Construction equipment sector leaning towards autonomous operations and remote fleet management

According to you what are the key market trends likely to be seen in these times, the impact it will have for the overall construction equipment industry, specially your area of business in this sector?
BEML is indigenously manufacturing wide-ranging Mining & Construction equipment of latest technologies and different capacities. The product profile includes; Rear Dump Trucks, Crawler and Wheel Dozers, Hydraulic Excavators, Electric Hydraulic Excavators, Wheel Loaders, Motor Graders, Water Sprinklers, Tyre Handler, Pipe Layers, etc. BEML is well focussed to absorb latest trends and be market sensitive and customer focussed.
There are some key trends on construction equipment that is defining the market currently. The most prominent is the shift towards integrating more Electrical / Electronic gadgets which can be configured for connecting to control room for off-line analysis / on-line analysis – through Telematics. There are also perceptible advancements in mining sector / construction equipment sector leaning towards autonomous operations and remote fleet management. Latest emissions-norms compliant engines would necessitate equipment upgradation.
All these trends would impact positively on with features on equipment bringing in higher productivity, better control over the overall performance, reduced down time indicating high reliability and a push towards cleaner environment

What are the current market drivers and what kind of demand do you foresee?
India is poised to reclaim its position as one of the fastest growing economies in the world; notwithstanding the adverse impact of the pandemic. Government vision to become a 5 trillion dollar economy by 2024-25 and the thrust towards infrastructure development augers well for the Mining & Construction equipment sector.
With the Government’s plan to develop infrastructure in the country; there will be increased demand for construction equipment in next 3-4 years. The total capital expenditure in infrastructure sectors during fiscals 2020 to 2025 is projected at a whopping Rs.111 lakh crore.

Which industry segment is likely to be the biggest consumer of construction equipment?
Major industry segments likely to be the biggest consumer of construction equipment in the near future are Energy (Power), Road & Highways, Urban (Smart Cities, MRTS and Affordable Housing) and Railways.
The other industry segments which are also likely to contribute towards construction equipment business are Ports, Airports and Irrigation Projects.

Which equipment demand is likely to be resilient in the days to come and why? Your take?
Broadly, construction equipment used in different projects are;

• Backhoe Loaders – Power, Road & Highways, Urban, Railways, Ports, Airport and Irrigation Projects.
• Wheel Loaders – Power and Ports Projects.
• Bulldozers – Power, Railways, Road & Highways and Irrigation Projects
• Motor Graders – Road & Highway projects
• Hydraulic Excavator: Road & Highways, Urban, Railways, Airport and Irrigation Projects.

Certainly, the Government’s infrastructure development plans are related to these projects and would boost the construction equipment market in India.
BEML products such as Bulldozers and Motor Graders are “Atmanirbharta” products with 90 ~ 95% local content and customised for the local market. The fact that BEML is able to improve its market share on year on year basis in such products, is indicative of the market acceptability for BEML products. These equipment will continue to have good demand in infrastructure and such related projects in future.

What has been the impact of COVID-19 on Construction Equipment Industry? Your area of business to be specific? Roadmap ahead.
The Construction Equipment Industry did go through challenging times due to outbreak of Covid 19 pandemic; The initial lockdowns did impact supply chain adversely and the supply of equipment and spares to customers were affected as the transport system almost came to a standstill. The shortage of labour force as a result of migration from project sites due to the lockdowns did cause delays in projects.
Impact on imported input items due to global spread of Covid 19 pandemic and related logistic issues have eased, but continues to linger due to the second wave that has necessitated re-imposition of restrictions especially in Europe.
The overall resultant effect was cash flow restriction/Insufficient funds; which also led to a decline in construction equipment market.
However, with the Government’s focussed policy initiatives and efforts the impact has reduced. The Construction equipment market has shown upward trend in the recent past clearly indicating the market resurgence.
6. Looking at the current construction equipment usage norms for different industries, how do you view the current budget?
Current budget has provided a major boost to construction and infrastructure sector, especially Road & Highway, Rail & Metro, Airports and Affordable housing. This will definitely create demand for construction equipment.
The construction and infrastructure development will also boost the related industries such as; Cement (Limestone Mining and Cement Plants), Quarry, Iron & Steel (Iron Ore Mining and Steel Plants). Mining & Construction equipment requirement in these sectors will also improve.

Infrastructure projects will drive demand for construction equipment industry? What do you think?
Infrastructure projects will definitely drive the construction equipment market and major share of equipment sales will be from infrastructure and related sectors.
Infrastructure project will not only boost the construction equipment industry but other related industries such as :
• Energy Sector (Power): Coal Mining Sector
• Road Projects: Cement (Limestone Mining & Cement Plants) and Quarry Sector.
• Railways: Iron & Steel (Iron Ore Mining & Steel Plants) and Cement Sector.
• Urban (Smart Cities, MRTS and Affordable Housing): Cement and Iron & Steel Industries.

Hence, there will be increased demand for Mining & Construction equipment in infrastructure and related industries in future.