“KYB-Conmat aims to be a major contributor to the country’s growth story.”

Sailj Verma,
Senior Vice President Sales,
KYB-Conmat.

Our aim is to become a one-stop shop for all concrete equipment needs of the customer.

KYB in association with Conmat designs and manufacture world’s finest concrete construction equipment in its Indian facility, with the support of Japanese technology. “We are looking to expand our market and reach, both domestically and internationally. We also wish to explore unchartered territories in the international market,” says Sailj Verma,  Senior  Vice President Sales, KYB-Conmat. Verma highlights the core strengths and competencies of the company.

How do you assess the growth prospects for concrete equipment and what has been your performance for the last couple of years?

We have been growing year over year and we expect 2019 to be even better. As more and more projects are being announced – be it for roadways, ports, airports, real estate, affordable housing, irrigation, etc. we are aggressively working with our customers to be part of it all. Concrete is the future, and we are all geared up to do our bit to make India an infrastructure-rich nation. KYB-Conmat has seen consistent growth since 2015 due to the widespread acceptability of our products in the market. We recently celebrated the rollout of our 2000th transit mixer from our Vadodara facility. We are looking to expand our market and reach, both domestically and internationally. We also wish to explore unchartered territories in the international market. We have some new products currently in the development stage, which we are planning to launch soon. At the same time, it will also be our endeavour to upgrade and keep our existing product offerings up-to-date with the latest technology. Our aim is to the one-stop shop for all concrete equipment needs of a customer and we are working to achieve that.

How do you look on export markets?

The rapid growth in the overall economy of many countries has accentuated the need for improving infrastructure. Governments, development authorities and even companies have begun investing in infrastructure development projects in several countries. Many African governments have invested heavily in irrigation and mining projects.  All these factors have contributed immensely to the increased use of construction machinery and we are getting steady orders and lot of enquiries from many African and Asian countries like Indonesia, Bangladesh, Thailand, Kenya, Nepal, Tanzania, Philippines and Sri-Lanka. There is increasing demand for used construction machinery in real estate and construction activities in African countries which also has resulted in a substantial surge of demand for concrete mixers.

How KYB is geared up to meet the challenges in the changing scenario especially in terms of innovations?

Research and Development is highly valued at KYB-Conmat. We have a R&D center in India, in Vadodara, and in Japan. We wish to make path-breaking innovations a norm in order to best serve our customers. Innovations are very important in today’s competitive and fast-paced market to stay relevant. Our research and development is working in full force on some great products, while also focusing on upgrading our existing products, which we believe, are sure to take the market by storm.

Could you elaborate on the back up support initiatives which has become a major differentiator?

After sales service is one of the most important criteria in construction equipment market, and KYB-Conmat offer complete after care solutions to the customers, who are increasingly looking beyond the product purchases. They expect the total solution, right from the point of sales till the project completion. We at KYB-Conmat believe that the first machine may be sold by sales personals, but subsequent machines are necessarily sold by service engineers. We have much higher repeat customer rate than the market standards. In fact, our loyal and committed customer base helps us in selling to new customers.

KYB-Conmat offers best customer support in understanding and resolving machinery related problems immediately, thus making the plant to run continuously and minimize the shut down time. Multiple nodes are used for providing solutions online for any plant software related problems. Immediate solution can be given depending on the nature of the problem. Our team serves Online Support for software related problems and provides 24X7 support through telephone. If necessary we assign qualified service engineers to
the plant.

In an intensely competitive market what differentiates KYB-Conmat?

We believe the greatest challenge for companies today is not keeping up with their competitors, but with their own customers. Business used to be about getting customers to do what you wanted them to do. But customers don’t accept this anymore. They don’t like to be told what to do. They want relationships based on reciprocity, transparency and authenticity.

We began this company with nothing more than a pocket full of dreams and it still takes us by surprise to see how far we have come.

We want to drive the market – we don’t want to be driven by it. Our guiding principle is; Change the market before it changes you. We have been changing the products, processes, customer’s expectations along with their mindsets at an amazingly rapid pace. But there are few focus points which will never change:-

• Our commitment towards customers
• Our passion for technology
• Our determination for quality and excellence

Our primary concern for the planet, now and for the decades to come

How this is being reflected in your product design?

KYB is enjoying over 85% market share in Japan with an annual sales of over 7000 transit mixers. Its low slump handling and high discharge capacity thanks to its special blade design is the hallmark of Japanese technology and precision. It offers the best geometric volume and operating cost in the class. The centre of gravity is also low due to the welded chassis frame, and offers better operator comfort and road safety. The same design is being produced and offered to Indian customers unlike other manufacturers, who downgrade the design in India to make it cheaper.

What are the growth opportunities from RMC segment?

Construction companies and RMC providers are making smart investments in concreting assets, choosing equipment well, and hiring or outsourcing when it makes better financial sense. On the back of a medley of infrastructure projects, the concrete industry, from equipment to ready-mix concrete (RMC), is expanding. Industry voices expect real estate and city development to accentuate growth in the future. We foresee big potential for RMC segment in future.  KYB – Conmat offers various models of batching plants, transit mixers and concrete pumps as per the customer choice. In metropolitan cities, 60 cu m and above capacity plants are fast moving, and tire two cities prefer 45/60 cu m plants and three tire cities prefer 30/45 cu m plants considering proximity to supply in stipulated time.

How do you assess the growth trends in CE sector?

The Indian construction equipment sector is made up of five main segments: Earthmoving equipment, road construction equipment, concrete equipment, material handling equipment, and material processing equipment. India’s infrastructure sector is poised to grow significantly with the increasing demand for development of key infrastructure projects such as roads and highways, rural connectivity, urban infrastructure including metro rail projects, ports and airports, industrial corridors, smart city projects, etc. Investment and implementation of key projects are the concerns of the construction and construction equipment industry. Several initiatives by the Government such as 100 smart city projects, urban infrastructure including metro rail projects, port development, the creation of an industrial corridor and a dedicated freight corridor, would boost the country’s infrastructure development. So, for a growing economy like India the infrastructure sector and construction industry will prosper in the long run.

What is your roadmap in the coming years?

We are a part of 98 year old group, having 34 plants and 62 offices across the world. With the emerging new business models and trends in the industries, KYB-Conmat is focused in its drive to provide innovative design, state-of–the-art technology, and quality-based world-class products, which are well accepted in the market because of its prompt and effective after–sales-service and higher performance on price ratio. As a brand, KYB has a vision and goal to expand and create a global presence. With this is in mind, we are planning to increase our presence for sales, and after sales to all the major cities in India and overseas. Apart from that, we will also be associating with new channel partners to increase our presence and to be closer to our customers. Within a short span of time, we will have our large presence in all the major cities across pan India.

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