Upgrading Technology
The current upswing in road construction has seen the size of the motor grader market rise. Demand is being seen across both the heavier (170-180-200 hp) and lighter class (140-150 hp) of motor graders. The higher-powered machines are generally used for grading requirements of 160-200 cum/hr, while the lighter units are for grading requirements of 100-120 cum/hr. A major chunk of the demand is coming from subcontractors.
Motor graders are a highly-evolved technology product. The grader has a strong role in the pre-compaction stage and sub-base preparation with fine grading, spreading, and levelling the ground. It uses a hydraulic blade to push large amounts of soil and can be adjusted with a simple lever by the operator. The higher-powered machines are generally used for grading requirements of 160-200 cum/hour, while the lighter units are for grading requirements of 100-120 cum/hour.
Growing market
A report from Off-Highway Research revealed, “Sales of motor graders follow very closely the trends of expenditure on the construction of new roads and the maintenance of the road network, so demand for machines will largely depend on the speed at which existing and future road projects are executed. The backlog of pending road construction work in the country as well as the government’s ambitious infrastructure development plans, offer huge potential for growth in the motor grader demand.”
Speaking on the current market size of motor graders in India, Vivek Hajela, Vice President and Head – Construction Equipment Business, Larsen & Toubro, said, “Motor graders are a highly-evolved technology product and now mandatory for the construction of highways. The grader has a strong role in the pre-compaction stage and sub-base preparation with fine grading, spreading, and levelling the ground. It uses a hydraulic blade to push large amounts of soil and can be adjusted with a simple lever by the operator. We can roughly divide the graders into three categories – small, medium, and large. Put together, the market size of graders in India is 1,600 numbers annually. Komatsu graders viz., GD535 and GD555 are popular models in the premium segment and have a pan-India presence with deployment in highways and expressways. The large-size Komatsu Grader models like GD705 and GD825 have been deployed for maintenance of haul roads in coal and mining projects.”
The demand for motor graders is directly proportional to the construction of roads and highways. Both Central and State Governments have been giving impetus to roads and highways since the early 2000s when Golden Quadrilateral and North-South/East-West corridors construction was underway. Since then, the demand for motor graders has expanded. The construction of roads and highways has further expanded to Bharatmala, expressways, economic corridors, coastal roads, strategic roads at the border, etc., and now the announcement of the National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP) encompasses all of them.
During the past few years, government spending on infrastructure and construction activities is on the rise globally, especially in developing nations like India, China. The compact design of the grader is highly suitable for small to medium road projects in villages and cities and also makes them the most preferred choice of contractors for road projects like Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Soyjna (PMGSY) schemes, etc. in developing nations like India.
According to Motor Intelligence report, “The motor graders market is projected to grow with a CAGR of more than 5 per cent during the forecast period”.
The Asia-Pacific region remains the largest market for motor graders market. This growth can be attributed to the factors such as increasing construction activities in the countries like China, India, which are the fastest developing nations in the world. The government in the region is spending heavily on developing world-class facilities, which are driving the demand for motor graders.
Wide range of motor graders
Gmmco and Caterpillar recently launched the new generation, motor Grader, SEM 915 on January 20, 2021. V Chandrashekar, Managing Director & CEO, Gmmco, said, “We have been selling SEM machines since 2011. We are successful with wheel loaders SEM 656D and SEM 636, dozer SEM 816, and the motor grader SEM 919. Now, we are expanding our portfolio with the addition of SEM 915 motor grader,” commenting on the growth of SEM products.
“We understood the customer need for a 150 HP motor grader in India. Hence, we designed the SEM 915, specifically for India, focusing on improved reliability and reduced operating costs. SEM will be a reliable partner in our customer’s journey by offering minimum disturbance and lowest cost,” showcasing SEM’s commitment to continued growth in India,” said Hamid Lavassani, Global Sales & Distribution Manager (SEM) of Caterpillar Inc.
Many other big players in the region are spending heavily on research and development of environment-friendly and technologically advanced motor graders to reduce the pollution in the region and reduce human efforts and enhance productivity in minimum time. For instance, Shandong Lingong Construction Machinery (SDLG) announced the addition of the latest product G9290, which is a heavy-duty motor grader. With a base operating weight of 22.9 tonnes and a 14” wide blade as standard, the impressive productivity of blade downforce and blade pull makes the SDLG G9290 the best in its size class.
