Our range of hydraulic and mechanical quick couplers enables quick changeover of front attachments.

What are the demand outlook and the growth drivers for excavators of different capacities for general construction, roads and highways and mining sector?

Despite the Covid19 effect, last year the excavator market grew by around 8% on the back of sustained Capex in infrastructure by the government. In the Union budget presented in February this year, the government reiterated the focus on investment in infrastructure by enhancing Capex to 5.54Lakh Crores, signifying year-on-year increase of nearly 26% YoY. State governments have announced a similar increase in Capex for this fiscal.

In addition, we also seen the way the market moved last year through the pandemic. Hence, even in the face of the current second Covid19 wave, we are optimistic that the trend will continue. We therefore expect the market to grow by nearly 20% – this will also be buoyed by the low base of H1 of last year.

In terms of capacities, we expect the mini excavator market to continue to grow faster than the overall market with increased mechanization due to labour shortage as well as increased productivity. This segment will also be supported by increased allocation for the implementation of rural water supply programme. We also anticipate some migration from backhoe loaders, since it has become costlier post CEV4 emission norms implementation this year. Similarly, the 7T market is also expected to grow faster than overall excavators due to some migration from backhoe loaders post CEV4 emission norms.

The 10-Tonne to 35-Tonne market constitute the largest segment of the excavator market & should grow around 20% with investments in the roads and highways having the maximum impact followed by demand from stone quarries, granite mining, sand mining, general earthwork, irrigation, among others.

Notwithstanding the drop in coal production last year, there has been an increase in awards for over burden removal by various Coal India subsidiaries and this is expected to continue this year so that coal production can be increased as and when required. Further, auctioned iron ore mines in Odisha that are yet to restart are expected to add to the demand. All this is expected to drive a significant growth in the mining excavator market this year.

Advancements in attachment coupling technology combined with new products mean materials processing can increasingly take place at the end of an excavator arm. To what extent you have been able to leverage the advantages of disruptive technologies in the range of excavators?

Hydraulic excavators are increasingly being used for applications that expand its capabilities beyond just use of buckets for digging and loading. There are a wide range of attachments that can be put in place of the bucket on the arm, on the boom in place of the arm, as well as on the main frame directly in place of the standard boom, arm and bucket.

While the attachments on the mainframe and boom are more or less permanent fixtures, the attachments fixed on the arm end can and are being interchanged at will based on the work requirements. The introduction of Tata Hitachi’s range of hydraulic and mechanical quick couplers enables quick changeover of front attachments and seamlessly allows for faster changeovers and minimal helper assistance.

This has provided our customers with great flexibility with respect to owning a single base machine and changing the work tools as per specific requirements. Some of the arm end attachments that are being offered by Tata Hitachi are the rock breaker, shear, various grabs, magnets and many more on our range of excavators and backhoe loaders.

How has data analytics and sensor technologies impacted your cab design for excavators?

Cabin designs have undergone considerable change over time, with increased focus on safety and ergonomics from the operator point of view. With the advent of digitization and increased use of sensors on our hydraulic excavators, data collection, storage and wired/wireless transfer happen through systems embedded in the cabin and its whereabouts.

Extensive study and development work is happening in this field as we prepare for improved human machine interfaces that can capture inputs as well as display outputs to the operator that can be seamlessly transmitted, stored and retrieved remotely for monitoring and analysis.

Give us a brief on the advances made in the engine used in excavators?

The diesel engines being used in machines are increasingly getting smarter, more efficient and greener by the day. Tata Hitachi uses some of the most fuel efficient and reliable engines available in the market with Isuzu, Mitsubishi, Cummins and Tata Motors engines powering our various excavators.

While the construction of the base engines have largely remained the same, our focus has chiefly been on further raising the bar on the reliability of our already popular engines. With the expected upcoming emission norms for the excavators, the engines will undergo a further enhancement towards increased sensor and microprocessor-based controls, after treatment of exhaust gases to ensure cleaner emissions that meet the regulatory requirements.

What kinds of after-sales support initiatives have been embraced by you to maintain customer satisfaction and brand value?

We have accorded special focus to the following approaches in terms of after sales support:

• Increasing availability of spares through regional warehouses to minimize parts delivery lead time
• Parts availability on e-commerce portal
• Customized maintenance kits for all products
• Skilled service team for on-the-spot trouble shooting.
• Training customers on best practices for maximum up time of machine.
• Toll free no. for 24×7 support.

We continue to invest in after-sales support through our dealers in terms of diagnostic vehicles, mobile workshops and increasing numbers of outlets, so that we are within reach of the customer in the shortest time possible. We also offer a range of reman products to ensure availability of important aggregates that can be exchanged at affordable prices for quick restoration of machines at site.

Additionally, for the mining range we also offer Full Maintenance Contracts (FMC) & site support agreements to support the customers, so that they concentrate on their core strengths – to excavate faster and at the lowest possible cost to increase their revenue and profits.

What do you think are the challenges, risk factors and possible new avenues in the excavator segment?

The current second Covid19 wave is certainly a challenge to sustain business at the previous quarter levels. The entire ecosystem – from customers to vendors to employees are affected by the current wave.

We hope this abates faster so that the industry rebounds quickly on the growth trajectory as was witnessed last year. On a positive note, since a blanket lockdown is currently not on the cards, on-ground construction activities continue without much hindrance. Dislocations in supply chain, however, continue be of concern and have not yet come back to normalcy.

The key risk factors are the new emission norms. There is still some uncertainty as to the exact implementation date. There is going to be a price increase that could affect the demand whenever it is implemented.

In this new environment, customer must maintain and utilize machine in the way it is recommended by OEM’s. Only by using genuine parts and prescribed maintenance practice will users be able to gain from new technology. In addition, it is vitally important to use correct attachment as per application requirement. The total cost of ownership during equipment life is an important factor & will gain increasing acceptance by customers going forward.

As explained earlier, mini excavators will continue to grow faster as the industry matures, and customers appreciate the compactness and efficiency of these machines. The overall competitiveness vs backhoe loaders also present an opportunity to grow the mini excavator as well as the 7-Tonne excavator segment.

We also continue to see the attractiveness of the 20-Tonne segment as more customers enter this segment in view of the volume of infra projects by the government. Increased adoption of various types of attachments on these excavators is also presenting an opportunity to increase sales, and this is expected to continue in the future also as niche applications drive demand.

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