VECV opens auto lab at Howrah, West Bengal

May 16: Indore-based VE Commercial Vehicles has opened its fourth automotive lab. The MCKVIE-Eicher Centre for Automobile Technology Centre in Kolkata was opened by R R Chattopadhyay, the state’s minister for Science & Technology, Technical Education & Training. VECV has already established three labs: ITI Kubernagar (Ahmedabad) in collaboration with Gujarat government, the National Institute of Engineering, Mysore and the third as a joint venture with Rayat Bahra Education Group.

The latest centre at Howrah aims to meet the skilled manpower requirements of the automotive sector which faces an acute shortage of talent at both entry and mid-levels. VECV’s mobile labs have modern training aids like dynamic cutaways, practice units, multimedia training aids and technical publications. While the first batch of 65 students has been absorbed by VECV, an additional batch of 85 students will graduate in June 2012 The following courses will be offered to students at the Kolkata centre include a degree in automobile engineering, a PG Diploma in automobile engineering and a masters in automobile engineering. This centre will also function as a Regional Competency Development Centre of VECV for training Eicher’s dealership staff in eastern region. ACMA recently commissioned Deloitte to study the problems in talent availability and management that plagues the automobile sector. While many OEMs have tied up with ITIs, the talent paucity continues.