) in about a year and a half.

Moreover, maintenance costs are 20-25 per cent lower for an electric car than a comparable petrol car, due to the absence of more complex parts in the former.

Thus, a customer would be able to recover the premium incurred on an electric car in about a year and a half, saving about `75,000 per year. Even considering that the battery of an electric car lasts three years, the customer would only have to spend `80,000 to replace it, still saving about `1.5 lakh by that time.

Despite such huge savings, electric cars have a near-zero share in the domestic car market, due to higher upfront costs (as they cost double than a comparable petrol car) and lack of model options. Globally too, even though there are more electric car models that are efficient, they constitute just 1.6 percent of total car sales. This is because global models use lithium-ion batteries, which make electric cars cost prohibitive for the consumer. CRISIL Research therefore, expects that it will be at least a couple of decades before electric cars make significant inroads, globally and in India.

EVs don’t burden power grid Despite the significant savings from an electric car, there are concerns on whether they would be viable in a power-deficit country like India. Given the total domestic power generated in 2010-11 was about 800 billion kWh, the share of an electric car will remain miniscule. Even if all the 2.5 million cars sold in India in 2010-11, were electric cars, they would collectively consume less than a per cent of the total power generated during the year.

Emission benefits insignificant, unless India alters energy mix Even though electric cars produce no

Note:

Petrol Car Electric Car

Savings Incurred Factors

Petrol car

Electric car

Fuel/ power consumed#

1,153 litres

1,875 kWh

2,250 kWh

Running costs (`)*

82,000

7,500

9,000

Kilometres travelled per year

15,000

Effective savings (Times) Cost per km(`)

10-11 5.4

0.5-0.6

Note: # Assuming that a comparable petrol car (e.g. Maruti Suzuki Alto) offers a mileage of 14 kmpl on Indian roads. * Petrol prices currently stand at Rs 71/ litre; while a unit of power for recharging an electric car will be Rs 4.

Source: Metal bulletin, CRISIL Research

tailpipe emissions, it won’t lead to significant emission reductions for India, as it does not have a cleaner energy mix.

Currently, the country generates above half of its electricity from coal. Emissions by an electric car in India would be therefore only marginally lower than a comparable petrol car.

Most developed economies, on the other hand, rely on more clean power sources such as nuclear energy and hydroelectricity. For instance, Europe leads in the use of nuclear energy for generating power, while Canada meets over a quarter of its power requirements from hydroelectricity. In both the above examples, emissions during power generation are nil.

However, emission benefits are expected to elude India at least for the next two decades, as coal will continue to dominate power generation even then.

As per the Planning Commission’s estimates, India will continue to rely majorly on coal, with requirements expanding to over 2.5 billion tonnes per annum by 2031-32, based on the quality of available domestic coal.

R&D push, sales subsidies necessary for EV adoption To increase the adoption of electric cars, the government would have to focus on two aspects—subsidising purchases of electric cars (at least initially) and incentivising investments by the industry for R&D on such cars.

Currently, India has only one electric car model—the Mahindra Reva, priced at about `four lakh. On this, the government grants a 20 percent cash subsidy on ex-factory prices or `one lakh to the manufacturer, whichever is lesser, bringing down costs by `75,000-95,000. These subsidies were

introduced as part of a `95 crore fund introduced by the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy in November 2010.

However, the current fund of `95 crore, would in effect subsidise about 9,000 vehicles. With electric car sales for 2011-12 pegged at close to 2,500 units, the above fund would last over the next fourfive years. The government, thus, would have to increase the fund size and prolong the purchase subsidies until the electric car market grows suitably.

On the other hand, R&D on more efficient and cost-effective models would help make electric cars viable in the long run. As per recent media reports, the government plans a `740-crore Research & Development (R&D) fund for electric vehicles in the XIIth Five Year Plan and an inter-ministerial panel to monitor the implementation of the project. The fund would just be the fi rst step to induce OEMs to introduce more electric car models in the coming years. Within R&D, developing more cost-effective electric car batteries would help create a mass market for electric cars, as batteries currently account for a fi fth of electric car costs in India and almost half abroad.

Implementation of all these incentives would therefore help India reduce its dependence on petrol and diesel, but only over the next couple of decades. It would also ease carmakers’ anxieties on the volatility in fuel prices. CRISIL Research expects that the above efforts and incentives to spur the electric car market would be at least two decades in the coming.

Electric cars have a long way to go both globally and in India.

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

Lower running costs help recover premium in a year and half Breakeven at 1.5 years (15-16 months)

Year 1 `75,000

High-end electric car

Year 2 `1,50,000

Year 3 `2,25,000

An electric car (Mahindra Reva) costs Rs 1-1.5 lakh higher than a petrol car

Note: Cost of owning a vehicle includes interest expense, fuel cost, maintainence charges and insurance premiums

16 - 31 December 2011

CORPORATE

Auto Monitor

15

Sundaram casts magnesium spin on components Bhargav TS Chennai

C

hennai-based Sundaram Clayton (SC), manufacturer of aluminium die castings, is planning to manufacture components using magnesium in place of more popular elements in components. As vehicle manufacturers are looking for lighter components, SC will manufacture their components in magnesium, which is lighter than aluminium and iron.

The compa ny’s g roup President and CEO, CN Prasad said, “We have started conducting trials on magnesium-based components to reduce the weight of the vehicles. Compared to aluminium and iron, magnesium is lighter in weight and has more value proposition. It also helps in

Sundaram Clayton has started conducting trials on magnesium-based components to reduce the weight of the vehicles. Compared to aluminium and iron, magnesium is lighter in weight and has more value proposition reducing emissions, which enables the vehicle manufacturer to meet the emission norms. We see a huge potential on this and we will be exploring opportunities on magnesium.”

Initially, SC will manufacture medium sized components and will be officially supplying these components to its customer from 2013, with an initial production of 1,000 tonne annually. Currently, the company has three manufacturing facilities and it will manufacture magnesium-based components at its Padi plant in Chennai.

“The trend of using magnesium casting is catching up with many manufacturers, particularly in Europe. The company will focus on supplying magnesium-die casting to premium car manufacturers. Currently, we are importing it from Europe and Australia, where the availability is more” Prasad said.

It is still negotiating with passenger car makers for supplier arrangements.

The company will also be ramping up its production capacity from 40,000 tonne to 60,000 tonne in its manufacturing facilities in the next one and a half years. Currently, the company supplies pressure die castings ranging from 25 gram to 25 kg.

According to Prasad, SC recorded a turnover of `820 crore in 2010-2011 and is expected to cross `1,000 crore in the current fi scal. “We are not affected by the downturn and our top line continues to grow since we are supplying our products to the entry level segment vehicles,” Prasad said.

The casting manufacturer has also invested `85 crore towards its new manufacturing facility in Oragadam near Chennai, which will be ready

CN Prasad, Group President & CEO (centre) with PH Narayanan, President, Die Casting (right) and Ram Natarajan, President, Automotive Products Division, Sundaram Clayton

by mid-2012. The new plant will have a capacity to manufacture 12,000 tonne annually, which will be catering mainly to the domestic needs. Presently it supplies major components to Hyundai, Volvo, Ford, Komatzu, ZF, Cummins among other companies.

The company’s Die Casting Division, was awarded the Plat inum Dist inct ion in the Indian Manufacturing Excellence Awards. Earlier in 1998, Sundaram Clayton, Brakes Division, won the ‘Deming Application Prize’ becoming the fi rst Indian company and the fourth company outside Japan to receive this honour. Prasad said, “I wish to dedicate this award to all employees. This would motivate the SC team to create new benchmarks in manufacturing excellence.”

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CORPORATE

16 - 31 December 2011

Dow Corning to develop silicone-based solutions Our Bureau Mumbai

D

ow Corning is in touch with two and threewheeler manufacturers for developing silicone-based coating and other related solutions that can offer reliability and better performance compared to existing solutions available in the market.

The company established its operations in India in 2000 and provides technology-based solutions in diverse sectors including textiles, construction, automotive, solar energy, beauty & personal care and has a full fledged laboratory in Mumbai with manufacturing operations in Pune.

Upgrading Offerings “The awareness level in terms of benefits of silicone-based

coating and related solutions is low across the automotive sector. We are looking to develop or adapt solutions for systems and components for OEMs and Tier I suppliers after understanding their performance and reliability needs and how we can improve upon existing solutions available to them. The awareness of silicone based solutions is much higher among passenger car manufacturers in India and we are looking for deeper engagement in that segment,” said India Region President, Dow Corning India, Diane Kelly.

than cost vis-a-vis comparable organic solution is also an issue.

With safety and performance consciousness growing in India, automobile manufacturers would be keen to look at better and more promising technology options.

The company is working along with various industry associations, manufacturers and aftermarket service providers as well to increase awareness and education for silicone technology.

“We have to understand what customer is trying to achieve through a particular application and then offer a solution,” she added.

Solution Oriented

Silicone Advantages

She added that design limitations in existing solutions based on silicone technology stop from wider adoption of silicone technology. Moreover, lesser demand for performance and reliability in the automotive sector rather

The company’s two part silicone sealant is used in headlight and taillight assembly in two-wheelers and offers higher durability and heat resistance to these sealants. This in turn allows automobile manufacturers to use

Diane Kelly, President, Dow Corning

Dow Corning is looking to develop or adapt solutions for systems and components for OEMs and Tier I suppliers after understanding their performance and reliability needs and how it can improve upon existing solutions available brighter longer lasting and higher density bulbs in headlight and taillight assembly thus providing efficiency and economic benefit to end customers.

Silicones provide benefits enabling components to thrive in harsh environments including providing stability in widely fluctuating temperatures ranging from -50 degree to 200 degree and resistance to thermal shock.

The components can resist moisture, engine f luids and have stable dielectric properties at high frequencies. Silicones also provide sound and vibration damping capabilities making them suitable for range of auto interior components.

Usages Some of t he prominent applications based on silicones include air and f luid delivery, airbag coating, electrical insulation, interior & exterior finishes, leak prevention, light management, lubrication, plastic and rubber parts, tyre dressing formulations and thermal management.

Silicone technology offers component manufacturers cost effective sealing solutions to improve overall performance and productivity.

One of the newer and more promising areas for application of silicone technolog y includes anti friction component for automotive braking.

The technology helps improve the performance and durability of ABS (Anti-Lock Braking) and ESP systems. Silicone coatings are also used to gain better control over fabrics for inf lation/ def lation of air bags.

18

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 December 2011

CORPORATE

Car buyers explore online buying options Shambhavi Anand and Abhishek Parekh New Delhi/Mumbai

W

ith the increasing penetration of the internet, the dynamics of consumer behavior while buying vehicles is changing rapidly and is driving new developments in technology and business models.

In order to succeed, it is essential for automotive companies to understand these rapidly evolving changes, according to the fi rst in India and 13th annual global automotive study of Capegemini, a global consulting fi rm.

The study reveals that Indian consumers are increasingly using the web in various phases such as research, online buying and parts and accessories buying. The report shows how over the years social media is becoming more inf luential in buying decisions in Indian context. All these along with other factors are leading to the shrinking buying cycle for consumers especially visits to showrooms.

Compared to markets in developed countries, Indian buyers are growing more demanding about the quality and quantity of car dealerships. Also, demand for new—rather than used— vehicles is growing in Indian market, where many consumers are first-time buyers.

It is suggested that upto 95 percent of the consumers buying vehicles did their research online in 2011, either directly or indirectly against the 86 percent in 2010. Hence, the probability of purchasing vehicles over the internet has increased from 52 percent in 2010 to 53 percent in 2011 in the county. Around 59 percent Indian car buyers say

Source: Capgemini

they are likely to buy parts over the internet; the same number want to buy accessories online.

Citing reasons for increased inclination towards usage of internet while buying vehicles, Vice President, Global Manufacturing Sector Leader, Capgemini, Nick Gill said, “Many people have a notion that goods or services bought online are cheaper and easier to buy as compared to traditional channels such as dealerships.”

The study also suggested that social media plays a significant role in the process. Upto 78 percent consumers said they were likely to purchase a vehicle from a particular car manufacturer or

dealer if they found positive comments posted about that vehicle brand, manufacturer or dealer and 54 percent said they would be less likely to buy a vehicle from a particular manufacturer or dealer if they found negative comments posted on social media sites.

Mobile phones and smart phone applications are poised to become the key channels for vehicle ownership communication between consumers and manufacturers, consumers and dealers, and consumers and their vehicles in the coming times, the report suggested. Some of the popular applications include remote support features such as remote locking and unlocking

of vehicle doors, car information like service reminders about when maintenance is due and car care tips.

According to the study, new and alternative ways of ownership have also gained popularity.

Nearly 52 percent of the respondents were of the opinion that they would consider alternatives such as vehicle-sharing, against the 49 percent in 2010.

Some other fi ndings includes the number of intended new car buyers is highest in developing markets like India and China, where many consumers are fi rsttime buyers.

Some car buyers continue to be more demanding about dealerships as only 45 percent of respondents in India are willing to travel more than 10 miles to purchase a vehicle. Around 39 percent of them said they are willing to travel only upto 10 miles to a dealership to purchase a vehicle. The remaining 16 percent was willing to travel less than five miles to purchase a vehicle. The study also shows evidence of the shrinking buying cycle, especially dealer visits, leaving dealers with fewer opportunities to interact face-to-face with customers.

However some participants, at an exclusive roundtable discussion organised by Capgemini for discussing the study and its implications with representative of OEMs, expressed confl icting ideas, while some others seemed to be convinced. Participants also said that an online buying decision might also vary depending upon the segment of the vehicle.

The representative of the Indian subsidiary of PSA Peugeot Citroen said, “We need out-of-

the-box thinking and that is difficult to come by so long as we do not have diversity in our marketing talent pool within the automotive sector and at various vehicle manufacturers.

The diversity in thought process can lead to quicker and faster implementation of changes that the industry is required to go through.”

He added that major effort needs to be directed at making the car buying experience easier than what it is today. He also felt that a large section of new buyers for the automobile segment is likely to come from semi urban and rural areas and these customers are likely to have shorter learning curve on using social media as well as online resources.

Another major concern expressed by some of the participants was the quality of experience provided to potential customers. It is preferable to have a back end processes and systems in place before aggressive online marketing as customer would tend to associate their experience with the brand while interacting online or on telephone.

The physical infrastructure at most OEM dealership itself is far too stretched out for effectively addressing online buyers. The situation is particularly tricky as customer loyalty for any brand is fading away.

The discussion concluded with the consulting fi rm suggesting OEMs to develop a formal social media strategy, maximise the consumer interactions, experiment with alternative buying and ownership models, focus on holistic dealer strategy in developing markets and seize the online buying opportunity.

20

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 December 2011

CORPORATE

Caterpillar weaves local chrysalis-operations Our Bureau Chennai

C

onstruction equipment and heav y machinery manufacturer, Caterpillar Inc will be investing $150 million to build a manufacturing facility to produce its Perkins branded 4000 series engines. In addition, it is also investing $62 million at its existing off-highway truck manufacturing facility at its Thiruvallur plant near Chennai.

The new investment to expand truck capacity in Chennai is in addition to the $108 million investment for Chennai plant that Caterpillar had announced in 2010. Caterpillar trucks are used for coal and other min-

ing applications in India. The company also plans to expand Caterpillar 3508 engine production at its facility in Hosur, also in Tamil Nadu. The 3508 engines will be used primarily in offhighway trucks produced by the company in India.

The expansion is a part of Caterpillar’s strategic plan to spread its manufacturing wings in the rapidly growing AsiaPacific region. “The investments we have announced will ensure that our customers have access to world class solutions to complete projects on time and at the lowest owning and operating costs,” said the company’s Group President, Richard P Lavin.

The engine facility will have an

Richard Lavin, President, Caterpillar Inc

initial production of 3,000 units a year, which will unfurl to 5,000

units in 12 to 18 months. The location for the new Perkins engine

facility is yet to be determined, although the site selection process is expected to be completed in another couple of months.

The company’s 750 to 2500 KVA engines will be sold for gensets and other power applications.

“We see massive growth for electric power industry in India. But globally it is in a bit slow down,” said Lavin.

Till date, Caterpillar has invested $one billion in its Indian operations. Countr y Manager of India, China and Asean, Kevin Thieneman said, “We are in the completion of our earlier investments and this new investment will enable us to grow rapidly and we can cater to the Indian market.”

Pilkington to introduce new technologies Our Bureau Mumbai

P

ilkington is evaluating new generation products including sensor integrated windshield, automatic windshield, anti-reflection glass and self-pinning glass for the Indian market. It is currently in the process of discussion with its potential OEM customers for these next generation products but it may be a while before there could be any significant volumes for these advanced automotive glass products.

“We are in the process of getting OEM mandates for new generation safety glass using globally benchmarked processes.

Our expanded manufacturing facility in Vizag for automotive glass can be tapped for domestic

OEM and aftermarket demand,” said Managing Director-Building Products India, Pilkington NSG Group Flat Glass Business, Pinaki Banerjee. He added that having a manufacturing facility dedicated to meeting the OE and aftermarket demand is critical.

The company operates and distributors/stockists model for reaching out in the aftermarket and providing aftersales service.

Around 10 percent of the passenger vehicles in India have broken windshields every year and of these vehicles, fi fty percent do not proactively change their windshield with safety glass.

Industry estimates suggest that around 15 lakh vehicles line up for replacing broken or damaged windshields per annum in India.

Safety glass could be further classified into laminated glass used

Pinaki Banerjee

for windshields and toughened glass fitted on the rear side.

Currently, the company has a marketshare of around four to five percent in the aftermarket

in India. The company is hoping to double this share over the next two to three years and build up a robust OEM business alongside. The company is investing around `1,000 crore for expansion of its capacity at Vizag. The facility currently manufactures glass, which is an input for safety glass meant for automotive segment. This additional investment would help company bring forth capacity of around 650 tonnes of glass per day at Vizag.

The company has a major presence in laminated safety glass mainly used for windshields.

Toughened safety glass are used at the rear end of the vehicle.

Banerjee added that as OE and aftermarket demand picks up, the company may look to invest additional Euro 30 to 40 million (around 240 crore) for dedicated

safety glass assembling operations for catering to the domestic market at Vizag facility. It is aiming for double digit marketshare in the OE automotive safety glass and the aftermarket segment even as it strives to raise its manufacturing capacity.

“OE presence would lead to higher demand for advanced windshield products in India.

Moreover, we are looking to grow our network of distributors in the aftermarket,” said Marketing Manager, Pilkington Glass India, Samir Kapur. He added that even as market for premium car has been growing, the phenomenon is likely to spur demand in OE and replacement market as most of the European and the Japanese car manufacturers are Pilkington’s global customers.

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CORPORATE

16 - 31 December 2011

Balanced growth key to success in any region Our Bureau Mumbai

T

he state of Saxony, situated in East Germany is making a concerted bid to become an investment destination for global manufacturing companies. It is offering a slew of incentive packages to attract the automobile, engineering and high technology sectors to invest in Saxony.

Government Support “We are not differentiating between the automotive and general engineering segment.

Our attraction as a destination for the automobile sector comes from a mix of premium and mass market cars already being manufactured, steady supply of skilled labour and infrastructure for technical

and specialised manpower,” said Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Economy, Labour and Transport, State of Saxony, Sven Morlok.

The government offers a tiered structure of subsidies for investors in Saxony depending upon the level of investment committed and the impact such investments could have on the local economy. The incentive package could range from thirty to fi fty percent for investing companies. Apart from certain turnover-based criteria, a company investing in manufacturing or allied industries in Saxony is classified as ‘big’ if it employs more than 250 workers. Companies employing between 50 and 250 skilled and non-skilled workers is considered medium scale, while those companies employing 50

and lesser workers is considered a ‘small’ company. The state of Saxony has already spent more than Euro 250 million on such package incentive schemes for investors setting up manufacturing base in the state.

Focus On Growth

Sven Morlok, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Economy, Labour and Transport, State of Saxony

The state of Lower Saxony has attracted investments from Volkswagen, Porsche and BMW for premium and mass production vehicles. BMW has committed additional investments in Leipzig for a new facility for its E3 range of carbon-based electric vehicles, the fi rst instance of a German automobile company opting for mass production of electric vehicles within Germany.

The state is focussing on five key areas of growth for attracting investments including mobility, life sciences, mechanical engineering, nanotechnology & microelectronics and environmental & energy technologies. It has been focussing on creating an infrastructure for high-end technolog y-based industries over the last two decades. The turnout of the effort has been an assortment of high technolog y manufacturing including micro chips, cell manufacturing and research, waste water treatment products and systems and photovoltaic components and systems.

“We are hoping to create infrastructure and an enabling environment for companies in different high technology and mass market areas to grow and become more prosperous. This process of growth and prominence will help us create more jobs in the state and that in turn will lead to higher standard of living and spur further investments,” said Morlok.

Towards Diversity The key focus areas for the state going forward is to attract more investments in ‘priority’ areas like electromobility—a base of manufacturing electric/ hybrid vehicles for personal and mass mobility, automation and technologies for manufacturing mass market vehicles with greater efficiency and research and development entities. “It is important to have a balanced growth in any geographical area, as such a growth is more equitable and leads to overall harmony of the state. This point is proved by the fact that even though the German and overall EU automotive market has slowed down considerably over the last couple of years, there has been no major impact in premium car production in location like Leipzig,” said Morlok. He added that the state is trying to ensure greater diversity of manufacturing-led investments. More importantly, the cost of acquiring real estate Saxony is lower compared to other states or more prominent and established manufacturing destinations for automobiles including Munich, Bavaria, Wolfsburg or Stuttgart.

Around 98 percent of workable population in Germany has completed some basic vocational training programme, making it easier for companies to hire people without incurring major expenditure on training or ‘retraining’ the workers for job worthiness.

24

Auto Monitor

AUTOMATION SPECIAL

16 - 31 December 2011

Kuka Robotics adds new clients Shambhavi Anand Gurgaon

W

ith automation becoming the need of the hour, the Indian subsidiary of the German automation solution provider, Kuka Robotics India has bagged new orders from its existing as well as new customers.

The company is in the process of getting the new robots ready for delivery.

According to Managing Director, Kuka Robotics India, Raj Singh Rathee, with two major orders coming to its kitty, the year 2011 has been extremely good for the company. “We were able to get some big projects like the addition of a new customer, an Indian vehicle manufacturer as our customer who wants our robots for the new lines they are adding in their factory. We have also received more orders from Tata Motors, which is an existing client. These two projects amount to more than 50 robots.”

However, he did not disclose the name of the new customer.

Kuka, which earns almost half of the turnover from its automotive business, has recently introduced a new series of robots to the Indian market. “The new range of Quantec robots with KRC 4 controllers has been received well in the Indian market. They constitute around 70 percent of our sales this year,” Rathee added.

The robots with KRC 4 controllers consume 25 percent lesser energy and are 12 percent less in mass than the previous controllers.

They also have a faster response time, which enhances higher productivity The robots with KRC 4 controllers consume 25 percent lesser energy and are also 12 percent less in mass than the previous controllers. The compact size of the robots can help in the installation of many more machines in a particular manufacturing line and help their customer in managing the ergonomics on the shop floor better. They also have a faster response time, which enhances higher productivity.

Apart from the small blip in the demand due to rising interest rates and fuel prices, Rathee said that the awareness level of automation and usage of robots even among the component manufacturers and other suppliers who operate on smaller levels has helped in the demand for robots, quality, consistency and high volumes being the three most important factors driving the demand.

However, he also added that the complexity of tax structure involved during the import of machines acts as a hurdle in the growth of the company which imports its robots from Germany. “We could have done better business if the government regulations were friendlier,” Rathee added.

Inspite of these challenges he expects to achieve double of this year’s growth.

