Celebrating 150 years (and some mighty fast trucks)
Tata foto1
Tata Group didn’t start out as a vehicle-manufacturing company. However, this is perhaps what it’s best known for in South Africa. It has also done some fantastic things for trucking in its native country, India.
Textiles, iron and steel, hotels, hydroelectric power, locomotives, trucks, cars, aviation, information technology, insurance, chemicals, beverages, and telecoms are just some of the industries the Tata Group has entered into since its inception by Jamsetji Nusserwanji Tata in 1868.
A 29-year-old entrepreneur and philanthropist, whose business savvy was formed working in his father’s banking firm, JN Tata laid the foundations for a global conglomerate that today holds more than 100 companies and employs more than 660 000 people.
Since the early days, employee satisfaction and community development have always been part of the way Tata Group operates. For example, Tata employees were among the first – in the world – to benefit from the likes of provident schemes and maternity leave.
Having created numerous trusts and established the Indian Institute of Science during 1911, 66 percent of the company’s shares are today held by Tata Sons, a charitable trust and the holding company of the group.
The Indian trucking industry, too, has benefited from the Group’s community involvement. When it was realised that “old school” trucking was no longer meeting customer expectations, and that younger generations didn’t see entering the industry as a respectable career choice, the Prima T1 Racing Series was established to promote celebrate the drivers and promote trucking in India.
That was five years ago. Today, four seasons later, the series has evolved to even include customer drivers! The hand-picked customers are trained for three months and race in the amateur class alongside the pros (who, initially, joined from the British Truck Racing Association).
“They are more respected in the industry because of it,” comments Vivek Acharya, senior manager, sales and marketing, trucks and busses.
The Prima has proved to be the natural fit for use in the racing series. Tata’s “world truck”, the Prima is adorned in all manner of global sponsorship livery. Those lucky enough might have even seen the One World Racing vehicle lapping the Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit at the South African Festival of Motoring during September.
It will be in South Africa for a while longer, before heading back to India for the start of the next season in February – once again, doing its part to raise the profile of the trucking industry on the Tata Group’s home soil.
A different Tata
Tata Automobile Corporation South Africa turned 21 years old this year and, in that time, the brand has grown and evolved to offer a vehicle solution for every customer’s needs.
When Tata Automobile Corporation launched in South Africa during 1997, it offered customers just a couple of models, and not much else. However, the brand carefully established its operations and slowly increased its rate of business
“It was a slow start, but from 2003 the company began to expand its range of products. There was massive expansion up to 2008,” comments Sreenath Punathil, general manager, sales and marketing, Tata Automobile Corporation South Africa.
The company expanded so much, in fact, that it was among the top-five original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) operating in the South African market at the time. Of course, 2008 was also the year of the global economic meltdown, but, says Punathil, this didn’t hold Tata back…
“We reengineered our products and made some key introductions to keep volumes up. We learnt from the market at the time and launched the EX2 range between 2009 and 2011.”
Vivek Acharya, senior manager, sales and marketing, trucks and busses, adds: “Operating in the recession, we realised we had to move up to new-generation platforms, hence we prepared to introduce the Prima and Ultra. We also used the opportunity to begin manufacturing locally, opening our semi-knocked down plant in Roslyn, Pretoria, and reaffirming our commitment to the local market.”
Today, the Roslyn plant caters to more than 80 percent of the total volume of trucks and buses sold by Tata in the Southern African Customs Union. It now produces ten different vehicle ranges.
“Tata strongly believes that different customers have different needs – some want the lowest costs, others want finesse and style. We need to understand these needs and cater to all of them. However, every vehicle we sell is built on the foundation of low cost of ownership,” Punathil says.
This approach has been no more apparent than with the most recent addition to Tata showrooms; the Ultra, which was revealed at the 2017 Futuroad expo. In fact, the Ultra story goes back further than that, to 2011, during which time many prototypes were put through development to get the product just right for South African consumers.
“After being unveiled at Futuroad, the Ultra was put into a seeding phase of controlled sales. This was done because we needed to gather customer feedback, which we download on a daily basis though our central office to see how they are performing,” explains Acharya.
Please read here what ProAgri wrote about the Ultra earlier this year.
So far, comments Punathil, the feedback has indicated that the South Africanised Ultra (it may look similar to other models in other markets but underneath it’s very different) is delivering on its four pillars of style, comfort, safety and performance – all while delivering the ultimate goal of low cost of ownership.
We will not launch any product without thorough local testing,” reiterates Punathil. However, the Ultra range has already been expanded with the 1014 model that is designed specifically for high-volume cargo.
While the 500 mm extra length and 200 mm extra width of the standard Ultra returns 13-percent more capacity volume (validated by those customers who tested the vehicles over the past year, notes Punathil), the 1014 model offers an extended wheelbase and longer load body, which allows for even more volume. It also boasts a six-tonne payload with enhanced axle capacities.
“For some customers an eight-tonne truck might be overkill. This vehicle is targeting customers who need to move volume. It offers extra length as a standard solution, so no aftermarket chassis extension by the customer is required,” says Acharya.
While we can expect to see the Ultra range grow further in time (as well as a few other key vehicles in the Tata range, but more on that another time), Punathil reiterates that the strategy of Tata Automobile Corporation remains clear: to address all customer need and all segments of the markets – all while enhancing uptime.
“Our current motto is ‘It’s all about uptime’. We have implemented many initiatives to enhance uptime for our customers, all based on the foundation of low cost of ownership,” he says.
“These initiatives include network development, optimising our aftersales and parts distribution across South Africa (which included a massive parts warehouse reorganisation programme to increase first pick rates and reduce waiting time) and refining our product range for better performance and aggregate lives. We are also in the process of working on some end-to-end solutions to become a one-stop shop for our customers,” he adds.
Allied to these solutions are the standard two-year/120 000 km service plan and enhanced service intervals of 20 000 km (minor) and 40 000 km (major) on the Ultra, as well as the extended five-year/500 000 km warranty on the LPT 813 and 1518 four- and eight-tonne models.
“We are ready for any challenge the market can throw at us,” smiles Acharya.
“Customers can expect to experience a different Tata going forward,” concludes Punathil.
Read our in-depth report on the Ultra
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