SKF to Invest in India
The Indian subsidiary of Swedish auto component maker SKF is planning to invest Rs. 150 crores in India. SKF is a leading technology and solutions provider of bearings, seals and related products. It will set up a new manufacturing plant in Haridwar in Uttrakhand. SKF is the largest auto component manufacturing firm in India for bearings and seals for aerospace.
The new production unit will increase the manufacturing capacity of ball bearings by at least 30 percent. It shall be company's fifth manufacturing unit in India. SKF already has nearly 120 manufacturing units across the globe. The company has taken the decision looking at the increase in demand for auto parts. It had earlier put this investment on hold for past two years due to slowing demand.
"Auto sales have revived in the January-March quarter and we expect demand to grow in the future. As the economy is expected to improve in the next few months, we will be ready with the plant early next year," said SKF India MD Rakesh Makhija.
"Hero Honda is doubling production to one million motorcycles in Haridwar so a strategic decision be close to the client. We have a five-year lock in supply agreement with Hero Honda but shall develop the 10-acre facility to supply to other auto makers," he added.
[Via: caretradeindia]
Fiat Yamaha urge FIM to make MotoGP less expensive
Daniele Romagnoli and Davide Brivio, team managers at Fiat Yamaha, have urged the FIM to take decisive actions that would bring about a reduction in MotoGP costs. According to Romagnoli, team manager for Jorge Lorenzo, the FIM should reduce winter testing and/or schedule testing to coincide with the last GP of the season, which would also reduce costs (since bikes and equipment would not have to be ferried from one country to another).
Romagnoli also suggests a drastic reduction in the rev limit for MotoGP engines, which would enhance their longevity. This, according to him, would be crucial in bringing down costs because the engine is the most expensive part of a MotoGP bike in terms of the cost of components as well as research and development costs.
Reducing the rev limit to 16,000rpm would, according to Romagnoli, allow manufacturers to use the same engine in two or perhaps even three races. It would also allow a reduction in manufacturing costs since it would be possible to make these engines with relatively less expensive materials.
The Fiat Yamaha managers recommend the usage of just one ECU per bike and a drastic reduction in the usage of complex, expensive sensors such as inertial platforms and GPS. They recommend going back to simpler, less expensive electronics - the kind that were being used five years ago.
And finally, they suggest that steel (rather than carbon) brakes be used on MotoGP bikes, which would help cut costs further. 'I don't think these changes would make the championship any less spectacular. As a matter of fact, it could lead to even have more surprises,' says Romagnoli.
[Via: indiaautomotive]
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