每日吃瓜

According to your assessment what makes a customer excited and choose your brand of excavator?
A customer chooses a particular brand based on the benefits he derives and the key parameters he considers are:
Innovation and technology: Komatsu is the world?s second largest earthmoving and mining machinery manufacturer. Komatsu is the largest manufacturer of excavators in the world. Komatsu started manufacturing excavators in 1968 and has been in the forefront in excavator technology development andintroducing premium technology products.

Product range that the company offers: Komatsu manufactures excavators ranging from 0.3T to 800T and caters to all class of customers. This capability builds the confidence with the customer that the company understands his needs, has a clear vision and has the capability to meet every requirement he has.This is coupled with the wide range of product support offerings from L&T like the Machine Care Programs, Site Support Arrangements, Full Maintenance Contracts, etc.

Product Support: Komatsu products are backed by L&T?s benchmark product support which is the best in the industry.The network of L&T engineers spares depots,service stations and dealer outlets are unmatched thus delivering higher uptime for Komatsu excavators. This adds tremendous value to the customer.

Product development: Komatsu is the pioneer in launching new products and variants to addressvarious customer requirements.Komatsu is continuously innovating and introducing the technologiesof thefuture that focus on economy for customers and ecology for the benefit of society at large. Introduction of hybrids,autonomous machines, usage of emissionised engines, machine tracking systems and extensive use of ICT (Information and communication technology) have made Komatsu the clear leader in the excavator industry. In India Komatsu offers a wide range of excavators with variants to meet a wide range of applications hence, is a one-stop-shop for earthmoving needs.

An average Indian customer is ?value? driven rather than ?feature? driven? What is the impact of this on design front, on product placement and on ?value add ons??
A customer in India is conscious about ?value?, where he perceives a monetary benefit in terms of fuel economy, productivity and reliability and therefore needs to be apprised on the features that sum up to provide value. Design features like pump and engine mutual control, e-CLSS technology, various operating modes, auto deceleration, relief operation caution, eco guidance and idling caution all cumulatively add up to provide values that get translated in monetary savings for the customer. Evolutionary improvements on our machines provide significant changes in machine performance and reliability.The improved features add value to the customer and this definitely is appreciated by a large section of our customers. As the markets mature, we find that more and more customers are moving towards premium machines like Komatsu.

Could you brief us on the growth drivers for excavator segment?
The general construction segment contributes to close to half of the excavator demand and is showing signs of revival. The issues facing the road sector over the last few years are likely to be resolved and this segment is also expected to revive. Urban infrastructure development will give a boost to the marble and quarry segment which contributes to 12-15 per cent of the excavator demand. Infrastructure developmentwill also give a boost to the stone and aggregate quarrying which generates a demand of about 15 per cent of the excavator industry. A lot of ambitious projects like river linking, Namami Gange are likely to give a boost in the irrigation segment. Also there are thoughts of using rivers for inland transportation. These projects will give a big boost to the excavator demand.