Successfully rebuilt: Dürr atomisers save material, time Our Bureau Mumbai

L

ong idle times, high paint losses and above average maintenance expenditures motivate paint shop operators to make improvements. In some cases, the only choice is give up an originally selected concept and to use a new technology from a different supplier.

At Kia Zilina in Slovakia, eight

ABB painting robots in the waterbased primer line were equipped with rotating atomisers and electrostatic voltage block with canister technology that led to problems in operations repeatedly. On the one hand, the handling of the canister technology was complicated and the installation uptime was thus limited, and on the other hand, maintenance expenditure increased and there were high paint losses

in cartridge purging before the refi ll. Therefore, Dürr offered Kia a conversion to the Dürr atomiser technology EcoBell2 ICC with external charging.

Conversion to a new technology is not easy in such a situation, however. The production must continue, the changes are still unknown to the workers, but they must bring about improvements as quickly as possible.

After the successful conversion of a robot to the new atomiser technology that delivered good results, Kia decided to convert the remaining seven robots. Over a 15 week period, the Dürr service specialists gradually adapted the painting robots to the Dürr atomiser EcoBell2 ICC and the dosing pump EcoPump MP. With this technology, the colour change occurs directly in the atomiser, the paint losses during the colour change are reduced and some handling expenditures can be omitted. What was challenging during this conversion was the fact that there were only short production-free periods available for the integration of the atomisers, high tension cascades, dosing pump and solenoid valves.

In February 2011, it was fi nally possible for the fi rst time to paint according to the Dürr concept. The paint savings is 0.3 kg per car body, and in critical areas a more homogeneous and higher fi lm thickness is achieved than before. The equipment downtimes were halved, and for maintenance every second night shift for cleaning could be omitted.

16 - 31 December 2011

AUTOMATION SPECIAL

Auto Monitor

25

Siemens to develop solutions for SMBs, virtual dealerships Shambhavi Anand New Delhi

I

n order to design automation solutions for Small and Medium Business (SMB), Siemens is working on products and business models to make software more attractive to the SMBs. The company is also looking at starting to release some of the products by the end of the fi rst quarter of 2012.

“We were engaged with a consulting company to develop and understand the SMB market. It’s a large and diverse space and we are close to digesting the suggestions made by our consultant and putting some of them in action,” Managing Director India, Siemens PLM, Suman Bose said.

The company is planning to develop not only new products for this sector, but also customise their popular products to su t e needs eeds of o the t e small s a users. use s. suitt the

Sumon Bose, MD, Siemens PLM

What attracts the company’s attention is helping its OEM customers in setting up virtual dealerships

They are also looking at developing new business models to make the proposition more attractive to SMBs. “Some of our best products, for instance TeanCentre, are largely for bigger players; we will see how to make them adaptable for small and medium players,” Bose added.

“Software not only helps companies in increasing the efficiency of a particular operation but also enables them to look at new business portfolio, which they were unable to look at earlier. And this is the whole purpose of a small business— to capitalise maximum from the investments you have put in,” he said.

Another area which attracts the company’s attention is helping its OEM customers in setting up virtual dealerships. “With the increasing usage of internet and the digital media in inf luencing the buying decision of automobiles and related products, this area becomes a large frontier attracting investments from our customers,” Bose told Auto Monitor.

With the increasing choices in vehicle variants and colour options it is not practical to have all of them available for display in dealerships. However, it is in the interest of manufacturers to showcase them to customers.

Virtual showrooms can enable them in serving the purpose.

Software piracy a growing concern for solution providers The increase usage of software in the automotive industry has also led to an increase in the abuse of the same. Software companies have observed high rate of piracy in the sector and have also taken stern measures in order to combat it.

Director, Business Software Alliance (BSA), Lizum Mishra who currently leads India operations said, “The BSA Global Software Piracy Study, conducted in partnership with IDC and Ipsos Public Affairs shows that the government suffered a loss of around $866 million in the form of net taxes due to a 65 percent rate of software piracy in 2009.”

BSA is the world’s leading trade body representing the commercial software industry to promote trade, growth of the legal software market, technology innovation

The BSA Global Software Piracy Study shows that the government suffered a loss of around $866 million due to a 65 percent rate of software piracy in 2009 and cyber security.

Elaborating on the issue of piracy, Managing Director India, Siemens PLM Suman Bose said, “Piracy is prevalent across sectors but because automotive industry is a disintegrated sup-

ply chain, so the impact of piracy is visible.”

While one form of piracy can be free software downloaded from the internet, over usage of licensed ones is also a form of piracy. “Many companies unknowingly use the licensed software either after their expiry date or for more than valid number of users. Some others can use pirated software when they outsource certain applications to agencies that in turn have fake products” Bose pointed out.

Pirated software might not be the actual software released by a company. When downloaded from internet, it might be a beta version of a product that might never got released. Such tools might not be tested and products designed using them can be of inferior quality.

BSA is working closely with the government to run educational programmes for procurement and management of original software and also the risks of pirated ones. Some software providers help the customers in conducting free audits through independent auditors to keep their intellectual property usage updated.

“Many of our members send educational letters to the potential users of pirated products to influence them and in sophisticated sectors like automotive many companies respond positively,” Mishra added.

Bose added, “The companies who do this inadvertently take corrective measures when prompted. For those we do it on purpose we have approached like raids which usually is the last option we choose.”

26

Auto Monitor

AUTOMATION SPECIAL

16 - 31 December 2011

Tata Elxsi aims at larger share from automotive segment Nabeel A Khan New Delhi

There is a massive growth of PNDs as compared to automotive navigation systems, in BRIC countries due to the low prices. However, this would be overcome by 2016 as smartphone-makers are getting into PND space

T

ata Elxsi is looking to ramp up its automotive telematics business by increasing penetration in the aerospace, marine and rail sector. The company is also expanding into car infotainment system and Personal Navigation Device (PND) segment.

According to a study by Frost & Sullivan, the Indian Automotive Telematics market was estimated at $23.2 million in the year 2008 and is expected to reach $44.1 million by 2013. The rapid growth expected from the sector is reflected in Tata Elxsi’s progress record.

It is one of the largest companies in India that provides automotive outsourced engineering services.

Its Transportation Business Unit (TBU), which houses domains such as automotive, avionics, and marine & locomotive industries, has been providing engineering solutions for the automotive industry for more than a decade across the globe.

The company’s expansion plans in the TBU include global strategic technology partnerships and aligning itself as the technology development partner to its customer’s strategic roadmap, investing in key emerging technologies and working on specialised automotive applications for defence, off-road vehicles.

It has developed a car infotainment system based on Meego—an Intel atom platform.

Some of the features implemented include a media player, phone

EW S, VI

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Anil Sondur, VP, Industrial Design & Transportation Electronics Business Unit, Tata Elxsi

connect view, podcast and television. The company is also getting into a deal with a leading Portable Navigation Device (PND) manufacturer in India and a premium vehicle manufacturer based in Europe for integrating region specific and customised solutions.

It has been providing solutions for the PND market in USA and Europe including development/ integration of software components and hardware. Talking about the further business opportunities in this segment, Vice President, Industria l design, Anil Sondur said “There is a massive growth of PNDs, as compared to automotive navigation systems, in BRIC countries due to the low prices; however this would overcome by 2016 as

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Currently under peed d seven-sp . The season of in happen or six-s four-spee far and oper ation s missions perc enta ge drivetrain ion to mati c in ual trans its ions. 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smartphone-makers are getting into the PND space.”

As far as the new innovations in infotainment are concerned, smartphone integration and connected cars are going to be key elements of the future vehicles. Consumers would be able to connect to their data residing either in their homes or via the cloud and would be able to use it while they are on the go, he added. Tata Elxsi is providing solutions with stacks/software integration of these services to enable end users to have access to their content, be it movies, music or games.

In the car infotainment segment, it provides services to OEMs, suppliers and platform solution providers with a wide range of services spanning full-

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service product design capability right from market specifications to architecture and system engineering, integration, porting until testing & validation.

Tata Elxsi has HMI (Human Machine Interface)—simulation capability and also provides development of HMI and test bench including validation. Moreover, it offers HIL (Hardware in Loop) systems and test execution, mechanical enclosure design and prototype modules among others. The company has invested internally in building competencies on providing Genivi compliant engineering services.

“Apart from smartphone integration that enables screen sharing and data connectivity, Tata Elxsi’s latest plans include

enabling solutions for seamless use of the tablet PC in the automotive space”, Sondur said. It also offers product R&D services to build ‘telematics control unit’ and corresponding ecosystem for automobile manufacturers and component suppliers.

For the component makers, it takes complete responsibilities from paper specifications to defining the product architecture, development of the ha rdw a re, sof t w a re a nd mechanical enclosure, prototyping and environmental testing support.

The additional services to OEMs in the telematics domain are generating system specifications, development of proof of concepts for both on an embedded/PC platform, thereby enabling an OEM in validating his concept and hastening the development lifecycle, support for rolling out a vehicle telemetry ecosystem and development of test bench frameworks.

“We do work with leading OEM’s and offer simulation based analysis solutions for the FMCG, consumer electronics and automotive. Using suitable tools, we are able to shrink the project timelines considerably, therefore enabling customers optimise product development. Simulations help cut the costs of new product development by reducing the number of prototypes required for physical testing. This is especially evident in the automotive industry where analysis such as crash analysis is critical”, he concluded.

Akmal Rahman Chennai

C

Photograph: Akmal Rahman B

hennai-based ACI Systems & Services, a customised automation solutions provider, is planning to manufacture weighing equipment for the automotive industry. The company will manufacture weighing scales integrated with Poke Yoke functions as a single product.

Earlier, the company was providing the automation features by integrating standard weighing scales with an extra hardware.

“We are planning to manufacture it as a single package, which will have automation features in the equipment itself” said Managing Partner, ACI Systems & Services, Kalaiselvan.

Kalaiselvan, Managing Partner, ACI Systems & Services

It is planning to manufacture production-monitoring systems, industrial displays and weigh bridges with additional automation facilities. It also provides customised solutions from lowend instrument and PC software based on the specific requirements of the customers.

“While most of the PLC-based automation providers use standard hardware to integrate and develop it as an application, we have micro-processer-based instruments and hardware using which the components are integrated,” he said.

Established in 1994, the company has specialised in weighing automation. It is providing automation solutions called weighment-recording system for various industries. Unlike normal weighing systems, which display only the weight reading, the ACI systems collect the information along with other relevant data like time, date, operators name and

ACI products

description of items from various locations and store it to the central computer. This feature not only helps the customer to analyse the data, but also helps for tractability purposes. The company currently has three dealers in South India and it is planning to spread its wings to North India this year by increasing its dealers. It has also developed a production-monitoring system for small components manufacturers, which it is planning to launch on a large scale.

Recently, it has supplied a rubber-batching system for TVS Srichakra, the tyre manufacturing plant at Rudrapur. It has also supplied complete batching monitoring system along with required bin arrangement for chemical weighing to TVS Srichakra. It has already supplied a similar system for its Madurai plant.

27

MARS to develop a new product for CNC sector Akmal Rahman B Chennai

M

ay uras Automat ion and Robotics Systems (MARS), one of the leading automation and robotics system integrators, has recently executed a retrofitting project of camshaft machining for a leading group in Chennai.

The company is in talks with National Instruments (NI) to develop it as a new product for the CNC sector.

The retrofitting was developed for a hydraulic-based grinding machine where generally a master lob has to be fed for changes in every profile, so that it modifies the master profile of other models. To make this process easier, MARS has incorporated a multiple axis servo system where the profi le could be fed in AutoCAD file and

the machine will grind the component according to the profile.

“We have introduced an NI product to tackle the CNC jobs with success by offering a few more features to the end users. Even for NI, this was experimented for the fi rst time,” Managing Director, MARS, Harihara Subramaniyan.

The company has sought to replace the hydraulic system by a servo system. The major difference is that to run the machine, the operator is not required to have CAD/CAM knowledge; it can be operated easily by loading the profile data into the system.

MARS has also setup automation of engine inspection for a well renowned automotive manufacturer in Chennai. The automotive plant was already equipped with engine inspection facility with 48 cameras inspecting the engines from different angles to make

Camshaft Machining

sure that every component was assembled appropriately. Inspite of that, the company was facing a problem of missing components in the engine during production. In order to address this flaw, MARS has come up with an additional inspection booth with 16 sensors.

Harihara Subramaniyan, MD, MARS

The additional inspection booth, monitors the right position of the component assembled to ensure that it has the engine oil with the help of load cell attached to it. Therefore, every engine travels through the additional chamber to eliminate the possibilities of any errors during production.

Photograph: Akmal Rahman B

ACI to manufacture new products

Auto Monitor

AUTOMATION SPECIAL

16 - 31 December 2011

28

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 December 2011

EVENT

Indian construction equipment Bhargav TS Bangalore

T

Photographs: Bhargav TS

he Excon 2011 held in Bangalore from 23 to 27 November, 2011 proved to be a major draw from the exhibitors as well as from the business visitors. Spread with a 200,000 sq mt of display area, it drew more than 600 exhibitors who displayed a wide range of products, service and new technologies

of the construction equipment industry. The event also witnessed over 400 new product launches by the participating companies with a flow of 35,000 business visitors.

Excon is an exhibition of the construction equipment industry, organised once in two years by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). The five-day exhibition showcased the latest advancements in construction engineering with emphasis on the latest products, equipments and technologies with specific emphasis on efficiency, productivity, safety, environment protection and construction quality. Excon is the Asia’s third largest and South Asia’s largest event for the construction equipment industry.

Chairman, Excon 2011 and Managing Director & CEO, JCB India, Vipin Sondhi, said, “With each successive edition, Excon witnesses immense growth both in quality and in numbers.

So, while this will be the largest event on all counts including the number of domestic and overseas

visitors, exhibition area and new product launches, the biggest difference will be the presence of enhanced foreign players.”

“The country’s Earthmoving and Construction Equipment

(ECE) sector has the potential to grow six times to US$22.7 billion by 2020. Looking ahead, the Indian ECE market has the potential to grow six times from total revenues of US$3.3 bil-

lion in 2010 to US$22.7 billion in 2020,” Sondhi said.

According to the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, CP Joshi, the National Highway Authority of India

Anand Sundaresan, MD, Schwing Stetter India

How many products have you launched in Excon 2011?

We have launched 19 new products and we have displayed our mini concrete mixer Nimo, which has been recently launched.

Is there market In India for these 19 products to pull?

It is not necessary that all the 19 products should be super successful, but these 19 products are based on the feedback that we have received from our customers for the past two years.

Last year, we launched seven new products and post-launch, our marketing departments were closely watching the market. Our products would address the different types of contractors in terms of size viz small contractors, medium contractors and big contractors.

What will be the key products in Excon 2011?

All the products are impor-

tant for us, but as far as India is concerned, the pump has the potential market. Most of the companies were using trailer pumps and they felt some hurdles. Hence we have moved towards boom pump and we see the future in it.

Do you have competitors for these 20 products?

We have competition but the competitors don’t have a product range like ours to supply one-to-one solutions. For Nimo, we don’t have competitors and everyone will be surprised that all the companies are going for bigger products, but we are coming down by understanding the market needs.

Glimpses of Excon 2011

16 - 31 December 2011

Auto Monitor

EVENT

29

industry to grow six times in 2020 (NHAI) would be raising `10,000 crore through bonds in a couple of month for the development of highways in the country.

Speaking at the inaugural session of the Excon 2011, Joshi said, “The Finance Ministry has approved NHAI to raise funds through tax-free infrastructure bonds. The government would make e-tendering mandatory from February 2012 to increase the transparency and efficiency in the building process for infrastructure contracts.”

Stressing the need to boost road infrastructure, he said it was imperative to attract foreign investments in infrastructure.

Among the proposals considered include 100 percent Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in infrastructure, tax concessions and duty-free imports for construc-

tion equipments.

The minister added that the government will be laying 4,600 km in the current year, which is lesser than the Prime Minister’s target of 20 km of highway per day. “We have not been able to achieve 20 km per day, but we are confident of doing it before the next general elections,” Joshi said.

During the inauguration, the minister released a report titled ‘Indian Earthmoving And Construction Equipment Industry Vision 2020’. The report commissioned by the CII and IECIAL and prepared by Accenture, says that the growth would be “enabled” by addressing issues affecting the industry such as the multiple and differential tax system.

P resident of CII B Muthuraman said, “The fi veday exhibition was vital for the construction equipment industry which needed to market itself better. The exhibition highlights capabilities and advancements in the sector.”

The event also had large presence of SMEs in the component and aggregate manufacturing, showcasing India’s potential as a preferred outsourcing destination for construction equipment manufacturing. Since the number of foreign exhibitors was quite significant, the Excon had country-specific pavilions including leading economies like China, Finland, Germany, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Spain and Turkey.

Due to the participation of all major players in the construction equipment industry, the exhibition helped in facilitating faster

and sustainable development of infrastructure and related sectors in India. Apart from the participation of major equipment renting companies and leasing and fi nance companies that offer on-the-spot loans, visitors could benefit by benchmarking product features of different makes, interacting about their requirements with technical heads, and negotiating deals with chief executives.

Companies like JCB, ACE, Volvo, Caterpillar, Tata were demonstrating their range of products like earthmoving and construction, lifting, material handling, concrete making, hydraulics, pneumatics and drills, power tools and piling machineries, which helped more visitors and draw more than 35000 visitors from different parts of India.

Excon Milestones The inaugural event of Excon 2001 in Bangalore allowed global market leaders to announce their entry into the Indian market in a big way, which had a huge impact on the domestic construction industry. The debut event witnessed a variety of new technologies culminated on one platform.

The second edition of Excon in 2003 was bigger than the previous edition. It offered a 14,000 sq mt display platform that allowed 120 of the biggest names in the construction industry to showcase their latest equipment.

The event offered participants a chance to interact with some of the world’s leading construction

equipment manufacturers and financiers, all under one roof.

Excon 2005 had the distinction of being the countr y’s biggest construction equipment trade fair w it h 170 exhibitors from 10 countries across a 30,000 sq mt of display area. It generated over `800 crore of business and set a new record for Indian trade shows.

The fourth edition of Excon held in 2007 was the year when the Indian construction industry was growing by leaps and bounds. With 145,000 sq mt of display area, over 300 exhibitors participated in the event, which witnessed over 50,000 business visitors.

Excon 2009 was yet another stellar success that set new standards for Indian trade fairs. The event took place across 160,000 sq mt area for the exhibitors to showcase their latest technologies. The event recorded more than 464 exhibitors from 20 different countries and attracted more business visitors. The event saw more than 400 new products launches from various companies.

Excon 2011, which was held re c ent l y in Banga lore, marked another successful milestone for the construction equipment industry.

30

Auto Monitor

AUTOMATION SPECIAL

16 - 31 December 2011

Kamal Envirotech obtains license for magni coating Shambhavi Anand New Delhi

K

amal Envirotech Group, the manufacturer of surface coating plants, which also executes surface coating for automotive components for its customers, has recently obtained a license from Magni Group India for providing chromefree coatings for automotive components.

Magni Group is the producer of magni coatings that are chromefree coatings with an inorganic zinc rich base coat followed by an aluminum-rich organic top coat having an SST life up to 2,000 hrs with lower coefficient of friction and competitive rates. This coating increases the life span of components coated with it.

“All car manufacturers are required to give surface coating to the components that are

and requires another coating of chrome to prevent the same.

Chrome being a harmful metal, is not a preferred choice for many car manufacturers. Hence, Kamal Envirotech Kamal Envirotech shop floor obta i ned a expected to last as long as the license for chrome free Magni life of the car. Thus, there is need coating Also, components meant for corrosion resistant coatings. for exports need to be chrome-free, The conventional coatings were as chrome coatings are banned in done with zinc. But zinc coatings several countries. “Magni coathave inherent disadvantages, ing is approved by all automobile thus the life of zinc coated commajors like Ford, Maruti, and GM ponents is shorter. The Magni among others,” Punia said.

Group provides coating materiThe group has four busials that increases the life span of ness units—plant manufacture, the components significantly,” Magni coating solutions, CED Director, Kamal Envirotech, RS solution and Enviro & Food lab.

Punia told Auto Monitor.

It can make all type of automatZinc is prone to oxidisation, ic plants for surface coating like

CED, zinc, nickel, chrome, phosphating, anodising and the major customers are Hero Honda (now Hero Motocorp), Omax , Hema, Caparo, Neolite. It is also a Tier II supplier to Ford, Maruti, Chrysler, Hyundai, Arvin Meritor, Yamaha, Mann Hummel and Fiat. It has recently bagged orders for Hero Moto Corp.

“We can make fully automatic low cost plants for surface treatment and high performance coating. While the usual plants may cost a customer upto `50 crore, we can produce the same in as less as `one crore,” the MD claimed. The low cost is the result of innovations on the shop floor.

For electroplating usually, conveyor belts are used where components are hung and dipped in solutions containing huge tanks while this company has introduced the concept of hanging multiple components in

smaller sized tanks containing solutions. Smaller tanks require less water and smaller pumps to heat thereby saving, space (real estate), and consumption of water and electricity.

The CED solution provides arms deals in CED paint shop accessories and other CED painting solutions. This business unit is Tier II supplier to Volvo, Hyundai, Ford, BMW, Arvin Meritor, Maruti, Yamaha, GM, Chrysler Fiat and Trelleborg. It has a capacity to paint the component size up to 1.75 X 1.25 X 0.5 mt Magni’s major customers are VW, Maruti, Arvin Meritor, Chrysler and Ashok Leyland. The Group has three manufacturing facilities across of 3,500 sq mts.

The company hada turnover of `16 crore last year and expects to earn upto `29 crore next year. Around 80 percent of its business comes from the automotive industry.

Schuler, Feintool to launch budget tools Nabeel A Khan New Delhi

S

chuler India in association with Feintool is introducing an economical version of fine blanking presses in India. The Asian version lowcost presses will cost around 20 percent less than the fully loaded machines. Yet, the press will be having all the basic features to perform all the functionality and will be equally reliable; a company spokesperson told Auto Monitor recently. Feintool is a Switzerland headquartered leader in fineblanking technology and Schuler India is a

wholly owned subsidiary of Schuler Group, Germany, which manufactures presses.

The Asian version machine has its components from the reputed manufactures. The PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) of the press has been taken from Mitsubishi and hydraulics from Rexroth, Germany. This low-cost machine will have the option to add tools and features according to requirements. Schuler India gets around 80 percent of its revenue in India from automobile industry. In FY11 the turnover of the company (for fi ne blanking) stood at Euro 3.1 million and expected to be close to Euro three

million this fi nancial year.

The company is introducing presses which will nearly double the speed of operation. The new press will have over 70 strokes a minute from earlier only 45 strokes per minute. It can fine blank up to 16 mm thickness and can also be integrated with tools which can fine blank stainless steel.

The new press was launched in Europe in May 2010 among its key customers to test the efficiency and other parameters.

Soon secondary operations will be incorporated in the new tool so that the users can get the finished parts—ready for assembly.

This will save a lot of time and

increase the productivity of the manufacturer. Fine blanking is required in an array of products in automobiles like seat recliners, brake pads, two-wheeler sprockets and gearshifts.

The price of these fine blanking presses are anywhere around `six crore for 250 to 400 tonne capacity.

However, the price varies on the basis of the kind of tools installed in it. The company has already started pitching for these products. “We have discussed it with a number of customers and hopefully we will have a breakthrough very soon.” Vice President, Sales and Service, Schuler India, Sachin Nirgudkar said.

The press-maker is also introducing its tools in the educational institutes like IIT to train the students with the latest technolog y developed by them. For Schuler Corporation AG, FY11 was one of the most successful years with over one billion worth of order bookings from auto manufacturers in China and Europe, while India is yet to give substantial revenue. However, India is going to be focus in future.

