Tata Motors Ltd. (TML), a market leader in many of the CV segments it operates, provides its customers with a very comprehensive tipper range, ranging from 9 ton to 31 ton, 120 to 380 hp, from 6 speed to 9 speed manual gearbox and from 4 CUM to 30 CUM cubic capacities. The Tippers are available for comprehensive use cases, in all kinds of body types like scoop and box and high strength steel. Mr. Rajesh Kaul, Business Head, Intermediate, Medium & Heavy Trucks, shares his considered observations about the domain.
Brief us your product program in the tippers & tip trailers domain. What are the new/popular models positioned for the major construction and mining application segments?
The Construck range from Tata Motors offers a wide range of powerful & fuel efficient tippers for construction and mining applications. The vehicles range from tippers, tip trailers, transit mixers, truck mounted cranes & concrete boom pumps. What sets these tippers apart is their innovative design which is based on insights in to customer needs.
Tata Motors has a complete a range of tippers from 16T to 31T for both construction and mining applications. This range takes care of different range of customer segments across applications. Some of the most popular models within this range include the Prima and Prima LX range, LPK 2518 and its variants, LPK 2523 (For mining) and its variants and LPK 1618. This robust product portfolio is backed with the most extensive network across Indian highways to support our trucks and tippers.
Indicate the models offered for various applications and what would be the market share for tippers & tip trailers in these segments vis-à-vis construction and mining verticals?
Tata Motors offers models for varied applications for ports, infrastructure, road irrigation, projects, waste management, cement etc. including Prima 2528, Prima LX 2523, Prima LX 3123, LPK 2518, LPK 2523, LPS 4018 and LPS 4923 (this includes all models in various body types and sizes). Tata Motors has a dominant share of 55% in all the three verticals.
What are the popular body sizes for tippers & tip trailers? Also highlight the importance in material of construction, fabrication norms and hydraulics vis-à-vis performance and reliability parameters.
The various body sizes are from 4.5 cum to 28 cum across 16T to 49T. Basis application body material ranges from ST-52 to Hardox, fabrication ranges from std floor to sandwich floor. TML uses both HYVA and Tata Branded hydraulics.
Tell us about the salient product features and USPs to bring the prospective customers to your fold, viz., how do you address the competition?
Our USP’s include best in class total cost of ownership, reliability, widest reach and hence better uptime.
At Tata Motors, we also work towards developing multiple new platforms in line with market requirements and constantly working towards improving the performance and reliability of our existing ones. Besides products, we have also developed a host of innovative service coupled with various technological upgrades to enrich the service offerings of our products.
Apart from that we have also introduced introduce few technologies such as Stop-Start, Hill-Hold, Vistronic fans, Twin speed rear axle, Pneumatic Suspension, Drive-mode options, etc., to provide value to the customers.
Mining segment is considered to be the toughest in CV applications – can you tell us about the challenges, duty cycles, importance of reliability and service support therein?; and your approach in meeting these stringent demands?
Mining segment for both OB and mineral extraction is a demanding duty cycle with very high degree reliability and uptime requirement. TML with its Prima range of tippers (world class driveline and better cabin comfort) offers both reliability and TCO. We at Tata Motors believe that a superior product alone is not enough for successful completion of projects, hence we support our customers through innovative customized offerings. We provide various offerings including 24×7 onsite support service through mobile service vans, along with extensive driver & mechanic training.
What is the market size for tippers & tip trailers in India and your market share in these segments? How do you propose to increase your presence down the timeline? Comment also on models exported and the growth drivers for the segment.
Tipper and tip trailer market was around 45,000 units in 2015-16. TML had 55% market share in these segments. TML will leverage its product range (suitable for all customer segments across applications) and USP like best in class TCO, reliability and better uptime to gain market share. At Tata Motors we export to nearly 45 countries, constituting nearly 10-12% of our overall volumes. In FY14-15 we exported about 50,000 vehicles from our passenger and commercial vehicles division.
In 2015 alone, we’ve launched our new-generation range of Prima trucks in markets like Tunisia, Riyadh, Kenya, Uganda, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, UAE, Saudi Arabi and also announced our entry into another market Vietnam.
Infrastructure and construction constitute 65-70% of tipper demand. With increased focus on coal production, mining will see an upward movement in coming days. TML with its complete range of tippers best suited for various customer segment across applications will continue to offer best TCO and uptime.