SCHWING – XCMG’s mining machinery products are designed to meet the high standards of safety, efficiency, and environmental protection in various types of mining operations

XCMG’s mining machinery products are capable of delivering high performance and reliability in challenging terrains and climates. In an exclusive interview to CONSTRUCTION OPPORTUNITIES,
V. G. SAKTHIKUMAR, CMD, SCHWING STETTER INDIA PVT LTD, speaks about the latest trends in the mining equipment industry,  cutting edge technologies, after – market services and a lot more.

Give a brief overview of the mining equipment industry, market dynamics, latest trends and the sector challenges.

Mining Equipment Industry & Market Dynamics:

The global mining equipment market is anticipated to grow at a substantial CAGR of 5.5% in the upcoming years. Asia-Pacific is anticipated to be the largest market for mining equipment during the forecasted period (2023-2028). This is attributed to expansion in the mining projects across India and China to resonate strong potential for mining equipment demand.

Latest Trends & Technology:

The use of telematics in the mining industry has proven to be a game-changer. Internet of things (IoT) sensors provide feedback to the fleet manager, which ensures lower downtime due to malfunctions and helps plan maintenance activities. With an increasingly competitive environment across all industries, companies are constantly looking for process optimization, which, in turn, has increased the demand for automation in the mining industry. Drones are being used for the exploration and surveillance of mines.

Sector Challenges:

Some of the key challenges faced by the mining equipment market are cost competitiveness and equipment financing. Apart from these, other challenges faced by the mining equipment market include limited information technology and automation, lack of availability of spare parts and assemblies, procedural delays in equipment procurement such as regulatory and administrative procedures of mining companies. Also, the lack of skilled workforce, which ultimately lowers the utilization level of the equipment owned by a company, poses a major challenge.

Tell us of your various product offerings, applications and their demand in the Indian market. Any new products launched or enhancements to the existing product line, detail us on the same.

The mining equipment consists of various product offerings that aid in the precision and effectiveness of various surface and underground mining task, blasting tools, mining drills, crushing equipment, screening equipment, conveying, earthmovers, feeding & analytical equipment are among the several types of machinery.

XCMG has various products for mining applications that are equipped with smart features and offers efficiency and maximum productivity. From the excavator range XE250C LC, XE380C and XE520C is specially designed for the toughest applications. Fitted with a world known ISUZU engine to ensure high productivity with low fuel consumption, these excavators are ideally suited for Coal mining, Iron ore mining, Copper and Zinc. Stronger heavy-duty arm, boom and undercarriage structures improve the machine’s durability in the harsh mining terrains. It is very easy to maintain from the ground level, which makes it a good choice for the mining application.

In addition, XCMG is planning to bring new 5Ton Wheel loader and Motor grader in India to take entry into Mining segment with complete package of machineries.

Detail us about the cutting edge technology in your machines in terms of telematics, smartness and IoT. What are the USP’s of your machines.

Mining companies are constantly looking for process optimization, which, in turn, has increased the demand for automation in the industry. XCMG’s IoT system provides feedback to the fleet manager, which ensures lower downtime due to malfunction and helps plan maintenance activities. Mining machinery synced with telematics solutions are expected to drive the mining machinery market. 

Factors such as safety, operator comfort, ease of operations are crucial in mining equipment. What are the steps undertaken by you for providing the same.

SCHWING – XCMG’s mining machinery products are designed to meet the high standards of safety, efficiency, and environmental protection in various types of mining operations. All machines are equipped with ROPS, FOPS, HVAC cabin, and other features to ensure operator safety and comfort in all types of mining conditions. XCMG’s mining machinery products are also capable of delivering high performance and reliability in challenging terrains and climates. XCMG is committed to providing complete solutions for the full cycle of mining operations and infrastructure construction projects.

To what extent are aftermarket services a strategic differentiator.

SCHWING – XCMG always was close to the customer, Using the support of technology, we have taken innovative paths like supporting the customers virtually, having technical discussions and arrive at total concrete solutions without much of human involvement. This is keeping us busy at factory, our After sales support has done similar service where we have serviced the customer via video calls for immediate solutions apart from giving them regular service. This has helped us to keep happy of our existing clientele and as a word of mouth we have acquired good number of new customers also.

Your strategy to play in a price sensitive market.

The current market trends are price sensitive as operating costs of construction and concreting machinery have increased majorly due to the hike in fuel prices. Price increase of steel and freight charges are some backend issues we must tackle in reducing the price of our machines. SCHWING – XCMG’s solution to these problems has been the recently launched machine range which assures higher output capacity, economical fuel consumption and decreased logistic costs. With this product range we are able to facilitate a working environment that has higher productivity rates at lesser operating costs for our customers.

Tell us about your manufacturing facilities and dealer network in India

The manufacturing facility for XCMG machines in located in the Global Manufacturing Hub, Cheyyar. Our exponential dealer network has now 29 location all over India and is still growing with a positive outlook

Emerging trends in the equipment finance and rentals in mining equipment. To what extent is consumer behavior influenced by cost.

We only deal in selling our machines and do not provide the option of renting our equipment. Affirming this belief, about 80% of the leads we receive are for buying our equipment and we perceive that the market trends point to rising demands in buying construction machinery. The main enquiries we receive regarding the performance or features of our machines mostly pertain to the durability of the structure & technology, the affordability of machine, consistency of output, productivity of the machine and the total reliability of the machine. The rising fuel prices is also something our customers and as company that firmly believes in customer satisfaction, we have incorporated fuel saving features that does not affect the operating power and torque of the machine.

Future outlook for the mining industry and from a company perspective.

The mining industry is now recovering to pre-Covid-19 levels. The future of the mining eq-uipment market in India looks positive, backed by opportunities in underground and su¬rface mining. Mean¬while, the government has enhanced its focus on commercial mining, which is set to provide a boost to the mining equipment sector. Going forward, automation is expected to play a greater role in the mining equipment market. This is expected to be supported by internet of things and other technological advancements, leading to increa¬sed operational efficiency.