South Africa team rolls out 5,000th commercial vehicle
March 16, 2018
Tata Motors South Africa has achieved the milestone of rolling out 5,000 commercial vehicles (CV) from its assembly facility in Rosslyn, Pretoria. On March 9, 2018, the Tata Prima Tipper 2528k was handed over to the customer, Ms Maggie Ntshatisi from Kenta Construction. Ms Ruchira Kamboj, the High Commissioner of India to South Africa handed over the keys along with Mr Len Brand, Executive Director Tata Africa Holdings and Head Distribution, Tata International. Mr Niraj Srivastava and Mr Harneet Luther, senior members of the TIL Africa team, were also present at the occasion.
Speaking at the event Mr Rudrarup Maitra, Vice President, Commercial Vehicles, International Business, Tata Motors, said, “This milestone of the 5,000th truck roll-out from Tata Motors’ state-of-the-art facility in Rosslyn, is a testament to our successful journey in South Africa. We sincerely thank each employee for their commitment in making this aspiration a reality.”
Mr Pranab Ghosh, CEO, Tata Motors (SA), also shared a few words. “We hope to complete the roll-out of the 10,000th vehicle in half the time, by expanding our footprints to neighbouring countries, as well. Moreover, as is the tradition at the Tata group, we are working towards developing local communities and empowering them through skill development.”
Tata Motors (SA) is a joint venture between Tata Motors and Tata Africa Holdings. The vehicles are sold by Tata Automobile Corporation SA (TACSA), which is responsible for sales, marketing and after sales. Over the years, TACSA has established a footprint of close to 50 touch points/channel partners across South Africa, Botswana, Namibia and Swaziland. These channel partners play a vital role in this value chain of connecting with the customers. Thus, in addition to the 5,000-vehicle handover, there was a channel partner felicitation ceremony, where three dealerships were lauded for their association of more than 15 years with TACSA and another 9 dealers were honoured for their valuable contribution.
During the event, the entire range of trucks from Tata Motors, including the recently launched Ultra platform, was also showcased. Customers and channel partners had the opportunity to look at the state-of-the-art plant and were introduced to the brand new virtual reality headset that will be implemented in TACSA dealerships. The headset allows the viewer to take a ride in the Tata range of vehicles from the comfort of the office.
The facility in Rosslyn was set up in 2011 and is capable of assembling vehicles from 8 to 75-ton payloads, across various wheelbase ranges (from 3,800 mm to 5,200 mm). It has an installed capacity of assembling up to 2,000 trucks per year. Currently employing around 70 people, the facility has started exporting to Mozambique and Zimbabwe and is looking to expand its operations by exporting to other neighbouring countries. Moreover, the plant has also carried out various skill development programmes for its employees. The company is also exploring an association with the Automotive Industries Development Council (AIDC) for skill development initiatives to help develop employability potential in the local community.