In FY 11-12 Schuler India’s revenue for press business stood at Euro 10 million, which is expected to reach Euro 50 million by 2016.

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AUTOMATION SPECIAL

16 - 31 December 2011

Komax to launch fully automatic wire harness machines during Auto Expo 2012 Shambhavi Anand New Delhi

S

witzerland-based Komax Group, a leading manufacturer of machines for wire processing, plans to launch machines for fully automatic manufacture of wire harness through its Indian subsidiary Komax Automation India.

The machines from the Zeta series will be launched during the Auto Expo 2012. “So far such a product has not been showcased in the Indian market.

But due to increasing interest shown by some of our customers, we have decided to bring it to India,” Director Komax Automation India, Ma hesh Gulati said.

While most of the existing machines installed in the industry can do partial processing or assembling of wire harness, the Zeta range can provide end-toend solutions to the users. Zeta 633 of this range can do automatic processing and crimping of wires ends and can handle upto 36 different wires. Zeta 656

The machines from the Zeta series will be launched during the Auto Expo 2012

Harness Application

can insert the crimped wires into connectors, either one or both the ends. When combined together, both these machines can produce complete wire harness or sub-harness assembly.

Apart from ensuring errorfree and reliable products, these fully automated machines can help in manufacturing harnesses with miniaturised components and conductors with extremely small crosssections, which is an upcoming challenge for the automotive wire harness industr y. The precise force sensor monitors the insertion process, continuously comparing the measured forces with the specified val-

ues. This approach ensures high degree of process reliability and seamless monitoring of the loading process.

The Zeta 656 machine can also be used to load components with different terminal contacts such as spring-loaded, push-in or contact flabs on one end or both ends automatically, for control panel industry.

With the application of these machines, many applications can now be produced without an additional extension. They are also highly flexible and can be configured according to the needs of individual customers.

With the Indian automotive industry moving towards higher

levels of sophistication, meeting stringent safety demands and targeting export markets, this might be the right time to introduce these fully automatic machines.

The company, which established its Indian operations in 2008 offering complete solution for wire harness industry through their international partners, earns around 75 percent of its revenue from the automotive business. It has set up customer support and sales centres in Gurgaon, Pune and Bangalore.

It also supplies machines to medical sector, photovoltaic cells sector and other special purpose machines.

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Nissan employs Facebook for marketing Our Bureau New Delhi

S

ocial networking websites have been a part of car manufacturers’ marketing campaigns is no news. But the uniqueness in incorporating them as a part of their marketing campaign seems never ending.

Recently, Nissan India announced a campaign to search for 20 enthusiasts to star in the world’s first Hindi movie auditioned entirely on Facebook.

As part of the campaign, an online hunt has been organised in which aspiring candidates can upload short video clips of themselves to be judged by the members of the website. The members will vote for 20 candidates who will get a chance to be featured with Nissan India’s brand ambassador and actor

Nissan India announced a campaign to search for 20 passionate members of the public to star in the world’s first Hindi movie auditioned entirely on Facebook.

Aspiring candidates can upload short video clips of themselves to be judged by the members of the website Ranbir Kapoor. The selected candidates will also get a chance to help in the production process of the fi lm by shaping the plot, choosing the music, picking the wardrobe and naming the characters.

The winners of the campaign which has been titled, ‘Star India campaign’, will be premiered at exclusive red carpet events in cities across India in January 2012, where there will also be a chance to win a Nissan Micra.

Managing Director of Nissan Motor India, Kiminobu Tokuyama said, “Nissan is all about innovation. It’s in the cars we build, the way we do business, the way we communicate and now we are offering members of the public a genuine world’s first —an opportunity to become a Bollywood star.”

Another spokesperson of the company said that this campaign is part of the company’s larger marketing programmes in India. He also added, “We wanted to launch an initiative that reaches out to Nissanlovers in India. Our brand ambassador Ranbir Kapoor is the perfect match for the Star of India campaign since he has a strong connect with the target audience across India.”

Such campaigns help automotive companies in reaching out to a larger audience rather than just the target customer. “We are happy to still engage with them and introduce them to Nissan through innovation and excitement,” the official said. However, he did not reveal the budget allocated to the campaign. “We are confident that this campaign will achieve some great outreach numbers across India through social networking tools like Facebook,” he added.

BharatBenz, ICICI Bank tie-up for CV financing

B

haratBenz signed a memorandum of understanding with ICICI bank for fi nancing its commercial vehicles.

With this agreement, ICICI Bank becomes preferred fi nancer for BharatBenz. ICICI Bank is the second bank, after HDFC Bank, to become a preferred fi nancier with BharatBenz. As part of the MoU, ICICI Bank will develop appropriate fi nancing packages to BharatBenz customers all over the country. DICV, a wholly owned subsidiary of Daimler, will roll out trucks in 2012 from its manufacturing facility at Oragadam, near Chennai.

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GLOBAL WATCH TECHNOLOGY EVENT

Tokyo Motor Show r g a n2011 o rer s w o h S t or ac t u yo Mo bi le Ma nu f ember k o T d o n m 2 De c k y o T he 42 Japa n Auto s f rom y To a d y n b e rt ay) at i sed n ra n fo ember (Su nd k yo. io t ia c o o c De A ss in T to ) to 11 u nted oto-k u (Fr iday i n A r ia ke, K v isitors a mo ercent p ht of Big Sig ta l nu mber ncrea se of 37 f 20 09. o n io T he to ig n i ďŹ ca nt i it s s us ed a io v isitor , v 0 0 e 0 r 0 52,9 he p 842,6 h 8 t ic e o t h h t w d o , re se t 20 07 lo c n i c om p a e w m o lso ca t h Sh T h is a ys i n t he 40 a d .

0 s 1 for 7 d ay ld for 1 w a s he

16 - 31 December 2011

2012

16 - 31 December March 20112011

Source: www.tokyo-motorshow.com

TECHNOLOGY EVENT

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37

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16 - 31 December 2011

‘MyTVS’ kicks off emergency New Mercedes showroom services at Hyderabad airport inaugurated in Mumbai Range Of Services

Our Bureau Mumbai

T

VS Automobile Solutions (TVS ASL), in association with GMR Hyderabad International Airport, recently kicked off its 24x7 emergency breakdown assistance services for passenger cars. The emergency support activity is expected to offer services for breakdown (both mechanical and electrical), flat tyre, dead battery and key lock-out. The support services will be handled through TVS ASL’s brand ‘MyTVS.’ MyTVS will have a mobile service vehicle and trained manpower stationed at the airport, round the clock, to provide emergency support services in and around the

The MyTVS programme counter

airport area. A dedicated tollfree number has also been setup exclusively for this purpose, especially for passengers stranded on the road on the way to and from airport, to help them get back on wheels at the least possible time.

This facility can also be availed by non-members of MyTVS.

Chief Operating Officer, Rajiv Gandhi International Airport, GUG Sastry said, “This is the fi rst of its kind initiative in Indian Airports and we are planning for more such customerfriendly initiatives.”

The services offered under the MyTVS brand are—MyTVS All Car Services for multi-brand car services and MyTVS 24 x 7 emergency services—an emergency road assistance for mechanical and electrical breakdowns, ambulance, cabs, winch and towing assistance across India (except J&K and north-eastern states). There are 17 of MyTVS’s own outlets and 49 all car services franchised outlets in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

Our Bureau Mumbai

M

ercedes-Benz India kicked off its new showroom by Auto Hangar group at Prabhadevi, Mumbai. Measuring 6,000 sq ft,

the showroom will be the largest Mercedes Benz dealership in the city. In addition to the cars on display, the showroom will boast of a dedicated accessories centre, which will display the latest add-ons for Mercedes Benz. It is equipped with Mercedes benchmark features aimed at automotive needs of customers ranging from new car sales, spare parts to financing options, thus establishing a world class car ownership experience.

Auto Hangar has sold around 4,600 units of Mercedes-Benz vehicles till date.

The showroom was inaug urated

by Managing Director & CEO Mercedes-Benz India, Peter Honegg, Vice President, Sales Mercedes-Benz Cars, Daimler, Matthias Luehrs and Director, Sales & Marketing, Daimler Central/Eastern Europe, Africa & Asia, Mercedes-Benz Cars, Johannes Fritz. Auto Hangar has represented Mercedes-Benz India since 1997.

TCS launches dealer services Our Bureau Chennai

T

ata Consultancy Services r e c e nt l y lau nched Aura Dealer Business Management (DBM) Golden template, a predefi ned service-based on business-ready and lean model for the automotive retail sector, in cooperation with SAP. The new Aura service has been built on the SAP’s ERP and dealer business management applications. It is offered in the form of a packaged implementation service and contains standard baseline functionality, best practices and end-to-end process scenarios for sales and their related reports.

The package is supplied in a readyto-deploy format and provides increased returns on investment by facilitating gradual customisation and change management.

“This service will help channel providers to differentiate their offerings and services in the market space. Today, there are over 100,000 automotive dealers worldwide, and the Aura solution, integrated with SAP solutions, will enable dealers and automotive OEMs to rapidly upgrade their business operating systems with contemporary best practices,” said Head, Manufacturing Industry Unit, TCS, Milind Lakkad.

The consultancy fi rm has established a centre of excellence for dealer business management that will further drive the process of collaboration between TCS and SAP, to support and develop further innovations to this service to auto dealers and retailers.

TCS Manufacturing Industry Solutions Unit addresses business needs from manufacturing and technology consulting to BPO, engineering to infrastructure solutions, and application development and maintenance, to system and application integration solutions. It offers a consultingled, integrated portfolio of IT, BPO, infrastructure, engineering and assurance services.

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Maruti Suzuki to increase driving schools Our Bureau Chennai

In the last decade, MSI has trained more than ten lakh people and out of these, five lakh people have been trained under its flagship programme— National Road Safety Mission

M

aruti Suzuki India (MSI) is planning to double its driving schools to over 400 in the next couple of years to train more people about road safety. Currently, the company has six Institutes of Driving and Traffic Research (IDTR) and 192 Maruti driving schools that train people about road safety.

In the last decade, MSI has trained more than ten lakh people and out of these, five lakh people have been trained under its flagship programme—National Road Safety Mission (NRSM), which started in December 2008.

Managing Executive Office (Marketing and Sales), Maruti Suzuki India, Mayank Pareek said, “So far, we have trained over ten lakh people and now we are

Maruti Suzuki National Road Safety Mission

targeting to double the network of Maruti driving schools to 400 in the next two to three years. India loses close to about `100,000 crore every year in road accidents and around 160,000 lives are lost annually in road accidents. As the automobile sector continues to grow, there is a need to bring in high qual-

ity training institutes, which help institutionalise high ‘quality training’ on road safety,” he added.

Road Safety Maruti Suzuki has been working on road safety since 2000. But it was only in 2008 that the company gave a formal

structure to its initiatives on road safety through its flagship National Road Safety Mission (NRSM) programme. Over the last decade, Maruti Suzuki has developed two successful forms of driver training infrastructure: One is in association with state governments (public-pri-

vate partnership model) and the other is in association with its dealers.

To strengthen its road safety initiatives, the company recently, added another interesting format in the form of ‘Road Safety Knowledge Centre’, in partnership with the Gurgaon police. This new platform is aimed at enhancing traffic education and inculcating safe driving habits for commuters of Gurgaon. In addition to existing driving training modules, the centre has been equipped to offer specialised training to traffic violators.

IDTR offers superior infrastructure in terms of training quality, tracks, simulators and modules as per international norms. The two IDTRs have trained around 700,000 people, predominantly commercial drivers. In addition to Delhi, Maruti Suzuki now has IDTRs at Vadodara (Gujarat), Dehradun (Uttarakhand), Rohtak and Bahadurgarh in Haryana. In addition to driver training, the Vadodara IDTR offers skill training to tribal youths thereby strengthening employability prospects of learners. Several state governments have shown interest in setting up similar facilities with Maruti Suzuki.

BMW kicks off pre-owned car business Our Bureau Chennai

A

fter testing the water for around a year, BMW India launched its pre-owned car business-BMW Premium Selection.

BMW Premium Selection vehicles can now be ordered through exclusive BMW Premium Selection dealerships at seven locations: Bird Automotive (Gurgaon), Krishna Automobiles (Ludhiana), Infinity Cars (South Mumbai), Bavaria Motors (Pune), Navnit Motors (Bangalore), KUN Exclusive (Chennai) and KUN Exclusive (Hyderabad). The German carmaker will be introducing leasing services by the end of this year the arch rival Mercedes Benz has already launched this business.

All cars selected under BMW Premium Selection are less than five years old and clocked upto 120,000 km. BMW Premium Selection vehicles come with upto 24 month / 200,000 km warranty (whichever is earlier). BMW Premium Selection owners also have the option of taking BMW India Roadside Assistance which is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

The price of the luxury cars will start at around `16 lakh. “The pre-owned car business will play an important role in the success of the company in India. We expect the used car business to be about 10 per cent of new car sales,” President, BMW India, Andreas Schaaf said. The company has sold 8,042 cars in India till October this year, accounting for 40 percent of the luxury car market. The sources say that their sales in India will very soon surpass the number in China. Every BMW Premium Selection vehicle is serviced to perfection. All BMW Premium Selection vehicles go through a comprehensive 360 degree check and are completely refurbished technically and visually.

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Bid to reduce dependence on road transport Our Bureau Mumbai

I

n a bid to reduce dependence on road transport, Maruti Suzuki is looking to transport a significant number of cars through other means including inland waterways. Such an effort implies combination of rail, road and ship carriage and is the outcome of series of pilot projects carried out through transport of cars via inland waterways.

“We are constantly evaluating newer modes and efforts to cut down time to deliver vehicles to our dealers,” said Executive Officer, Maruti Suzuki, RS Kalsi.

The key issue, according to auto industry officials and logistics service providers, is multiplicity of regulators or reporting authorities creating issues in case of multimodal transport. He pointed out that automobile companies have been slow to adopt transportation via railway and sea whereas rail and waterway are major modes of transporting automobile in developed countries due to their reliability and eco friendliness compared to road transportation.

Maruti Suzuki transports fully built passenger cars from its Gurgaon or Manesar facility to Patli railway station in containers bound for Mundhra port in Gujarat. The cars are transported from Mundhra to Cochin port and subsequently to its dealers in South India by trailers. The company officials pointed out that though transportation via sea cuts down the transit time significantly, the company is still grappling with congestion at the port leading to cars lying in the port or adjoining premises for two days or more.

The company has implemented a cassette system for loading cars in a container with wheel lashing and perforated floors in the vehicle. It also routinely conducts route audit as well as stockyard surveys. It has already developed a loyal community of transporters on its rolls and conducts regular driver training at Maruti driver training schools. The company recently achieved the milestone of 500,000 trainees under its flagship driver training programme launched in December 2008. It has successfully trained over 500,000 trainees of which around 147,000 are from economically challenged sections. It has successfully expanded its training infrastructure in the form of six operational institutes of driving and traffic research and over 192 driving schools, in association with dealers, across the country.

It recently kicked off ‘Road Safety Knowledge Centre’, in partnership with the Gurgaon police, to enhance traffic education and inculcate safe driving habits for commuters of Gurgaon.

According to company’s estimates presented at a recent Logistics Summit organised by CII in Mumbai, an alternative means of transportation of cars has lead to around eight percent improvement in the delivery schedule, around 12 percent improvement in distance covered per day and around 40 percent reduction in transit related damages in value terms. The company has gained significant improvement from changes in parking and retrieval system for cars ready for dispatch at its premises and active cooperation from truck opera-

An alternative means of car transportation has lead to an eight percent improvement in the delivery schedule, 12 percent improvement in distance covered per day & a 40 percent reduction in transit related damages

tors is taken in consideration for the purpose.

Like many other automobile and consumer durable companies, Maruti has devised an internal transporter rating sys-

tem to assess the quarterly performance of truckers in order to set benchmarks and targets for next quarter as well as get feedback on company’s logis-

tics system. It has also devised a carrier maintenance system for periodic evaluation and upgradation of carriers. Transporters are also encouraged to actively take

charge and engage in preventive maintenance practices and some of the bigger transporters also have their repair facilities at the company premises.

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16 - 31 December 2011

Bosch Automotive Aftermarket India inaugurates Delhi Training Centre Shambhavi Anand New Delhi

W

ITH a view to train mecha n ic s, a spi ring engineers, technicians, employees, customers for a future-ready skilled workforce, Bosch Automotive Aftermarket, supplier of automotive parts and accessories, diagnostic and test equipment and authorised car service inaugurated its second Technical Training Centre in India.

Located in New Delhi, the training centre has been built with an investment of `30 million in association with DEG Germany. The training centre will impart training to aspir-

The inauguration of Bosch Technical Training Centre

ing engineers, technicians, employees and customers in the northern region of the country,

enhancing their level of technical competence on emerging automotive technolog y and

service to global standards.

“We are witnessing a lot of change. The automotive indus-

try has graduated from classic Ambassadors to ABS induced high performance cars, from carburettor systems to electronic fuel injection systems and conventional mechanical braking to electronically controlled breaking.

Going Green Em issions nor ms have become more stringent and there is greater focus on safe and economical driving resulting in a shift from conventional mechanical systems to modern electronic systems. This shift has lead to increased demand for automotive diagnostics.

The industry at present however doesn’t possess adequate sk illed manpower to cater to this increasing demand,” Vice President, Automotive A f t er m a r k et , B o s c h, S Muralidharan said.

“It is anticipated that meeting this demand would require a trained workforce of 2.5 million technicians and mechanics by 2025. As industry leaders we are attempting to bridge this gap.

We intend to transform technicians into knowledge workers by equipping them with skills and confidence needed for automotive service, diagnostic interrogation and resolution,” he added.

Training Details The centre has a capacity to train 50 people at a time and offers 70 specialised training modules for different skill sets like car service, electrical module service, vehicle maintenance and systems, workshop and test equipment applications, diesel fuel injection equipment among others. It also offers specific modules for students, technicians, customers, trainers, new and old employees, sales and service personnel. The course fee ranges from nothing to `500 a day. The centre can also hold customised courses for its customers depending upon their requirements. On completion of training, candidates would be awarded a certificate from Bosch Automotive Aftermarket.

This is the second largest training centre of the company in the country after Bangalore. It has 11 other centres spread across the nation which train around 2,000 people every month. “We want to double the number of trainees in the next three years and might look at opening more centres in eastern and western regions,” Muralidharan said.

The company may open four more such centres in the next three years.

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Mercurio Pallia sets up manufacturing facility Shambhavi Anand New Delhi

M

ercurio Pallia Logistics, a JV company between the Italian company Gruppo Mercurio SPA and Pallia Transport of India has set up a new trailer manufacturing facility in Rewari through Mercurio Pallia Auto Works, which is a subsidiary of Mercurio Pallia and makes bodies for automobile carriers. The company has put in an investment of $two million in setting up the facility.

The company also plans to introduce ‘Truck-on-Truck’ concept of transportation in India.

The company which is currently working with vehicle manufacturers like Maruti, Honda, Hyundai and Tata Motors among others is also looking at export opportunities in the Asia

Seminar on Passive Safety concluded Our Bureau New Delhi

T

he two-day seminar on ‘Passive Safety’, organised

by International Centre for Automotive Technology (ICAT) concluded with the participants laying focus on coupling the latest technical innovations with the real world data to help identify the road map for crash regulations and the Indian NCAP programme.

Shanshank Goel, Jt Sec, Department of Heavy Industries (lighting the lamp) with S Sandilya, President, SIAM & Dinesh Tyagi, Director ICAT

The seminar highlighted that road traffic injuries are a global problem today and pose a huge challenge for all countries to address. More than 1.2 million people are killed on roads worldwide and as many as 50 million are injured every year.

This constitutes a big economic and social loss. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), road traffic injuries will rise to become fi fth leading cause of death by 2030.

Keeping this in mind, the Department of Heavy Industry is considering to setup a new body which will deal with issues like accident data analysis, improvement of roads, vehicle design and initiatives like NCAP which provide star rating for the safety parameters.

Also, the Government of India is setting up three crash labs in the country. These labs will help industry to test and develop vehicles compliant to passive safety regulations.

The seminar was attended by more than 150 experts from around the world, representing car manufacturers, suppliers, solution providers, government agencies, and testing agencies and academia attended the event.

The sessions during the seminar focused upon R&D, industry practices, testing methodologies and standards and concerns.

Pacific region. “We are exploring opportunities to export to other Asian countries from India. We want to create a network between the two large producers in the Asian region, which are India and China,” President, Gruppo Mercurio SPA, Andrea Guido Conti said.

The company is looking at Cambodia, Vietnam, Taiwan, Indonesia and Malaysia for exporting the trailer produced in India. It already has presence in the Chinese market.

Keeping in view the future of a huge country like India, it is also planning to manufacture specialised wagons for railways to be used in automotive transportation. The company has already signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the logistics company, Freight Star, which specialises in railway logistics,

A Truck on truck concept

for transportation of vehicles by the railways.

“Owing to the large size of the country, it is extremely important to employ railway for such purposes. It reduces the time required for transportation by roadways to almost one-third

which is a huge advantage. Also, it takes away a lot of burden from the drivers,” Chairman and Managing Director, Mercurio Pallia, Vipul Nanda said.

The operation through railways is expected to commence by the second half of 2012 and

intends to grow it upto 50 percent of its portfolio. Also, the company hopes to start with transporting 3, 000 units of passenger cars initially. The current customers of the company will benefit from the new service among which are Maruti and Honda among others.

It currently claims to move 19,000 passenger cars everyday.

While passenger cars constitute a major portion in the portfolio of Mercurio Pallia, it has recently started to offer its service for two-wheelers with Hero MotoCorp, Honda Motocycle and Scooters India and Mahindra Two Wheelers being key customers.

The company touched a turn over of around ` one billion last year and hopes to grow this by 25 percent next year. Gruppo Mercurio has been acquired by Gefco Logistics, wholly owned subsidiary of PSA Group.

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Innovative technologies dominate Chennai Engg Expo Our Bureau Chennai

opportunity that is available for the engineering and the manufacturing sector.

T

Widening Horizons Photograph: Akmal Rahman B

he fourth edition of Eng i neer i ng E x p o, Chennai showcased the best in terms of engineering innovations and technologies and served as a platform for the business fraternity to grow and gain a competitive edge. Held at Chennai Trade Centre, Chennai between December 8 and 11, the show was inaugurated by Head of Thermal, Business Unit of Valeo, Dominic Savio and Regional Director, Indo-German Chamber of Commerce, S Raj. Organised by Infomedia18, the event provided exhibitors from various sectors an opportunity to spread awareness about their products and services.

At the inaugural function Raj said, “Trade fairs offer huge opportunities in introducing new products, technologies and ways and means to access the market. In Germany, people prefer to participate in trade shows more than doing direct business, because eye contact and customer interaction is much more in expos and the number of leads that they get in trade shows helps them to develop further business. Trade shows also offer a platform for exchanging technologies and help in raising joint ventures and technical collaborations.”

Commenting on the event, Raj said, “We need more such shows to showcase our strength particularly in the state of Tamil Nadu, which is very strong in manufacturing and engineering. This also gives us hope that the mandate for the government to have 25 percent GDP coming from manufacturing is possible. Thus this showcases the complete

S Raj, Regional Director, Indo-German Chamber of Commerce & Dominic Savio, Head of Thermal, Business Unit of Valeo inaugurating the Expo

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The Expo enables visitors to witness some of the leadi ng ex h ibit i ng compa n ies including Atlas Capco, Bhav ya Machine Tools, Black & Decker India, CTR Ma nufacturing Industries, Dijet Industrial Co, Emtex Machinery, Fein Power Tools, Keyence India, Tussor Machine Tools India, Ramco Systems, Shutter Enterprises and Wendt India.

