VE Commercial Vehicles Limited sets up its First Company Owned Company Operated (COCO) Eicher branded dealership in Gujarat

Gujarat is one among the top three markets for Eicher Pan India

September 5, 2013 VE Commercial Vehicles Limited (A Volvo group and Eicher Motors JV) today announced the setting up of its first Eicher branded Company owned Company operated (COCO) dealership in Gujarat at Gandhidham. The company owned dealership set up on an area of 72,000 square feet is on the Gandhidham-Ahmedabad NH-8A highway. The new 3S (Sales, Service and Spares) facility with state of the art equipment, best in class operating standards, special tools, desired inventory of spare parts and assemblies, trained technicians will enhance customer experience and ensure maximum vehicle uptime. The set-up with 8 work-bays will have a capacity to service 500 vehicles a month. The service team at the COCO dealership has undergone technical training at Eicher Competency development centre, Ahmedabad which has been set up as part of Industry-Academia model of VECV.

VE Commercial Vehicles Limited took the strategic initiative of creating own dealerships in some high potential markets recently and the Gandhidham dealership is among the initial outcomes of this strategy. Speaking on the inauguration, Mr. A.K. Birla, Executive Vice President, Sales, Marketing and Aftermarket, VECV said “Eicher would sell its complete range of Light/Medium and heavy duty trucks and buses from the new COCO dealership. This is our first set up in Gandhidham and it will service the growing demand of Eicher Heavy Duty vehicles in the region. It will also provide us with an opportunity to have a first-hand experience of our retail customers and strengthen the existing Eicher network”

“Gujarat is an important market for VECV and would continue to play a critical role in our growth story. With state of art technology, innovative design and engineering and best in class fuel efficient vehicles, Eicher branded trucks and buses would continue to meet the growing demand and contribute to the profitability of our valued consumers”, he added

Eicher today has transformed itself into a complete CV manufacturer with a wide product range from 5t to 40t GVW trucks and 15 to 65 seater buses. It is making strong inroads into Heavy Duty trucks segment of 16T-40T with “VE” series of Fuel Efficient heavy duty trucks. All Eicher trucks in the Heavy duty VE Series carry the inherent advantages accrued from the dual- parentage of Volvo and Eicher. Volvo's technology process, quality systems and advanced production processes are intrinsic to the design and manufacturing of these products and so is the fuel-efficiency edge that Eicher continues to champion. Moreover, with access to global expertise in testing and validation, it is ensured that all products of the VE series are engineered for superior performance, reliability and uncompromising durability.With more than 23000 VE series, the trucks have received very good response from the market with its promise of delivering enhanced Value to the customers. The first Eicher branded truck rolled out from its state of the art manufacturing plant in 1986 and over the past 26 years, the products have got endorsement from happy customers of over 400,000 vehicles.

Eicher has also continuously expanded the “After Sales” infrastructure and parts availability across the country. A state of art VE parts distribution centre has been set up at Pithampur, Madhya Pradesh to stock complete range of parts at the central warehouse and make it available to any corner of India within few hours. Also, to enhance parts reach, Eicher genuine parts are available in outlets across India.

Eicher has a vast service network of 250 sales and service points with more than 1600 service bays to take care of growing population of Eicher vehicles. To optimize the maintenance cost for our customers, “Eicher Freedom – Service Agreement” an annual maintenance contract in different packages based on the customer needs and applications has been institutionalized. Similarly, insurance tie ups with insurance companies provide cashless motor insurance and zero depreciation to the customers there by helping Eicher become one stop solution provider to the customers. To support en-route breakdown, “Eicher On-road Service” (EOS) is available to provide assistance to customers 24x7, 365 days on pan India basis. “Eicher Promise” is an assurance to the customer that in the event of a truck or bus breaking down pan India, the vehicle will be brought back to motorable condition within specified hours.

Disclaimer: All statements included or incorporated by reference in this media release, other than statements or characterizations of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations, estimates and projections about our industry, management's beliefs and certain assumptions made by us. Although VE Commercial Vehicles believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which such statement was made, and VE Commercial Vehicles undertakes no obligation to Update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. No assurance can be given that actual results, performance or achievement expressed in, or implied by, forward-looking statements within this disclosure will occur, or if they do, that any benefits may be derived from them.