The construction equipment (CE) industry - in many ways - is similar to the automotive segment. Both are manufacturing intensive and both rely heavily on component suppliers and dealers. Of course, the functions and the end users of the products are different. One creates infrastructure and the other uses it. But just like the automotive industry, the CE market too needs to be kept refreshed by introducing new products to suit customer dynamics.

And this requires a huge focus on R&D, which JCB is famous for. Not surprisingly, at the Excon 2013, one of the biggest exhibitions for the CE industry, JCB introduced 19 new products. "This is the largest number of products introduced by any CE manufacturer in India and all the products are doing extremely well in the market," informs Sondhi. Another key reason for JCB's success is the focus it puts on the operator. "We provide best in class operator comfort through ergonomically placed operator controls, all around visibility during digging, loading and positioning," he says.

Manufacturing prowess
Currently, JCB has three operational manufacturing units; one in Ballabgarh and two in Pune. Besides, it also has two upcoming units in Jaipur. The first unit was set up in early 1980s in Ballabgarh, Haryana, in an era when infrastructure growth was not the priority for the Government. So initially, the plant was barely churning out 50 or 100 or at the most 200 machines per year. Today, capable of producing 100 machines per shift, it is the world's largest backhoe loader plant. In fact, JCB has more than 60 percent market share in this product segment in India. The Ballabgarh plant also manufactures Liftall, JCB's pick-&-carry crane and the ‘ecoMAX' engine, which is the first domestically built engine developed exclusively for off-highway applications. The engine boasts of high fuel efficiency under Indian working conditions.

Spread over 100 acres, JCB has two facilities in Pune; the first plant manufactures exports oriented fabrications and components while the second plant manufactures heavyline machines like tracked excavators, wheel loaders and compactors with a manufacturing capacity of 4,500 machines per annum. "Lean manufacturing principles are followed through JCB Production system. For example, the manufacturing process of the engine plant works on the ‘no fault forward' production model. To maintain high quality standards, the engine is verified at every stage of production using cutting edge technology, cameras, and sensors providing optimum engineering value to the manufactured product."