SDLG is banking on its 12-tonne G9 138, powered by 111kw engine, and 15-tonne G9190, powered by 148 kW engine199 hp motor graders to build up sales. Said Surat Mehta, Head – Marketing & Retail Development, SDLG, “Both the products deliver the lowest cost of operations, with the capability to work in tough site conditions in airports, highways, road construction, and water conservancy construction. Their efficient no-spin differential axle greatly improves the dynamics and trafficability. G9138 is equipped with a robust power shift transmission to adapt to complex work requirements.”
CASE has a strong portfolio of motor graders 865B and 845B customised for tough mid-mining projects and large road projects. CASE graders are powered by in-house FPT engines with variable horsepower, which deliver maximum performance with optimal fuel consumption in all working conditions. There are over two lakh FPT engines working extraordinarily well in the field today, which is a testament to the reliability of the performance of FPT engines.
Another unique feature of the CASE motor grader is the mouldboard. CASE mouldboards are available in a range from 12-14 ft, which are recommended on the basis of the application and strata of use. CASE mouldboards have two unique features. Firstly, they are hydraulically controlled, meaning the operator can adjust the pitch of the angle of the mouldboard from the comfort of the air-conditioned cabin, compared to conventional methods – thus saving time. Secondly, the CASE graders have a unique multi-radius mouldboard, which ensures that maximum material is rolled off in each pass, further improving productivity by reducing the number of passes required.
Said Sandeep Mathur, Brand Leader, CASE India, “At CASE, we’re ready to make the most of these opportunities with our portfolio of motor graders 865B & 845B customised for tough mid-mining projects and large road projects.”
CASE has a strong portfolio of motor graders 865B and 845B customised for tough mid-mining projects and large road projects. CASE graders are powered by in-house FPT engines with variable horsepower, which deliver maximum performance with optimal fuel consumption in all working conditions. There are over two lakh FPT engines working extraordinarily well in the field today, which is a testament to the reliability of the performance of FPT engines.
Another unique feature of the CASE motor grader is the mouldboard. CASE mouldboards are available in a range from 12-14 ft, which are recommended on the basis of the application and strata of use. CASE mouldboards have two unique features. Firstly, they are hydraulically controlled, meaning the operator can adjust the pitch of the angle of the mouldboard from the comfort of the air-conditioned cabin, compared to conventional methods – thus saving time. Secondly, the CASE graders have a unique multi-radius mouldboard, which ensures that maximum material is rolled off in each pass, further improving productivity by reducing the number of passes required.
Added Mathur, “At CASE our motor grader comes equipped with the remote diagnosis and monitoring technology – equipment is installed with a unique trip meter on the operator dashboard that continuously monitors the fuel consumption, hours operated, and operating temperatures. Electronic indicators are also connected to the dashboard for safety or operation-related parameters. CASE’s motor graders are also equipped with closed air conditioning ROPS cabins whereas most of CASE’s competitors provide an open canopy.”
The air suspension seat further adds to the operator’s comfort. “Our machines also come equipped with a multitude of smart features such as an eagle eye telematics system which helps in monitoring the performance, security, and efficiency of the machine in real-time. The operator can also customise all the working parameters of the machine to achieve excellent controllability and faster cycle times. The automated functions in the cab, which includes an electrohydraulic joystick to customise the reversing and steering sensitivity, make the drivers’ job easy, allowing them to achieve shorter cycle times and boost their productivity,” he added.
Mahindra & Mahindra introduced its BSIV compliant construction equipment with the launch of the new BSIV compliant Motor Grader - Mahindra RoadMaster G9075 and G9595 under the aegis of its Construction Equipment business. Said Jalaj Gupta, Business Head, Commercial Vehicles, Mahindra Construction Equipment, “Keeping with the brand purpose for the construction equipment business, to guarantee prosperity for our customers. With the advent of new emission norms for the Construction Equipment industry, today we are pleased to launch our BSIV compliant range of the Mahindra RoadMaster Motor Graders. These tough and reliable products have been designed and developed in India after an in-depth understanding of the needs of the consumers, which is the hallmark of Mahindra’s product development process.”
The entire MCE BSIV range will have a robust iMAXX telematics solution providing customers with diagnostic, prognostic, and predictive fleet management along with many other category-leading features. True to the company’s belief of providing disruptive services, we are reaffirming our assurance of superior performance, higher uptime, and lower operating and owning costs, thereby higher profits.
