FOCUS Testing times
Testing, testing & even crashing brand new cars is how Maruti Suzuki plays the R&D game at its skunkworks in Rohtak
MARUTI SUZUKI SET up shop in India in the first half of the 1980s and since then it has dominated the Indian automotive space. In the three plus decades it has been involved in the business it has built up capabilities which commenced with localisation of existing Suzuki designs and interacting with suppliers to now be in a position where it has developed strengths in design, engineering and R&D. To many this might be pretty late given that others had already begun developing locally without any OEM partner support but MUL has played a subtle waiting game all along.
Recently the firm threw open a few doors to let us have a peek at its extensive R&D facility at Rohtak where apart from new model development and testing, it also has a state-of-the-art proving ground replete with the most modern crash test facility in the land. Manned by 220 engineers, this is probably the most elaborate R&D facility in the country barring of course Tata Motors' facility and on par with the upcoming Mahindra Research Valley in Chennai.
Set up in 2015 with an outlay of `3800 crores this facility is now on full steam as Maruti Suzuki aims to beef up strengths in areas of durability, safety, fuel efficiency, technology and infotainment. While the firm has an all new Boosterjet engine in the pipeline, its immediate focus is to meet crash test regulations for all new cars to be launched by October 2017. The existing models also need to be in conformity with the new crash test mandates by October 2019.
Rohtak plays a critical role in the new areas of lighter and stronger structures every OEM is moving to. Maruti Suzuki has already adopted Suzuki's 5th gen platform with the new Baleno and it is working on a new platform that will underpin the next gen Swift which will debut at Auto Expo 2018. All this work and even more will be done at Rohtak along with Maruti Suzuki also helping the automotive cause to train engineers from the ARAI in crash test procedures and analysis.
Quite clearly relentless thrashing on the test tracks, crashing cars digitally and physically all are taken in stride as just a day in the office among many other R&D activities as India's leading car maker aims to prepare itself for the next decade.