Rajesh Rajgor spoke to Nishant Arya, Vice Chairman, JBM Group at the Prawaas 3.0 show at Hyderabad to know more about the company’s presence at the show, its focus on sustainability and safety roadmap as well as about the future plans and growth strategies
Here at Prawaas 3.0 we have showcased our full electric vehicle (EV) ecosystem, including our electric buses, lithium battery packs, chargers and operational know-how. We have been able to clearly see how our buses have beaten the majority of industry norms thanks to our experience of working across India for varied reasons, whether in the northwest or the south. We have worked with all the significant stakeholders across the country because we have been the pioneers of electric buses, including STUs, private operators, significant technological companies and our supply partners. We have created between 45 and 50 EV supply chain enterprises in India as a result. In order to provide our customers with the most energy-efficient systems and to please end-users, we are also examining best-in-class technology and in-house research and development for battery, vehicle and charging technologies.
Bus Orders Post-Pandemic
We have worked for BS VI-related orders for the Delhi NCR region. We have supplied buses for Gurgaon, Delhi. We have started our electric bus journey with Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi, Andaman-Nicobar, Jhansi and many other private customers and even school applications, tarmac applications and a few other applications where we have clearly a given state-of-the-art ecosystem not only for products but also in terms of providing a wholesome experience to our customers. In short, we are a one-stop solution provider.
We have a very strong technology roadmap and that is how we are able to give the customers a very strong total cost of ownership while helping them become extremely competitive. We ensure that the products are trouble-free and really enhance the value proposition for the end-customers whether they are B2B, B2C or B2G. This is what is definitely redefining the whole EV bus market. We have a very large market share and the highest market share in most of the Tier I and Tier II cities where we are present. This clearly demonstrates the need of the hour – zero emission vehicles. In this scenario, JBM Group has the best-in-class zero emission electric vehicles for public transportation.
The pandemic has made us realise the importance of health and environment and so we have been consistently focusing on enhancing awareness for all our consumers. Today, we see that with more than 50 million electric kilometres that we have clocked across the country, our experience and credentials have become very strong and in the last three years we have worked in all kinds of cities with high density population with longer routes, high traffic conditions and with multiple overloading. All this is true testimony of the performance of the products across the range.
Sustainability and Efficiency of Electric Buses
As of now, each electric bus can save more than 350,000 litres of diesel and 1,000 tons of CO2. We feel sustainability is the only way to drive scalability. In our vehicles and city buses we see that up to 250 kilometres is what the customers are using in city transportation, which we can easily provide without disrupting their operating model. Close to 100 passengers sitting and standing is what our vehicles are compatible with. Further, we provide a life of 15 years even though customers may use it for 10-12 years. The robustness and the rugged features of our products also ensure good mileage. Our battery life is of 5-7 years and in a span of 12 years there’s only one change of battery, which in itself is a proven track record. JBM has a sister concern that produces the lithium battery packs and we also have our own power electronics know-how.
As of now, about 500+ engineers are engaged in our research and development team and that gives us a solid foundation for making state-of-the-art products and technology, all of which drives the value factor. Technology is the key focus area we work on how it can enhance efficiency. With our products none of our customers buy extra buses and thus avoid redundancy while also experiencing the lowest downtime. We have a very strong programme for imparting technology inputs to drivers and also to upgrade our customers’ knowledge. In the last three years we have given more than 75 upgrades and updates. The idea is to create brand loyalty through value-addition. Needless to add, electric mobility is the way of the future and we are pleased to be contributing to this development.
Safety Aspect
We have a very rigorous and strong validation and testing platform of about a million kilometres for both virtual and on-road testing. The testing which we undertake is to usher in world-class quality in our vehicles and that is something which is the testimony of the JBM brand. Our brand stands for quality for life. When it comes to battery and charge safety, we can see that a variety of market segments and many of our rivals are currently dealing with these problems. However, we try to bury these problems in the early stages of development so that any problems that arise can be solved on paper or during the testing and validation phase. The JBM brand stands for providing customers with a seamless and trouble-free experience, a luxurious ride and the highest level of comfort in addition to the product’s safety, dependability and durability. To conclude, we are focusing not just on a local market but are keen to set global benchmarks.