Canadian multinational aerospace and transportation company Bombardier aims to tap the huge potential in construction of mass transit systems in major Indian cities, modernisation of Indian Railways network and introduction of semi-high speed and high-speed train segments. In an interview to Business Line , Harsh Dhingra, Chief Country Representative and Whole Time Director, Bombardier Transportation India, explains the company’s business plans. The company has manufacturing centres in Savli and Maneja, near Vadodara, Gujarat. Excerpts:

What will be the role of Bombardier in India with themes such as increased investment in railways and more metros getting operational ?

There are two segments. One is the metro segment and the other is the railway segment. For metro segment, every city with a population of 2 million needs a new kind of metro system. So, existing metro system in Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai and Delhi will require extensions. New cities like Nagpur, Patna and Varanasi will require new kinds of metro system. So, keeping that in mind, we will participate in both rolling stocks and the signalling systems.

In the railway segment, over the last few years, what we have seen is increased focus in getting latest technology in rolling stock as well as in the field of advanced signalling system where Bombardier is keen to manufacture the products in India. So, we see a high potential for growth in the railway segment as well as metro segment.

In the case of inter-city high speed market in India, Spanish train Talgo has cut the travel time by 25 per cent. Does Bombardier have any comparable products to offer?

One of the things which the Indian Railways has found is it is able to reach a maximum speed of 160 km per hour on the existing lines. The average speed is around 120 km per hour. Technology that is available in the market is for the semi-high speed trains which can reach a maximum speed of 160 km per hour. Indian Railways plans to issue a tender that intends to convert the current inter-city trains into semi- and high speed trains. Bombardier has trains which can be run on these lines where we can reach a average speed of 120-130 km per hour.

In the regional train market, for your high speed train, what is the allied investments expected from the Indian Railways?

Investment is required because in order to decongest the traffic they have to go with advanced signalling systems. They have to move the freight from the existing routes to the dedicated freight lines. The moment it is done, more passenger trains can be introduced on the existing routes with new rolling stocks, new locomotives and new types of coaches.

What do you think is your advantage in the metro train segment considering other players like Hyundai, Alstom are also competing?

There are only few companies which have manufacturing capabilities in India. The market is huge and there is potential for everybody. I am not worried about the competition. With expansion and new metros coming in, we are having the distinct advantage of being a multinational which has localised manufacturing capabilities. Close to 70 per cent of the items that we use are manufactured in India. So, we have created a good vendor base in India over the last few years.

What is your plan for your new product MOVIA Maxx in India. What are the challenges that you see?

MOVIA Maxx will be more energy- efficient and have better aesthetic train interiors. Also, the cooling systems in this is superior to the earlier models and the seating arrangement is much better. With technology changing rapidly, MOVIA Maxx will be very suitable for the Indian markets. With respect to challenges, currently there is no standardisation happening in the metro systems. So, when we get customised contracts from newer metros like Hyderabad for few numbers of coaches it becomes a challenge. It takes longer time for us to execute these projects. Standardisation , especially for smaller metros, will help in efficient manufacture of rolling stocks.

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