Tighter time frames and incentives are of much interest to infrastructure companies. These two key requirements are driving sophistication in the infrastructure and construction sector. The good news for infrastructure and construction equipment industry is that this growing need for automation is in turn driving the need for equipment and machinery that offers better and faster returns, and aids in meeting increasing need for better regulations and stringent safety requirements.

An indication of changing requirements and rising expectations of the infrastructure and construction sector was reflected at the first bcIndia (2011) Expo held at Mumbai in February this year. The infrastructure and construction equipment industry put on display more powerful and versatile machines, which were until now hard to come by, or had to be imported. Machines like the 70-tonne truck mounted cranes, and longer reaching booms that would serve hard-to-reach projects like airports, dams, etc. Also on display were a wide range of loaders, excavators and mixers that promise higher efficiency and better management from global marques like Putzmeister, Manitowoc, Terex and Schwing Stetter.

There were also the smaller and medium scale enterprises like Ajax Fiori and Universal Construction & Equipment, which displayed their wares, aimed at the rising automation, and at a scale where a company may not count on big players like Gammon, L&T, J Kumar, and more. In addition, there was also a range of specialised equipment that would help to accomplish complicated needs.

Equipment like the 690HD duty cycle crawler crane by Sennebogen, the SP range of concrete pumps from Schwing Stetter, pipelayers from Chetra, and the MX stationary boom pump from Putzmeister. Not only does this equipment is going to create a long-term impact on the growth of infrastructure and construction companies, the nature of such products also reflects the need for new and quality high-technology equipment.

Digging deeper, the SP8800 concrete pump from Schwing Stetter is driven by a powerful Deutz diesel engine, and combined with DN180 and DN 200 pumping cylinders. The SP2880 concrete pump, at the other end, is a stationary pump based on the forward looking design of modern plastic castings, with significant space savings and lower fuel consumption.

Says V G Shaktikumar, CEO of Schwing Stetter, "As a technology leader, Schwing Stetter addresses a wide product offering." He draws attention to L&T, an esteemed client, which continues to use a boom pump Schwing Stetter sold to the industrial conglomerate 41 years ago. "Our products are 15% more expensive but our advantage is in terms of reliability, ownership cost and service," he adds.

Drawing on 60 years of experience in crane manufacture, the Sennebogen 690HD is fully imported and marketed through Gimmco. According to Erich Sennebogen Jun, managing director of Sennebogen Maschinenfabrik GmbH, the 690HD duty cycle crawler crane is designed for hard conditions, and a representative of the company's comprehensive set of offerings in duty cycle crawler cranes. With a lifting capacity of 90 tonnes, a powerful 447 kW engine, and extremely robust construction, the 690HD duty cycle crawler crane can meet the toughest requirements, and is very flexible.

While flexibility is increasingly becoming a part of the requirement of the infrastructure and construction equipment companies, specialised applications are growing. An example of this is the Putzmeister BSA702D stationary concrete pump, designed for 20 cubic m/hr. It could be delivered with a reversible drum mixer, and a price competitive boom placer. Worth mentioning is the stationary boom system called MX, which in combination with the BSA1408HD high pressure pump can pump concrete up to a building height of 200 to 250 mtr. Putzmeister is one of the many companies which have set up a comprehensive manufacturing facility in India. For a company that supplied the hi-tech, largest working truck mounted concrete pump in the world, the M70, the manufacturing facility at Goa, set up in 2007, reflects the company's long term commitment and growth strategy.

Investments in India by Putzmeister are set to reach Euro 2015 million by 2015. Says Michael SchmidLinden-mayer, MD, Putzmeister India, "Like the Burj tower at Dubai, Putzmeister machines have been used in important projects in India - projects like Delhi metro, Bangalore airport, Reliance refinery at Jamnagar, LNJ Gujarat, and more."

