Volvo India: In the driver’s seat, and plans a long Indian drive

Venkatachari Jagannathan
04 April 2003

Chennai: Volvo India vice president (marketing) Arne Knaben, 44, is a hands-on executive. Without any hesitation he would climb into the Volvo truck cabin to drive around his prospective customers and give a live demo about the vehicle’s advanced features to close a sale.

Nor does he have any qualms in saying: “During my pre-Volvo days I used to be a mechanic and truck driver. And that helps in my present job a lot.” According to him the earnings difference between a good trucker or a mechanic and a company official in Norway is not major as in India.

After a stint in the Norwegian army, Knaben decided to study industrial economics (a combination of mechanical engineering and economics) before he joined Volvo. Soft spoken, Knaben sees the domestic truck industry slowly shifting towards multi-axle vehicles. Last year the total heavy- and medium-commercial vehicle segment clocked sales of 70,000 units. Of this, around 30,000 units were multi-axle trucks.

“Ultimately the market will favour tractor trailers. When that happens, Volvo India will be in the driver’s seat,” he is hopeful. As part of its strategy to grow in high-powered vehicle market, Volvo India, late last year, launched a new 9-litre engine tipper with reinforced body and high-ground clearance with a payload capacity of 27 tonnes. “The model was modified taking into account the local conditions and offers more space for the driver.”

Trucks aside, Knaben and his team are growing the company’s presence in the passenger bus, diesel engine and construction equipment segments. “We are redefining the transportation industry in India focusing on aspects like cost, efficiency and safe transport of goods and passengers.” According to Knaben the total bus market is 25,000 units, of which the super luxury air-conditioned vehicle segment accounts for 400 vehicles. “This number is growing.”

He says Volvo India has started selling its buses in North India while sales in the western region is healthy with the focus on inter-city transport operators. A recent entrant, Volvo India has sold around 100 buses till date. The company is also planning to have the Bangalore facility as the export base for buses.