Added Gupta, “New BSIV RoadMaster range offers an optimised solution and precisely caters to the road contractor’s grading needs for government flagship programmes such as smart cities, Bharatmala, etc. as well as for major district roads, state highways, border roads, and expansion of national highways. G9075 is powered with 74HP CRI Engine and increased torque up to 350 NM which is ideal for state highways, rural roads, district roads, and other projects under PMGSY. This motor grader is coupled with a 3 m (10 ft) wide blade and is optimised to deliver zero compromise grading at a fractional 40 per cent cost as compared to conventional motor graders.”
G9595 is powered with 95 HP CRi Engine and increased torque up to 400 NM which is ideal for National Highway and their expansion process, rail corridor, and industrial plot levelling. Keeping operator comfort in mind, G9595 comes with an ergonomically designed air-conditioned cabin. It provides operator’s fatigue-free operating experience helping them improve overall productivity.
RoadMaster range will augment the product portfolio of large contractors and will be an optimal solution for constructing medium roads, state highways as well as national highways. They are also apt for applications such as embankment or earthwork for laying of railway tracks and levelling of large plots for industrial construction and ports.
L&T offers Komatsu motor grader models in the 150 hp-280 HP range for the Indian market. For roads and highways, our latest generation model Komatsu GD535-5 incorporates advanced technology of dual-mode transmission with lock-up converter, hydraulic blade tip control, KOMTRAX technology, and emissions engine compliant with current norms. This has enabled the contractors to introduce the state-of-the-art product for the construction of Indian roads which has ushered new benchmarks in grader performance.
“Komatsu motor grader model GD535 is digitally compliant and incorporates the KOMTRAX technology for tracking location and health parameters. This latest technology enables the users to get the best out of the machine in terms of performance and productivity. The contractors take advantage of this digitalisation and work towards stepping up machine output and operator efficiency. In the graders, jobs like turning, steering, maintaining blade height, angle, and managing power are specialised tasks for the operators. Contractors face a shortage of skilled operators and look for alternate ways to speed up the work, without operator fatigue and improve the accuracy,” said Hajela.
VG Sakthikumar, Managing Director, Schwing Stetter India, said, “Motor graders used in mining applications are at least of 15.5-16T class with 200HP engine. To elaborate, GR3505 is an advanced heavy-duty mining grader designed for Australian mining giant Rio Tinto. To meet the high requirements of Rio Tinto, XCMG set up a special R&D group including its CAE centre, hydraulic centre, electronic control centre, etc. to carry out technical improvement in the aspects of intelligent control, energy-saving, noise control, stability, etc. Thanks to the hard work of the engineers, XCMG made breakthroughs in 13 technical aspects, and the new model boasts an international advanced level. The launch of GR3505 adds to the already wide spectrum of XCMG's mining series.”
Added Sakthikumar, “XCMG motor grader GR1605 is one of the latest products from our company. It is of 13.5 T capacity and has a variable horsepower 140-170 HP with ZF Germany gearbox and transmission. It has much wider and clearer operator visibility and digital control panel.”
“Technology trends start with the engine at the first place followed by transmission, GPS, fleet management system, etc. All mechanical engines which were used once are now being slowly replaced by variable horsepower and electronic fuel injection engines. This multiple curve engine will deliver power according to the load requirement. Transmissions are moving to automatic power shift type, where the user or rather operator is relieved from the conventional gear-changing process. This latest automatic power shift-type changes the gears based on speed. GPS and fleet management systems are going to be incorporated by OEMs in a big way. Because of the increasing rental market in India, the owners are, of late, paying more attention to having control of the machine running at a distant site. This will help the machine owners to track the exact performance and position of the machine used in a particular project. IoT in XCMG motor graders has automatic levelling technology which helps in grading with ease,” he added.
Increased automation
Ground levelling is essential for construction, and motor graders play a vital role in increasing efficiency and reducing tedious labour. Saurabh Kulkarni, Mobile Automation Expert, B&R Industrial Automation, said, “Our modular X90 control and I/O system bring all the functionality of advanced automation solutions to construction equipment, providing precise and accurate slope and height control from the control area. Deployment of B&R control and software platform guarantees ease of machine operation, higher efficiency, and productivity. All products belonging to the X90 family can handle operating temperatures from -40 to +85 degrees Celcius and are resistant to vibration, shock up to 50 g, salt, UV light, and oil. These systems are coupled with condition monitoring functions allowing predictive maintenance functionality to motor graders. With condition monitoring, OEMs can increase machine availability, further reducing the considerable cost of outages and unplanned service calls in motor graders. In addition, data recording and seamless connectivity to the cloud are more features being provided by our powerful X90 platform.
