CHENNAI: Daimler India Commercial Vehicles, manufacturer of Bharat Benz trucks and buses, is witnessing good demand for its trucks following which the company has decided to start a second shift for production shortly from its Oragadam plant near Chennai, said Satyakam Arya, the MD and CEO.
"There are green shoots emerging from the mining segment, construction sector and e-commerce space.The government has started executing fresh contracts, which is triggering demand for new trucks. The industrial activity is also picking up and even the response towards our BSVI trucks is very encouraging. We are receiving a good number of orders and accordingly ramping up our production to meet the demand," said Arya.
To further boost its revenue, the company on Friday also announced its entry into the used vehicle business with the BharatBenz Exchange programme.
Initially, the company will deal with used trucks and subsequently the programme will be extended for its buses segment also. The programme will enhance its existing new vehicle sales model by offering a platform on which customers can exchange their used vehicles of any brand for new or used Bharat Benz trucks.
"We feel it is the right time to tap the massive potential presented by the used commercial vehicle segment," said Arya.
He further added that fleet owners are facing affordability issues due to the pandemic and slowdown and they are looking for reliable and quality-assured used vehicles rather than a new truck. The introduction of BS-VI norms has also pushed costs higher. So many are preferring to purchase a used truck instead of a new one.
"The used vehicle market is almost three times that of the new vehicle sales market," added Arya.
BharatBenz Exchange will be made available via its nationwide dealership network. Under the programme, the used vehicle sellers and buyers will no longer have to haggle over the right price or worry about incomplete paperwork.
"Daimler's trained experts will ensure that both parties have the best customer experience. We see enormous potential here to show even more customers the quality of BharatBenz products and services. This also ensures the complete lifecycle of the vehicle is taken care of," added Rajaram Krishnamurthy, Vice President Marketing, Sales and Customer Service.