The mother of construction equipment trade fairs is all set to go underway. Ashish Bhatia draws attention to focus areas and future-oriented technology from CE majors this year.
Touted as the largest construction equipment trade fair in South East Asia, Excon 2K21 will take place in Bengaluru between May 17-21, 2022. The trade fair, organised by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) commands support from the host state Bengaluru, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH), Builders Association of India, IGBC, NSIC, Indian Construction Equipment Manufacturers Association (iCEMA) and the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI). This year, the trade fair has Construction Equipment (CE) majors focusing on sustainability, growth, competitiveness and technology as broad organisation-wide goals to attend. The task is cut out, to be the CE hub for the world. Internet of Things (IoT) is set to be a major focus area.
No wonder then, the Business to Business (B2B) trade fair expects a footfall of 40,000+ business visitors and participation from 750+ exhibitors. This year, apart from the usual booths and experience centres, visitors can expect to come across dedicated pavilions like the Artificial Intelligence (AI) pavilion, the Finance pavilion, and an alternative fuels pavilion hinting at the direction in which the CE industry is headed. Expect women to take the wheel of these intimidating machines this year as the focus is also on highlighting the role of women in infrastructure. Indian CE majors will be accompanied by global companies, from across Germany, Italy, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Turkey, UAE, the USA and the UK making it a UFI approved, global trade fair. This year, the calendar of events will commence with an inaugural session attended by key personnel like the Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai among other dignitaries from both, within and outside the state. Atma Nirbhar Bharat, Infrastructure requirements for the armed forces to assess emerging opportunities and smart technology, a session with the Border Roads Organisation and green buildings will be discussed over the course of the trade fair.
The displays
The display this year will treat visitors with an array of choices between earth moving equipment like backhoe loaders, excavators, front end loaders, graders and dozers. Visitors can also hope to come across vibratory soil compactors for earthwork, vibratory tandem rollers and pneumatic tyre rollers for asphalt work in the realm of road construction. There will be paving equipment on the show for rigid and flexible pavements. Besides the material handling equipment, watch out for prime movers including engines and power transmission equipment. Those interested to dive deep into the nuts and bolts will find participants from the components sphere. Spare parts and accessories like pneumatic valves, hydraulic pumps and motors, and pneumatic, hydraulic, and electric tools are required for maintenance and to support CEs for optimum performance. IT solutions will be showcased as a mainstay of integrated project management this year. Besides, there will a stronger presence from ancillaries that include attachments like additives, tyres, fuels and lubes, sealing products, Research and Development (R&D) organisations and technical institutes.
Leading exhibitors at the Excon 2K21 include Tata Motors Ltd. for instance. In a select media preview, the OEM emphasised, that IoT and services will be a major focus area this year where the CV major is looking to sustain its leadership. Committed to higher profit through enhanced productivity, improved TAT, enhanced drive ability and higher revenue generation through a suite of features, Tata Motors’ leadership also emphasised safety as a key focus area. Delving into the details, the senior spokes head from the company, gave a glimpse of the product lineup promised to be enriched variants of the legacy models rolled out in the market. Constituting the Signa and Prima range of trucks, the products will span across surface tippers, RMCs, and a zone dedicated to mining and quarry. The product enhancements include quieter cabins, heavy-duty drivetrain, gear shift advisor, BSVI compliance, and reliable engines among value additions like a higher power-weight ratio. The company hopes to attract customers with an advanced telematics suite in ‘Fleet Edge’ and ‘Sampoorna Seva’ positioned as the best-in-industry service. Moving over the days of Power Take-Off (PTO) as a slave engine, the company will draw attention to its next-gen RMCs with Rear-engine Power Take-Off (Re-PTO).
Among other noteworthy launches, expect Ashok Leyland to draw customers with its CNG engine H Series engine, specially designed in keeping with the requirements of its CEV, mining and off-highway customers. A senior spokes head from the company committed to a strong pipeline of technologies being worked on, leading up to the trade fair. The focus at Ashok Leyland is on helping customers to attain higher fuel efficiency and meet their alternative fuel requirements. CE manufacturers like CASE Construction Equipment array of machines that are expected to include loader backhoe, soil vibratory compactor, apart from excavators and graders. The company is also expected to focus on engine technologies and after sales solutions. Volvo CE India is expected to showcase a compact wheel-loader platform beside a product for tunnelling applications. Volvo trucks India is also expected to bring in its state-of-the-art CEs including the next generation tip trucks that include the FMX range Scania India with its partner Larsen & Toubro will bring in its top mining, and heavy-tipper and also showcase its ready industrial and service exchange engines this year. The focus will be on offering customers optimal and customer-oriented solutions. Mahindra Truck and Bus Division (MTBD) is expected to showcase a host of solutions led by the BlazoX tip trucks and the Furio7 platform. With the speculations around the group division growing louder, expect a focus on the CE industry.
Cummins India Ltd is expected to showcase its state-of-the-art engines for CE. Notably, the focus will be on showcasing the engine’s capabilities in terms of scalability and meeting future emission norms, be it CEV BS V or CEMM BS IV/V. Joint Venture partners Valvoline Cummins Pvt. Ltd. and Fleetguard Filtrum Pvt. Ltd. are also expected to display their products under the spirit of ‘OneCummins’. JK Tyres is expected to showcase its premium OTR tyre range aimed at delivering enhanced mileage and superior traction. It is expected to showcase a heavy-duty tyre for wheel loaders, motor graders and telehandlers besides a specially designed product for mining tip trucks. All in all, expect the CE ecosystem to up the ante this year as well. The Bengaluru weather is expected to give visitors a respite from the heat!
