Gainwell Engineering Private Limited has entered into a technology licensing agreement for underground mining equipment with Caterpillar, manufacturer of construction and mining equipment, diesel and natural gas engines, industrial gas turbines and diesel-electric locomotives.  

The agreement will enable Gainwell Engineering to manufacture medium and high seam underground Room and Pillar Equipment to support the growing coal production in India and other countries around the world. Coal remains the mainstay of energy security for India and emerging economies and this initiative will again make the Room and Pillar Equipment. Gainwell Engineering will also supply after-market spare parts and render service support to the existing active population of licensed Caterpillar Room and Pillar Equipment and Highwall Miner.  

Gainwell Engineering would locate its manufacturing business headquarters in Kolkata, India with its plant being set up across 35 acres in Panagarh, West Bengal, India at an investment of INR 500 crores that when fully developed will create an employment opportunity of more than 250 people of highly skilled technicians. Gainwell Engineering will manufacture select models of Continuous Miners, Face Haulers, Roof Support Carriers, Scoops / Multi Utility Vehicles, Feeder Breakers and Highwall Miner under Gainwell brand with technology licensing agreement with Caterpillar.  

Sunil Kumar Chaturvedi, Chairman and Managing Director, Gainwell Engineering, said, "We are excited to contribute to a strong industrial manufacturing base in India. Along with our products, services and solutions and people on the ground, we are dedicated to build customer value while helping the customers solve their toughest mining challenges. With the acquisition of the IP license from Caterpillar, our main priority at this stage will be to ensure that our customers experience a seamless transition as we continue to deliver the range of innovative products and exceptional support they have come to expect from Caterpillar. We are bringing together the most experienced people across various nationalities that will help secure our presence in a steadily growing industry." 

Denise Johnson, Group President, Resource Industries, Caterpillar, said: “We are pleased to transition the medium and high seam underground Room and Pillar equipment, as well as the aftermarket licensing, to Gainwell Engineering. Gainwell will invest in a state-of- the-art manufacturing facility in India and supply the products globally. Together, Caterpillar and Gainwell will work to ensure that there is a seamless transition.” (MT)  

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Cognizant hosted Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team driver Lance Stroll and driver ambassador Pedro de la Rosa at its GAR campus in Hyderabad. The visit was part of 'Celebrating Cognizant', a series of sporting and cultural activities for company associates.

Lance and Pedro met with Cognizant’s leadership team and hundreds of associates, discussing how Cognizant’s digital expertise supports the team, especially ahead of the 2026 regulations.

Lance Stroll, said, "It was a pleasure to visit the Cognizant offices in Hyderabad and meet so many of the team. Hearing first-hand about Cognizant’s technology and services was valuable and we felt incredibly welcomed by everyone we met.”

Rajesh Varrier, President – Global Operations and Chairman & Managing Director, Cognizant India, said, “Today’s celebration with Lance is a proud moment for our associates and a powerful reminder of how far we have come in shaping the future of the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team through innovation. I am inspired by what we have achieved together and optimistic about the promise this partnership holds for the future.”

A fireside chat with Lance, Pedro, and Rajesh underscored the role of technology in F1 and the Cognizant partnership. The drivers engaged with associates in a Q&A session.

In addition to the visit, Cognizant hosted a virtual hackathon for nine teams from three organisations supported by its Outreach programme. Participants developed low-code or code-based solutions to make the team’s Ai.lonso avatar into an engaging digital companion for fans. The top two teams won cash prizes and met Lance and Pedro.

Cognizant began its partnership with the Aston Martin Aramco Formula One Team in 2021. The technology company acts as the team’s digital transformation partner, improving IT infrastructure and daily operations.

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Ola Electric, one of India’s largest electric vehicle manufacturers, has announced that it became the first two-wheeler EV maker to get government certification for its in-house developed rare-earth-free ferrite motor.

The company claims that the ferrite motor eliminates its need to import rare-earth motors with permanent magnets.

The certification has been granted by Global Automotive Research Centre, Tamil Nadu, after undergoing rigorous performance verification and mandatory motor power tests as per AIS 041 that is notified by the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways (MoRTH), Government of India.

As per the company, the in-house developed ferrite motor’s performance matched that of the motors with rare-earth permanent magnet motors in terms of net power for 7kW and 11 kW variants.

Ola Electric claimed that the ferrite motor delivers efficiency, performance and durability on par with rare-earth permanent magnet motors, while dramatically lowering costs and de-risking supply chain fluctuations. The company first introduced its ferrite motor at its annual ‘Sankalp 2025’ event in August this year.

With this, Ola Electric is set to integrate the ferrite motor across its product lineup, further enhancing performance, affordability and sustainability.

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BASF and its partners are set to present two technologies at K 2025 that allow for the recycling of polyamides from end-of-life vehicles. While metal recovery from decommissioned vehicles has been standard for decades, about 200 kilograms of plastic per vehicle are often incinerated. The new technologies aim to change this, especially with upcoming requirements from the End-of-Life Vehicle Regulation (ELVR). Pilot projects show how automotive waste can be used as material and returned to a closed cycle for the car industry.

