'Worst recession for the CV industry is over',Vinod Aggarwal, CEO, VE Commercial Vehicles

VE Commercial Vehicles (VECV), a joint venture between Sweden's Volvo Group and Eicher Motors, is eyeing for double-digit market share in the heavy duty truck segment.
 

'Worst recession for the CV industry is over',Vinod Aggarwal, CEO, VE Commercial Vehicles pic.twitter.com/pipca7Hweu

— Press Release Watch (@PrReleaseWatch) December 1, 2015

It introduced three new products in Pro 6000 and 8000 category catering to mining and construction verticals at recently concluded Excon 2015. Speaking at EXCON 2015 on the opportunity from mining and construction projects and industry growth,  Vinod, Aggarwal, CEO, VE Commercial Vehicles said, “The worst recession for the commercial vehicle industry is behind us now.All segments of Commercial Vehicle industry are already growing except trucks used in construction sites. As we move forward, a lot more growth is expected to come from demand from two sectors- Mining and Construction."Operational since July 2008, VE Commercial Vehicles Ltd. (VECV) comprises of five business verticals – Eicher Trucks and Buses, Volvo Trucks India, Eicher Engineering Components and VE Powertrain. VECV includes the complete range of Eicher's commercial vehicles, components and engineering design businesses as well as the sales and distribution of Volvo trucks. Each of its 'business units is already well established and backed by a sizable customer base.'I am confident that VECV continues to grow stronger with the introduction of the new range,'said Pierre Jean Verge Salamon, President of Volvo Group Trucks India.

#Budget2014 Reaction : #Volvo Buses & #Volvo India

Volvo Buses welcomed the Union Budget for 2014-15 presented today, which has emphasised on the future vision for cities in India, as well as the country on the whole. Volvo is committed to play its role in supporting modernisation of Indian cities by providing complete & sustainable transport solutions to make public transport an attractive option.

The government has allocated INR 50,000 crore towards urban infrastructure projects that will help in creating sustainable cities. The centre’s proposal to set up Industrial Smart Cities in seven locations is another initiative that will help in developing planned residential cities, while possibly decongesting some of the larger cities.

We hope that when the detailing is done, there is focus on aspects of urban development such as electromobility, sustainable transport solutions such as BRTS and decongestion of cities.

The focus on road safety with allocation of funds is a small step that will be essential in addressing the rising incidents on India’s roads. Another key feature of the budget proposals was the allocation of INR 37,800 crore towards development of better infrastructure – both for National and State Highways.

By way of other announcements in the Union Budget, the government has articulated a vision of a stronger nation – socially and economically – in the years to come. Volvo Buses looks forward to steps that will pave the way for more robust and sustainable development of the country.

“The Indian Union Budget presented by the Finance Minister this morning in Parliament is both progressive & fiscally prudent. It addresses a lot of concerns of many sectors, with focus on reviving economic activity & job creation.
 The provisions such as investment allowance, push on infrastructure & manufacturing sectors, increase in FDI in certain sectors, deepening the debt market & advance ruling on transfer pricing, are some of the positive moves that will encourage investment and a regime of predictability on taxation.
 Also, of particular significance is the announcement with regard to the mining sector, which has been languishing in the recent past. The planned changes in the MMDR Act will help encourage investment & promote sustainable mining practices.
 However, what is a disappointment is the lack of correction in the inverted excise duty structure in the Commercial vehicle sector. The mismatch between the input and the output rates of excise duty has led to huge accumulations of credit in the system, which has had a crippling effect on the cash flows of manufacturers. In the twin contexts of the need to bring state-of-the-art automotive technology into India and the much needed socio-economic imperative of providing impetus to manufacturing in India, this inverted duty structure is becoming a big deterrent. This is making manufacturing of high technology products in India uncompetitive, which will indirectly also encourage the undesirable imports of fully built vehicles. We do hope that the Government will in the near future address this pressing issue”.

 Mr Kamal Bali, Managing Director, Volvo India

Two more cities opt for #Volvo city buses

In June this year, Puducherry and Solapur became two new cities to opt for Volvo 8400 city buses, while Kolkata augmented its existing fleet of Volvo city buses. With this, the presence of Volvo in the high-performance city bus segment in India expands to 15 cities.

