4th Bus & Special Vehicle Show Showcases Major Technical Breakthroughs

The 4th Bus & Special Vehicle Show brought to the fore major achievements of the industry on its inaugural day. Organised by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), the show was inaugurated yesterday at the India Expo Mart, Greater Noida, Delhi.

The show is scheduled for 15 - 17 January 2015 and shall provide a common platform for the manufacturers and enthusiasts to connect over the booming commercial vehicles industry.

The show was inaugurated by Ambuj Sharma, Additional Secretary, Department of Heavy Industries. Accompanying him at the ceremony were Mr. Arvind Saxena, President & Managing Director, General Motors and Mr. Vishnu Mathur, Director General, SIAM. Addressing the gathering, Mr. Sharma said, that the Vehicles industry contributes to 7 to 8 percent of the national GDP and 20 percent of the total excise duty collection.

He said that last decade saw a compound annual growth rate of approximately 12 percent despite the couple of speed breakers which is heartening for the industry. He further added that the industry has a fair head-room for growth and would be ably supported by the government to help increase the ease of acquiring and operating.

The opening day of the event saw the launch of Ashok Leyland Versa, its first ever electric bus. The 36 seater bus is driven by 52 units of Lithium Iron Batteries of 24V 135 Ah. The all electric drivetrain results in minimal environmental impact including zero tailpipe emissions.

Key Highlights:

• Force Motors displayed specially customized vehicles such as Fire brigade, an ambulance, School bus, a luxury Tempo Traveller and a SUV
• General Motors displayed 2 Enjoy MPV, one was custom build and a Tavera.
• Isuzu Motors showcased a Pickup truck customised as a mobile service vehicle.
• Mahindra & Mahindra showcased a new BS4 40 Seater school bus (Tourister cosmo BS4), a 40 Seater Staff bus (Tourister cosmo BS3), a Maxximo Mini School Van and an electric car.
• Renault showcased the latest 4WD Duster and Scala.
• SML Isuzu showcased 3 buses
• Tata Motors showcased a range of their commercial vehicle products, including ULTRA MIDI 900 mm AC, ULTRA BS4 & 3 L Engine AC vehicle, ULTRA BS3 & Safe School Bus, 1512 LUXURY Bus, Articulated Bus & LONG City Bus, Winger DICOR BS4, and a BUS MUSUEM at their stall
• Toyota Kirloskar Motors put on display the HiAce which is scheduled to be launched in the 2nd quarter of this year
• Mitsubishi showcased a Pajero Sports.

Allison Transmission, Hindustan Petroleum, Innova Rubbers, K B Autotech, Panasonic India, Sidhwal Technologies, State Bank of India, Meenakshi Polymers, AVL, Trans ACNR Solutions Pvt Ltd too showcased major technical breakthroughs achieved in their domains.

The prime objective of this show remains to showcase the latest technological developments in the industry thus providing manufacturers an ideal platform to interact with focused customers with higher visibility especially in launching new products.

The show was visited by School & Hospital managements; Government & State transport authorities, and other stakeholders.