Associate Vice President,

B2B Publishing, Infomedia18, Sudhanva Jategaonkar said, currently Engineering Expo is held in six different cities in India. Rather than doing a show and waiting for the customers to come, “Our ideology is to take the show to customer’s doorstep. In Chennai, we made a very modest beginning in 2008 and this is our fourth edition. We have plans of taking engineering expo outside India.

In another few months we will be announcing our internationa l foray. Current ly, we are in a process of short-listing the locations.”

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16 - 31 December 2011

47

Indian downstream natural gas sector: Ballooning natural gas supply-demand deficit to fuel LNG imports

I

ndia’s natural gas supply has been adversely impacted in 2011-12 due to fall in KG D6 production to 46.6 MMSCMD in H1 2011-12 from 55.9 MMSCMD in 2010-11. KG D6 production is likely to remain at subdued levels over the next couple of years, especially in comparison to the earlier anticipated production of 60-80 MMSCMD. Overall, ICRA expects domestic natural gas supplies to increase to around 153 MMSCMD by 2014-15 from 143 MMSCMD in 2010-11.

The current estimate is about 22 percent lower than our previous estimates of 195 MMSCMD primarily due to lower KG-D6 production and delays anticipated in commissioning of KG satellite fields. On the demand front, despite t he signif icantly high potentia l across several sectors, the realisable demand for natural gas will be a function of gas supplies in the market at reasonable price, the price competitiveness of gas as compared to alternative fuels, timely commissioning of the proposed transmission pipeline infrastructure, and regulator y initiatives in the power sector.

(capex) and future requirements of natural gas.

India’s natural gas production increased marginally by 10 percent to 143 MMSCMD in 2010-11 from 130 MMSCMD in 2009-10 primarily due to rise in production of RIL s D6 block in KG basin to 55.9 MMSCMD in 2010-11 from 42 MMSCMD in 2009-10. The production from KG D6 was, however, lower than the earlier envisaged production of 60-80 MMSCMD, and has fallen further to 45 MMSCMD in Q2 2011-12.

Over the next couple of years, KG D6 production is likely to remain at subdued levels (around 45 MMSCMD, with further downside risks), especially in comparison to anticipated

production of 80 MMSCMD. However, there would be marginal increase in supplies by other domestic sources over the medium term. Overa ll, ICR A expects domestic natural gas supplies to increase to around 153 MMSCMD by 201415 (about 22 percent lower from previous ICRA estimates of 195 MMSCMD primarily due to lower KG-D6 production and delays anticipated in commissioning of KG satellite fields).

However, supply estimates over the longer tenure are at around 220 MMSCMD by 2019-20 (marginally lower than earlier estimate of 225 MMSCMD) on account of expected recovery in KG D6 production and increase in production from

other sources.

Rising Supply The other major sources that are likely to contribute towards supply increase include: KG basin satellite fields (owned by RIL consortium); NEC field (RIL consortium); Deen Dayal block in KG basin (GSPC consortium); KG-DW N-98/2 (ONGC); and MN-DW N-98/3 (ONGC).

Further, ONGC is expected to begin gas production from several small and marginal fields given to it on nomination by the Government of India (GoI).

However, ICRA does not expect significant net additions to production by ONGC from the nominated fields, given that the output from the existing fields

of ONGC has been falling by 6-7 percent annually.

On the demand front, despite the significantly high potentia l across severa l sectors, ICR A notes that the realisable demand for natural gas will be a function of gas supplies in the market; the price competitiveness of gas as compared to alternative fuels; timely commissioning of the proposed transmission pipeline infrastructure and some regulatory initiatives in the power sector. Overall, ICR A expects gas demand to rise to around 410 MMSCMD by 2019-20 from the actual consumption of around 177 MMSCMD in 2010-11.

(Courtesy: ICRA)

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Increased Demand Expected ICR A believes that demand will increase from new customers once the bottlenecks in the trunk pipeline are cleared in the near to medium term.

Overa ll, ICR A expects gas demand to rise to around 410 MMSCMD by 2019-20 from the actual consumption of around 177 MMSCMD in 2010-11. ICRA believes that India, despite the long-term contracted LNG volumes with Australia and mid-term contracts signed by GAIL, needs to secure additional supply on a long-term basis, especially in view of less-thananticipated domestic supply and possible shortage of LNG after a couple of years.

India’s high reliance on LNG is expected to increase further, which w ill pose significant risks in a scenario of tight LNG supply demand scenario, leading to low availability and high prices of spot LNG. As regards gas allocation and pooling, an inter-ministeria l committee has recently recommended i) preferential allotment of available domestic natural gas to core sectors, that is, fertiliser and power sectors, along with a certain amount reserved for the CGD/CNG sector, ii) cap on domestic gas allocation to certain other sectors and iii) inferred gas price to be used as benchmark for domestic gas pricing. The committee has not suggested any form of pooling at the all-India level across industries but the objective has been assumed to be served by indirect pooling at the end of consumers, with price-sensitive sectors (fertiliser/power/ CGD) getting a higher share of cheaper domestic gas.

ICRA believes that the policy recommendations, if accepted, will provide more clarity to gas usage mix and pricing, which in turn would help companies across industries to formulate their capital expenditure plans

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48

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 December 2011

EVENT

Expo to brush global strokes, underline technology

T

he upcoming Fourth PaintExpo, to be held at the Karlsruhe Exhibition Centre from April 17-20 next year, regularly witnesses an exhibitor list of roughly 300 companies.

These exhibitors come from 19 countries with 23.6 percent from countries other than Germany.

Further growth in exhibitor numbers and internationalism is thus being experienced by the leading international trade fair for industrial coating technology. Nearly all of the market and technology leaders are already represented in the various exhibition segments.

“Offerings which are focused exclusively on the process sequences for liquid painting, powder coating and coil coating provide exhibitors and visitors with a clear-cut value advantage. And this is being

recognised by more and more manufacturers of industrial coating technology both inside and outside of Germany,” according to Managing Director, FairFair, Jurgen Haußmann.

The majority of the visitors from all over the world come to PaintExpo with concrete tasks, investment plans and the intention to place orders. And this will also be the case at the upcoming event, which will take place at the exhibition centre in Karlsruhe from 17 -20 April 2012, because companies from all sectors with in-house painting operations, as well as job-shop coaters, are interested in increasing the efficiency, the quality and the ecology of the painting process.

And in this respect, it doesn’t make any difference at all which industry sector requires painting of parts made of metal, plastic,

PaintExpo 2010

wood, glass or other materials.

Exhibitors from all sectors are offering new products and services, as well as further devel-

opments targeted at optimising processes. Where the pre-treatment of metals is concerned, a trend towards nano-ceramic

Offers 4 weeks comprehensive course Batch 6 06 February - 03 March 2012, Bangalore

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

conversion coatings is becoming apparent. Alternatively, solutions are being offered which generate a plainly visible oxidised protective layer with a thickness of just a few nanometres. This allows for easy visual inspection.

Moreover, pre-treatment can be completed very quickly (within 20 to 120 seconds) at temperatures ranging from 20 to 35° C, by means of which energy savings and high throughput rates are made possible.

Ever smaller lot quantities and a continuously increasing variety of colour tones, as well as shorter and shorter life cycles, also represent significant challenges for operators of painting and coating systems. With system concepts and optimisation solutions, which are laid out consistently for flexibility and efficient use of materials, the exhibitors are making a significant contribution to streamlined operations, and thus a sharp competitive edge, for companies with inhouse painting facilities.

One of the focal points in the field of powder coatings involves low temperature powder coating systems and powdered enamels, which provide optimised corrosion protection. Newly developed powdered enamels with metallic effect will also be introduced.

These include, for instance, hightemperature resistant metallic powder and paint systems which provide the coated surface with a certain 3D effect, as well as greater resistance to fi ngerprints and moisture.

Innovative controllers and systems for effective powder conveyance and application also offer answers to questions about how quality and efficiency can be increased and energy consumption reduced. Potential savings can also be exploited by means of greater degrees of automation. Modern painting robots will be demonstrated which are easy to programme and allow for improved reproducibility of painting results, reduced scrap rates and thus improved quality and economy. The exhibitors will also offer new products in the area of conveyor systems.

The use of infrared heat provides impressive results in many cases where shorter drying or curing times are required, and at the same time reduced energy consumption is desired. Space requirements can often be significantly reduced as well in this way.

Further segments for which PaintExpo’s exhibitors will present numerous new solutions include paint stripping, quality assurance and accessories such as masks and hangers, as well as printing, identification and packaging.

50

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GLOBAL WATCH TECHNOLOGY

16 - 31 December 2011

California proposes big boost in electric cars T he California Air Resources Board proposed new regulations to dramatically increase the number of electric vehicles on the Golden State’s roads by 2025. By 2025, zero-emission or plug-in hybrid vehicles must account for one in seven new cars sold in California under the proposal.

In 14 years, the board stated that there would be 1.4 million EVs or plug-in hybrids on its roads. Of those, there will be 500,000 fuelcell or pure electric vehicles on the roads. The Air Resources Board expects that nearly 100 percent of all cars sold in the Golden State will be zero-emission vehicles by 2040 under its rules.

As a result, by 2050, it predicts that 87 percent of vehicles on the roads will be hydrogen fuel cell or battery-electric vehicles.

California will require the con-

struction of hydrogen fuelling stations to help five automakers that say they plan to sell some fuel-cell models by 2015.

The board has agreed to adopt the greenhouse gas emissions limits proposed by the federal government between 2017 and 2025. That proposal would double current requirements to 54.5 miles per gallon by 2025.

In 2009, it agreed not to impose state standards for the 201216 timeframe after the Obama administration struck a similar deal. The new rules mean smaller manufacturers including BMW, Daimler, Hyundai, Mazda and Volkswagen will face some zero emission requirements after 2015. They had been exempted previously.

However, they could meet a “portion of the zero emission rules” by over complying with the

greenhouse gas emissions rules for the 2018-2021 model years.

Chevrolet Volt The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has fi ve Chevrolet Volts at a testing facility as part of its preliminary investigation into fi re risks in the extended-range electric

vehicle. NHTSA’s defects investigation chief, Frank Borris, asked its Vehicle Research Test Centre to inspect the vehicles, which already have been crashtested by NHTSA. Investigators are to “take photographs of the fl oorplan/cross member near the battery tunnel on both the driver and passenger sides of

the vehicle.” A team of GM engineers is working with NHTSA. The agency plans more tests in its investigation.

NHTSA crash-tested a Volt in May in Wisconsin, and it caught fire three weeks later. Three other vehicles were damaged, too.

Recently, NHTSA tested three Volt battery packs, resulting in brief smoke and sparks in one. A second Volt battery pack caught fire on Thanksgiving, seven days after a crash test. That prompted NHTSA to open a formal safety investigation into fi re risks of the Volt—specifically when the battery pack is damaged in a serious crash.

After the fi rst fi re, NHTSA quietly asked automakers about safety issues surrounding batter y-powered vehicles, but stopped short of a formal investigation. The government has no reports of real-world fi res.

GM offered to buy back Chevrolet Volts from any customers nervous about fi re risks as the automaker said it would not meet its 10,000 sales target this year for the extended-range electric car. But GM expects few if any of its 6,000 Volt owners to ask for a refund. GM offered loaner vehicles to any worried Volt owners as the government investigates fi re risks; GM said 33 owners so far asked for loaners.

GM has struggled to contain concerns about the Volt since the disclosure last month that the government was investigating a fi re in a crash-tested Volt.

GM said this week it is considering design changes to prevent battery intrusion during a severe crash. NHTSA has no complaints or reports of fi res in real-world Volts. Last Friday, the government opened a formal investigation into the fi re risks of the Volt. The company said it has received 230 calls from owners.

GM sales chief Don Johnson told that GM won’t meet the 10,000 sales mark for its electric vehicle until early next year, but is not disappointed.

As recently as last month, Akerson said he expected to sell 45,000 Volts in the United States in 2012 and export another 15,000. Johnson didn’t back away from next year’s target.

“We’ll stick to the game plan,” Johnson said. In November, GM sold 1,139 Volts —the second straight month it has topped Nissan, which sold 672 all-electric Leafs. GM has sold 6,142 Volts this year, while Nissan has sold 8,720 Leafs.

Despite the negative publicity, GM said its November Volt sales were its best-ever — beating its prior monthly record of 1,108 vehicles set in October. In recent weeks, GM has dramatically boosted its inventory of Volt models in showrooms and is allowing dealers to sell Volt demos. GM dealers now have about 4,000 Volts for sale.

52

Auto Monitor

GLOBAL WATCH TECHNOLOGY

16 - 31 December 2011

Next-gen lamp for car interior lighting F

ederal-Mogul Corporation has developed an innovation that make vehicle interior lighting systems slimmer, cooler, more efficient and stylish. The company’s new ultra-thin lighting combines LEDs and a specially designed lamp lens to reduce the profi le of interior lamps by up to 60 percent. In addition to improving headroom, facilitating reduced power consumption and enabling greater interior styling, NovaLens provides consistent & even illumination without “hot spots”.

Growing demand for vehicles with higher seating positions and lower roofl ines means vehicle manufacturers operate within tightening constraints to create sufficient headroom for occupants. Increasing headroom is a

The homogeneous appearance of the ultra-thin lamp is unrivalled in the industry.

It provides new opportunities for interior designers and offers greater design alternatives while improving packaging, safety and energy efficiency Ultra-thin lighting with NovaLens

contributing factor in improving the safety of occupants during a

rollover event.

“Unlike conventional inte-

rior lighting, Federal-Mogul’s new ultra-thin lighting with

NovaLens provides a more stylish, integrated interior lighting solution,” said Federal-Mogul’s Senior Vice President, Vehicle Safety and Protection, Ramzi Hermiz. “With interior lamp profi les typically of 30 mm or more, the size of interior lighting modules has been a limiting factor for vehicle manufacturers. Our new lamp is just 12 mm thick, giving vehicle designers an extra 18 mm of space and increased styling design opportunities.”

LEDs emit cones of light that generate variations in intensity and visible hot spots within the lens of a traditional interior lamp.

NovaLens is a specially designed lens that incorporates unique geometric features which reflect and refract the light from LEDs positioned at opposite sides of the lamp to produce visually uniform illumination from the entire lens. The inner surface of NovaLens incorporates optical features that vary in shape, depth and position, depending on their distance from the nearest LED. The outer surface of NovaLens contains several parallel optical flutes. Light from the LEDs is reflected from the optical features and then is spread evenly by the flutes to deliver a uniform distribution of light over the target zones.

“The consistent, homogeneous appearance of our new ultra-thin lamp with NovaLens is unrivalled in the industry,” Hermiz said. “It provides exciting new opportunities for interior designers and a competitive advantage for Federal-Mogul’s customers.

Because the unique properties of NovaLens mean fewer LEDs are required, it also is a highly-efficient solution. Federal-Mogul’s combination of low-energy LEDs with our innovative NovaLens offers greater design alternatives while improving packaging, safety and energy efficiency.”

LED technology can draw less than 2 W, depending on customer requirements, compared to 10W for the equivalent incandescent bulbs. This reduced electrical demand cuts CO2 emissions and helps reduce battery drain, which is especially important in electric vehicles. LEDs also last more than ten times as long as incandescent bulbs and operate 95 degrees Celsius cooler, improving thermal management, installation and styling options.

Federal-Mogul is in discussion with vehicle manufacturers on several continents regarding its new ultra-thin lamp with NovaLens. The company’s first production applications will reach the market during 2012. The technology was developed at Federal-Mogul’s Lighting Technical Centre in Ann Arbor, Mich, one of the company’s 18 globally networked technical centres.

Federal-Mogul Corporation is a leading global supplier of powertrain and safety solutions to leading original equipment manufacturers in automotive, commercial, aerospace, marine, rail and off-road vehicles, industrial, agricultural and power generation equipment as well as the worldwide aftermarket. The company was founded in Detroit in 1899. The company is headqua r tered in Sout h f ield, Michigan, and employs approximately 45,000 people in 35 countries.

54

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16 - 31 December 2011

GLOBAL WATCH

International auto round-up US auto plants restarted, put back to use

About half of all US automotive plants that have closed since 1979 are being reused and much of that activity has come during the recent hard times for the industry and real estate market, according to a recent report. The Ann Arborbased non-profit Centre for Automotive Research’s report found that of the 267 assembly and parts plants closed during that period, 128 have found or are finding new life. Forty percent of the sites surveyed were bought for a new use between 2008 and 2010, during which the companies now known as GM and Chr ysler went through restructuring and bankruptcy reorganisation.

The period of rejuvenation

Bill Ford Jr, Chairman, Ford

also came during the end of a decade in which more than 42

percent of the plants closed.

The report noted that few sites

found a new owner or use before 2000.

“There are certain factors that could contribute to that phenomenon, such as the increase in closed plants available during that same period, the lower assessed value of real estate properties make them more affordable to people with available capital to purchase them,” one of the report’s authors, Valerie Sathe Brugeman said in a statement.

Still, t he upward trend doesn’t erase the fact that more than half the empty, hulking plants or concrete prairies remain closed. The report said that of the 139 shuttered plants, 36 percent closed in the 1980s and ‘90s, which means they have been closed for at least a decade without finding new life.

FADA s 7th Auto Summit - 9th & 10th January 2012 at New Delhi FADA will be organising its major biennial event, viz.

7th Auto Summit on 9th & 10th January 2012 at Hotel Le Meridien, New Delhi, coinciding with Auto Expo scheduled for 7th to 11th January 2012. Having regard to speed-breakers encountered from time to time, the theme of Auto Summit 2012 is SHIFTING GEARS - TERRAIN AHEAD . As earlier Summits, the Auto Summit 2012 is being organised in association with SIAM. Dr Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Dy Chairman, Planning Commission, has kindly agreed to inaugurate the Auto Summit 2012 and to deliver the Inaugural Address. Mr Anand Mahindra, Vice Chairman & MD, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd will be the Chief Guest at the Inaugural Session, while Mr S Sandilya, President, SIAM and Group Chairman, Eicher Motors will deliver the keynote address.

As in the past, Auto Summit 2012 will be a two-day event.

The day one, i.e. 9th January 2012 will, by and large, comprise workshops on day-to-day management of automobile dealerships and best dealership practices. The day two of the event, i.e. 10th January 2012 will start with a formal Inaugural Session at 10.30 a.m. followed by other Business/Interactive Sessions. As in the previous Auto Summits, industry leaders, senior Government ministers & officials, captains of allied businesses and renowned management gurus are expected to address and interact with the participants at the 7th Auto Summit.

Auto Summit presents a great opportunity for automobile dealers to meet the industry leaders and other members of auto retail fraternity from across India and abroad to share their experiences and exchange ideas.

The Auto Summit brings together all stakeholders on a common platform to mull and address the current & emerging challenges for sustained growth of all players connected with automotive business.

The Summit is also an occasion to celebrate and unwind, as cultural evening and networking cocktails & dinner form an integral part of the two-day programme.

Presentation of Automotive Dealer Excellence Awards (ADEA) for the year 2011 forms an integral part of the programme.

Background FADA has been organising a biennial Convention of Automobile Dealers, viz. Auto Summit at New Delhi coinciding with the Auto Expo, commencing from the year 2000. The previous Summits were a grand success, each Summit attracting 700-800 participants representing dealerships, vehicle manufacturers, oil companies, banks, insurance & finance companies and media from all over the country and abroad. Practically, all leaders of automotive industry and allied businesses have addressed at this forum in the past on various issues including changing paradigm of auto retail, marketing, human resource management, customer satisfaction, relationship management, etc.

The Summit deliberations helped in creating a tremendous awakening and identifying the challenges & opportunities for automotive business as a whole.

Registration and Programme Details For Registration and Programme Details, please contact FADA Office at the following address: Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) 805, Surya Kiran, 19, K G Marg, New Delhi - 110 001 Phones: 011 - 2332 0095, 6630 4852, 4153 1495 E-mail: fada@airtelmail.in The registration form and programme details can also be download from FADA s website: www.fadaweb.com

Previous Auto Summits - Flashback

November 2011

17

Most are concentrated in the mid-west, with 65 percent of all closed facilities in Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. The region also has the highest concentration of operating plants. A sprawling former Ford plant in suburban Wixom, which closed in 2008, highlights the cha llenge. Ford’s Executive Chairman and Henr y Ford’s g reat-g ra ndson, Bi l l Ford arrived at the shuttered auto plant in 2009 to promote a plan to revive the vast empty space: Investors planned to transform it into a modern factory to make solar panels and high-tech energy systems instead of Town Cars and Thunderbirds.

Those plans never materialised, but even if they had gone forward the companies involved would have used less than half the available space. A recent analysis released found that of 128 major manufacturing plants in North America closed since 1980 by the Detroit Three and their largest suppliers, three of every five sat idle. The analysis also found that those plants employed 183,000 workers, and of the 45 that were being redeveloped only three matched or exceeded the number of employees of the carmaking past.

The Centre for Automotive Research came up with similar conclusions, and only 19 percent of survey respondents in affected communities said the redeveloped site had been very successful in restoring the job base. Many of the redeveloped sites are used for industrial purposes, including automotive uses. Some sites have been redeveloped for education, warehousing, or recreation.

Russian car sales rose 26 percent in November Russian car sales rose 26 percent year-on-year in November to 49,406 units, the Association for European Businesses (AEB) said in a statement. The AEB increased its forecast of new cars and light commercial vehicles sales in Russia to 2.6 million in 2011 up from 2.55 million. Sales in 2010 reached 1.91 million units. The AEB said the fi rst eleven months of 2011 saw sales increase by 41 percent to 2.4 million compared with the same period in 2010.

“The 26 percent increase for the month of November and prospects for December now indicate a full year market of 2.6 million cars. This will mean that for the full year the total industry volume will increase by nearly 37 percent compared to 2010,” David Thomas, head of the AEB’s autos committee said in the statement.

“We do not at this stage see any cause to revise upwards our initial forecast for 2012 of 2.8 million cars and light commercial vehicles though this will lead to a much lower year to year growth of less than eight percent for the coming year,” he added. Russia was on course to overtake Germany as Europe’s biggest car market before the financial crisis caused a collapse in demand which halved sales in 2009.

Reb ou nd i n g e c onom ic growth in Russia and a statesponsored scrappage scheme helped boost a steady market recovery in 2010 and 2011, which

Contd. on 56

56

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 December 2011

GLOBAL WATCH

International auto round-up Contd. from 54 led to predictions of a return to pre-crisis sales levels of 2.9 million in 2012. Foreign carmakers including Ford, General Motors, Fiat and Renault are among the manufacturers betting on rapid growth in the emerging Russian market to help offset reduced sales in Western Europe. Executives at Renault, which owns 25 percent of state-controlled Lada-maker AvtoVAZ, and Ford have predicted the market could reach four million by mid-decade— but this was before the current Euro zone sovereign debt crisis which is heavily depressing new-car sales in the region.

China oks Volkswagen plan to build 13th plant

The Chinese government has approved Shanghai Volkswagen’s plan to build a plant in the northwest China region of Xinjiang, according to the Xinjiang government’s website. The yuan two billion ($315 million) facility will be located in a suburb of Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang. It will start production in 2013, and will produce up to 50,000 vehicles a year.

The new plant would build cars for the mid-sized segment. This year, Volkswagen Group is aiming to sell more than two million cars in the country.

Together with local partners SAIC and FAW, Volkswagen has currently nine factories in China, with annual total production capacity of 1.9 million cars. Earlier this month, Shanghai Volkswagen obtained government approval to build a plant in Ningbo of east China’s

Zhejiang province, according to the Ningbo Evening News.