Volvo is among the first to be ready and commence delivering city buses under the recent Urban Bus Specification (UBS) scheme to State Transport Undertakings (STUs). By end of this year, one can expect to see more cities in India opting for Volvo city buses, besides existing cities working towards augmenting their current fleets.

The new Volvo 8400 city bus, built to meet the current Urban Bus Specifications comes with a host of new features, and enhances standards in safety, and passenger convenience & comfort. This includes features such as rear under-run protection; lateral protection; wider wheel chair ramps; walking stick/crutch holders for passengers with special needs; new high-comfort seats with headrest & greater reclining; automatic fire detection & suppression system in the engine area and finally on-board telematics for better passenger information systems.  

5th edition of #Volvo Trucks India FuelWatch 2014

Volvo Trucks India FuelWatch 2014, the 5th edition of the competition was held at a coal mining site in Managuru, near Kothagudem, Telangana recently. 24 Best Drivers from key Volvo tipper customers operating in mining segment across the country participated in the annual fuel efficiency competition, selected through rigorous qualification process.

Volvo Trucks Fuel watch competition is part of Volvo Trucks efforts to educate drivers, fleet managers, customers and other stakeholders on the importance of the good driving practices to improve fuel efficiency, reduce cost and increase profitability. Fuel efficiency is the most critical aspect of profitability in mining transport and we at Volvo Trucks are committed to improving customer’s overall profitability from our vehicles, while encouraging safe driving practices &care for environment through reduction in emissions. The competition highlights the importance of good, safe driving practices and promotes thorough understanding of the latest technologies of high performance tippers, to achieve the best man and machine performance. Fuel watch competition promotes both economic and environmental advantages of the good driving practices and brings out a positive spirit among Volvo tipper drivers.

“Fuel efficiency and vehicle productivity are critical aspects of truck mining operations.  We are the undisputed leader in this market, thanks to our world class technology and our focus on the combined performance of man and machine together.” said Mr. Philippe Divry Sr. Vice President  AB Volvo & VECV Board member. He further said “Volvo Trucks is the first CV manufacturer to set up a Driver Training Center in India to make good drivers better in demanding applications”.    

Mr Vinod Aggarwal, CEO VECV said “At Volvo Trucks, we give special emphasis to superior driving skills because it plays an important role in achieving better fuel efficiency and increased profitability”. He further added “Fuel reduction is vital; both for cost saving and lowering environmental impact. Fuel savings means CO2 reduction, thus environment and economy go hand in hand.”

Mr R Satyanarayana from BGR Mining & Infra Pvt. Ltd. was adjudged the winner, followed by Mr.  J Sampath Raju from SV Engineering Constructions who was adjudged was 1st Runner-up, and Mr. Sudharshan Dhal from Montecarlo Limited was adjudged 2nd Runner-up. The competition is the ultimate test for Volvo Tipper drivers to bring out the best in driving practices under tough off-road conditions and achieve highest fuel efficiency. The winning driver achieved a remarkable XX% higher fuel efficiency compared to the driver with lowest fuel efficiency in the competition.
 

Geometric signs contract with #Volvo Cars

Geometric Ltd. today announced that it has signed an application maintenance contract with Volvo Cars, Sweden covering major applications from computer aided design (CAD) and Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) landscape.

Geometric has been partnering with Volvo Cars for their global engineering and manufacturing needs since 2010, and today extended its application maintenance services (AMS) engagement to include additional CAD and PLM applications for new product development and manufacturing engineering. Geometric will deploy its proven application maintenance services framework, AMS4E based on well-defined 4E methodology, which is designed to enable, ensure, enhance and evolve the targeted PLM, engineering IT and manufacturing IT applications to deliver value to Volvo. Geometric will also leverage its extensive understanding of Volvo’s product development IT landscape combined with its excellent ISV relationships and experience in PLM, to support Volvo’s new product development programs.


