Nothing exemplifies the Confederation of Indian Industry(CII)’s deep rooted commitment to national development objectives, particularly in the construction, construction equipment manufacturing, infrastructure and industrial domain, more than the internationally acclaimed CE sector exhibition brand EXCON, the 11th edition of which gets under way in Bangalore from May 17-21. Deepak Shetty, Chairman CII Excon & Managing Director, JCB Ltd offered Construction Business Today an understanding of the heroically epic role CII and EXCON have both played in the economic progress made by the nation.
What are the ground factors and objectives which drive the CII and its partner organisations to host the 11th edition of EXCON from May 17-21?
Infrastructure sector is a key driver for the Indian economy.The sector is highly responsible for propelling India’s overall development and enjoys intense focus from the government for initiating policies that would ensure time-bound creation of world-class infrastructure in the country. CII has been playing a pioneering role in developing the Construction Equipment Industry in India through the Excon initiative. The event, which is the largest Construction Equipment and Technology Fair in South Asia, aims to provide a focused platform for the Construction Equipment and Component Industry, bring more awareness amongst all stakeholders on the latest developments, enable adoption of world-class technologies for speedy implementation of infrastructure projects in the country. The exhibition seeks to help position India as a global hub for Construction Equipment Manufacturing. It will showcase the best of equipment and technology available to aid India’s accelerated plans for development of infrastructure and will also be a forum to position India as the outsourcing destination for components, aggregates and equipment.The Indian CE industry currently maintains a notable position in the global CE landscape and CII EXCON, with the help of its partner organisations, aims to make India the 2nd largest CE market in the world, with a size of $25 billion by 2030.
As the prime mover of this exhibition for the Construction Equipment sector since 2000, the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) has played a stellar role. Could you briefly describe the progression or metamorphosis made by Excon through the previous ten editions?
The first edition of Excon was launched in 2000 with 83 exhibitors and display area of 28,600 square mtrs. The event had grown by leaps and bounds and today has achieved the recognition of being one of the largest construction equipment exhibitions of the world.The growth of Excon over the years reflects parallely India’s infrastructure development and more importantly in the last 10 years, the policies of the Government of India have given a great fillip to infrastructure growth particularly in the roads and highways sector.This year, the event is expected to attract over 1000 plus exhibitors from India and abroad including countries like the USA, UK, France, Germany, Italy, UAE, South Korea, Singapore, Belgium, Czech Republic and Sri Lanka. The 5-day exhibition is expected to draw over 50,000 business visitors from all over the world.
What in your view is the importance attached globally to events such as Excon as we enter the 11th edition – and give us a sense of its brand value?
Excon over a period of time has emerged as a unique exhibition which not only showcases the technological prowess of Indian Construction Equipment industry but also positions India as a global hub for CE manufacturing. The participation of almost all the leading world brands in the CE segment reaffirms the exhibition’s position as being truly global. Excon also supports Atma Nirbhar Bharat in infrastructure development contributed by the presence of large OEMs and vibrant SMEs representing the component and aggregates industry segment.
Briefly tell us of the challenges of hosting an event of this scale and the support you are receiving from various industry stakeholders – including the Centre and the State governments?
In a large event like Excon which is spread across over 2,80,000 lakh sq m of space where over 75 per cent of space is outdoor the challenges are mainly in the infrastructure front where the construction of outdoor stalls commence 30 days before the event.CII has been getting phenomenal support from the Government of Karnataka which is the host State for the exhibition. The State Government has fast tracked various approvals and permissions from local authorities, district administration and the police.
CII has set up an exclusive State Government Task Force which is working closely with various departments of the Government of Karnataka towards ensuring the seamless movement of traffic for visitors to reach BIEC. CII has also tied up with various service providers including hotels, travel agencies to offer best in class facilities for visitors staying in Bangalore during the exhibition. To further assist our visitors and members, we have airport transfers by helicopter from BIAL to BIEC and from Jakkur Airport to BIEC and return. There are also joy ride options for visitors.
How different will the 11th edition be from the previous 10 – the changes we can expect to see in terms of exhibition infrastructure, facilities and new trade show best practices which can help improve visitor convenience?
Excon is indeed going to be the first major exhibition for the construction equipment industry post-pandemic. After the previous edition in 2019, there has been no exhibition of a certain size for our industry, hence there is a large expectation from the 11th edition of Excon from all stakeholders. We are confident there will be even greater active participation by the industry than what we have seen in the past. Keeping in mind the large number of expected visitors, CII, as the organiser, and all exhibitors are making every effort to ensure Covid appropriate protocols are in place. These will include masks, social distancing and hygiene and will be strictly maintained inside and outside the exhibition centre.
The current edition will be a new experience for visitors as all the details related to exhibition including exhibitors, sectoral conferences and other concurrent activities are available on the Excon Mobile App. All Covid protocols will be followed at the venue to give visitors the comfort of operating in the exhibition zone with safety.
Other new initiatives this year includes focus on alternate fuels, AI pavilion, finance plaza, women operating construction equipment and machinery, equal opportunity awards for women, digital transformation, MSMEs besides sustainability and safety of people.
A significant focus of the exhibition this year will be on new technologies that have made their way into the industry including IoT enabled machines which give real time information on critical parameters, the penetration of digital technology in construction equipment. Excon will be showcasing the growth and the penetration of digital technology in not only construction equipment, but also the entire infrastructure ecosystem developing in India. The exhibition will also highlight the competitiveness with which the industry has grown in India over the past many years. Products manufactured in India are today being exported all over the world, thus showcasing the advancements the industry has made in terms of manufacturing. Lastly Excon will seek to throw significant light on the sustainable solutions that the industry has to offer and how sustainability is being adopted across the ecosystem of infrastructure creation.
What are CII’s expectations from the event in 2022 as India seeks to move forward in its growth orbit…
Currently, India is the third-largest market after China and USA and we are on our way to becoming the second largest CE market in the world by 2030. This is an ambitious plan and we are working towards this. We are expecting Excon to give a boost to the industry considering the economy and the potential that India has to offer.The Government of India’s push on building infrastructure is also helping us achieve this ambitious target. It has announced some of the biggest structural reforms in the recent past such as the National Infrastructure Pipeline (NIP), the establishment of the NaBFID for infrastructure financing and development and the Gati Shakti Mission to start with. Additionally, Asset Monetisation will further improve the liquidity in the system.
With a large number of construction equipment being added every year, there is also significant scope to improve the skilling of operators. Excon also aims to be an enabler of this vision. Further, to attract talent for the industry, an interface between Industry and Academia has also been constituted so that young engineers can experience the excitement that the CE industry has to offer.
We would want to make it aspirational for young engineers to be a part of this industry.