Miron Thoms, Vice President and Head, Volvo Penta in India, points out that Volvo Penta’s products are true global products made in India. We listened to our customers and that is why our products have the capability to work efficiently in any kind of environment across India and the world.

Could you take us through your product launches at Excon 2019?
We utilized the Excon platform to showcase our new BS CEV IV products. Having said that we remain quite focused on the new emission regulations which will roll out in October 2020. We are engaging with our existing customers to ensure that their products are in compliance with the new regulations. We are also in the process of designing new products. This year the prototypes have been finalized and it will be ready for launch in the year 2020.

Any new innovations or technology you’re trying to implement in your upcoming products?
Yes, the onset of BS CEV IV makes it mandatory to incorporate new technologies in our products. But we are more concerned about the end-user. We want to ensure that the operator’s job doesn’t get complicated. Operating the machine needs to remain as simple as today. We believe that the operator should be operating the machine tomorrow, the same way he does today. Even though the after-treatment systems and electronic machine control will become mandatory with the upcoming emission regulations.

How much role of hybrid technology do you see among the OEMs?
We have actually carried out a detailed study on electro-mobility and in the upcoming years, roughly one-third of the complete machinery business will be electrified, because not all the applications, which run on fossil fuels, can be electrified. The attempts at building hybrid machines is on and today many components which were earlier fuel dependent are being powered by electricity. At the OEM level a good deal of conversion has been witnessed. So, it is quite apt to say that many equipment manufacturers in India are focusing on mild hybrid technologies.

What kind of positive role do you see Volvo Penta playing in tackling environmental crisis?
Volvo is known to make highly reliable and efficient products that are consuming less fuel. We were one of the first ones to come up with electronic engine control and implement it in India. While the pursuit for low fuel consumption continues to be on, the operability should not be complex. Operating the machine should remain as simple as possible, especially with new emission regulations and therefore engine after treatment systems being implemented

Environmental care is one of the corner stones of the Volvo Group. Volvo Penta is placing only emission controlled engines on the Indian market – even in applications where there are no emission regulation requirement, in order to “walk the talk”.Also, low fuel consumption goes hand in hand with our care for the environment – less fuel consumption equals less emissions.

How much does your planning and technology change when you undertake a project in different parts of India?
When we create our products, we take the global market into consideration. So, let’s say we design an engine for an Indian customer today and tomorrow he wants to export it to anywhere in the world, there won’t be any hindrance. The temperature in India, in 99 per cent of the cases, is above zero degrees but our engines are designedto work even in sub-zero temperatures as a standard.

All our products are true “global” and can be exported globally. We are listening to our customers around the world, including India to prepare our engines for any kind of environment.

What is your forecast for the sector in 2020?
This year has been very challenging when it comes to the economy. Volvo Penta in India has done fairly welland we are inching closer to our 2018 performance, which is very good, if you consider the circumstances. Going forward, I believe that the first half of 2020 companies will be still cautious in their decision making. The second half holds a lot of promise and shouldbe better.

Miron Thoms, Vice President and Head, Volvo Penta India