Ramesh Palagiri - Managing Director, Wirtgen India

Mr. Ramesh Palagiri, MD
Despite having the best technology and know-how in India, what are the reasons for our roads developing potholes soon after they are put into use?
No doubt, the best technology is being used in India at several places for building roads and later for maintaining them. But if the right specifications of the material and at the right temperature is not used, and when the compaction and the profile/ levels are not correct, it can result in water logging, and when drainage systems are not adequate – potholes will appear.
To fix this problem, several actions are required. To start with, we need to have a proper drainage system, and proper access to our utilities, so that we need not dig up our roads every time. Once these two things are done, we have to use the right specification of material and lay the road as per the IRC guidelines, by using the equipment, which is already available in India.
What new products and technologies has Wirtgen introduced in the recent past to save time, money, and environment?
The Wirtgen Group has been continuously introducing new technologies in India. To start with, we introduced Cold Milling and Cold Recycling, which have been reasonably well accepted in the market. Soil stabilization is also becoming very popular. All these technologies result in saving precious aggregates. We would shortly be introducing Hot Recycling in India, infact, we expect the first project with hot recycler to start sometime next year.
In Asphalt paving, we will be introducing the Road Scan. In Slipform paving, we are having discussions, including for two-layered concrete paving, with several stakeholders in India.
The innovative technologies are definitely finding acceptance, though at a relatively slow pace. We feel that with the fast pace of road development in India today, and the severe shortage of natural resources like aggregates, these technologies will get more and more accepted.
Our Vogele Super 1403 and Super 1400 Asphalt pavers have been well accepted in the market, as have our Kleemann screens, and we are continuously taking feedback from our customers on their performance.
Due to ever increasing size and complexity of projects, contractors are looking for integrated services, telematics, and innovative solutions. How is Wirtgen positioned in these areas?
Wirtgen offers integrated service support to customers with regards to not only supplying the most innovative machines in the market, but also backing them with an experienced application support team. We provide continuous training for operators in the field, and we also have a operator school for training fresh ITI’s to become operators, and we are offering them to our customers. We feel that these two programs will ensure that our machines are always well maintained.
We are working on offering telematics in India, and at this point of time, we are evaluating what is relevant for the Indian market. We have the technologies available with us and the appropriate technology will be offered in India also.

The Wirtgen Group has been continuously innovating its products and all our road technology brands: Wirtgen, Vogele, and Hamm are not only global market leaders but also innovation leaders, the average age of a machine being not more than 3 years. The Hamm compactors and the Vogele pavers, which are produced in Pune, have been developed for India, and are well received in the market.
What new will Wirtgen exhibit at Excon 2017?
Wirtgen will be presenting as many as five Indian première: the large milling machine W 195, the small milling machines W 50 H, W 55 H, W 120 R, and the slipform paver SP 62. In addition to these highlights, the small milling machine W 100 H, the compact milling machine W 130 CF, the recycler and soil stabilizer WR 240, and the offset slipform paver SP 15, the inset slipform paver SP 94, and the texture curing machine TCM 180, will give visitors an in-depth insight into the comprehensive range of Wirtgen solutions for road construction and rehabilitation.
With the new SUPER 1400 and SUPER 1403, Vögele will be presenting true all-Indian road pavers for pave widths upto 7.3 m. The new tracked and wheeled pavers set new standards as both pavers come with ErgoBasic, the revolutionary system for easy paver operation. It simplifies the paver operators’ work and provides comfort and ease. Vögele will also present the Universal Class SUPER 1800-3 paver, and the Highway Class SUPER 2100-3 paver.

Hamm will present its compactor 3520 with an operating weight of 20 t; compactor 311 as basic version; and compactor 311 D with additionally powered drum. For asphalt construction, Hamm will showcase two articulated tandem rollers: the compact HD 12 VV (series HD CompactLine), and the HD 99 with an operating weight of 9 t; besides its rubber-wheeled roller GRW 15, which can be used for both asphalt construction and earthworks.
Kleemann will be exhibiting three products from the EVO line: the mobile jaw crusher MOBICAT MC 110 Z EVO; mobile cone crusher MOBICONE MCO 9 EVO; and mobile screening plant MOBISCREEN MS 703 EVO. The plants are characterised by compact dimensions, good transportability, simple operability and flexibility. The Continuous Feed System guarantees optimum crusher utilisation and regulates material flow. The emergency-stop control that covers all crushing and screening stages provides the required safety.