Germany-headquartered automotive major the BMW Group and Tata Technologies, a global product engineering and digital services company, have announced the official launch of their joint venture BMW TechWorks India with offices in – Pune, Bengaluru and Chennai.

The JV which goes on stream in November 2024, will initially start with 100 employees at these three locations and rapidly scale to four-digit number of employees by end-2025, with a strong focus on attracting top-tier Indian talent. The BMW Group and Tata Technologies will each hold 50 percent of the shares in this JV.

The management team of BMW TechWorks India is comprised of seasoned executives from both partner companies. Representing Tata Technologies are Aditya Khera as CEO and Sweta Girinatham as CFO of this JV. From the BMW Group, Oliver Scheickl will hold the position of COO of Automotive Software in this new JV and Stefan Flader will serve as COO of Business IT.

BMW TechWorks India complements BMW Group’s global strategy by engineering seamless, scalable software solutions for next-gen vehicles and delivering leading digital experiences. Tata Technologies will bring its expertise across the entire product value chain, from conceptualisation to detailed engineering and turnkey SDV (Software Defined Vehicles) development, will drive key software projects for the BMW Group’s premium mobility solutions and facilitate access to India’s impressive talents.

The partners aim to leverage India’s engineering and IT talent in developing strategic software solutions for SDVs, automated driving, digital infotainment, and automotive digital services.

In addition to automotive software, the JV will also provide digital innovations for the BMW Group's Business IT. Consequently, BMW TechWorks India will expedite the digital transformation of the car manufacturer's global production network, along with enhancing its digital customer journey and sales processes. Another key area of focus will be the development of AI applications and platforms, which will increase the speed and efficiency of all core business processes.

Christoph Grote, Senior Vice-President of Electronics and Software BMW Group said, “BMW TechWorks India is a significant addition to our global vehicle software development initiatives. India’s software talent will be a great asset for our Software-Defined Vehicles of the future. With agile processes and state-of-the-art tools, engineers at BMW TechWorks India will co-create innovative automotive digital experiences, such as automated driving and next-gen infotainment systems.” 

Alexander Buresch, CIO, and Senior Vice-President, BMW Group IT stated, “With BMW TechWorks India, we are steadily advancing our international IT-Hub strategy and broadening our global Business IT presence. The partnership with Tata Technologies represents a strategically important step and provides excellent conditions for developing innovative software solutions along our value chain. We are excited to welcome Indian tech talents to join us in driving the digital transformation of the BMW Group.”

Warren Harris, CEO and MD, Tata Technologies said: “Our joint venture with the BMW Group, BMW TechWorks India, underscores our deep expertise in Software-Defined Vehicles (SDV) and reflects our commitment to driving innovation in both automotive software and business IT. By leveraging Tata Technologies' strong brand presence in India, this JV will attract top talent and provide a platform to develop forward-thinking solutions that redefine the future of mobility. We are excited to partner with the BMW Group in engineering premium, software-driven vehicles, enhancing digital experiences, and accelerating their digital transformation journey.”

Nachiket Paranjpe, President of Automotive Sales, Tata Technologies commented, "The rapid evolution of automotive technology is transforming the way vehicles are developed, with Software-Defined Vehicles at the forefront of this shift. At Tata Technologies, our deep automotive expertise and end-to-end solutions across the value chain – from concept and detailed engineering to manufacturing engineering and turnkey SDV development – position us perfectly to support the BMW Group in shaping the future of mobility. Through this joint venture, we will push the boundaries of automotive technology, creating vehicles that are not only cutting-edge but also deliver exceptional driving experiences to consumers worldwide."

Aditya Khera, CEO, BMW TechWorks India: “With the launch of BMW TechWorks India, we are establishing a world-class software hub that will play a critical role in the BMW Group's automotive software and business IT strategy. By combining the BMW Group's and Tata Technologies' leadership in software-defined vehicles and product engineering excellence, we are poised for innovation and growth, offering India's top talent the opportunity to shape the future of the BMW Group's mobility solutions.”

Ola Electric, one of India’s largest pure-play EV companies, has bagged five Gold Awards at the 49^th International Convention on Quality Control Circles (ICQCC) held in Sri Lanka in November 2024.

This landmark recognition was achieved by the company’s all-women workforce from Ola Futurefactory in Krishnagiri, Tamil Nadu, who competed against industry peers from 14 countries.

