Delphi-TVS bags JCB order, targets new biz

Delphi-TVS is gearing up for new business from Tata Ace and Venture and will ramp up output of its low-cost common-rail diesel system

Delphi-TVS, manufacturer of diesel engine systems, has bagged a key order for the supply of rotary pumps for JCB’s backhoe loaders. The order, in the off-highways segment, will be implemented in a few months’ time, and will see the company supply an estimated 30,000-40,000 pumps per annum to JCB’s unit in Uttraranchal, president, Delphi-TVS Diesel Systems, J S Chopra told Autocar Professional.

For the company which makes common-rail systems, fuel injectors, rotary pumps and filters, this development represents a new client in the off-road segment and in an industry that has seen impressive growth rates. JCB is one of India’s largest players in the construction equipment industry and the largest manufacturer of backhoe loaders.

Delhi-TVS's current clientele includes a slew of companies including Tata Motors for both passenger cars and trucks, and Mahindra & Mahindra in the four-wheeler space. Its other clients include tractor makers such as TAFE and Simpson.

The product range includes light duty and heavy duty common-rail, twin and single-cylinder common-rail systems. While Tata Motors has been a long-standing client, the Mahindra business, which is relatively new in CR systems, has seen an increase as a result of Scorpio and Bolero sales.

Moreover, the company hopes to be able to bag business following M&M’s recent acquisition of SsangYong, the Korean SUV maker. This confidence is based in part on the fact that Delphi supplies common-rail systems to the SsangYong, and with the latter’s decision to bring in vehicles, Delphi has a huge advantage.

Chopra also said a key priority in the coming fiscal is to increase capacity utilisation at the Oragadam plant. The unit was set up just over two years ago but as Chopra puts it, it was not possible to fully use capacity since the recession hit soon after. The company invested around Rs 300 crore in the plant but due to the slowdown, as Chopra puts it, “we lost money”.

Delphi-TVS now wants to ramp up and make this unit deliver its full potential. Towards this end, it has begun making small quantities of its low-cost common-rail system and plans to kick off a full-fledged launch in the next fiscal year.

Driving the movement towards more efficient diesel engines is the movement to Bharat IV emission norms. Delphi-TVS’s low-cost CR comes equipped with an ECU that has been imported from the parent company’s Singapore unit which gives Delphi-TVS an advantage given that these are imported as part of the India-Singapore Free Trade Zone. With this low-cost common-rail systems, the company hopes to bag business from the likes of Ashok Leyland and Cooper, the Satara-based manufacturer of diesel-powered gensets that is targeting the LCV market.

On another front, the company has indigenously developed a filter with a replaceable cartridge for its CR systems in which only the cartridge has to be taken out and replaced. Previously, the entire cartridge and the container had to be discarded. With this, issues that concern the contamination and maintenance of the filter have been resolved.

Delphi is also looking at increased volumes from booming Tata Ace sales. It is looking at boosting daily production for supply to all Ace variants. The plant also supplies parts to the Tata Venture MPV that was recently launched and with an estimated target in the region of 2,80,000 units, Delphi is on a good wicket.