On signing the contract, Nitin Tappe, COO, Geometric Limited said, “We have a long standing relationship with Volvo, and work with them on several strategic projects. This contract is a testament to our commitment to deliver the best, and Volvo’s trust in our ability to consistently bring innovation to their CAD and PLM applications. We look forward to continuing to contribute to Volvo Cars success in the use of PLM and CAD technologies”.  

In addition to application maintenance, Geometric works with Volvo across multiple projects related to the design and development of complex and large scale CAD and PLM strategic initiatives, and provides offshore support through a dedicated delivery center in Chennai, India.

Volvo Auto India CSR campaign on 'don't drink and drive' in association with Pickle Lintas

For the first time after having started operations in India, the Luxury car maker Volvo auto India carried out a corporate social responsibility activity this December. It had launched a very unique don’t drink and drive campaign with Pickle Lintas.
As the year comes to an end the celebrations begin, proving to be a fertile time to get such a message across to revelers across the city. Volvo auto India collaborated with many pubs and bars across the city like Manahttan Craft Brewery, Turquoise Cottage among others and carried out an event called “Melting Moments”.
Volvo made car shaped ice lollies that they had these bars and pubs serve their guests during the course of the activity.
Every time a guest ordered a drink, he/she would be served with these special car shaped ice lollies which once dipped into a drink would naturally melt and therefore disfigure the car. Once the car shaped ice lolly would melt a message would then appear on the stirrer that read “Don’t mix your drink with your drive”.
Sudeep Narayan (Marketing & PR Director, Volvo Auto India) says “we really appreciate Pickle Lintas efforts to conceive and execute this idea as it really brings alive the consequences of mixing drinking and driving by simply using the melting property of ice. The concept is also in line with our all-time ‘safety’ proposition.”
And so it did as we saw the party goers getting intrigued by this innovative idea with a social message.
We also spoke to one of the high spirited guests Chiara Vidussi (traveler) “it’s a wonderful idea, ice is so close to alcohol and to turn it into the shape of a car for a message was really cool.”
Even the owners and managers of the restaurants where this activity was carried out were excited about serving these new ice cubes bewildering their guests with a message.
Sandeep Pundir(Manager, Manhattan Craft Brewery) said,“It was really exciting for us to carry out this idea because as a popular bar we really wanted to stand for a cause as we don’t want the happiness we bring you to cost lives”.

Tech Mahindra Signs an Outsourcing Contract for Application Maintenance and Development with Volvo Car Corporation

Tech Mahindra Ltd. a global IT, Engineering and Business services company specializing in providing connected solutions to enable future-ready digital enterprises, today announced that they have been chosen as a Strategic Partner for Application Maintenance and Development by the Volvo Car Corporation (Volvo Cars).

This partnership will provide Volvo Cars with a service to maintain and develop a wide range of applications across the business and to develop and implement new applications as part of its drive to increase efficiency and reduce costs.

Starting in September 2013, the contract with Tech Mahindra will provide Volvo Cars with Application maintenance and development across multiple domains, including Manufacturing, Product Development, Marketing, Sales and Reporting.

“We are delighted to be selected by Volvo Cars to support this suite of applications and to develop and implement new applications to help them in their drive to increase efficiency and reduce business costs. Tech Mahindra was selected for its proven track record of delivering large scale application maintenance and development and for its global reach and scale. We see this contract as an opportunity to increase our contribution to Volvo cars and further develop our business in the region. Our plans include proactive investment and recruitment from both local universities and the local business domain pool.” says Vikram Nair, Head - Europe, Tech Mahindra

About Tech Mahindra
Tech Mahindra represents the connected world, offering innovative and customer-centric information technology services and solutions, enabling Enterprises, Associates and the Society to Rise™. We are a USD 2.7 billion company with 83,000 professionals across 49 countries, helping over 560 global customers including Fortune 500 companies. Our Consulting, Enterprise and Telecom solutions, platforms and reusable assets connect across a number of technologies to derive tangible business value.
We are part of the USD 16.2 billion Mahindra Group that employs more than 155,000 people in over 100 countries. The Group operates in the key industries that drive economic growth, enjoying a leadership position in tractors, utility vehicles, after-market, information technology and vacation ownership.Connect with us on www.techmahindra.com