Two more facilities are under construction. FAW Volkswagen is building an assembly plant in Foshan in south China’s Guangdong province, while Shanghai Volkswagen is constructing one in Yizheng in east China’s Jiangsu province. In the first ten months , Volkswagen sold 1.9 million Volkswagen, Audi and Skoda vehicles in China, accounting for nearly 18 percent of the country’s passenger vehicle sales.

Safety group sues NHTSA over Toyota records A safety advocacy group filed suit against the National H ig hw ay Tr a f f ic Sa fet y Administration seeking records connected to the government’s invest igat ion into sudden

unintended acceleration incidents with Toyota vehicles.

Safety Research & Strategies, a Massachusetts-based auto safety group that often works with attorneys suing automakers, filed a suit seeking records under the Freedom of Information Act in connection with an alleged sudden acceleration incident in December 2010 in Sarasota. “(NHTSA’s) numerous investi-

gations into Toyota’s unintended acceleration have been characterised by continued secrecy, preventing a full accounting of their activities and the complete replication of their analyses by independent parties,” said President and Founder of the group Sean Kane. He argues the records could shed light on the unintended acceleration incident with a 2007 Lexus RX. In February, Toyota recalled the vehicle and others to replace the carpet cover and retention clips. Earlier this year, a government review found no evidence of electronic causes of sudden unintended acceleration in Toyota vehicles. Toyota has recalled about 10 million vehicles for sudden acceleration issues related to sticky pedals or pedal entrapment issues. Kane has been critical of the government fi ndings and has testified before Congress on sudden acceleration issues.

Fledgling EV maker Aptera shuts its doors Fledgling electric vehicle maker Aptera Motors of Carlsbad, California, has closed and will liquidate, CEO Paul Wilbur said.

Wilbur, a former Chrysler brand manager and CEO of specialty automaker ASC, said the company had gained conditional approval of a $150 million loan from the US Department of Energy. But it was unable to raise additional capital required to start production of its fi rst product, a mid-sized sedan.

Aptera’s inability to raise money signals a cooling of investor attitudes toward EV startups, Wilbur said. Venture capital fi rms earlier indicated a willingness to invest if Aptera received the federal advanced vehicle technology loan. But in the interim, the difficulties of launching EVs became apparent, he said.“A couple years ago, there were a lot of people who thought the automotive industry is easy,” Wilbur said. “It isn’t.”

Wilbur said Aptera was negotiating to use the former General Motors plant in Moraine, Ohio, to produce the sedan. He said Aptera’s work force of about 30 employees was let go.

Valeo and China’s Chery form lighting partnership Valeo has formed a partnership with Chery Automobile to produce lighting products.

The partnership, Wuhu Valeo Automobile Lighting Systems, will design, manufacture and sell lights. Its primary customer will be Chery. In recent years, Chery has formed partnerships with suppliers such as ArvinMeritor, Robert Bosch as well as Exxon Mobil and PPG Industries.In China, Valeo has three technical centres and 18 factories that produce lighting products, climate control systems and other components. Valeo aims to boost annual sales in China and India to Euro one billion (yuan 8.6 billion) by 2013 and yuan 25.7 billion by 2020.

16 - 31 December 2011

GLOBAL WATCH

Auto Monitor

57

Toyota, BMW join hands for green technology T oyota is teaming up with BMW in green car technology in a deal also aimed at shoring up the Japanese car maker’s European diesel car line up just two years after a strategic shift away from diesel. The German car maker will supply diesel engines to Toyota from 2014 in Europe and the pair will collaborate on lithium-ion battery research for electric cars.

Toyota executives said the discussions with BMW started in April as its European business sought to cover a weak flank in its diesel car line-up. Toyota’s decision to source diesel engines from BMW represents a reversal in strategy after it scrapped plans two years ago to develop 1.6 litre diesel engines with Japanese truck maker Isuzu Motors, in which it owns a 5.9 percent stake.

Toyota’s R&D chief, Takeshi Uchiyamada said the partners will divvy up the fields of research to speed up development and save costs

Two and a half years ago, President Akio Toyoda had said that Toyota would shift its focus on Europe to hybrids and away from diesel so as not to get “lost in the crowd”. But Toyota has lost market share in Europe, where diesel driven cars make up about 55 percent of sales. Diesel engines use less fuel and emit less carbon

dioxide than gasoline engines.

In the fi rst 10 months of this year, Toyota’s sales in Europe fell 9.5 percent to about 430,000 vehicles, although that was partly due to supply constraints after the tsunami in Japan in March. After peaking in 2007, Toyota’s sales

have fallen in Europe, also hit last year by a major recall crisis.

This deal comes as global automakers face ballooning research and development costs to meet tougher emissions and fuel-economy standards around the world.

This has accelerated cooperation

deals among car makers, including Toyota and BMW’s main rivals, Nissan and Daimler, along with Nissan’s French partner, Renault SA. “Fundamentally, we are both engineering companies, so in many aspects we have found we speak the same language,” Toyota Motor Europe President and CEO, Didier Leroy.

Many alliances in the auto industry have ended in failure due to the clash of corporate cultures, such as a 2-year-old equity tie-up between another GermanJapanese pairing, Volkswagen AG and Suzuki Motor Corp.

While virtually all carmakers acknowledge that hybrid technology will be more important commercially as regulations get stricter, it has never accounted for more than two percent of global vehicle sales and Toyota has not been able to leverage its strength in the technology to gain traction in Europe.

Toyota has diesel engines of its own, including 1.4 litre, two litre and 2.2 litre engines produced in Europe. But Toyota said it would start using BMW’s two litre engine on one model fi rst, in 2014, and expand the line-up thereafter.

The agreement to collaborate on next-generation lithium-ion batteries, meanwhile, will give BMW access to Toyota’s long experience in the field. Toyota’s R&D chief, Takeshi Uchiyamada, said the partners will divvy up the fields of research to speed up development and save costs.

Toyota and BMW have not discussed swapping equity but it could be considered, albeit some way into the collaboration. Under Akio Toyoda, Toyota has forged numerous partnerships, including with Aston Martin, Tesla Motors, Microsoft, Salesforce. com and Ford.

In February, BMW signed a deal with French carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen, with which it has already partnered on engines, for a hybrid technology joint venture.

Fiat names new North American chief

T

he Fiat brand, which is off to a slow start since its reintroduction to the US market, has replaced its North American chief. Timothy Kuniskis, a 19-year veteran who oversaw product marketing for the Fiat and Chrysler brands replaces Laura Soave, who has left Chrysler.

Soave was still in the top Fiat position for North America last week at the Los Angeles auto show, but there had been growing speculation she would lose her job. Chrysler CEO, Sergio Marchionne hinted that her days were numbered at a press event last week, saying she held the post “for the time being”. Officially, Soave has left to “pursue other interests”.

About 15,800 Fiat 500s have been sold in the US through October. That makes it nearly impossible to meet the target of 50,000 a year in North America annually, even with about 5,000 additional sales in Canada.

The Mini Cooper, by comparison, has sold about 27,300 sedans and convertibles in the US in the same period. While the Minis are a more established brand here, they also are more expensive.

58

Auto Monitor

GLOBAL WATCH TECHNOLOGY

16 - 31 December 2011

Mazda emission cuts deliver cash savings F

leets and company car drivers will save even more money by choosing to drive Mazda6 diesel or Mazda2 petrol models following reductions to CO2 emission figures for these cars.

The improvements deliver lower Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) and, for company car drivers, reduced benefit-in-kind (BIK) tax on some models. For the Mazda6, the improvements bring a CO2 reduction on all Mazda6 2.2-litre 5-door Diesel 163ps and 180ps models - dropping from 142 to 140g/km, which means a £15 a year VED saving as models drop from Band F (£130) to Band E (£115). Meanwhile, a 5g/km CO2 reduction (138g/km to 133g/ km) on all 2.2-litre 5-door Diesel 129ps models, including the recently launched fleet-focused Mazda6 Business Line, drops

Line model delivers cash savings of £3.02 per month (£36.26 per year) for basic rate taxpayers and £6.04 per month (£72.52 per year) for higher rate taxpayers.

The new ratings also translate into National Insurance savings for employers.

Benefits on the Mazda2 include a CO2 reduction on manual 1.5litre petrol engine models from 135g/km to 132g/km, placing them in the 16 percent company car BIK tax bracket (previously 17 percent) in 2011/12.

Tax Savings them into the 19 percent BIK tax bracket (previously 20 percent) in 2011/12.

Cutting Emmissions On the Mazda6 2.2-litre fivedoor Diesel 129ps TS model the

emissions cut delivers a BIK tax bill saving of £3.31 per month (£39.66 per year) for basic rate taxpayers and £6.61 per month (£79.32 per year) for higher rate taxpayers. The Mazda6 2.2-litre 5-door Diesel 129ps Business

This means that Mazda2 1.5-litre three-door Sport petrol drivers save £2.13 per month (£25.55 per year) for a basic rate taxpayer and £4.26 per month (£51.10 per year) for a higher rate taxpayer. Tax bill savings on the Mazda2 1.5-litre fi ve-door

Sport petrol are £2.19 per month (£26.25 per year), while for the higher rate taxpayer the tax bill saving will be £4.38 per month (£52.50 per year).

Again, the new ratings translate into National Insurance savings for employers. In addition, CO2 has reduced from 119g/km to 115g/km on all 1.3litre models, whilst the 1.5-litre automatic drops from 146g/km to 145g/km.

Mazda Fleet and Remarketing Director, Steve Jelliss, said, “At a time when corporate and personal budgets are being squeezed, Mazda customers are able to benefit from cash savings through these emission cuts. “The Mazda range is already well-known for its style, specification and reliability, and this development further enhances our value for money credentials,” he said.

Ford extends partnership with UEFA Champions League

F

ord has announced recently that it is extending its long-standing sponsorship of Europe’s most popular and prestigious club football competition—the UEFA Champions League— through June 2015.

“Our new three-year agreement shows how strongly we feel about this partnership,” said Chairman and CEO, Ford of Europe, Stephen Odell. “For a global company like ours, the UEFA Champions League is an ideal platform to connect with millions of people around common values. It is about the best-ofthe-best on the ultimate stage, and that’s why Ford wants to be part of it.”

The UEFA Champions League is one of the most popular sports competitions in the world. More than one billion television viewers tuned in last season, with a cumulative audience of more than four billion, more than half of which were outside of Europe.

The UEFA Champions League was instrumental in revealing the new Ford Focus to a global audience through television break bumpers, stadium perimeter boards and online channels.

Activities around the competition, allowed visitors to the Ford stand to be captured in a 180 degree ‘Matrix’ style animation using a bank of 40 cameras.

Participants could then share their video with friends online using the Focus Wi-Fi hotspot, uploading to the social websites like Facebook or YouTube. The 77,630 subsequent views online of these fi lms also demonstrated how Ford and UEFA work together in front of huge audiences to bring new Ford technologies to life. Ford’s use of social media sites will be further enhanced.

To celebrate the 2012 UEFA Champions League Final being held in Munich, Ford in Germany will play a major role in the support of this event. This will include the launch of ‘Champions’ special value models, as well as the provision of 200 vehicles featuring the 2012 UEFA Champions League Final livery to support transport logistics at the Final, all of which will be promoted through social media.

16 - 31 December 2011

GLOBAL WATCH

Auto Monitor

59

Vauxhall-UK tie-up builds momentum worth Euro 230 million V

auxhall Motors has awarded substantial contracts to UK suppliers worth around 230 million during the life of the contracts over the past 18 months making a significant contribution to the UK economy.

Suppliers based in locations spread across the UK have been awarded contracts on the basis of quality, service, technology and price. This is a mix of business comprising supply to Vauxhall’s two UK plants in Ellesmere Port, Cheshire and Luton, Bedfordshire as well as export to GM divisions across the globe.

Gauging The Potential Chairman, GM UK and Vauxhall Motors, Bill Parfitt and also the fi rst Chairman of the Automotive Council’s Supply Group, said, “Vauxhall is keen to build on the momentum and push for new business with UK suppliers to the benefit of local economies, and GM global-

Wind River, Clarion collaborate on androidbased in-vehicle infotainment

W

ind River, an embedded and mobile software provider and Clarion, an in-car entertainment systems supplier, are collaborating on the development of androidbased in-vehicle infotainment (IVI) systems.

Wind River is creating a custom android software platform for an automotive environment and providing software integration services to ensure Clarion delivers its device. Clarion Malaysia’s new IVI device is designed to deliver enhanced user experience in areas of multimedia, entertainment and connectivity.

The Clarion Malaysia IVI device is based on the Freescale i.MX applications processor family.

The company helps customers in the management of highly detailed requirements and complex project planning associated with the automotive industry. In addition to its android software platform and services and support, Clarion is using Wind River FAST to test for device software quality and user experience.

Wind River FAST is an automated software testing solution that is able to rapidly test any Android or GENIVI-based implementation for software quality, performance and compliance with the Android Compatibility Test Suite (CTS).

Wind River’s automotive portfolio also includes platform for infotainment, a software platform on which automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and Tier I suppliers can develop sophisticated IVI devices. The platform for infotainment is among the first GENIVI-compliant automotive solutions. Wind River, a wholly owned subsidiary of Intel, is an embedded and mobile software with offices in 20 countries.

the UK.” From 2012, Cobra UK is scheduled to produce components for Vauxhall’s Ellesmere Port plant in nearby Cheshire where the Astra Sports Tourer is built for Europe and beyond. So far in 2011 alone, over 120, 000 Sports Tourers left the production line—this estate model being high in demand and Bill Parfitt, Chairman, Vauxhall Motors coming top of its segly is increasingly aware of the ment not only in the UK, but also great potential that resides in in Germany.

Vauxhall is keen to build on the momentum for new business with UK to the benefit of local economies, and GM is aware of the great potential that resides in UK Future Strategies In line with the Automotive Council’s strategy to ensure the long term strategic development

of the UK automotive industry with a particular focus on the UK’s supply chain, Vauxhall/GM has committed to identifying and promoting sourcing opportunities in the UK. Vauxhall operates two manufacturing plants in the UK: Vauxhall’s Ellesmere Port plant is building the Astra ST for the European supplies and beyond as well as the Astra 5-door and the Astravan and Vauxhall’s Luton Plant is the only van plant within the Opel/Vauxhall organisation building the Vivaro light commercial vehicle for the Opel and Vauxhall brands as well as the Nissan Primastar and the Renault Trafic.

60

Auto Monitor

ADVERTISERS’ LIST CORPORATE

16 - 31 December 2011

Pg No. ........Advertiser ...................................................................................Tel ..................................................E-mail ...................................................................... Website 1 ................ACE Designers Ltd .......................................................................+91-80-22186700 ..........................acedesigners@acemicromatic.com ......................... www.acedesigners.co.in BC ..............ACE Manufacturing Systems Ltd .................................................+91-80-28360508 ..........................ams@bgl.vsnl.net.in ................................................ www.amsindia.net 56 ..............ADEA Awards ..............................................................................+91-22-30034650 ..........................prachi.mutha@infomedia18.in ............................... www.adea.in 11 ...............Anand Automotive Ltd................................................................+91-11-26564542 ...........................arpita.bhatia@anandgroupindia.com..................... www.anandgroupindia.com 42...............ARB Bearings Ltd ........................................................................+91-9810677476............................vinod@arb-bearings.com ........................................ www.arb-bearings.com 40 ..............ARO Equipments Pvt Ltd ............................................................+91-124-4585400 ..........................vmalik@aroequipments.com .................................. www.aroequipments.com 4 ................Assab Sripad Steels Ltd ...............................................................+91-44-24951980 ..........................chennai@assabsripad.com...................................... www.assabsripad.com 32...............Avery Dennison India Pvt Ltd .....................................................+91-124-2215581 ...........................lpm.in@ap.averydennison.com .............................. www.enhanceyourbrand.com 17...............Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. 24...............Bony Polymers (P) Ltd.................................................................+91-129-2211701 ...........................bony@bonypolymers.com ...................................... www.bonypolymers.com 10...............Brassoforge.................................................................................+91-129-2472701 ...........................dheeraj@brassoforge.com ...................................... www.brassoforge.com 13...............Bright Autoplast Ltd. ..................................................................+91-22-26124920 ............................................................................................................ www.brightautoplast.com 46 ..............Confederation Of Indian Industry ..............................................+91-124-4013871........................... rachna.jindal@cii.in .............................................. www.autoexpo.in 53 ..............Ecocat India Pvt Ltd....................................................................+91-129-4266500 ..........................alok@ecocatindia.com ............................................ www.ecocat.com 27 ..............Elantas Beck India Pvt Ltd ..........................................................+91-20-30210600 ..........................sanjay.patil@altana.com ......................................... www.elantas.com 41...............Electromech Material Handling Systems (I) Pvt Ltd ....................+91-20-66542222 ..........................getcranes@emech.in ............................................... www.emech.in 51...............Elofic Industries ..........................................................................+91-129-4281000 ..........................pawans@elofic.com ................................................ www.elofic.com 9 ................Endurance Technologies Limited ....................................................................................................................................................................................... www.endurancegroup.com 59...............ESGI Tools Pvt Ltd .......................................................................+91-175-2233991...........................esgi@esgitools.com ................................................. www.esgitools.com 33...............ETAS Automotive India Pvt Ltd ...................................................+91-80-41916581 ..........................sales.in@etas.com ................................................... www.etas.com 49...............Federal Mogul ............................................................................+91-124-4784530 ........................customercare.india@federalmogul.com ................. www.federalmogul.com 52,54 .........Federation Of Automobile Dealers Association .........................+91-11-23320095 ...........................fada@airtelmail.in .................................................. www.fadaweb.com 57 ..............Flir Systems India Pvt Ltd ...........................................................+91-11-45603555 ..........................manpreet.kaur@flir.com.hk .................................... www.flir.com 34 ..............G W Precision Tools India Pvt Ltd ...............................................+91-80-40431252 ..........................info@gwindia.in ...................................................... www.gwindia.in BIC .............Guhring India Private Limited ....................................................+91-80-40322500..........................info@guhring.in ..................................................... www.guhring.in 38 ..............Indian Machine Tool Manufacturers’ Association ......................+91-80-66246600..........................imtma@imtma.in .................................................... www.imtma.in 58 ..............Indian Machine Tool Manufacturers’ Association .............................................................................................................................................................. www.imtex.in 48 ..............Indian Machine Tools Manufacturers’ Association .....................+91-80-66246514 ..........................anuj@imtma.in ....................................................... www.imtma.in 60 ..............Ind-Sphinx Precision Ltd....................................................................................................................info@axis-microtools.com....................................... www.axis-microtools.com 28 ..............Involute Automation (P) Ltd .......................................................+91-40-2309 0022 .........................sales@involuteautomation.com.............................. www.involuteautomation.com/ 25 ..............ISMT Limited...............................................................................+91-20-66024901 ..........................sachin.joshi@ismt.co.in........................................... www.ismt.com 18...............Jay Instruments & Systems Pvt . Ltd. ..........................................+91-22-23526207...........................sales@jayinst.com ................................................... www.jayinst.com 20 ..............Jost’S Engineering Company Ltd. ................................................+91-20-25434350 ..........................marketing@josts.in ................................................. www.josts.com 43...............Jyoti CNC Automation Pvt. Ltd. ...................................................+91-2827-287081 ..........................info@jyoti.co.in ....................................................... www.jyoti.co.in 2 ................Kamal Envirotech Pvt Ltd ...........................................................+91-9313137970 ............................enquiry@kamalcedsolution.com ............................ www.kamalenvirotechgroup.com 16,22 .........Komax Automation India Pvt Ltd ...............................................+91-124-4599100...........................info.dei@komaxgroup.com ..................................... www.komax.com 47...............Komet Precision Tool India Pvt Ltd ............................................+91-80-280780000 ........................info.in@kometgroup.com 6 ................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 ..............Mahr Metrology India (P) Ltd. .....................................................+91-44-42170531 ..........................r.ganesan@mahr.com ............................................. www.mahr.com 36,37..........Meiban Engineering Technologies Pvt Ltd .................................+91-80-26860600 ..........................sales-turning@meibanengg.com ............................ www.meibanengg.com 31...............Metro Tyres Ltd ...........................................................................+91-120-4147414 10...............Mipox..........................................................................................+91-80-65830898..........................rag-rao@mipox.co.jp............................................... www.mipoxindia.com 61...............MMC Hardmetal India Pvt Ltd ....................................................+91-80-23516083 ..........................mmcindia@mmc.co.jp ............................................ www.mitsubishicarbide.com 45...............Ningbo Elite Mold Manufacture Co.,Ltd .....................................+86-574-8614-8158 .......................marketdept@diemaker.com.cn ............................... www.diemaker.com.cn 21...............Oetiker India Pvt Ltd ..................................................................+91-2192-250107 ...........................akeswani@oetiker.com ........................................... www.oetiker.com 29 ..............Omron Automation Pvt. Ltd .......................................................+91-80-40726400..........................in_enquiry@ap.omron.com .................................... www.omron-ap.com 55...............Padmini VNA Mechatronics Pvt Ltd............................................+91-124-3207398 ...........................sales@padminiengg.com ........................................ www.padminivna.com 8 ................Patvin Engineering (P) Ltd ..........................................................+91-22-27780310...........................patvin@patvin.co.in ................................................ www.patvin.co.in 12...............Precision Components Corporation ...........................................+91-40-65229339 ..........................info@dynatherm.in ................................................. www.dynatherm.in 35...............Presto Stantest Pvt Ltd ...............................................................+91-129-4272727 ..........................presto@vsnl.com ..................................................... www.prestogroup.com 45...............Rohan Standox Autolack.............................................................+91-22-65803331 ..........................sales@spraytec.net ................................................. www.spraytec.net 7 ................Safexpress Private Limited .........................................................+1800-113-113 ...............................suyash.srivastava@safexpress.com ......................... www.safexpress.com 24...............Sreelakshmi Traders ...................................................................+91-44-24343343 ..........................sreelakshmitraders@gmail.com.............................. www.sreelakshmitraders.com 65...............Sumitron Exports Pvt Ltd ...........................................................+91-11-41410631 ...........................sumitron@vsnl.com ................................................ www.sumitron.com 44 ..............TAGMA ........................................................................................+91-22-28526876 ..........................mumbai@tagmaindia.org ....................................... www.tagmaindia.org 50 ..............Techno Spring Industries ............................................................+91-129-4024488 ..........................vikastantia@technospringindia.com....................... www.technospringindia.com 15...............The Indian Electric Co.................................................................+91-20-24475845 ..........................iecmktg@indianelectric.com .................................. www.indianelectric.com 39...............Titan Industries Limited .............................................................+91-4344-664846 .........................senthilm@titan.co.in ............................................... www.titanautomation.in 19...............Varroc Engineering Pvt Ltd .........................................................+91-240-2556227 ..........................varroc.info@varrocgroup.com ................................ www.varrocgroup.com 23 ..............Yamazaki Mazak India Pvt Ltd ...................................................+91-2137-668800 ..........................sudhir_patankar@mazakindia.com ........................ www.mazak.com Q Our consistent advertisers

16 - 31 December 2011

GLOBAL WATCH

Auto Monitor

61

Audi to pass Mercedes in premium car sweepstakes

A

udi is likely to surpass Mercedes-Benz brand in full-year global sales and finish 2011 as the world’s No 2 selling premium brand behind BM W, according to agency reports. With one month to go, Audi leads Mercedes by more than 56,500 total vehicle sales, despite the Daimler subsidiary outselling Audi last month and setting a record for vehicles sold in the January-November period.

