Uno Minda, a leading tier-1 supplier has announced its expansion in Indonesia and India.  

The company’s wholly-owned subsidiary, PT Minda Asean Automotive (PTMA), has secured additional orders, including orders for long tail lamps for passenger cars from OEMs in Indonesia. To meet this growing demand, Uno Minda will establish a new manufacturing facility in Indonesia, expected to be operational by Q4 FY2026 at an estimated expenditure of INR 2.1 billion.

The tier 1 supplier has been a leading supplier for the Indonesian automotive market since 2005, when it established its first manufacturing facility. PTMA currently supplies components and systems to major two-wheeler OEMs in the country. The new plant will enable Uno Minda to diversify its product offerings and cater to the growing demand for passenger car components. Once the new plant is commissioned, the existing plant will also be relocated to the new site to consolidate operations and achieve economies of scale.  

In addition to its Indonesian expansion, Uno Minda is also expanding its capacity in India with its key subsidiary Uno Mindarika recently setting up a new plant in Farrukhnagar, Gurugram, Haryana. 

In phase 1 of this new plant, it had set up manufacturing facilities for part products to be used for manufacturing of automotive switches. UMRPL will be shifting existing manufacturing plant from Manesar, Nawada Fatehpur, Haryana to Farrukh Nagar, Haryana in Phase-II with an Investment of INR 1.2 billion. The phased relocation will be completed by Q3 FY2027, ensuring uninterrupted supply to customers and provide flexibility for future growth.

In addition to the above expansion in Indonesia and India, its joint venture company, Toyoda Gosei Minda India, through its subsidiary Toyoda Gosei South India will set up a new plant in Harohalli, Karnataka. This facility will manufacture safety systems (airbags, steering wheels, etc.) and interior and exterior products (console boxes, etc.) to meet the increased demand. The total capital expenditure for this new plant in Harohalli is estimated at INR 2.8 billion, with operations expected to commence in Q1 FY2027.

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.