Delve further into hard working and special application equipment, and the Shuttlelift single beam mobile gantry crane riding on rubber tyres, and powered by a diesel engine is an indication. This is marketed in India by Pune-based EletroMech. Others include the Changjiang 70-tonne truck-mounted crane by Terex and the Dongyue GT25-5A truck mounted crane by Manitowoc. While the 75-tonne truck mounted crane by TIL is also worth mentioning, of special interest is the Chetra pipelayer This machine helps to lay pipes, structure pipelines across arid and sandy terrain, and come what may. Working under arduous conditions, the pipelayer, according to Ben Callow, CEO of Chetra, employs advanced Russian technology, has an innovative design, and is affordable. Powering most of the Chetra products are Cummins diesel engines. Ben Callow's assertion at bcIndia that the trends and overwhelming customer response in India is very encouraging, reflects new patterns and requirements that are emerging. More explanatory are the comments of Raman Joshi, managing director of Manitowoc India. He says, "Realisation that new and quality equipment will offer a distinct advantage is growing."

Purchase of new, sophisticated equipment is clearly on the rise after the infrastructure and construction sectors emerged from of the lull of 2009, and with it, the equipment industry. The purchase and application of new, more sophisticated equipment is clearly on the rise, and with it, the need to better manage the same, often remotely. This has brought the need for remote monitoring of equipment, which may be located at some remote, hard to access corner of the country.

The need for remote monitoring is also brought about by a rising market in the semi-urban and rural markets where smaller firms are also investing in modern and specialised equipment. Avers Schmid Lindenmayer, "We are looking at going to smaller cities in India. The Indian market holds a huge potential, and our core competencies lie in products, quality and service."

Yet another company that is aggressively eyeing the rural equipment market is JCB. During Excon 2009, Vipin Sondhi, MD & CEO, JCB India, had mentioned that his company was aggressively pitching for the rural market, where good growth potential lay.

While companies like JCB and Putzmeister aggressively push for a pie of the rural market, which is increasingly contributing to the bottomline of such companies, the market for remote monitoring solutions is also growing. Solutions based on RFID and telematics technology are being offered. Equipment manufacturers like Volvo are working towards offering telematics technology as standard. This technology would help get real time information.

Riding on the back of the eleventh five year plan (2007-12), which entails an investment of about US $ 492 billion on infrastructure projects, infrastructure and construction equipment manufacturers are upbeat despite rising input costs and hardening interest rates. While land acquisition and a few other areas of concern could dial a negative impact on project costs and efficiency, and remain a matter of concern, investment in new, more efficient and specialised equipment is looked upon as a means to combat them. This is apart from the need for new equipment to speed up projects and address shortening times.

A section of the infrastructure and construction sector as well as the producers of new infrastructure and construction equipment may voice concern about the increasing presence of used equipment players, but the fact is, they are finding a clientele. Tightening of regulations could make the life of used equipment players tough; while many infra players are coming to select new machines over used ones, the need for good overall environment is necessary, as long as buyers know what the are getting. This, despite the fact that companies highlight technology to drive sales, on the assurance of technology delivering higher efficiency, reliability and faster returns on investment.

An analyst of the sector says that the need for good overall environment also includes the need to train manpower so that with rising levels of automation, and application of sophisticated machinery, is suitably leveraged. As infrastructure companies work under a private-public partnership model, the need for sustainable development is high, he adds.

Another analyst further emphasizes the need for good overall environment as well. He reasons that the changing conditions demand the same. He touches upon the quality standards, emissions and noise. Adding that rising inputs costs, intensifying competition, and diminishing technological edge are impacting profitability, the equipment industry is currently facing some very tough challenges, he quips. A big area of concern for the equipment manufacturers is rising input costs and the pressure on margins, much like the auto industry. Hardening interest rates is yet another area of concern for the industry that is investment intensive, and dependent on finance. While the need to remap the growth projection for the short-term is real, long-term projections remain intact, with close to US$ 1 trillion spend projected in the next five year plan on the development of infrastructure in the country. Growth projection of such a scale is expected to drive the need for automation even further. Crucial would be the role of infrastructure and construction equipment while the country works to bridge the gap between growth and sustainable growth.