T h roug h 11 mont hs, Mercedes brand’s sales are up seven percent to 1,136,525 units while Audi’s volume has grown 18 percent to 1,193,110 vehicles.

BMW topped its German rivals in November and should defend its title as top brand in global premium-car sales. Regardless of what position they achieve in the ranking, each automaker is on track to finish the year strong.

With more than 1.25 million sales after 11 months, BMW brand should easily break its record of 1,276,793 set in 2007.

BMW Group, which includes the BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce brands, has already sold more vehicles in the first 11 months of this year—1,510,862—than in all of 2010.

“This puts our record sales target for the full year of more

Volvo Buses bags major order in Colombia

V

olvo Bus Latin America has recently sold 688 bus chassis to the capital of Colombia, Bogota. The deal encompasses chassis for conventional buses as well as articulated and bi-articulated buses. The new vehicles were sold for the third phase expansion of Transmilenio in Bogota, the continent’s most efficient and advanced BRT-system. BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) is the acronym for high-capacity bus-based urban transportation systems—a cost efficient alternative to rail-bound transport systems.

“This deal reaffi rms Volvo’s position as the main supplier of BRT solutions in Latin America, in particular as a function of the high transportation capacity of our chassis and their low operating costs,” said President, Volvo Bus Latin America, Luis Pimenta. According to him, the option for vehicles of this size contributes decisively to improving the quality of life in Bogota, a metropolis that still coexists with highly congested traffic by the 16,000 passenger transportation vans.

“Gradually removing this huge small capacity vehicle fleet reduces the number of traffic accidents and contributes significantly towards improving the quality of the air,” said Urban Bus Manager, Volvo Bus Latin America, Euclides Castro. In total the deal encompasses 688 chassis including 48 articulated and 97 biarticulated vehicles that will operate the trunk lines of Transmilenio. The remaining over 500 chassis will be used for low entry buses, operating conventional lines and feeder lines. These are the fi rst low floor buses to be used in Bogotá enabling access by wheelchairs to public transportation.

Through 11 months, Mercedes’ sales are up seven percent, while Audi’s volume has grown 18 percent.

BMW topped its German rivals in November and should defend its title as top brand in global premium-car sales

Dieter Zetsche, CEO, Daimler

than 1.6 million vehicles well w it hin reach,” BM W Sa les

Chief, Ian Robertson said in a statement. Helped by its lead-

ing position among premium brands in China, Audi expects to finish the year with a record 1.3 million sales. Mercedes brand wants to end 2011 with

a volume of more than 1.25 million. That number rises to 1.35 million when sales of sister brand Smart and Maybach are included.

Despite the strong sales, Daimler CEO, Dieter Zetsche is not pleased with Mercedes’ third-place ranking. “Our goal is to be No 1 in profitability and sales in the premium segment,” Zetsche told Automotive News Europe earlier this year. He wants that to happen by 2020— at the latest, sources say. Audi wants to be the world’s No 1 premium brand by 2015.

BMW plans to keep its lead.

“We are clearly looking forward rather than over our shoulder,” Robertson told Automotive News Europe earlier this year.

“We have the clear objective to stay the most successful premium manufacturer.”

62

Auto Monitor

PRODUCT INDEX

16 - 31 December 2011

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

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

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

AC motors ...................................................................15

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

Plastic moulded components ....................................19

Acc paddle sensor assy ...............................................55

Ecu interface modules ...............................................33

Pouring automation ...................................................28

ADEA - Automotive Dealership Excellence Awards .....56

EGR valves ..................................................................55

Powder coating systems .............................................8

Advanced auto crimping ............................................16, 22

Electrical products cable ties .....................................65

Precision ....................................................................45

Air-conditioning equipment.......................................40

Electrical testing & measuring instruments ...............20

Process instrumentation ............................................20

Aluminium castings....................................................9, 28

Electronic control units ..............................................55

Proximity sensors .......................................................29

Aluminum ..................................................................10

Electronics products ..................................................65

Quality steels ..............................................................4

Auto coding machines ................................................33

Encoders.....................................................................29

Rack milling cutters ...................................................59

Auto Expo-2012 ..........................................................46

Environmental simulation .........................................20

Rapid prototyping tools .............................................33

Autoladles ..................................................................28

Epoxy & polyurethane systems ..................................27

Reamers .....................................................................BIC

Automatic painting systems .......................................8

Exhibitions .................................................................44, 58

Robotic assembly lines & robotic weld cells ..............39

Automotive component .............................................11

Expandable monoblock reamers ...............................47

Robotic pouring .........................................................28

Automotive electrical components ............................19

Extension springs .......................................................3, 50

Rotary assembly machines.........................................39

Automotive labeling machines ..................................32

Exterior trims .............................................................13

Rubber moulded products .........................................24

Autopour ....................................................................28

Flameproof motors ....................................................15

Rubber to metal bonded products ............................24

Autopouring ...............................................................28

Flange mounting motors ............................................15

Safety lig.....................................................................29

Bbl brake motors .......................................................15

Forged ........................................................................10

Salt spray chambers ...................................................35

Bearings for automotive ............................................42

Foundry automation ..................................................28

Sealer dispensing systems ..........................................8

Belts & rollers.............................................................16, 22

Gear shaper cutters ....................................................59

Seat assemblies ..........................................................19

Bicycle components & assemblies .............................10

Gear shaving cutters ...................................................59

Self adhesive tapes .....................................................24

Braking .......................................................................9

General engineering...................................................10

Silicon carbide-based particulate filters ....................53

Brass ...........................................................................10

Gravity casting............................................................28

Slipring crane -duty motors .......................................15

Cable glands ...............................................................65

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

Solderless terminals ...................................................65

Cam shaft holders ......................................................10

Hardware in-loop systems .........................................33

Solid carbide drills .....................................................34, 47

Car paints ...................................................................45

Heat shrink tubings ....................................................65

Solid carbide mills......................................................34

Car polishes ................................................................45

Hobs ...........................................................................59

Solid carbide reamers ................................................34

Casting........................................................................27

Hollow bars ................................................................25

Solid carbide special drills .........................................34

CED/KTL coatings........................................................FIC

Horizontal CNC machines...........................................43

Solid carbide special mills..........................................34

Check weighers ..........................................................18

Horizontal machining centres ....................................43

Solid carbide special reamers ....................................34

Clamps........................................................................21

Hoses for automotive industry...................................24

Solid carbide tools......................................................61

CNC HMCs ...................................................................43

Hot/cold & warm forged machined parts ..................19

Solid monoblock reamers ..........................................47

CNC lathes ..................................................................1

HVAC parts .................................................................10

Sound and vibration instruments ..............................20

CNC machines ............................................................43

IC engine valves..........................................................19

Special boring bars.....................................................47

CNC oval turning centres ............................................43

Imtex Forming-2012 exhibition ..................................58

Special fine boring tools.............................................47

CNC turn mill centres .................................................43

Induction heating equipment ....................................12

Special reaming machines .........................................47

CNC turning centres....................................................1, 43

Industrial control & sensing devices ..........................29

Spray guns ..................................................................8

CNC vertical machining centres..................................43

Industrial weighing systems .......................................18

Spray painting equipment .........................................45

CNC/VMC machines ....................................................23

Instrument panels ......................................................13

Standard fine boring tools .........................................47

CNCs ...........................................................................43

Interior .......................................................................13

Strip steels ..................................................................4

Coating .......................................................................27

Laboratory equipment division .................................18

Super finishing films...................................................10

Cockpit systems ..........................................................13

Lean assembly lines ...................................................39

Suspension .................................................................9

Coding and marking system .......................................18

Level controllers .........................................................29

Swaging cutters ..........................................................59

Colour.........................................................................18

Lifting equipment ......................................................40

Switching relays..........................................................29

Compact measurement modules ...............................33

Light & appearance measurement products .............18

Tagma exhibition .......................................................44

Compression springs ..................................................3, 50

Linear assembly lines .................................................39

Taps ............................................................................BIC

Coniflex cutters ..........................................................59

Logistics services ........................................................7

Temperature controllers ............................................29

Connecting rods .........................................................10

Machinery steel ..........................................................4

Temperature profiling systems...................................20

Connectors and switches............................................20

Marpreset ...................................................................30

Thermal imaging cameras .........................................57

Connectors .................................................................65

Marsurf lD 120 roughness ..........................................30

Threading tools ..........................................................47

Contour evaluation in single trace .............................30

Master gears ...............................................................59

Timers ........................................................................29

Coppers ......................................................................10

Material handling equipment ....................................20

Tool bits .....................................................................4

Counters & power supplies ........................................29

Measurement .............................................................30

Tool presetters ...........................................................30

Countersinks ..............................................................BIC

Measuring & monitoring relays ..................................29

Tool steels ..................................................................4

Cranes ........................................................................41

Metal cutting tools .....................................................34

Torsion springs ...........................................................3, 50

Customised rotary tools .............................................60

Metal detectors & X-ray machines .............................18

Total data management .............................................30

Cutting tools ...............................................................61

Micro ball noses .........................................................60

Transmission ..............................................................9

Diamond tools............................................................BIC

Micro drills .................................................................60

Trims & pillars ............................................................13

Die casting automation ..............................................28

Micro end mills...........................................................60

Tubeless tyres .............................................................31

Die-casting .................................................................45

Micro measurement modules ....................................33

Tungsten carbide metal cutting tools ........................6

Dies ............................................................................45

Milling cutters ............................................................BIC

Turning machine solutions.........................................36

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

Model based designs ..................................................33

Tyre care equipment ..................................................40

Modular tooling systems ............................................BIC

Ultra micro drills ........................................................60

Molten metal handling...............................................28

Vacuum pumps ..........................................................55

Motors ........................................................................15

Ventilators ..................................................................24

Oils .............................................................................51

Vertical line series ......................................................43

Paint circulation systems ...........................................8

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

Paint pumps ...............................................................8

Vision inspection systems ..........................................39

PBEGL geared motors .................................................15

Vision sensors.............................................................29

PCD &carbide reamers ...............................................47

VMC linear series ........................................................43

Photoelectric sensors .................................................29

Wire connectors .........................................................65

Pistons ........................................................................49

Wire forms ..................................................................3, 50

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.

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64

Auto Monitor

ANALYSIS

The passenger car segment fell by 5.05 percent during the April-October period this fiscal, while the utility vehicles grew by 8.35 percent and the multi-purpose vehicles grew by 13.21 percent in this fiscal.

Toyota led the passenger car segment with a growth of around 597.12 percent from 6,219 units to touch 43,354 units this fiscal, as compared to the previous period. BMW notched up highest percentage growth in UV segment to touch 1,009 units compared to 69 units in the same period in the previous year, marking a growth of 1,362.32 percent.

Passenger Cars 2010-11

2011-12

BMW

2,484

2,868

Fiat

13,933

9,314

Ford

55,110

50,502

GM

50,221

51,650

HM

4,866

1,772

HSCI

35,110

29,552

HMIL

206,832

213,427

4,948

10,525

MR

15.46%

533,653

432,070

Merc

2,731

3,098

Nissan

4,524

12,422

Renault

-

887

Skoda

10,065

14,923

Tata

151,167

123,810

TKM

6,219

43,354

Audi

1,205

2,319

VW

20,448

45,311

The overall commercial vehicles segment registered a growth of 17.95 percent in April-October, 2011 as compared to the same period last fiscal to touch 433,701 units. M&HCVs sales grew by 8.19 percent to touch 187,559 units compared to 173,357 units in the same period in the previous year. The LCV segment grew by 26.64 percent to touch 246,142 units in this fiscal, compared to 194,356 units in the same period last fiscal.

Three-wheeler sales fell to 298,007 units in April-October period compared to 299,136 units in same period last year.

Passenger carriers fell by 3.94 percent in April-October 2011 and goods carriers registered growth of 15.84 percent.

Ashok Leyland registered the highest growth in the LCV segment to touch 814 units. Mahindra Navistar notched up a growth of 214..81 percent to touch 1,382 units this fiscal as compared to 439 units in the same period last fiscal in M&HCV.

-33.15%

LCVs (PC+GC)

-8.36%

OEMs 2.85

ALL

-63.58%

Force

-15.83%

HM 3.19% 112.71% -19.04%

MSIL

Two-Wheelers

Commercial Vehicles

Passenger Vehicles

OEMs

16 - 31 December 2011

13.44% 174.58%

404

814

12,089

13,836 127

M&M

56,063

69,550

MNAL

6,304

5,980

Piaggio

5,571

7,122

Swaraj

2,270

2,620

107,215

140,358

4,194

5,735

194,356

246,142

VECV - Eicher Total

-18.10%

2011-12

246

Tata

48.27%

2010-11

101.49% 14.45% -48.37% 24.06% -5.14% 27.84%

Scooter/Scooterettees

15.42%

OEMs

30.91% 36.74%

26.64%

597.12%

Total 1,103,516

Domestic two-wheelers sales witnessed a growth of 14.84 percent in this fiscal registering 7,738,755 units against 6,738,488 units during the same period in the previous fiscal.

Mopeds, motorcycles and scooters grew by 9.9 percent, 13.81 percent and 21.23 percent respectively.

The motorcycle sales grew to 5,904,464 units in April-October period as compared to 5,188,052 units in corresponding period in the previous fiscal.

In the Motorcycles segment, Royal Enfield sales were up by 55.58 percent in April-October period this fiscal while Bajaj Auto’s sales grew by around 7.9 percent to touch 1,552,349 units in April-October compared to 1,438,707 units in same period last fiscal.

In the scooters segment, the sales of Hero MotoCorp grew by 28.86 percent while TVS Motor sales grew by 24.82 percent.

Honda Motorcycles reported its best sales for October at 171,814 units, registering a jump of 22.67 percent over the same month last year. Bajaj Auto witnessed 1.9 percent growth in its October sales at 244,503 units against the same month in the previous fiscal.

TVS Motor Company reported total domestic two-wheeler sales of 159,887 units in October, 2011 registering a decline of 7.99 percent. Suzuki Motorcycles India registered a decline of 55.75 percent in domestic two-wheelers sales for October this year to touch 11256 units.

92.45%

2010-11

2011-12

BAL

27

-

HML

176,950

228,020

HMSI

520,466

627,025

M&M 2W

89,142

92,168

SMIL

121,493

144,996

TVS

242,092

302,173

Total

1,150,170

1,394,382

28.86% 20.47% 3.39% 19.35%

M&HCVs (PC+GC) 121.59%

1,047,804 -5.05%

OEMs

2010-11

2011-12

ALL

45,923

42,004

AMW

3,419

6,016

JCBL

-

1

-8.53%

24.82% 21.23%

75.96%

UV OEMs

2010-11

2011-12

BMW

190

2,137

Force

1,874

2,316

Ford

1,818

1,664

GM

11,589

13,414

1024.74% 23.59% -8.47% 15.75% -18.23%

HM

1,618

1,323

HSCI

336

165

HMIL ICML

69 445

-35.73%

96,375

108,868

MSIL

4,229

4,116

Merc

197

403

Nissan

281

148

Renault

-

150

-

102

906

-

Tata

22,577

22,864

TKM

38,046

Audi

687

1,062

VW

3

4

180,436

195,506

Total

34,671

1362.32%

-

M&M

Skoda

12.96% -2.67%

2010-11

0

MNAL

439

1,382

Swaraj

4,022

4,258

102,539

113,058

VECV - Eicher

16,113

20,069

VECV - Volvo

514

319

- 0.00%

BAL

285

367

Total

173,357

187,559

1,438,707

1,552,349

0

279

HML

2,769,469

3,264,717

HMSI

393,127

411,992

IYM

157,127

210,860

214.81% HDMC 5.87% 10.26% 24.55% -37.94%

Volvo Buses

2011-12

-

M&M 2W 28.77% 8.19%

7.90%

17.88% 4.80% 34.20% -_ 55.58%

RE

28,235

43,929

SMIL

24,159

30,709

TVS

377,228

389,629

27.11% 3.29% 13.81%

3-Wheelers (PC+GC) 788.24%

-8.87% 54.59%

OEMs

2010-11

2011-12

Atul

10,338

14,739

Bajaj

119,370

116,431

Force

137

8

M&M

34,075

39,481

Piaggio

113,531

110,089

Scooters

7,351

9,343

42.57%

Mopeds/Electric OEMs

2010-11

2011-12 9.90%

-2.46

TVS

-94.16%

33.33%

15.87%

400,266

Electrotherm*

439,909 NA

- 0.00%

8.35%

9.90%

2011-12 132

-

M&M

49

14061

-

Total

0

2010-11

Total 5,188,052 5,904,464

1.27%

68

Tata

M&M

OEMs

-47.33%

Force

Maruti

85

Motorcycles/StepThroughs

104.57%

MPV OEMs

103

Tata -50.89%

1,009 286

Daimler*

-17.48%

TVS

14,334

Total

299,136

7,916

-3.03%

-2.36%

90,496

88,361

28,813

32,649

13.31%

119,426

135,203

13.21%

400,266

439,909

27.10% -44.77%

94.12% 298,007

Total

-0.38%

* Data not available since August 2008 onwards

16 - 31 December 2011

GLOBAL WATCH

Auto Monitor

65

Bosch to build plant in Serbia Showcases new technologies at Tokyo Motor Show

T

he Bosch Group is planning to set up a manufacturing site for automotive windshield-wiper systems near Belgrade, Serbia. By 2019 around Euro 70 million will be invested.

Construction work is set to begin in early 2012, with production due to commence at the start of 2013. Initially, some 60 associates will work in manufacturing operations with a floor area of around 22,000 sq mt. By 2019 the number of associates is set to rise to some 620.

The new site will be located in the municipality of Pecinci, some 25 km from Belgrade. It will be part of the Bosch Electrical Drives division, which manufactures electrical drives for use in vehicles, for instance in power seats, sliding roof panels, power windows, and wiper components.

The division has 12 manufacturing sites around the world and employs some 12,000 associates.

Bosch considers Serbia to be a good location from which to supply the central European market.

Addressing Issues According to a company statement during the recent Tokyo Motor Show, the global automotive industry will have to make some critical decisions on several major issues: the tightening of fuel economy and emissions standards, the transition to electromobility, the vision of accident-free driving and the need to keep the car attractive for the internet generation.

Global automotive production has grown some four percent in 2011, and we expect three to five percent growth in 2012. Against this backdrop, Bosch Group sales will touch around Euro 50 billion for the fi rst time in 2011, up from Euro 47.3 billion in 2010. In automotive technology, the company expects a business volume of over Euro 30 billion, compared with Euro 28.1 billion in 2010. In automotive technology, the company is investing around Euro 3.3 billion in Research & Development this year. The headcount is expected to grow by 15,000, bringing associate numbers to about 300,000. In the Automotive Group, headcount will grow by some 10,000, to around 177,000.

In Japan, the group sales levels are comparable to 2010 despite last spring’s disasters, and are expected to reach some 330 billion yen in 2011. The number of associates working for Bosch in Japan has also remained stable at around 8,000.

Following the earthquake and tsunami, Bosch Japan decided to reroute the funds originally intended for the anniversary to support relief efforts. From June to November, teams of Bosch associates volunteered on cleanup and rebuilding projects. In addition to this, Bosch donated funds, container buildings and power tools.

Preparations The company’s activities in Japan will continue to play an important role in the Bosch Group’s global development and production network. By the end of 2011, 1,200 Bosch engineers will be located in Japan and Yokohama site is largest R&D centre for active safety systems outside Germany. It is also the

Bosch global competence centre for motorcycle safety. Our engineers here recently developed the world’s smallest and lightest motorcycle ABS. This setup has put Bosch in a position to support Japanese OEMs in all of their endeavours, both in Japan and in global markets. Bosch Automotive Technology continues to strengthen its presence particularly in the Asian growth regions, where Japanese carmakers are increasingly expanding their automotive production. By the end of this year, Asia will be home to 10,000 of our global total of 29,000 engineers. And we plan to invest more than Euro 1.8 billion in the region between 2011 and 2013.

The new site will be located in the municipality of Pecinci, some 25 km from Belgrade. It will be part of the Bosch Electrical Drives division, which manufactures electrical drives for use in vehicles, for instance in power seats, sliding roof panels, power windows, and wiper components

The company has cut the cost of radar sensors for driver assistance systems by half within three years. The company is also focussing on reducing the cost of diesel systems. Over the next five years, it will increase the share of injection systems fitted with cost-effective solenoid-valve injectors from just under 60 percent to almost 80 percent. After all, we sell one in three of our diesel systems in Asia.

Plans In The Pipeline The company is planning to sell seven million gasoline-direct injection systems in 2013— three times as many as in 2010. Over the same period, common-rail diesel-injection systems sales are set to rise from nine million

units per year to over twelve million units.

E-Mobility Bosch invests Euro 400 million annually in e-mobility. It offers a full portfolio of products, from motors and power electronics to auxiliary systems.

It has successfully entered the market for eBike drives, with 70,000 units delivered this year.

And with SB LiMotive, joint venture for lithium-ion batteries, the company is working to increase the range and reduce the cost of this key component.

Bosch has already achieved a number of goals on the way to powertrain electrification. By 2013, it will be delivering to 21 projects for 13 automakers.

