Allison Transmission, the world’s largest manufacturer of fully automatic transmissions for medium- and heavy-duty commercial vehicles and hybrid-propulsion systems for city buses, currently celebrating its centennial year, made good use of the platform to educate and explain to customers the superior value proposition its automatics deliver over other transmission options in the market.
Says Mr. Salil Gupta, Director – India Commercial Operations, Allison Transmission: “ASRTU has done a great job in bringing the industry together for this event. It has been a meaningful one for the OEMs and suppliers like us and also for the end-users, including the ASRTU members (STUs) and private operators. This event has given us a good opportunity to share our value proposition with the industry. Since automatics are still in a growing stage in the Indian market, the more we explain the benefits of our product to end-customers, the more they are able to understand and appreciate its advantages.”
With the Government and the Transport Minister calling for the best possible solutions towards building a sustainable public transport system, products and solutions which offer high reliability, durability and efficiency naturally become the choice of customers. Among the buses on display at the show, Volvo, Scania, UD and JBM have an automatic transmission option, which was a clear indicator that automatics are part of any progressive product for sustainable public transportation.
“As far as buses are concerned, our product is a key element that contributes significantly to enhancing sustainability via reliability and durability. Our products offer safety as a function of operability and comfort, higher productivity and durability, and are much easier to maintain. If these attributes are to be delivered on a vehicle, that’s where Allison fits in”, adds Mr. Gupta.
Today, Allison transmissions can be found on many buses, both intra- and inter-city applications, plying in different parts of the country. DTC’s Tata Motors city buses have Allison automatics which have crossed 550,000 km and continue to run successfully.
Ahmedabad’s Janmarg has front-engine buses fitted with Allison automatics, while private customers like Prasanna Purple of Surat have also opted for Allison. “Customers are very happy with our products. There is a lot of journey left in the Indian market since we are still in the early phases. We are looking at growth in the coming years and will continue to focus on retaining our existing customers, bagging repeat orders and adding new customers for which such forums are very important”, he concludes.