Said Kulkarni, “Indian OEMs are moving from reactive maintenance to preventive maintenance. Condition-based predictive maintenance maximises machine availability and saves the considerable cost of outages and unplanned service calls. It helps machine operators monitor the equipment's health 24/7 and enables them to utilise the maximum life cycle of a device in the kit. Our mobile automation solution is already equipped with condition monitoring functions, which help to detect problems in their early stages and reduce unplanned downtime. The data and further analytics help determine exactly which components require maintenance and when. Typical applications include continuous monitoring of machines rotating components such as hydraulic pump assemblies, belts, gears, and motors. The mining and construction activities demand higher productivity, competitive operational costs, and tight completion schedules. Technological advancements are helping OEMs and contractors by assuring higher productivity, better consistency, and availability. This allows them added cash flow to take care of their financial liabilities, make a better profit, and avoid penalties.”
Conclusion
CE market is expected to witness an upsurge in technology demand and see an incursion of increased digitisation and advanced automation concepts coupled with enhanced safety. While many large machine builders have already incorporated digital technologies, we expect the use of technologies to become more extensive among construction equipment manufacturers of all sizes in the coming years.
|
Benefits of RoadMaster motor graders in rural roads construction The major difference in Indian roads compared to those of the developed countries is that even today around 94 per cent of the roads In India are small and medium (rural and district) roads whereas these percentages in developed countries are usually less than 30 per cent. As India is a highly populated country there is already some form of road connectivity available in most parts and the further development of these roads will be more of a case of upgradation/development than new construction. The current motor graders available in India today except RoadMaster are in a price and operating cost range which makes them unaffordable for use by small contractors. RoadMaster motor graders on the other hand give the lowest cost per spreading and grading not only with conventional motor graders but also with manual laborers which possibly can be the most basic form of spreading and grading making it the most value for money spreading and grading option in India today viable for even the smaller road contractors. The second biggest problem is in the size of the motor graders. Most of the rural roads are built passing small towns and villages where settlements usually come up adjoining the roads due to better transportation access. This further narrows the space available to travel and work for motor graders. Also, since these rural roads connect several villages, the traffic cannot be stopped while constructing the road as this is the only means of transport so the graders need to be compact enough to be able to let vehicles pass without having to get off the road. The smallest village roads in India are 3 meters wide with a shoulder of approximately 0.75m on either side giving a total width of around 4.5 meters. RoadMaster graders with an overall width of 2.1 m allow for a space of approximately 2.4 meters for another vehicle to pass while working on the road. This is not possible on bigger graders due to the higher width coming around 2.4 meters. The third reason why imported graders will not be able to work in smaller rural roads is the complexity in design and scarcity of dealer outlets. As rural roads are mostly in interiors in case of breakdown it will firstly take a technician days to reach the site and inspect the issue and then a few more days to get the spare parts and get the machine up and running. Whereas due to the simple design of RoadMaster graders the breakdowns are less and even in case of some repair these are easy to identify and correct which can be accomplished locally with the help of a qualified service engineer. The spare parts being easily available as it is a Made in India machine also adds to the faster uptime for RoadMaster motor graders. The fourth important aspect is the quality of finished graded material. Despite being a slightly smaller machine the quality of camber/grading with RoadMaster is comparable to that of any imported grader. As a result of this, there is no difference, in the end, result in terms of quality of work. The fifth important reason is that not only are RoadMaster motor graders designed for India but are also extensively tested in India in different applications and conditions before launch which has ensured its performance in the Indian conditions so that the customers can rest assured that RoadMaster will accomplish the tasks it is put up to. The sixth important reason is that Mahindra is an Indian customer-centric brand that will be there for its customers no matter what. This cannot be said for the other international brands which can shut shop in India and go back leaving their customers stranded with the machine but without proper spare parts and service support. Apart from these, there are many other tangible and intangible benefits, but these benefits are themselves sufficient enough to consider RoadMaster motor graders as a superior option for spreading and grading road material on small and medium roads. The proof of this is
in the RoadMaster motor graders sold in India in the last two years. Out of
the over 600 graders sold many are being used in constructing rural roads
helping build an #Atmanirbhar Bharat. |
A-303, Navbharat
Estates,
Zakaria Bunder Road,
Sewri (West), Mumbai - 400 015,
Maharashtra, India
+91-22-24193000
Subscriber@ASAPPinfoGlobal.com