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The market forecast for the Cushing Screening & Mining sector is showing some optimism. What is your reaction to the present situation?

The pandemic and lockdown affected the coal and mining sector immensely.  According to the Indian Infrastructure Mining report, in the short-term, the segment may face capex crunch, supply chain issues, manufacturing, and import challenges however, its effect will be subdued in the long term. The market size of the mining equipment industry is expected to be around Rs 219 billion for the year 2024-25 with the highest investment likely in dumpers, followed by crushing, pulverizing, and sizing equipment. The demand and market size projections for the mining equipment industry is based on the bottom-up approach for the period 2020-25. The government post-lockdown has announced more auctioning of the coal blocks with liberal terms and conditions. All these factors will contribute to the growth of the mining industry in the near future.

 
How did you utilize the Lockdown phase during the Corona Virus? Has your company evolved a new method of working?

At CASE, we have always believed in being agile and adaptive. Our teams started acclimatizing to the new normal and creating new ways of working during the pandemic. Our employees have been working from home since the beginning of the lockdown and connecting with each other via multiple digital platforms. Our team is constantly in touch with our dealers and conducting online training to keep them updated on the latest developments. We’ve also continued to provide aftermarket support to our customers by scheduling services while keeping safety and efficiency in mind.
We have sanitized our offices, plants, and warehouses thoroughly to ensure a safe work environment. We’ve increased the number of shifts at our plant from 2 to 3 which has ensured a decrease in the number of people working at a time. Our team also does rigorous planning and scheduling to keep a track of the work being done every day despite the pandemic scare CASE India has also been giving back to the community and helping them through these tragic times. Recently, Case India donated a Blood Tubing Device and a Reverse Osmosis System for water purification and Dialysis treatment to the Chief Civil Surgeon & Resident Doctor of the Dhar District Hospital as a tribute for the services rendered by these frontline warriors. This is a challenging time and CASE India stands with the government’s order of following the strictest protocol at workplaces to ensure employee safety.

Let us know about your product line. 

CASE India has a wide range of products suitable for a variety of industries. In the road compaction segment, CASE offers 752EX (9T Class) Vibratory Tandem Compactor and 450DX Mini Tandem Compactor (3T Class) whereas, in soil compactors, CASE has three variants of 1107EX in 11T class and recently launched 1110 EX- D Soil Compactor (12T Class – Powered by FPT engine developing 110HP).

CASE India has consistently remained a market leader in the Vibratory Compactor segment and has been winning awards for its Compactor consistently for 8 years. Our soil compactors offer great maneuverability through its 15° drum oscillating angle, 37° steering angle, and short steering radius which allows the operator to handle the equipment smoothly and cautiously through the site. The compactor also provides low steering effort which contributes to reducing operator fatigue, it contains a perfect match of frequency and amplitude vibration to the soil which helps in smooth operation, in order to get the best performance. They are also technically equipped to provide information on amplitude, frequency. The CASE 1110EX-D is equipped with an air-conditioned cabin that caters to the operator’s comfort and safety as well.

CASE has 770 EX PRO, CASE 770 EX Magnum PRO, and 851 EX PRO in its loader backhoe segment. Our backhoe loaders are replete with advanced features. Our loader backhoes are powered by an FPT Industrial S8000 engine which delivers powerful performance and fast response time. They’re re-engineered from the ground-up to deliver industry-leading backhoe breakout force and higher loader lift capacity/reach. The heavy-duty front axle with a double effect steering cylinder ensures all wheels remain in contact with the ground even on the roughest terrain, ensuring exceptional stability and reliability. 

And with the recent launch of our CX220C excavator, we have become a full liner catering to every sector’s needs. The 22-ton Excavator is specially engineered as a Heavy Duty version for Indian terrains and works with faster cycle times to deliver higher productivity. Its advanced hydraulic system offers higher breakout forces, improved swing speeds, and greater swing torque, resulting in faster cycle times and a 5% increase in productivity. It develops a gross power of 117 KW (157 hp) and a peak torque of 622 Nm at 1800rpm. The gauge function of this excavator ensures continuous monitoring of the fuel consumption which helps in attaining up to 4% better fuel efficiency due to hydraulic system control and 6% better efficiency from the FPT engine. It is equipped with a CASE Intelligent Hydraulic System (CIHS) that delivers impressive machine control with unrivaled energy and fuel savings in all cycle time phases. The lower cost of ownership also comes with longer service intervals. Another plus is the easy maintenance from the ground level for user comfort and faster service times. The CX220C Excavator is also equipped with CASE India’s renowned Telematics system which provides real-time updates. The cabin has an integrated 7-inch LCD Monitor for real-time parameter monitoring.

CASE India also offers a range of Motor Graders and Crawler Dozers.. CASE 845B is suitable for Road construction & 865B Motor Grader is suitable for mining applications. For Crawler Dozer, there are three models- 1150L and 1650L suitable for road construction and 2050M suitable for mining application. All these Graders and Dozers are equipped with best in class fuel efficient electronically controlled FPT Engine. Additionally, CASE also has an SR130 Skid Steer loader(Rated operating load – 590kg, Equipped with ISM Engine developing 49HP) and is suitable to work in confined spaces for general construction applications.

All of our machines also come equipped with an eagle eye telematics system which helps in monitoring the performance, security, and efficiency of the machine in real-time, and an FPT industrial engine that ensures fuel efficiency and savings. 

Now as the monsoon has departed and there are signs of recovery in the marketplace has your company thought of any action plan for your customers?  

The monsoon is always a slow season for road construction, now post its departure things are looking up and government announcements are also re-assuring of the future. Since the festive season is approaching we are gearing up to make the best of this opportunity and have introduced many lucrative schemes for our customers.
Apart from that, to tackle any liquidity issues, we’ve boosted our capital availability through our financial arm, CNH Capital, and are offering flexible schemes with a 48 hours loan approval policy as well. CASE also offers optional extended warranties on major components, so customers can use their machines more confidently knowing that that CASE will support them through the machine’s lifecycle.  For Fleet owners, Case offers Maintenance Contracts with dedicated service manpower available at the site to ensure uptime. In terms of spare parts and product support, we have a good amount of stock supplies at key locations and even in these challenging times, we are delivering parts and scheduling services via our comprehensive dealer network, keeping all the safety precautions in mind.
Case Sitewatch is also being monitored by the Case After Market team, to ensure that timely action can be taken in case of any potential disruption to work. In such cases, the alarms also reach the customer, in case the operator is not aware. We care about our customers’ business and walk shoulder to shoulder every step of the way.

Have you added any new products or added some new features to your existing product line? 

We’ve recently launched our first ever excavator CX 220 C. It was launched last year at Excon 2019. The 22-ton CHEX excavator is specially designed for the Indian terrain and delivers faster cycle times and higher productivity. Our CHEX excavator develops a gross power of 117 KW (157 hp) and peak torque of 622 Nm at 1800rpm.  It comes with 3 power modes and ten auxiliary hydraulic settings. The in-built CASE Intelligent Hydraulic System (CIHS) further improves fuel efficiency and provides smooth control. The advanced hydraulic system offers higher breakout forces, improved swing speeds, and greater swing torque, resulting in faster cycle times and a 5% increase in productivity. The cabin includes an ergonomically designed seat which provides a better lever position to assure the safety of the operators. It comes with the Eagle-Eye-Telematics system a real-time vehicle tracking and communication system based on GPS technology which keeps a track of your machine’s performance, security, and efficiency.  C.Recently, we conducted roadshows to give our customers some hands-on experience with the excavator and are in the process of bringing it to the market soon