Our products have always been at the forefront of nation building initiatives.

Kalpesh Soni, Vice President, Marketing, KYB Conmat

What is the current market scenario in concrete equipment? How do you visualize the demand trend for concrete equipment in the coming years and which construction segments drive the demand for your products and solutions?

The market for construction equipment products in India is showing continuous growth and significant potential, with several key factors contributing to it namely:

Infrastructure development: India has many ongoing and planned infrastructure development projects, which includes roads, bridges, airports, metro systems, smart cities, railways, multimodal logistics parks, energy parks etc. These projects are driving the demand for construction equipment.

Urbanization: India's urban population continues to grow, leading to increased demand for residential and commercial construction. This, in turn, fuels the need for construction equipment.

Government initiatives: Government initiatives like ‘Make in India’, ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’, Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes and focus on infrastructure projects like Bharatmala, Sagarmala, new industrial corridors etc, have encouraged domestic manufacturing and investments in the construction equipment sector.

Construction boom: The construction industry in India is experiencing a significant boom, driven by private and public investments in real estate, commercial spaces, and industrial projects.

Technological advancements: Advancements in construction equipment technology, such as telematics, IoT integration, and automation, have improved efficiency and productivity in the construction sector.

Improvement in road construction infrastructure, increasing urbanization rate, and higher investment to boost infrastructure activities serve as the major determinants for the growth of construction equipment in India. With better road transportation infrastructure and a rise in urban population, there exists a greater demand for convenience in personal mobility, healthcare, sanitation, and water supply, among others, which in turn contributes to the boosting demand for construction equipment, attributed to the growth in the construction sector across India.

As per a market research report, the global construction equipment market is estimated at USD200+ billion in 2023, growing at a CAGR range of 5-8% every year. The Indian construction equipment market is poised to grow, seeing the heavy focus of the government on creating physical and digital infrastructure. The India construction equipment market size is estimated at USD7.30 billion in 2024, and is expected to reach USD10.90 billion by 2029, growing at a CAGR of 8.30% during the forecast period (2024-2029). With developing nation’s focus on infrastructure creation, the demand of construction equipment is showing growth. Government schemes like the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) for affordable housing and PM Gati Shakti National Master Plan for infrastructure are driving concrete and cement demand. PM Gati Shakti's focus on transport networks and PMAY's expansion will further increase its consumption in coming years as well, thus leading a heavy demand for the construction equipment sector. 

What are the latest concrete equipment products and solutions offered by the company?

KYB Conmat is one of India's leading manufacturers of concrete equipment and holds a top three position in most segments, including batching plants (20 cu.m.-240 cu.m. per hour with twin shaft mixing technology), road & canal paving machines, self-loading mixers, concrete pumps and transit mixers. The company’s product range includes concrete batching plant (30 cu.m./hr to 240 cu.m./hr), mobile batching plant (20 cu.m./hr to 30 cu.m./hr), canal paving machine, road paving machine, transit mixer (6 cu.m. to 8 cu.m.), self-loading mixer (2.5 cu.m. to 4.8 cu.m.) and concrete pump, with the products known for their ‘Value for Money’.

We recently launched three new models of self-loading mixers namely CSLM 2500, CSLM 4200L and CSLM 4300S. The CSLM 4200L and CSLM 2800 models have 74.5 HP BS-IV engine and are designed in such a manner that they don’t require AdBlue, have better operational and cost efficiency, and are sustainable in nature. The 2500 mixer model can be extremely useful in small and medium construction sites where there are constraints regarding space. We constantly bring innovations in our products and launch them in the market on a continuous basis as per the industry needs. 

What are the technology innovations in your product range? How are these innovations helping in better productivity and efficiency in construction projects?

We continuously research the market needs, understanding the trends and requirements and integrate smart technologies and automation solutions into our equipment. Some of them are as follows:

Remote monitoring: Smart sensors and remote monitoring systems allow operators and managers to keep a close eye on equipment performance, fuel consumption, and maintenance needs in real-time, enabling proactive maintenance and reducing downtime.

IoT (Internet of Things): IoT devices and sensors are embedded in equipment to gather data on various parameters like temperature, pressure, and load. This data is analyzed to improve equipment performance and efficiency.

Energy efficiency: Equipment is being designed to be more energy-efficient, reducing fuel consumption and emissions.

Remote fault detection: Our advanced software and SCADA system enables remote operation and fault detection in our batching plant.

Our self-loading concrete mixers are IoT enabled, BS-IV and ARAI compliant, and offer better fuel efficiency, high productivity, better mix quality, and faster loading and discharge due to an advance blade design and electronic batching system with printer, produce more concrete per batch by optimized drum capacity, which reduces the overall cost per cubic meter of concrete. Further, these self-loading mixers offer superior manoeuvrability by single joystick control, 4-wheel steering/4-wheel drive system, also offer superior operator comfort due to reversable operator seat and balanced load distribution on front and rear axles.

Overall, the integration of smart technologies and automation solutions in our construction equipment are aimed at enhancing productivity, reducing operational costs, improving safety, and optimizing resource utilization. These advancements are rapidly transforming the industry and enabling more efficient and sustainable construction practices.

Can you highlight the recent projects where your equipment and technologies played a major role?

Our products are playing a key role in the important construction projects of the nation. Just to quote some recent projects where our products have been used:

·        Surat Diamond Bourse, the world’s largest office building

·        Bullet train project construction near Bharuch and Surat

·        GIFT City development in Gandhinagar

·        Krishna retaining wall project in Andhra Pradesh

·        Hydroelectric project in Bhaiyathan (Chhattisgarh)

·        Irrigation dam project in GADA (Betul district, MP)

·        Gandhi Sagar pumped storage project in Neemuch District of Madhya Pradesh

Our products have always been at the forefront of nation building initiatives, and we are proud of that.