EXCON 2017 - Exhibiting A Forward-Looking India
How is Excon 2017 shaping up and kind of exhibitor & visitor turnout do you anticipate this year?
I think Excon is always very exciting. It’s the largest exhibition in South Asia and has gained in stature since its inception in 2000. Bangalore city, which hosts Excon every two years, has become well-known in the international markets as well.
We are seeing healthy participation from all the large OEMs, and are reaching out to the components manufacturers in large numbers. Importers and international associations are showing greater interest this time. We expect about 850 exhibitors, which would be an increase over last edition’s 794+ exhibitors. We should be able to break the record in country participation with 21 countries vis a vis 19 in the last edition. Delegations from abroad will also be coming. All in all, we think, Excon is growing bigger, better, and exciting year after year.
We have ensured an increase in space, despite the city metro project having taken up a part of the grounds. To counter this, we have taken up an additional indoor hanger, so the total overall space has gone up from 220,000 sqm to 260,000 sqm this year.
This year, we will be introducing a “virtual exhibition” as we move into latest technology to help companies promote their products virtually. With this, a company can showcase its products virtually for 60 days post the event.
No doubt, Excon has attracted 100s of overseas manufacturers to exhibit but in term of visitor ship it has not get the desired success so far; how are you promoting the event abroad to attract more quality visitors, especially from South East Asia and African countries?
We’re going all out to attract more and more quality visitors. About two months ago, we invited the commercial attaches from the embassies of Africa and South-East Asia, and presented the exhibition to them. This was to give them at least 90 days advance information about Excon, which they could send out to their respective countries.
Members of the Steering Committee of Excon have been organizing roadshows in Sri Lanka and Bhutan, besides India. But a lot more needs to be done by way of physical advertising, though we are promoting it on social media. We need to reach out more to our neighboring countries, and wherever our machines have potential.
What is the theme of Excon 2017?
The theme this year is ‘Smart Technology: Fueling the Next Generation Infra’. There is a lot of change in the way construction activities being carried out today with regard to speed and use of technology. Digital is coming up to the fore.
Two new features have been added this year. There will be a separate zone for Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs) and a separate zone for the Academia so that there will be a lineage in terms of dialogue with institutions in the engineering field.
How is the organizer ensuring proper security, smooth traffic flow etc for the exhibitors and visitors? In view of last year’s heavy rains during Excon, what measures are being taken to ensure that the event is not disrupted in case of bad weather?
We’re in the process of mitigating any traffic bottleneck for the exhibitors and visitors to make access and exit from the venue as smooth as possible with the help of the Bangalore Police. We are ensuring sufficient parking space, and easy access to the grounds, with shuttle services from airports and important hotels that are in close proximity to the grounds. We are in constant touch with the National Highways Authority and the Bangalore Metro, and they’ve promised to support us. We have developed an App through which they can download details regarding the travel arrangements to and fro the venue.
In addition, we’re also looking into areas such as public conveniences, sanitation and hygiene. The State associations and the CII are helping us with the administrative and law enforcement issues. There are some challenges, and we have planned to the extent possible. But, I would say that with every edition of Excon, we learn, and we improvise, and things are getting better and better.
During the last Excon, unexpected rains had somewhat disrupted the event. This year, the exhibition has been postponed by two weeks. Normally, rains start slowing down in Bangalore by mid-November, but as a precautionary measure, we have ensured that compaction of the soil is better so that the grounds do not unravel, and mud does not flow.
The CEO meets held during Excon are an important part of the event. How effective is the outcome of the discussions on the industry’s concerns and issues, and in presenting them to the government’s policy makers for consideration / implementation?
As an association, we meet the concerned government officials through the year. Excon, which takes place once in two years, is a platform where all the industry leaders gather, so we take advantage of this to articulate industry issues and concerns.
iCEMA holds conferences, whether for interaction with government officials or for the CE industry. Along with CII, we bring out an industry report during Excon; it articulates our views on the way forward in the backdrop of the government’s reforms, new policies, the industry’s expected growth and so on. All of this comes together during EXCON and we use it as a platform.
As Chairman of Excon for many editions, please comment on Made in India products competing in the international markets and what kind of positive impact Excon had on the Indian industry?
At Excon, we are talking about Smart Technology with our Made in India tagline, the message we want to send out is that technology and capability exist in India. Many of the big names are already here, so, a global standard has to be maintained and is, in fact, expected of us. The Marketing of India’s potential is no longer needed, nor do the opportunities in Infrastructure need to be advertised. We even don’t have to sell the global names because they are everywhere. What we have to sell is the capability of the Indian industry and how it has grown in terms of technologies.
When you are competing with companies from all over the world, the customer takes into account that quality is a given. This means that the quality of our products is at par with the best in the world. Different equipments are required in different parts of the world, so types may be different but the quality has to be world-class. Our industry is growing as you will find new models and new products every year. This has really been the growth in terms of the standard of Excon, and the reason why people from overseas are coming to see the Indian exhibits. With quality as given, the question for them is: what’s the equipment, and how to source it from India?
It’s a forward-looking India, and with Excon, what we are trying to do is get overseas customers to come to India.
We are emphasizing lot on technology which always comes with price. Do you think price conscious Indian customer will start giving importance to technology over price?
I think the price will always be decided by the Indian consumer. We are getting a lot of technology into consumer products such as televisions, and at various levels of affordability. The Indian manufacturer will always ensure that there is a challenge on pricing and if there’s competition, that’s fine. But what we have to ensure is higher productivity and reliability, and for that there must be a constant dialogue between machine and man. To drive performance, it will come only through better technology.
No doubt, GST is great structural reform but classifying CE under the 28% bracket is unfortunate. What collective steps CE manufacturers are taking to convince the government to bring down the tax slab to 18%?
We have made representations and held meetings with the Department of Heavy Industries, and the Finance Ministry on our rationale for a moderate rate of 18% and not 28% that has been levied.
The taxation rates were to be revenue neutral. In our case, majority of the equipment was equivalent of 18%. The equipment is used to build the infrastructure for the country and should be kept at a moderate tax rate. Also, a lot of contractors and customers will take time to come within the GST network.
We are very hopeful that the GST council will review our case favorably considering that this equipment is used to build the Infrastructure for the nation.
Published on:
09 November 2017
Published in: NBM&CW November 2017
Share:
We Value Your Comment