66

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 December 2011

EUROPEAN SALES

New Vehicle Registration in Europe -by Manufacturer GROUP

BRAND

MV-Motor Vehicles (LV+CV) Aston Martin Aston Martin BMW BMW Mini Other Total China Brilliance Changan Great Wall Landwind Lifan Other Total Chrysler Chrysler Dodge Jeep Total DAF DAF Daimler Mercedes Smart Other Total Fiat Alfa Romeo Fiat Iveco Lancia Other Total Ford Ford Mercury Other Total GM Chevrolet Opel Other Total Jaguar Land Rover Jaguar Land Rover Total Japan Daihatsu Honda Mazda Mitsubishi Nissan Subaru Suzuki Other Total Korea Daewoo Hyundai KIA Other Total MAN MAN Other Total MG Rover Rover Porsche Porsche PSA Citroen Peugeot Total Renault Dacia Renault Other Total Scania Scania Toyota Toyota Lexus Total Volkswagen AG Audi Seat Skoda Volkswagen Other Total Volvo Trucks Volvo Other SAAB Volvo Other Total Total PC- Passenger Cars Aston Martin Aston Martin BMW BMW Mini Other Total China Brilliance Changan Great Wall Landwind Lifan Other Total Chrysler Chrysler Dodge Jeep Total DAF DAF Daimler Mercedes Smart Other Total Fiat Alfa Romeo Fiat Iveco Lancia Other Total Ford Ford Mercury Other Total GM Chevrolet

2011 SEPT 250 59434 20420 42 79896

2010 SEPT

Source: Association Auxiliaire de l’Automobile

% CHANGE

YEAR TILL DATE 2011

1.21 1.16 24.20 -12.50 6.19

1915 486469 126435 394 613298

78902 6305 161 85368 10821 73543 8092 8792 270 101518 129780 0 0 129780 14959 108070 84 123113 4234 10863 15099 685 18318 16563 12137 56743 3229 17984 1360 127019

247 58753 16441 48 75242 0 0 124 0 0 0 124 814 1062 1264 3140 3467 80477 8212 146 88835 11115 81481 7523 6944 320 107383 128450

21.77 -58.97 -85.03 117.33 3.18 -100.00 -1.96 -23.22 10.27 -3.90 -2.65 -9.74 7.56 26.61 -15.63 -5.46 1.04

2 128452 16668 114113 125 130906 3618 9297 12915 1582 21382 20997 15451 42931 4354 19631 1761 128089

-100.00 1.03 -10.25 -5.30 -32.80 -5.95 17.03 16.84 16.91 -56.70 -14.33 -21.12 -21.45 32.17 -25.84 -8.39 -22.77 -0.84

604340 60951 1432 666723 105526 690389 68702 74932 3613 943162 995658 2 8 995668 133276 844730 849 978855 18130 62806 80940 9399 115974 114251 110171 399437 29387 138530 12832 929981

39595 30458 713 70766 5074 4 5078

33527 24916 398 58841 4824 30 4854

18.10 22.24 79.15 20.27 5.18 -86.67 4.61

305703 213449 5684 524836 39613 188 39801

4474 74965 87411 162376 19538 117492 8 137038 2435 53061 3268 56329 64378 26524 47093 176536 230 314761 3180 545 24601 8249 33395 1455265

2931 83670 100557 184227 16660 117727 33 134420 2472 60488 1991 62479 54447 23524 45432 156200 243 279846 2961 2775 20138 4312 27225 1439056

52.64 -10.40 -13.07 -11.86 17.27 -0.20 -75.76 1.95 -1.50 -12.28 64.14 -9.84 18.24 12.75 3.66 13.02 -5.35 12.48 7.40 -80.36 22.16 91.30 22.66 1.13

31765 730918 848012 1578930 195036 1003090 50 1198176 23919 433797 20327 454124 522277 239312 380390 1439183 1696 2582858 29422 12796 194928 65256 272980 11974256

0 142 5 0 4 151 334 159 2747 3240

GROUP

Jaguar Land Rover

Japan 14.52

2 1701 5 8 22 1738 4518 2630 18019 25167

Korea

MAN MG Rover Porsche PSA

Renault

Scania Toyota

Volkswagen AG

Other

BRAND Opel Other Total Jaguar Land Rover Total Daihatsu Honda Mazda Mitsubishi Nissan Subaru Suzuki Other Total Daewoo Hyundai KIA Other Total MAN Rover Porsche Citroen Peugeot Total Dacia Renault Total Scania Toyota Lexus Total Audi Seat Skoda Volkswagen Other Total SAAB Volvo Other Total

Total

2011 SEPT 98829 74 113828 4230 9345 13577 684 18309 16369 9402 51527 3221 17916 239 117667

18.24 22.42 84.85 20.43

302559 212692 5349 520600

4471 60490 72922 133412 18332 91810 110142

2858 68396 85535 153931 15723 92589 108312

56.44 -11.56 -14.75 -13.33 16.59 -0.84 1.69

31596 599428 717670 1317098 184078 794960 979038

48870 3267 52137 64306 26393 46738 157006 230 294673 545 24542 1611 26698 1274785

56221 1991 58212 53925 23421 44895 139180 243 261664 2775 20111 1833 24719 1264655

-13.08 64.09 -10.44 19.25 12.69 4.11 12.81 -5.35 12.62 -80.36 22.03 -12.11 8.01 0.80

404208 20322 424530 521304 237980 377528 1289135 1696 2427643 12796 194460 15001 222257 10487685

304

-90.46

304

88 58 69 86 213

-5.68 22.41 5.80 -25.58 -2.35

866 788 737 682 2207

11615 12 12962 3839 1 16814 18258

-3.15 33.33 8.52 13.26 0.00 9.62 10.90

97202 178 144099 38112 16 182405 142730

39 9040

-20.51 1.43

324 68606

24 9103 1369

-66.67 1.15 10.88

73 69003 10029

0 5 280 2536 4027 3 77 1281 8209

80.00 -30.71 -0.87 28.26 166.67 -11.69 -25.84 8.53

24 47 1702 17951 40770 86 651 8654 69885

443 105 35 583 73 15260 14979 30239 937 22874 23811 4248 522 103 523 16614 17762 27 822 849 143550

8.35 -19.05 20.00 4.12 -95.89 -5.20 -3.83 -4.52 28.71 1.79 2.85 -1.72 -86.21 26.21 -32.31 16.29 11.91 118.52 11.31 14.72 3.72

3137 757 335 4229 169 131390 129843 261233 10958 186621 197579 29424 973 1330 2853 147939 153095 468 9195 9663 1230023

183 26 4 30 44 42

-26.78 -69.23 175.00 -36.67 -31.82 9.52

750 218 132 350 550 304

1

-100.00

1.21 1.64 24.18 -12.50 6.57

0 59 5 0 4 68 263 85 2683 3031

88.89 -65.17 -91.44 127.76 3.59

2 835 5 8 22 872 3729 1883 17337 22949

59939 6305

61428 8212

-2.42 -23.22

450623 60950

66244 10805 59249 49 8791 270 79164 109402 0 0 109402 14925

69640 11103 68213 109 6943 320 86688 109671

-4.88 -2.68 -13.14 -55.05 26.62 -15.63 -8.68 -0.25

2 109673 16625

-100.00 -0.25 -10.23

511573 105348 542827 569 74916 3613 727273 851045 2 8 851055 132938

LBC- Light Buses & Coaches upto 3.5 tn Daimler Mercedes Fiat Fiat Iveco Total Ford Ford GM Opel Chevrolet Total Japan Nissan Toyota Total

63.89

YEAR TILL DATE 2011 775689 767 909394 18122 52777 70901 9375 115927 112549 90204 358071 29301 137878 2718 856023

33082 24811 363 58256

247 58449 16441 48 74938 0 0 36 0 0 0 36 755 993 1178 2926

1915 486165 126410 394 612969

% CHANGE -5.91 -26.00 -6.51 16.92 17.87 17.59 -56.76 -14.35 -20.98 -25.20 32.64 -25.97 -8.38 -6.27 -1.33

39115 30373 671 70159

LCV-Light Commercial Vehicles up to 3.5t ** BMW BMW 29 Mini Total China Great Wall 83 Chrysler Chrysler 71 Dodge 73 JEEP 64 Total 208 DAF DAF Daimler Mercedes 11249 Fiat Alfa Romeo 16 Fiat 14067 Iveco 4348 Lancia 1 Total 18432 Ford Ford 20249 Other Total GM Chevrolet 31 Opel 9169 SAAB Other 8 Total 9208 Jaguar Land Rover Jaguar 1518 Land Rover Japan Daihatsu 1 Honda 9 Mazda 194 Mitsubishi 2514 Nissan 5165 Subaru 8 Suzuki 68 Other 950 Total 8909 Korea Daewoo Hyundai 480 KIA 85 Other 42 Total 607 Porsche Porsche 3 PSA Citroen 14466 Peugeot 14406 Total 28872 Renault Dacia 1206 Renault 23284 Total 24490 Toyota Toyota 4175 Volkswagen AG Audi 72 Seat 130 Skoda 354 Volkswagen 19321 Total 19877 Other Volvo 59 Other 915 Total 974 Total 148883

250 59405 20416 42 79863

2010 SEPT 105033 100 121758 3618 7928 11546 1582 21377 20716 12569 38847 4351 19554 255 119251

134 8 11 19 30 46

16 - 31 December 2011

GROUP Korea

PSA

Renault Volkswagen AG

Other

BRAND Hyundai Kia Other Total Citroen Peugeot Total Renault Audi Seat Skoda Volkswagen Total Dodge Other

Total

EUROPEAN SALES 2011 SEPT

2010 SEPT

% CHANGE

YEAR TILL DATE 2011

GROUP GM Japan

2 4 6 41

2 3 5 29

0.00 33.33 20.00 41.38

18 15 33 280

73

161

-54.66

808

283 632

290 788

-2.41 -19.80

1293 4368

304

-90.46

304

88 58 69 86 213

-5.68 22.41 5.80 -25.58 -2.35

866 788 737 682 2207

11798 12 12988 3843 1 16844 18302

-3.52 33.33 8.37 13.43 0.00 9.54 10.80

97952 178 144317 38244 16 182755 143280

42 9079

-26.19 1.50

324 68910

24 9145 1369

-66.67 1.19 10.88

73 69307 10029

0 5 280 2536 4028 3 77 1281 8210

80.00 -30.71 -0.87 28.33 166.67 -11.69 -25.84 8.56

24 47 1702 17951 40779 86 652 8654 69895

445 105 35 585 73 15262 14982 30244 937 22903 23840 4249 522 103 537 16761 17923 27 1112 1139 144338

7.87 -19.05 20.00 3.76 -95.89 -5.20 -3.82 -4.52 28.71 1.84 2.90 -1.72 -86.21 27.18 -33.89 15.71 11.32 118.52 7.10 9.75 3.59

3143 757 335 4235 169 131408 129858 261266 10958 186901 197859 29431 973 1332 2862 148747 153914 468 10454 10922 1234391

1 3407 6417 242 2951 3193 56 1 0 1 2 346 55 210 612

0.00 -100.00 6.16 -27.27 1.90 -0.31 42.86 200.00

10

100.00 1450.00 -36.13 -14.55 -19.05 -28.43

50262 2873 24569 27442 453 13 130 9 152 2016 587 1439 4042

4508 9 24 33 2208 33 2241 2349 18 221 2776 799 26633

6.63 -44.44 166.67 109.09 3.85 -75.76 2.68 -0.26 -16.67 -47.96 7.67 492.37 4.82

37415 62 350 412 20924 50 20974 22747 158 1082 27532 34676 227357

60 834 146 980 38 620 658 421

-7.91 10.27 -5.20 13.16 9.19 9.42 -95.49

5503 1431 6934 372 5320 5692 880

MAN

PSA

Total Light Commercial Vehicles up to 3.5t (LCV+LBC) BMW BMW 29 Mini Total China Great Wall 83 Chrysler Chrysler 71 Dodge 73 JEEP 64 Total 208 DAF DAF Daimler Mercedes 11383 Fiat Alfa Romeo 16 Fiat 14075 Iveco 4359 Lancia 1 Total 18451 Ford Ford 20279 Other Total GM Chevrolet 31 Opel 9215 SAAB Other 8 Total 9254 Jaguar Land Rover Jaguar 1518 Land Rover Japan Daihatsu 1 Honda 9 Mazda 194 Mitsubishi 2514 Nissan 5169 Subaru 8 Suzuki 68 Other 950 Total 8913 Korea Daewoo Hyundai 480 KIA 85 Other 42 Total 607 Porsche Porsche 3 PSA Citroen 14468 Peugeot 14410 Total 28878 Renault Dacia 1206 Renault 23325 Total 24531 Toyota Toyota 4176 Volkswagen AG Audi 72 Seat 131 Skoda 355 Volkswagen 19394 Total 19952 Other Volvo 59 Other 1191 Total 1250 Total 149515 CV-Commercial Vehicles (trucks) over 3.5t ** China Other Chrysler Dodge 1 DAF DAF Daimler Mercedes 6812 Fiat Fiat 176 Iveco 3007 Total 3183 Ford Ford 80 GM Chevrolet 3 Opel 26 Other 2 Total 31 Japan Mitsubishi 221 Nissan 47 Other 170 Total 438 Korea Daewoo MAN MAN 4807 PSA Citroen 5 Peugeot 64 Total 69 Renault Renault 2293 Other 8 Total 2301 Scania Scania 2343 Toyota Toyota 15 Volkswagen AG Volkswagen 115 Volvo Trucks Volvo 2989 Other 4733 Total 27917 BC-Buses & Coaches over 3.5t DAF DAF Daimler Mercedes Others Total Fiat Fiat Iveco Total Ford Ford

Auto Monitor

768 161 929 43 677 720 19

Renault Scania Volkswagen Volvo Trucks Others Total

BRAND Chevrolet Opel Nissan Mitsubishi Toyota Others Total MAN Others Total Citroen Peugeot Total Renault Scania Volkswagen Volvo

2011 SEPT

% CHANGE

YEAR TILL DATE 2011

1

-100.00

1

16

-93.75

21

267 4 271 2 15 17 64 92 21 191 723 3048

304 30 334 3 16 19 27 123 38 185 568 3430

-12.17 -86.67 -18.86 -33.33 -6.25 -10.53 137.04 -25.20 -44.74 3.24 27.29 -11.14

2198 188 2386 20 134 154 305 1172 219 1890 5170 24823

1 3467 7251 146 7397 280 3571 3851 477 1 1 1 3 346 56 225 628

0.00 -100.00 4.54 10.27 4.65 -21.79 3.16 1.35 -79.25 200.00 2500.00 100.00 933.33 -36.13 -16.07 -24.00 -30.10

10 55765 1432 57197 3245 29889 33134 1333 14 131 9 154 2016 587 1460 4063

4812 30 4842 12 40 52 2235 33 2268 2472 18 259 2961 1367 30063

5.44 -86.67 4.87 -41.67 97.50 65.38 5.46 -75.76 4.28 -1.50 -16.67 -47.49 7.40 299.12 3.00

39613 188 39801 82 484 566 21229 50 21279 23919 158 1301 29422 39843 252180

2998 3895 1272

15.07 3.93

32391 11269

14 3546 1809 3 1812 2321

28.57 7.98 4.48 133.33 4.69 0.95

2641 393 18892

7.00 868.45 8.64

126 28149 16737 45 16782 22738 46 26196 27261 164958

13 441 145 586 316 247 30 277

0.45 11.03 3.07 64.87 1.62 -86.67 -7.94

123 185 259 1759

-25.20 3.24 81.47 21.32

3053 1431 4484 4053 2060 188 2248 66 1172 1889 3406 17318

13.58 11.03 13.50 16.06

35444 1432 36876 15322

28.57

126

7.57 -86.67 6.83 4.53 133.33 4.75 -0.37

30209 188 30397 16803 45 16848 23910 46 28085 30666 182276

Total Commercial Vehicles (Trucks) & (Buses) over 3.5t China Other Chrysler Other 1 DAF DAF Daimler Mercedes 7580 Others 161 Total 7741 Fiat Fiat 219 Iveco 3684 Total 3903 Ford Ford 99 GM Chevrolet 3 Opel 26 Others 2 Total 31 Japan Mitsubishi 221 Nissan 47 Others 171 Total 439 Korea Daewoo Hyundai Total MAN MAN 5074 Others 4 Total 5078 PSA Citroen 7 Peugeot 79 Total 86 Renault Renault 2357 Others 8 Total 2365 Scania Scania 2435 Toyota Toyota 15 Volkswagen AG Volkswagen 136 Volvo Trucks Volvo 3180 Others 5456 Total 30965 HCV-Heavy Commercial Vehicles (trucks) over 16t ** China Other DAF DAF Daimler Mercedes 4482 Fiat Iveco 1322 Ford Ford GM Chevrolet Japan Other 18 MAN MAN 3829 Renault Renault 1890 Other 7 Total 1897 Scania Scania 2343 Volkswagen Volkswagen 1 Volvo Trucks Volvo 2826 Others 3806 Total 20524 HBC-Heavy Buses & Coaches over 16t DAF DAF Daimler Mercedes Other Total Fiat Iveco MAN MAN Others Total Renault Renault Scania Scania Volvo Trucks Volvo Others Total

2010 SEPT

67

443 161 604 521 251 4 255 1 92 191 470 2134

Total Heavy Commercial Vehicles (Trucks & Buses) over 16t China Other DAF DAF 3011 Daimler Mercedes 4925 4336 Other 161 145 Total 5086 4481 Fiat Iveco 1843 1588 GM Chevrolet Japan Others 18 14 Total MAN MAN 4080 3793 Others 4 30 Total 4084 3823 Renault Renault 1891 1809 Other 7 3 Total 1898 1812 Scania Scania 2435 2444 Volkswagen Volkswagen 1 Volvo Trucks Volvo 3017 2826 Others 4276 652 Total 22658 20651

6.76 555.83 9.72

*EU 15 + EEFTA (Iceland, Norway & Switzerland) + Western Europe (10 new members) ‘(*) EU27 including Bulgaria and Romania; data for Malta and Cyprus not available

68

Auto Monitor

16 - 31 December 2011

N AMERICAN ASSEMBLY

AUTOFACTS Global Automotive Outlook PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

North America Assby Tracking 10-2011 (Tracking by Brand & Nameplate) October 2011

Last 3 Months

Ownership Org/ Brand & Nameplate

Volume

YOY % Chg

AutoAlliance International (USA) Ford Mustang Mazda Mazda6 BMW (Germany) BMW X3 BMW X5 BMW X6 Chrysler Group LLC (USA) Chrysler 200 Chrysler 300 Chrysler PT Cruiser Chrysler Sebring Chrysler Town & Country Dodge Avenger Dodge Caliber Dodge Caravan Dodge Challenger Dodge Charger Dodge Dakota Dodge Durango Dodge Journey Dodge Nitro Dodge Ram Pickup Dodge Viper Fiat 500 Fiat Freemont Jeep Commander Jeep Compass Jeep Grand Cherokee Jeep Liberty Jeep Patriot Jeep Wrangler Jeep Wrangler Unlimited Lancia Flavia Lancia Grand Voyager Lancia Thema Ram Pickup Volkswagen Routan Daimler AG (Germany) Freightliner Sprinter Mercedes-Benz GL-Class Mercedes-Benz M-Class Mercedes-Benz R-Class Ford Motor Company (USA) Ford Crown Victoria Ford Econoline Ford Edge Ford Escape Ford Expedition Ford Explorer Ford Explorer Sport Trac Ford Fiesta Ford Flex Ford Focus Ford F-Series Ford Fusion Ford Ranger Ford Taurus Lincoln Mark LT Lincoln MKS Lincoln MKT Lincoln MKX Lincoln MKZ Lincoln Navigator Lincoln Town Car Mazda B-Series Mazda Tribute Mercury Grand Marquis Mercury Mariner Mercury Milan Mercury Mountaineer Fuji Heavy Industries (Japan) Subaru Legacy Subaru Tribeca Toyota Camry General Motors Company (USA) Buick Enclave Buick LaCrosse Buick Lucerne Buick Regal Buick Verano Cadillac CTS Cadillac DTS Cadillac Escalade Cadillac Escalade ESV Cadillac Escalade EXT Cadillac SRX Cadillac STS Chevrolet Avalanche Chevrolet Aveo Chevrolet C2 Chevrolet Camaro Chevrolet Captiva

10,118 6,633 3,485 26,296 12,330 10,506 3,460 181,899 12,341 5,385 7,964 9,702 4,360 11,252 3,386 7,138 3,459 10,709 2,161 5,598 4,384 10,611 19,254 8,257 6,917 5,810 9,929 671 1,241 30,870 500 17,533 733 3,360 11,760 1,680 234,341 6,110 15,866 29,658 5,817 17,257 12,373 2,987 23,358 67,451 27,282 8,901 7,723 1,165 657 2,937 4,095 704 26,184 17,041 717 8,426 272,672 4,427 7,220 2,504 7,088 1,399 559 220 7,644 1,617 6,830 4,107 6,177 6,506

-6.0% 23.9% -35.6% 43.1% 111.8% 20.7% -10.0% 22.5% -36.9% -100.0% -27.8% 187.3% 30.6% -37.1% -29.6% 163.2% -100.0% -23.3% -13.3% 27823.7% -8.3% 43.4% 17.2% 0.1% 20.3% 2.0% 49900.0% 51.6% 31.1% 20.5% 74.4% 13.8% 1.4% -100.0% -43.1% 6.6% 8.2% 12.9% 95.9% -100.0% 0.1% 5.1% 3.2% 4.4% 5.4% 56.5% 9.9% -100.0% -41.4% 39.2% -8.3% 17.3% -33.9% -100.0% -100.0% -100.0% -100.0% -100.0% 11.7% 14.5% 24.3% 5.6% 7.1% -25.2% 27.6% -100.0% 33.2% -100.0% 0.8% -53.6% -8.7% 1.3% -100.0% -29.0% 47.3% 27.0% -0.5% 86.5%

Assembly Share % 0.8% 0.5% 0.3% 2.1% 1.0% 0.8% 0.3% 14.7% 1.0% 0.4% 0.6% 0.8% 0.4% 0.9% 0.3% 0.6% 0.3% 0.9% 0.2% 0.5% 0.4% 0.9% 1.6% 0.7% 0.6% 0.5% 0.8% 0.1% 0.1% 2.5% 0.0% 1.4% 0.1% 0.3% 0.9% 0.1% 18.9% 0.5% 1.3% 2.4% 0.5% 1.4% 1.0% 0.2% 1.9% 5.4% 2.2% 0.7% 0.6% 0.1% 0.1% 0.2% 0.3% 0.1% 2.1% 1.4% 0.1% 0.7% 22.0% 0.4% 0.6% 0.2% 0.6% 0.1% 0.0% 0.0% 0.6% 0.1% 0.6% 0.3% 0.5% 0.5%

YOY Share Chg (-0.2) 0.1 (-0.2) 0.5 0.5 0.1 (-0.1) 1.3 1.0 (-0.3) (-0.2) (-0.4) 0.5 0.1 (-0.7) (-0.2) 0.3 (-0.1) 0.3 (-0.4) (-0.1) 0.5 0.4 0.9 (-0.3) 0.1 0.0 (-0.1) 0.1 0.1 0.1 (-0.2) 0.0 0.4 0.0 0.0 0.3 0.0 (-1.9) (-0.6) (-0.5) (-0.1) (-0.1) 0.0 0.6 (-0.1) (-0.1) (-0.0) (-0.2) (-0.4) (-0.1) 0.2 (-0.0) (-0.0) (-0.1) 0.0 (-0.1) 0.0 (-0.0) (-0.1) (-0.0) (-0.1) (-0.1) (-0.1) 0.0 0.0 0.0 (-0.0) (-0.9) (-0.2) 0.1 (-0.3) 0.2 0.1 (-0.2) (-0.0) (-0.1) (-0.0) (-0.1) (-0.0) (-0.1) 0.1 0.0 (-0.1) 0.2

Volume 33,449 22,543 10,906 77,346 34,726 31,819 10,801 502,312 33,841 12,047 29,526 20,677 5,423 45,033 11,102 18,153 2,417 13,426 30,776 7,503 16,656 10,591 17,375 53,467 21,118 11,175 16,608 27,731 3,168 2,483 90,546 1,470 48,941 2,263 10,697 31,117 4,864 707,913 12,562 29,930 45,554 82,769 17,397 51,790 34,191 8,456 76,766 204,013 68,887 26,530 22,087 76 3,211 1,626 8,966 9,391 2,593 1,118 67,236 45,065 1,677 20,494 834,662 17,361 17,983 7,897 19,586 5,041 2,339 578 23,443 6,260 20,311 10,904 27,003 12,250

YOY % Chg 8.9% 29.0% -17.6% 75.5% 496.6% 19.9% -7.8% 8.1% -15.1% -100.0% -20.5% 35.1% -61.6% -13.6% -23.1% -24.6% -51.5% -26.9% -16.6% 96.3% -6.5% 21.9% -42.8% 15.8% 40.4% 6.3% -35.8% 38.7% 30.8% 25.9% 51.4% 8.1% 7.1% -15.1% -5.7% 15.5% 6.0% 8.3% 147.6% -100.0% 3.7% -9.1% 22.4% 9.0% -8.5% 80.7% -11.6% -71.1% -33.7% 62.6% 28.1% 12.8% -22.8% -67.4% -100.0% -100.0% -100.0% -100.0% -100.0% -3.9% 1.7% 26.1% -15.6% 9.8% -7.4% 0.4% -100.0% 16.5% -100.0% -19.2% -50.4% -24.4% 5.9% -100.0% -27.4% 42.0% 5.6% 34.5% 44.2%

Year to Date Assembly Share % 0.9% 0.6% 0.3% 2.1% 1.0% 0.9% 0.3% 13.9% 0.9% 0.3% 0.8% 0.6% 0.1% 1.2% 0.3% 0.5% 0.1% 0.4% 0.8% 0.2% 0.5% 0.3% 0.5% 1.5% 0.6% 0.3% 0.5% 0.8% 0.1% 0.1% 2.5% 0.0% 1.4% 0.1% 0.3% 0.9% 0.1% 19.6% 0.3% 0.8% 1.3% 2.3% 0.5% 1.4% 0.9% 0.2% 2.1% 5.6% 1.9% 0.7% 0.6% 0.0% 0.1% 0.0% 0.2% 0.3% 0.1% 0.0% 1.9% 1.2% 0.0% 0.6% 23.1% 0.5% 0.5% 0.2% 0.5% 0.1% 0.1% 0.0% 0.6% 0.2% 0.6% 0.3% 0.7% 0.3%