BASF developed a chemical recycling process that recycles used and contaminated plastic parts – including used oil pans from ZF Group vehicles. The core of the process is depolymerisation, where the long polyamide chains break down into their original monomers. The caprolactam monomer obtained from PA6 is then purified. This removes impurities that would have remained with mechanical recycling and potentially reduced the material's quality and safety.

The material is then repolymerised into high-quality polyamide, which is processed into a compound suitable for demanding car industry components, closing the automotive-to-automotive loop.

"What used to be considered non-recyclable is now the starting point for high-quality new products," said Martin Scheuble, Team Leader Circularity Engineering Plastics at BASF.

ZF Group processed the recycled material into a chassis component for Mercedes-Benz. Tests show that depolymerisation allows for polyamide compounds that can be used without compromising performance or other chemical and physical properties.

"This project highlights the potential of recycled plastic - even for technically demanding applications - and underlines ZF's innovative strength in establishing sustainable material cycles," said Dr. Michael Lohrmann, Director Materials Technology at ZF.

Solvent-based recycling of shredder residue

A second pilot project focuses on recycling automotive shredder residue (ASR) – a mixture of materials left after the removal of mostly metals and glass. Close cooperation with a recycling company, using new sorting and processing technology, has allowed the polyamides to be extracted from this mixture in a largely pure form.

This polyamide fraction was the starting material for a solvent-based recycling process. In this process, the polymer chain is selectively dissolved with a solvent, purified and then reprocessed into PA6 compounds.

Poppelmann manufactured and tested a chain guide rail in series production at Mercedes-Benz using this technology.

"The project impressively demonstrates that solvent-based recycling is a practical alternative for plastics that are difficult to recycle mechanically. It makes an important contribution to the holistic circular economy - from the car back into the car," emphasised Steffen Meyer, Team Leader Production Technology at Poppelmann.

Life cycle analyses (LCA) confirm that both the solvent-based and depolymerisation technologies offer substantial CO2 emission savings compared to both conventional polyamide production and traditional plastic recycling methods like thermal recovery.

BASF offers a range of recycling solutions, stating that targets are achieved only if technologies are used in a complementary manner, depending on the type and availability of waste.

Jana Kragenbring-Noor, Head of Sustainability & Environmental Protection at Mercedes-Benz, explained, "Mercedes-Benz is committed to the use of secondary raw materials in its vehicles today and in the future as part of resource conservation and circularity. To continuously increase the availability of such sought-after secondary materials, the expansion of existing and new recycling technologies is essential."

"We are continuously improving the efficiency of physical methods such as mechanical and solvent-based recycling. In addition, we are convinced that complementary technologies such as chemical recycling, which includes depolymerization, pyrolysis and gasification, are necessary to further promote the circular economy and reduce the plastic waste that still ends up in landfills or is incinerated today, as well as the potential to obtain high-quality recycled plastics," explained, Dr. Martin Jung, President of BASF Performance Materials.

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Affordable Robotic and Automation (ARAPL), India’s first listed robotics company, has announced a significant global expansion milestone: its subsidiary, ARAPL RaaS (Humro), has secured its first international order for the newly developed Atlas AC2000 autonomous forklift – a mobile truck loading and unloading robot.

The order, the company shared, was placed by a large US-based logistics player following comprehensive and successful prototype trials over the last three months at the client’s facilities. The initial order comprises two Atlas AC2000 robots, valued at INR 36 million, and leased for a period of three years.

This initial win is strategically crucial, as it offers Humro a unique opportunity to scale deployment substantially. The client owns 15 warehouses across the US, with a potential to deploy around 15–16 mobile robots in each warehouse over the next two years.

Milind Padole, Founder & Managing Director, ARAPL, said, “Considering the scale and competition in the US market, we are thrilled to announce the success of our product with an established logistics player. This order, following stringent approvals and successful prototype performance, not only opens new doors for us but also is a step towards positioning Make In India mobile robots prominently in the global warehouse robotics sector – otherwise dominated by large US and Chinese players.”

The Atlas AC2000 forklift is a sophisticated machine equipped with LiDAR-based navigation, real-time obstacle detection and precision control algorithms, allowing for safe, 24x7 autonomous truck loading and unloading operations. Humro, which specialises in Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs), leverages ARAPL’s proprietary i-ware controller and employs AI, navigation and swarm robotics to deliver its solutions.

To fuel its global vision and growth, ARAPL has proposed a USD 8–10 million investment into Humro, including USD 3 million personally committed by Padole, alongside preferential allotments and debt financing. Despite announcing a 10 percent price adjustment from December 2025 to reflect new US tariffs, Humro emphasised that its products will remain 15–20 percent more cost-effective than competitors.

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