The EV maker’s five teams won for the following projects –

Paint Shop: Innovation in optimisation strategies that slashes operational costs.

Motor Division: Enhancing product competitiveness by reducing Cost of Poor Quality (COPQ).

General Assembly: Accelerating time-to-market by increasing capacity in the front fork sub-assembly process.

Battery Shop: Improve battery pack productivity in order to meet the growing customer demands.

Weld Shop: Improving robotics throughput to enhance operational efficiency and streamline workflows.

Ola Electric acknowledged the role of its women-led teams from rural backgrounds, who showcased their work at the factory’s paint shop, motor shop, general assembly line, battery shop, and welding shop.

“This recognition at ICQCC is a testament to our relentless pursuit of excellence with our incredibly talented women at the helm of the EV revolution at our Futurefactory. It reflects our ethos of blending innovation with empowerment and setting new benchmarks on the operational-heavy automotive shop floors, which are traditionally dominated by men. We are extremely happy to have started this shift in the Indian automotive manufacturing landscape and are committed to bringing more women on the shop floors,” commented an Ola spokesperson.

Coimbatore-based Propel Industries Private Limited has announced the appointment of Siddharth Kirtane as the President of its EV Division that makes heavy-duty e-trucks for construction and mining applications. Propel Industries – specialising in the manufacture of crushing equipment – homologated its electric heavy-duty Tipper (470 HEV) is September 2024 and has since been offering it in two battery variants—385 kWh and 256 kWh.  
With a long-standing experience in the commercial vehicle industry in India as Head – Brand and Marketing, Volvo Trucks India; as Business Head – Construction and Infrastructure, Volvo Eicher Commercial Vehicles Ltd, and as Vice President, Marketing, Daimler India Commercial Vehicles, Kirtane will leverage his knowledge and expertise to scale up the EV business in his new role. 
 

The 42 days festive period vehicle retail data for 2024 that the Federation Of Automobile Dealers Associations (FADA) has released, the overall sales of automobiles during this festive season have exceeded that of the last festive season. 
"I am delighted to announce that the automobile retail sector has achieved a new milestone, surpassing last year's festive records. We witnessed a remarkable surge in numbers since the beginning of Navratri, nearly hitting our forecasted target with 42.88 lakh vehicles registered during this period — a growth of 11.76 percent over last year's 38.37 lakh units,” mentioned C S Vigneshwar, President, FADA. 
Two-wheeler sales were particularly robust, according to him, registering a 13.79 percent growth to reach 3.31 million units, largely driven by strong rural demand. 
Passenger vehicle sales bounced back after a decline of roughly two-to-three months with a growth of 7.10 percent to 0.6 million units, spurred by pent-up demand and unprecedented discounts available in the market. 
Acknowledging that the target of 45,00,000-unit sales could have been fully met or even exceeded were it not for the unseasonal heavy rains in South India (especially in Bengaluru and Tamil Nadu) and the Cyclone Dana that affected Odisha, Vigneshwar averred, “FADA anticipates – as the festivities conclude – that passenger vehicle stock levels will reduce further from was reported in the October retail data press release.”
“FADA advises caution as the complete picture on inventory will emerge by month-end,” he added. 
Stating that FADA urges OEMs to focus on liquidating 2024 stock so that Dealers can enter 2025 with ideal FADA-recommended 21 days of inventory, Vigneshwar said, “Its 1.5 months remaining before the calendar year ends.”
 

The Auto Cluster Development And Research Institute, Chinchwad MIDC (Pune), is conducting a three-day workshop on TIG welding technology in its campus on 27-29 November 2024. 
Lead by experts in the respective field such as Chandrakant Vaidya, who has over 40 years of experience in QAC and welding (and has worked at ENPRO Industries, Thermax and Babcock and Wilcox Energy System), and Vijay Patole, who too has over 40 years of experience in welding, the workshop will delve a variety of topics in the field of TIG welding. 
Besides introducing the attendees to TIG welding, the workshop will delve into TIG welding theory, TIG welding equipment and setup, demonstration and hands-on practice, TIG welding techniques, welding different materials, welding positions and techniques, joint types, advanced TIG welding techniques, quality control, troubleshooting, weld quality inspection, final practice and project, industry-specific applications and welding equipment maintenance among other areas of knowledge and information. 
The three-day workshop would include breakfast and lunch. The workshop has been specifically curated to ensure skill development and upskilling of those who are seeking to upgrade their skills in the respective field of manufacturing technology.