YOY Share Chg (-0.0) 0.1 (-0.1) 0.8 0.8 0.1 (-0.1) (-0.3) 0.9 (-0.1) (-0.4) (-0.3) 0.1 (-0.3) (-0.3) (-0.1) (-0.2) (-0.1) 0.4 (-0.4) (-0.1) 0.5 0.3 0.2 (-0.3) 0.1 (-0.3) 0.0 0.2 0.1 0.1 (-0.1) (-0.0) 0.3 0.0 0.0 0.2 (-0.0) (-0.6) (-0.1) (-0.1) 0.1 (-0.1) (-0.0) 0.8 (-0.1) (-0.1) (-0.0) 0.2 (-0.1) (-0.4) 0.3 (-0.2) (-0.0) (-0.1) 0.0 0.0 0.0 (-0.0) (-0.1) (-0.1) (-0.2) (-0.2) (-0.1) (-0.0) (-0.3) (-0.1) 0.0 (-0.2) (-0.1) (-0.1) (-0.0) (-0.3) 0.2 0.0 (-0.2) (-0.1) (-0.1) (-0.0) (-0.0) (-0.0) (-0.1) 0.1 (-0.0) 0.1 0.1

Volume 96,080 67,352 28,728 232,373 101,521 93,851 37,001 1,647,056 102,484 43,928 90,525 62,004 43,383 139,409 36,254 74,812 17,390 62,619 92,265 22,047 46,956 24,108 85,642 142,664 61,553 65,174 50,835 84,237 3,168 2,483 280,498 12,618 131,433 6,923 28,921 80,781 14,808 2,185,301 66,096 111,528 141,503 270,462 48,133 141,234 104,612 25,452 180,683 604,849 245,161 84,286 65,492 324 10,021 4,597 28,726 29,274 8,534 10,192 3,977 165 193,792 125,251 5,372 63,169 2,621,741 63,108 54,908 15,882 16,153 53,469 6,515 15,316 6,658 2,076 72,460 1,907 21,551 57,753 35,675 90,879 32,123

YOY % Chg -8.6% -2.9% -19.8% 85.4% 1644.0% 13.2% 1.1% 21.3% 11.2% -100.0% -100.0% -21.2% 22.7% -26.3% -2.8% -5.5% -9.3% 12.0% -17.7% -2.8% -100.0% -100.0% -100.0% 168.4% 46.5% 12.2% 25.7% 2.8% 17.0% 56.4% -10.9% 19.2% 27.1% 8.9% 25.8% 5.3% 10.8% 54.9% 6.3% 11.6% 14.6% 14.8% 120.6% -100.0% 82.8% -29.8% 1.7% 11.5% 8.7% 34.6% -14.2% -61.7% -31.2% -11.6% 31.2% 40.8% -2.1% -6.6% -100.0% -47.7% -99.4% -100.0% -100.0% -100.0% -2.8% 3.6% 20.6% -14.8% 11.2% -0.8% -13.6% -38.1% 4.5% -64.1% -25.6% -39.6% -11.6% 13.0% -53.9% -10.4% 23.4% -20.2% 11.1% 26.8%

Assembly Share % 0.9% 0.6% 0.3% 2.1% 0.9% 0.9% 0.3% 15.1% 0.9% 0.4% 0.8% 0.6% 0.4% 1.3% 0.3% 0.7% 0.2% 0.6% 0.8% 0.2% 0.4% 0.2% 0.8% 1.3% 0.6% 0.6% 0.5% 0.8% 0.0% 0.0% 2.6% 0.1% 1.2% 0.1% 0.3% 0.7% 0.1% 20.0% 0.6% 1.0% 1.3% 2.5% 0.4% 1.3% 1.0% 0.2% 1.7% 5.5% 2.2% 0.8% 0.6% 0.0% 0.1% 0.0% 0.3% 0.3% 0.1% 0.1% 0.0% 0.0% 1.8% 1.1% 0.0% 0.6% 24.0% 0.6% 0.5% 0.1% 0.1% 0.5% 0.1% 0.1% 0.1% 0.0% 0.7% 0.0% 0.2% 0.5% 0.3% 0.8% 0.3%

YOY Share Chg (-0.2) (-0.1) (-0.1) 0.9 0.9 0.0 (-0.0) 1.6 0.9 0.0 (-0.1) (-0.4) (-0.3) 0.1 (-0.2) (-0.1) (-0.0) (-0.1) 0.0 0.6 (-0.3) (-0.0) (-0.7) (-0.0) 0.4 0.2 (-0.1) 0.5 0.3 0.0 0.1 (-0.0) 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.8 (-0.0) 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.1 (-0.0) 0.4 0.2 (-0.0) 0.0 0.1 0.0 0.7 (-0.1) 0.4 (-0.1) (-0.1) 0.1 0.0 0.1 (-0.2) (-0.0) (-0.1) (-0.0) 0.0 0.1 (-0.0) (-0.0) (-0.0) (-0.0) (-0.3) (-0.2) (-0.2) (-0.0) (-0.2) (-0.1) 0.0 (-0.2) 0.6 (-0.1) (-0.1) (-0.1) 0.1 (-0.0) (-0.1) (-0.1) (-0.0) (-0.0) 0.0 (-0.0) (-0.0) 0.1 (-0.1) 0.0 0.0

16 - 31 December 2011

Auto Monitor

N AMERICAN ASSEMBLY October 2011

Last 3 Months

Ownership Org/ Brand & Nameplate

Volume

YOY % Chg

Chevrolet Cobalt Chevrolet Colorado Chevrolet Corvette Chevrolet Cruze Chevrolet Equinox Chevrolet Express Chevrolet HHR Chevrolet Impala Chevrolet Malibu Chevrolet Silverado Chevrolet Sonic Chevrolet Suburban Chevrolet Tahoe Chevrolet Traverse Chevrolet Volt GMC Acadia GMC Canyon GMC Savana GMC Sierra Pickups GMC Terrain GMC Yukon GMC Yukon XL Hummer H3 Hummer H3T Opel-Vauxhall Ampera Saab 9-4X Saturn Outlook Saturn VUE Honda Motor Company (Japan) Acura CSX Acura MDX Acura RDX Acura TL Acura ZDX Honda Accord Honda Civic Honda Crosstour Honda CR-V Honda Element Honda Odyssey Honda Pilot Honda Ridgeline Hyundai Motor Company (South Korea) Hyundai Elantra/i30 Hyundai Santa Fe Hyundai Sonata/i40 Kia Optima Kia Sorento Mitsubishi Motors Corp (Japan) Mitsubishi Eclipse Mitsubishi Endeavor Mitsubishi Galant Nissan Motor (Japan) Infiniti JX Series Infiniti QX series Nissan Altima Nissan Armada Nissan Frontier Nissan March Nissan Maxima Nissan NV-Series Nissan Pathfinder Nissan Pickup Nissan Sentra Nissan Tiida Nissan Titan Nissan Tsuru Nissan Versa Nissan Xterra Suzuki Equator NUMMI (USA) Toyota Corolla Toyota Tacoma Tesla Motors (USA) Tesla Roadster Toyota Motor Corporation (Japan) Lexus RX Series Toyota Avalon Toyota Camry Toyota Corolla Toyota Highlander Toyota Matrix Toyota RAV4 Toyota Sequoia Toyota Sienna Toyota Tacoma Toyota Tundra Toyota Venza Volkswagen (Germany) Volkswagen Beetle Volkswagen Bora Volkswagen Golf/Jetta Variant Volkswagen Jetta Volkswagen New Beetle Volkswagen Passat Total Light Vehicle

4,288 700 26,717 20,187 7,242 13,470 19,882 39,915 8,703 4,745 9,021 10,647 2,228 8,164 1,270 2,126 19,811 9,897 4,114 3,247 125,331 4,079 2,428 5,583 309 23,036 34,384 1,924 23,373 15,457 12,985 1,773 54,300 7,696 5,850 21,704 7,100 11,950 1,194 1,194 108,571 67 29,435 5,724 6,893 4,718 890 3,151 4,145 12,747 16,754 2,272 4,370 15,250 1,955 200 159 159 130,606 7,266 4,136 28,009 20,313 10,151 1,131 15,440 2,471 13,369 14,092 8,753 5,475 50,396 4,585 70 12,539 29,257 3,945 1,239,600

41.8% 13.6% 42.8% 11.7% 14.4% -100.0% 16.2% -6.1% -6.3% -16.0% -6.7% -15.5% 1.4% 21.4% 0.9% 2.9% 15.3% -2.8% -11.5% 12.9% -100.0% -21.9% 48.5% 78.7% 157.5% -11.1% 38.8% 60.5% -0.1% -100.0% 31.3% 21.0% 84.7% 27.1% 6477.8% -13.0% -14.8% 14.9% -58.3% -100.0% -100.0% -26.7% 11.2% 18.1% -100.0% 11.0% -27.0% -3.4% 36.1% -19.7% 133.4% 17.8% -40.6% -8.9% -23.5% 66.7% 117.8% 117.8% 14.3% 10.0% 64.1% 34.7% 21.3% 19.3% -32.1% 4.2% -11.3% 8.8% 11.5% -16.3% 24.4% 14.9% -0.4% -74.1% -4.1% -4.1% 11.6%

Assembly Share % 0.3% 0.1% 2.2% 1.6% 0.6% 1.1% 1.6% 3.2% 0.7% 0.4% 0.7% 0.9% 0.2% 0.7% 0.1% 0.2% 1.6% 0.8% 0.3% 0.3% 10.1% 0.3% 0.2% 0.5% 0.0% 1.9% 2.8% 0.2% 1.9% 1.2% 1.0% 0.1% 4.4% 0.6% 0.5% 1.8% 0.6% 1.0% 0.1% 0.1% 8.8% 0.0% 2.4% 0.5% 0.6% 0.4% 0.1% 0.3% 0.3% 1.0% 1.4% 0.2% 0.4% 1.2% 0.2% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 10.5% 0.6% 0.3% 2.3% 1.6% 0.8% 0.1% 1.2% 0.2% 1.1% 1.1% 0.7% 0.4% 4.1% 40.0% 0.0% 1.0% 2.4% 0.3% 100.0%

YOY Share Chg 0.1 0.0 0.5 0.0 0.0 (-0.5) 0.0 (-0.3) (-0.6) 0.7 (-0.1) (-0.1) (-0.3) 0.2 (-0.1) 0.0 (-0.0) (-0.1) 0.0 (-0.0) (-0.1) 0.1 (-0.0) (-0.1) 0.0 0.2 0.0 (-0.5) 0.5 0.0 (-0.2) (-0.2) 0.2 0.1 0.1 0.5 0.6 (-0.1) (-0.5) 0.6 0.0 (-0.2) (-0.0) (-0.1) (-0.1) (-0.0) 0.0 0.1 (-0.3) (-0.0) 0.6 (-0.2) 0.1 (-0.0) 0.1 (-0.4) 0.7 0.0 (-0.3) (-0.3) (-0.1) 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.3 (-0.0) 0.1 0.4 0.1 0.1 (-0.1) (-0.1) (-0.1) (-0.0) (-0.0) (-0.2) 0.0 0.1 13112.0 (-0.0) (-0.2) (-0.4) 0.3 -

Volume 11,430 3,453 82,912 61,838 22,388 47,687 53,384 130,699 20,672 15,442 24,856 34,943 6,990 23,842 4,162 5,804 58,321 30,302 14,655 9,903 23 354,153 13,899 6,880 12,433 1,230 77,097 78,214 5,038 72,492 44,272 37,708 4,890 163,485 28,546 21,598 62,809 13,666 36,866 7,314 979 2,187 4,148 329,601 70 93,540 3,375 17,327 18,554 15,701 2,737 9,470 13,694 41,162 45,351 6,818 12,830 41,902 6,480 590 491 491 343,616 18,359 13,215 63,439 61,742 30,960 5,395 34,219 6,172 38,813 35,677 19,688 15,937 150,391 -0.40% 185 37,545 87,604 11,945 3,620,910

YOY % Chg 19.0% 2.5% 209.8% 19.6% 15.3% -100.0% 14.5% -20.8% 2.0% 2.5% -11.9% -13.6% -0.7% 26.6% -4.7% -2.8% 26.7% 12.1% -1.5% 5.3% -100.0% -21.2% 31.3% 26.8% 583.3% -0.8% -0.8% 4.7% 4.1% -100.0% 44.9% 17.3% 0.6% 32.2% 15671.3% 43.8% -18.2% 16.4% -23.2% -27.0% -2.6% -30.2% 19.2% 22.8% -57.4% 12.8% -21.1% 3.7% 56.0% 3.9% 139.5% -15.6% -36.2% -5.2% -18.0% 18.0% 121.2% 121.2% -3.8% -12.0% 39.2% -8.1% 22.1% 19.8% -30.6% -25.3% -25.8% 2.2% -4.0% -33.7% 7.5% 31.2% 40.0% -89.5% 17.2% 17.2% -100.0% 10.3%

69

Year to Date Assembly Share %

YOY Share Chg

0.3% 0.1% 2.3% 1.7% 0.6% 1.3% 1.5% 3.6% 0.6% 0.4% 0.7% 1.0% 0.2% 0.7% 0.1% 0.2% 1.6% 0.8% 0.4% 0.3% 0.0% 9.8% 0.4% 0.2% 0.3% 0.0% 2.1% 2.2% 0.1% 2.0% 1.2% 1.0% 0.1% 4.5% 0.8% 0.6% 1.7% 0.4% 1.0% 0.2% 0.0% 0.1% 0.1% 9.1% 0.0% 2.6% 0.1% 0.5% 0.5% 0.4% 0.1% 0.3% 0.4% 1.1% 1.3% 0.2% 0.4% 1.2% 0.2% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 9.5% 0.5% 0.4% 1.8% 1.7% 0.9% 0.1% 0.9% 0.2% 1.1% 1.0% 0.5% 0.4% 4.2% 1513400.0% 0.0% 1.0% 2.4% 0.3% 100.0%

0.0 (-0.0) 1.5 0.1 0.0 (-0.6) 0.0 (-0.6) (-0.3) 0.6 (-0.0) (-0.2) (-0.3) 0.2 (-0.1) 0.0 (-0.0) (-0.2) 0.1 0.0 (-0.0) 0.0 (-0.5) (-0.0) (-0.2) 0.0 0.0 0.0 (-0.2) (-0.2) (-0.0) (-0.1) (-0.1) 0.3 0.1 (-0.0) 0.7 0.8 0.1 (-0.6) 0.4 0.1 (-0.1) (-0.0) (-0.0) (-0.1) 0.7 0.0 0.3 (-0.1) 0.0 0.5 (-0.2) 0.1 (-0.0) 0.1 (-0.1) 0.7 (-0.1) (-0.3) (-0.2) (-0.1) 0.0 0.0 0.0 (-1.4) (-0.1) 0.1 (-0.3) 0.2 0.1 (-0.1) (-0.5) (-0.1) (-0.1) (-0.1) (-0.4) (-0.0) 0.7 0.0 (-0.0) 0.1 0.1 (-0.2) 0.3 -

Volume 34,336 10,994 249,574 192,183 68,661 29,460 160,986 178,488 424,635 20,672 49,184 86,311 106,641 10,896 75,923 11,353 21,528 178,699 91,019 43,421 29,864 480 914,131 1,170 43,208 15,083 29,518 1,791 195,217 202,325 14,958 182,805 7,500 108,914 101,982 9,660 509,295 100,039 82,004 189,016 13,666 124,570 33,313 7,142 10,567 15,604 950,023 70 265,551 15,105 49,801 32,001 55,438 12,180 29,708 40,087 135,057 103,457 22,299 51,025 116,302 20,092 1,850 1,579 1,579 940,382 51,764 33,613 170,428 166,824 83,908 15,152 97,162 15,656 104,266 92,627 66,143 42,839 457,992 0.1 459 125,303 292,369 24,727 10,914,491

YOY % Chg

Assembly Share %

YOY Share Chg

-100.0% 17.7% -20.8% 808.5% 34.9% 18.1% -52.7% 8.9% -11.6% 10.5% 0.2% -2.2% 2.6% 11.6% 6.3% 12.7% 2.6% 50.9% 2.9% 1.5% -100.0% -100.0% -100.0% -100.0% -16.2% -32.8% -22.0% -10.5% -4.4% -61.4% -22.0% -21.9% -50.9% -13.1% -45.4% 10.3% 1.1% -46.4% 39.0% 55170.2% 18.8% -2.3% 19.8% 32.3% 23.3% 95.7% 11.6% 13.3% -100.0% 13.4% -29.1% 12.8% -9.9% 23.6% 66.9% 14.1% 82.8% -10.5% -17.8% -17.1% -9.9% 36.0% -100.0% -100.0% 100.0% 116.9% 116.9% -12.1% -25.7% -2.8% -27.4% 5.7% 20.0% -51.7% -20.8% -25.1% -5.4% 29.8% -28.0% -22.3% 31.0%

0.3% 0.1% 2.3% 1.8% 0.6% 0.3% 1.5% 1.6% 3.9% 0.2% 0.5% 0.8% 1.0% 0.1% 0.7% 0.1% 0.2% 1.6% 0.8% 0.4% 0.3% 0.0% 8.4% 0.0% 0.4% 0.1% 0.3% 0.0% 1.8% 1.9% 0.1% 1.7% 0.1% 1.0% 0.9% 0.1% 4.7% 0.9% 0.8% 1.7% 0.1% 1.1% 0.3% 0.1% 0.1% 0.1% 8.7% 0.0% 2.4% 0.1% 0.5% 0.3% 0.5% 0.1% 0.3% 0.4% 1.2% 0.9% 0.2% 0.5% 1.1% 0.2% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 8.6% 0.5% 0.3% 1.6% 1.5% 0.8% 0.1% 0.9% 0.1% 1.0% 0.8% 0.6% 0.4% 4.2%

(-0.9) 0.0 (-0.0) 2.0 0.3 0.1 (-0.3) 0.0 (-0.4) 0.1 0.2 (-0.0) (-0.1) (-0.1) 0.1 0.0 (-0.0) 0.0 (-0.1) 0.2 (-0.0) (-0.0) (-0.0) (-0.0) 0.0 (-0.0) (-0.0) (-2.5) (-0.0) (-0.2) (-0.0) (-0.0) (-0.0) (-0.7) (-0.7) (-0.2) (-0.4) (-0.1) 0.0 (-0.1) (-0.1) 1.0 0.9 0.1 (-0.2) 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.4 0.0 (-0.0) 0.1 (-0.1) 0.0 0.3 (-0.1) 0.1 0.0 0.1 0.1 0.4 (-0.0) (-0.1) (-0.3) (-0.0) 0.0 (-0.9) (-0.6) (-0.3) 0.0 0.0 (-2.0) (-0.2) (-0.0) (-0.8) (-0.0) 0.1 (-0.2) (-0.3) (-0.1) (-0.1) 0.1 (-0.3) (-0.2) 0.7

-96.2% 40.4% 40.4% -100.0% 8.5%

0.0% 1.1% 2.7% 0.2% 100.0%

(-0.1) 0.3 0.6 (-0.4) 0.2 -

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Auto Monitor

THE OTHER SIDE

Getting Personal

16 - 31 December 2011

In Person

with Rajesh Khanna, Chief Executive Officer, Wendt India If not in the industry, where would you be?

I would have loved to be a chef and own an ethnic dhaba spread over sprawling acres… to provide different cuisines depicting the cultures of various Indian states What car do you drive? What do you dream of driving?

I drive to work in a Toyota Innova and enjoy driving Toyota Corolla for personal use, whereas I’ve always dreamt of the simple yet iconic Rolls Royce Ghost which speaks elegance and extreme comfort and would fit perfectly into my dream garage Your most recent indulgence…

I enjoy my music, and have recently picked up a pair of headphones, Bose Quiet comfort 15 having excellent sound quality. I also recently purchased a Nikon D5100 DSLR which caters to my wildlife photography needs What are you currently reading?

‘The Heart Of Change ’ by John P Kotter & Dan S Cohem and ‘Dare to Lead’ by Anil K Khandelwal What are you doing when not talking about the industry?

I am a stock market enthusiast and stay updated on the latest market trends. I enjoy cooking and making pickles. Frequently, I use my photographic skills to capture pictures of historical places, flora and fauna and translate them into calendars and New Year greetings for our company Outdoor activity you would miss office for…

Bird watching is one of my favourite stress busters; capturing these birds in their habitat on camera would be a good excuse...

Where did you go for your last holiday?

Dubai; exploring the golden Arabian Deserts–Desert Safari You get angry when…

People portray what they actually aren’t; I cannot tolerate people who enjoy at another person’s expense or compromising on Commitment, Integrity, Punctuality and their deliverables What is the one thing you would like to change about you?

I would like to give myself more personal time to pursue my desire of playing musical instruments—drums and guitar

Illustration: Sachin Pandit

Best thing to have happened to you…

My success in my professional as well as my personal life is the best thing that has ever happened to me; four generations living harmoniously under one roof. My wife , Preeti has been the contributing architect of my close knit family, comprising my grandmother, mother and children, Prateek & Ritika

Rajesh Khanna is a Mechanical Engineer from (NIT Raipur) erstwhile Government college of Engineering and Technology, Raipur (Chhatisgarh) and PGDBA from Annamalai University. d e dt In 1983, he joined Wendt as a product engineer and was part of the initial core team g around Wendt from a that was responsible for turning red profitable organisation. small unknown entity to admired ness Leadership Programme In 1999, he underwent a Business ement Development Centre with Murugappa group Management & IIM Calcutta and took charge of Wendt operations as the r, he was selected by Anglo GM by 2002. The following year, d Management Programme American Group for its Advanced 2003, which was anchored by Gordon Institute of outh Africa and Business Science, Pretoria at South rector UK. In 2005, he became the Director of Wendt Grinding Technologiess and e three years later he became the Director on the Board of Wendt Middle East, UAE. Presently, Khanna is heading Wendt India, as a CEO and having Additional charge of Carborundum Universal, Industrial Ceramics Division and Director on the board of CUMI (Australia) PTY Ltd. He has completed Harvard’s Manage-Mentor, a one year course in 2011.

An experience I won’t forget…

This goes back to my bachelor days in 1984, working at Hyderabad. I had to join my family with a friend, for my sister’s wedding at Raipur, Chhattisgarh. Unfortunately, we missed our train, but had to get to the wedding at any cost and decided to take the road journey, since Raipur was not yet connected by air at the time. That meant a non-stop overnight journey, roughly 1,100 km on my new Rajdoot 175 cc.

It was 27th of April, sizzling summers 48 degree+ Celsius. We started in the evening, on unknown roads, with no preparations. The journey was thrilling until we navigated through the narrow roads of the eastern ghats, Konta Orissa.

We were riding through a dense forest, where it was prohibited to travel at night, when suddenly we stared into the eyes of a grown tiger with its gleaming eyes staring right back at us, less than 20 metres away!

He was descending from the hill while on the other side was a deep ravine. We had no choice but to continue riding as applying brakes would have left us just in front of the carnivore. I was fascinated by the majestic looks of the tiger, but scared at heart and as it roared, I raised the accelerator touching almost 70 kmph, while negotiating a dangerous U-turn. For a moment there we thought that these were our last moments. However we only missed few heart-beats, and

by God’s grace, we were still alive.

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

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