Thermo King, a brand of Ingersoll Rand, is a global leader in manufacturing and innovating transport temperature control systems for a variety of mobile applications, including trailers, truck bodies, buses, shipboard containers and rail cars. The company has been a strong player in both bus air-conditioning and truck refrigeration segments in India, posting strong growth year-on-year in line with growing market demand for its product lines.
We spoke to Mr. Sanjeev Seth, Country Leader – HVAC & Transport, India & SAARC Markets, Ingersoll Rand, to find out about Thermo King’s business in 2016, market response for its new products and the company’s future plans.
Excerpts:
How was 2016 for Thermo King in India? How has 2017 started? What are your expectations for the year ahead?
The year 2016 started off on a good note with both transport bus AC as well for transport refrigeration markets growing. In Q4, with demonetization of high value currency, the bus & truck operators had operational issue, which delayed some of the investments in Q4.
Thermo King grew in both bus AC and truck refrigeration over the previous year. There were large opportunities in both bus AC and truck refrigeration which helped driving growth. TK cool bus AC that was launched in 2015 helped driving growth in the large bus coach segment in both sleeper and seater applications. Thermo King continued to command leadership in the truck refrigeration market with its T-Series in the self-powered market and V-Series & Ce Series in the vehicle-powered market.
Thermo King launched new innovative products and features in 2016. The Cold Cube electrically driven reefer box was launched in cold chain show which has generated good enquiries from the pharma segment. The other new launch was the Thermo King Telematics System for T-Series unit. Thermo King Telematics System enables the customers to monitor as well manage their units remotely and improving operational efficiency for the customers. Telematics System is also available as field kit option for existing Thermo King T-Series units in field.
With Diary, Ice Cream, Pharma, Poultry and other segments expected to grow, the current year is also to be a good for transport refrigeration. The industry growth and expansion of operation are going to create demand for new trucks and we expect investments to come in from both large and medium operators. In the bus market, the operators are adding new routes and are expanding / replacing their fleets, driving increased demand for bus AC units. Also with impact of demonetization easing, we expect the market to spring back by the end of Q1.
On the product front, how are your VP Series and T-Series reefer units doing? How has the market received your TK-Cool Series for the bus segment?
Thermo King is working to develop innovative solutions such as this to help customers meet forthcoming regulations and increase sustainability for both large and small deliveries. In India, Thermo King offers a wide range of products for transport refrigeration solutions and bus HVAC solutions.
Thermo King’s T-Series is the result of years of R&D and exhaustive testing. Built on the proven reliability, of the TS & MD product ranges, the T-Series sets new industry standards for reliability, performance and fuel efficiency. The range has been specially developed to exceed the customer’s expectations when it comes to truck refrigeration. The T-Series provides superior performance cooling performance and precise temperature control with lower operation and maintenance cost. It provides multiple features such as higher air flow, complete pre-trip check, in-built service diagnostic codes, etc.
The Telematics System is a new feature being offered with T-Series units, which enables the customer to monitor as well as manage their units from remote location. With Thermo King Telematics System, the customers can remotely monitor their vehicle as well as all parameters of their reefer unit such as set & return air temperature, engine speed, operation mode, etc. The customer can also change these unit settings from remote location through Thermo Kings Telematics System without any interference required from the truck driver.
The Vehicle Power Unit V-Series is a superior temperature control for small trucks and vans. The V-Series offer the optimal temperature control solution for trucks and vans. It offers V-100, V-200, V-300, V-500 & V-800 in India, which caters to various needs to Indian market. Some of the key USP of product are superior temperature control, capacity and air flow to ensure a superior temperature distribution, shorter pull-down and recovery time to guarantee product quality, user-friendly direct smart reefer, improved reliability of electrical components, ease of maintenance and service and ease of installation.
TK-Cool Bus AC: Since its launch in 2015, we are getting great response for TK-Cool Series solutions. With Superior performance, faster cooling & higher airflow, CS-1000 has seen great penetration in both Seater & Sleeper Coach bus applications. TK-Cool products, CS-1000, CS-1100, CF-800 and CF-500 are designed for the Indian bus air conditioner market and are tested for Indian road conditions. With service diagnostic codes inbuilt it has helped faster diagnostics and faster restoration. With Thermo King Service touch points expanded across all major routes, it has helped improve our response and restoration time to the customers.
What are your major targets for the current year and for 2020, in terms of new technology introductions, sales volumes, market share, etc.?
Thermo King will continue to focus on its current bus AC & reefer products offering augmented with its new offerings like telematics system for T-Series units & Cold Cube. We will continue to focus on solution based offering & will work closely with customers to provide right product recommendation based on their application and needs. We will also collaborate with OEMs on their new product platforms for development of suitable products and solutions. We will expand in truck refrigeration market to retain our leadership position and will penetrate further in bus AC market for large and small bus applications.