Scania marked its Auto Expo debut with the launch of its Fleet Management Service. This first-of-its-kind service in the country is an integrated part of the company’s comprehensive global offering designed to suit each operator’s need and supporting the driver and managing the transport operation and the vehicle fleet.
The Swedish powerhouse also displayed its latest heavy haulage truck, the Scania R500 6×4, with a top-of-the-line V8 engine, and the Scania P410 8×4 mining tipper fitted with a 20 cu.m. tipper body which was actually a world premiere. Scania’s G410 truck and Metrolink coach rounded off its display line-up at the show.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Anders Grundströmer, Managing Director, Scania Commercial Vehicles India (SCVI), and Senior Vice President, Scania Group, said: “India is a very important market for us. Our trucks have been an integral part of the industrial establishment in India for a long time now. With the launch of our Fleet Management Service and the V8 series of engines, we are all set to widen our footprint in growing markets across the country. This is in line with our commitment, following the launch of the on-road haulage segment, to focus on providing reliable, fuel-efficient transport solutions and complete innovative service offerings to customers in India. This, coupled with our driver training program, will enable customers and operators to have better control over the fleet and render driving more economical and safe which, in turn, would have a positive impact on customers’ profitability. This will also result in a significant reduction of emissions with a lesser impact on the environment.”
Explaining the working of the new customer service and its benefits to the vehicle and also its owner and driver, he said: “The service that we are launching here is like a black box. It offers the customers the possibility to monitor, analyse and control the fleet operations leading to maximized uptime and enhanced road safety. This is a major benefit for operators running all kind of transport operations and comprises a number of independent services that can be combined to suit individual operator’s needs”.
The tracking system which could be fitted on all Scania trucks and buses is set to be a benchmark for safety and productivity of heavy duty commercial vehicles in the country.
The new Scania R500 6×4 features the first-ever V8 engine on the Indian roads, offering high torque ratings at low speed, essential for super over-dimensional cargo (ODC) transport. With the automated gear changing system, Scania Opticruise will be the first vehicle of its kind in the Indian market to carry super-ODC under the most demanding highway conditions. The Scania V8 engines advance into the future with excellent drivability, impressive operating economy and sheer driving pleasure, making vehicles capable of delivering goods under the toughest conditions.
The Scania P410 8×4 mining tipper made a world premiere with its 20 cu.m tipper body. While the standard tipper body is around 18.9 cu.m. large, the 20 cu.m. body built using SSAB’s Hardox steel not only has an additional volume carrying capacity of just over one cu.m, but is also two tonnes lighter than the tipper bodies built using conventional steel, resulting in significant productivity gains for the customer. As for the Scania G410 truck, it comes equipped with new features such as the automated gear-changing system for manual gearboxes which results in significant improvements with respect to precision, gear selection, performance and reliability.
The 13.7 m 49-seater Scania Metrolink coach now comes fitted with speed limiters which limit the maximum vehicle speed to 85 kmph. The speed-limiter fitment comes in the wake of the recent fatal bus accidents in the country caused mainly by over-speeding. “We have taken the decision to set the maximum speed of our coaches at 85 kmph. We will not change this, because it’s not allowed. We will also try to make seat belts mandatory by educating the customers on the need for seat belts and speed limits to save lives”, said Mr. Krister Thulin, Director – Pre Sales & Marketing, SCVI.
Deliveries of the Scania Metrolink have already commenced with the first set of vehicles given to KPN Travels in south India.
As part of its strategy, Scania will inaugurate phase II of its production facility, the bus factory in Narasapura, Karnataka, in mid-2014. The company is on track with its plans to establish a complete service and dealership network across the country, having started with the South and West and is looking to cover the North and East next. It is targeting a 30-35 per cent share of the premium truck and bus market in the country and is well on track to achieve its targets with its products being very well accepted in the market.
The premium truck market registered a slight growth from 1,200 units in 2012 to 1,300 units in 2013, despite the mining logjam in most parts of the country, while in the next five years it is expected to witness a huge growth of nearly 20 per cent.
On the bus front, Scania is set to commence the trial runs of its ethanol-run city bus in the near future, a solution which is capable of revolutionizing public transportation in the country.