Page 20 - January_2023

COVER STORY

Addressing ICEMA Annual Session 2022, Nitin Gadkari, Agreement commitments, and the electrification of construction
Road, Transport and Highways Minister said, “There is a need for vehicles, including excavators, loaders, cranes, and telehandlers
an organisation specially dedicated for the for example, will be key in helping construction organisations to
for the domestic construction equipment achieve their environmental targets.
manufacturing industry which can “focus on “Construction machines are responsible for around 400 Mt of CO2
research and give appropriate technology emissions annually, which is around 1.1% of global CO2 emissions.”
for the future”. This will help in planning for While the off-road electric construction vehicle market is at a
the future, and the new organisation would much earlier stage of development than the on-road electric
play an important role similar to what vehicle sector, there is increasing effort within the space to deliver
ARAI (Automotive Research Association zero emission solutions, with a growing number of prototypes.
of India) does for the automobile sector. He emphasised on Globally we are witnessing that electrification of construction
R&D of equipment, promoting innovation, entrepreneurship, vehicles is being led by smaller, more compact machines,
science, technology, research, skill and successfully practice the for example mini-excavators, small wheel loaders and dump
conversion of knowledge into wealth will be the future. According trucks. This is largely because these machines are deployed in
to the minister, without economic viability, technology is not useful. urban environments, and cities are increasingly looking to lower
Furthermore, he stressed on the importance of bio-LNG, bio-CNG exhaust emissions and noise, with electric construction equipment
and Hydrogen as alternate fuels for cost saving and reduction having the added benefit of low-noise zone compliance. This in
in pollution. He said, it was time to change and manufacturing turn provides a safer, more comfortable working environment for
of road construction equipment’s on electric should be started. employees, as noise and vibration are reduced in electric assets,
Industry players participating and visiting bauma CONEXPO would thus reducing the chance of hearing loss and fatigue.
be a witness to the trends shaping up in the CE space. Going on the lines of passenger and commercial vehicles,
construction equipment are also getting electric in India.
Going Green Low-emission driving and working is currently one of the main
Countries all over the globe are increasingly committing to net development goals of the construction machinery industry, with
zero emission targets. Due to this, the construction equipment an international focus on battery-electric drives. The electrification
industry is facing heavy scrutiny for its greenhouse gas emissions. of construction machinery is making quick progress. The electric
According to IDTechEx report, ‘Electric Vehicles in Construction off-highway equipment/machinery market was valued at US$10.49
2022-2042’, the decarbonisation of the construction industry will billion in 2021 and is expected to surpass a net valuation of
play a critical role globally for countries to meet their 2015 Paris US$17.50 billion by 2027 end, registering a solid CAGR growth of

20 CONSTRUCTION OPPORTUNITIES|JANUARY 2023