The bus building industry in India isn’t the same anymore – it has been subjected to acute evolution in the recent years. Mandates set by authorities like the Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) have reasonably been successful in reforming and organizing the industry as per modern standards. At the same time, accelerated pace of communication propelled by mediums like the internet, smartphones, etc., has been instrumental in educating the Indian passengers, whose evolved lifestyle has compelled Indian coach builders to overhaul their design templates both in terms of ergonomics, features and safety.
Yet, the bus coach building industry in India is growing faster than ever before. As the country’s population explodes, the demands of buses have grown manifolds -- resulting in bolstered activity in the coach building industry. Today, India is home to some of the biggest coach bus/utility vehicle building names of Asia and is witnessing a steady rise of new and promising names every now and then.
While the buzz in the major hubs of the bus building industry in India, like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Gujarat, etc., are in news, very little is known about the players of the North East.
In a special coverage, Coach Builders India – CBI, catches up with Gurpreet Singh Sehmi, the Managing Director of the leaders of bus coach building in North East India - Prakash Body Construction Company. Excerpts from the interview:
Tell us about the company. How has the journey been so far?
Gurpreet Singh Sehmi (GSS): Honestly, the journey has been exciting to say the least, especially in the recent years now that the bus coach market has picked up.
Prakash Body Construction Company, or PBC as it is often abbreviated, is a pioneer in the bus body construction industry not only in Assam but nationwide too. The company was established in 1971 under the aegis of my father Mr. Devender Singh Sehmi, and I took over the reigns as the Managing Director in 2001. We have gone from strength to strength over the years and it has honestly been a long journey. But we can proudly state that we have been successful in embossing marks of unmatched excellence in our domain and with the benchmarks we have been successful in setting, we are, today, counted among the top coach builders of the country.
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What do you think are the attributes that has impelled the company to achieve the colossal stand that it enjoys today?
GSS: At the helm of it – Trust and Teamwork! We believe in teamwork and developing a relationship of trust with the entire supply chain – right from the suppliers and our production team to our customers. It also is in indispensable to get a hang of the individual requirements of each customer so as to serve them with customized options. The way I see it, more than offering a product, I take it on myself to add value to my clients’ business. It’s simple mathematics actually – you succeed in giving them the value they come seeking; they will trust, respect and come back to you. (Smiles)
Wow! You are right actually, it’s actually a simple business fundamental yet we tend to overlook it.
GSS: (Laughs) It’s human nature. Especially in this competitive age, we expect things to be far complex than they actually are.
So, tell us about the products and services that you offer.
Luxury buses, mini buses, cargo trucks, election campaign vehicles, special purpose vehicles, vanity vans, mobile home/offices, compact series vehicles, ambulances, mobile display vans, etc. In the bus coach segment, we provide luxury coaches, semi-luxury coaches, intercity coaches, sleeper coaches, semi-sleeper coaches, tarmac coaches for airlines, etc. You tell us what you want and we built it for you.
Apart from that, we also have been successfully exporting a plethora of components like bus seats, headlight assemblies, glass window frames, interior trims, etc., to countries in the Middle East and to East Africa – which, I think, stands as a testimony of the quality of our products.
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Fantastic! Please tell us about the main models in Luxury Coaches that your company provides. What are the salient features of each?
Currently we have three series of models in production -- Leader, Victor, the G 20 Series and Infinity – each available in sleeper, semi-sleeper and AC options.
The first thing that you will notice in any PBC built coach is its aerodynamic design – something which essentially sets us apart from the other builders of the country. Also, our models feature two toned curved, panoramic windshields, TATA tubular structure surrounding the vehicle and a significant “A” pillar.
The interiors are contemporary, cozy and are done with distinct aesthetic taste to chase the drudgery out long distance journeys. Ambient lighting, plush upholstery and ergonomically functional storage space are some of the staple features that complement the elegant interiors.
Tell us about your Quality Assurance exercises.
So here is the catch – our QA process starts right from step one of the manufacturing process – the designing part. We are aided by engineers who dexterously work on our designs and their integration with chassis and systems.
The result is weight, Center of Gravity and Seat Anchorage optimized, rollover worthy, modular designs that not only meet client specifications but also conform to automobile norms. All materials utilized in building our bus bodies are ISI and ARAI certified. For building the structure, we ONLY use high grade TATA steel tubes which are phosphate and welded parts applied with solution to avoid premature rusting.
We also use laminated glass in the windshields and MIG welding sets, dispensing about 30-40 percent crumple zone for frontal collision safety to ensure safety of passengers. Also the components and accessories that we import like wiring, wheel nubs, etc., are ARAI approved. Other than that, we abide by AS per AIS-031 standards to guarantee the quality of our end products. All our models have passed roll over analysis by ICAT.
Apart from these, we have a dedicated team of about 100-300 employees consisting some of the industry’s leading engineers, technocrats, designers, researchers and material experts whose collective contributions make each project successful.
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Do you also bank on computer aided designing softwares or you design the products the conventional way like most coach builders in India do?
Absolutely! Quality is the top priority at PBC. There is no other option of customer retention in this field, to be honest.
No, we have shifted to CAD softwares long back. Now, we buttress on cutting edge designing softwares like Auto CAD and 3D Studio Max for designing not only coaches but also components like seats, etc. It gives us the extra edge, you know, with machines doing the job there is absolutely no chances of error, every element every joint and every process is precisely executed with minute attention to details.
Talking about machines, what machines are PBC equipped with?
The best in class machines, I assure you! Apart from the miscellaneous machinery, we are armed with 7 MIG Welding sets, ARC Welding Sets, 22 ARC Welding machines, a 7 tank Phosphating plant, and ample of welding fixtures and gauging equipment for smooth and fast assembly work. And we use the best of brands of these machines; even our drills are DEWALT make.
So finally, tell us about your future plans. Are you planning to expand your products? Are there any new models that you are planning to release in the near future?
Honestly, the bus coach market is growing fast and the demands of the consumers are rising. To keep up with changing times, we currently, are investing on research and development so that we can come up with more ergonomically designed bus coaches. A few new designs are also in the development stage, and will see the light of day by early next year.
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