At GMMCO and Caterpillar, our role is to support the India Growth Story

How was the overall response at bauma CONEXPO INDIA 2026?

The response has been tremendous. The scale of participation this year is clearly larger than what we saw in the previous edition. Beyond the presence of leading OEMs, what is particularly encouraging is the amount of innovation coming from across the Indian ecosystem.

If you walk through the indoor exhibits, you see innovation not only in equipment, but also in technology, components and support-service solutions. It reflects how rapidly the construction and infrastructure ecosystem in India is evolving.

What is your focus for this edition? What does GMMCO and Caterpillar have for customers?

Caterpillar has always been a forward-looking organisation with a strong focus on innovation, technology and productivity. Its machines have been present in India for decades and are proven across some of the most demanding applications.

But for Caterpillar and GMMCO, the India opportunity is not simply about putting more machines on the ground. The bigger opportunity is to make every machine already operating on the ground more productive, more available and more efficient.

That requires an equally strong ecosystem behind the equipment. Our objective is that when a machine goes down, we get it back into production as quickly as possible. We are strengthening our parts availability, field support, technology and service infrastructure with this objective at the centre.

I believe the industry also needs to increasingly look beyond the number of machines sold and focus on the output those machines generate — how much earth is moved, how quickly a road is built, how efficiently a mine operates and how effectively a project is completed.

A machine that is idle is not creating economic value.

Productive equipment is what contributes to infrastructure creation and ultimately to India’s growth.

What are the highlights of GMMCO’s aftermarket services?

The equipment is only one part of the solution. What differentiates GMMCO is the ecosystem we have built around the customer throughout the lifecycle of that equipment.

Today, we have more than 1,000 engineers supporting customers on the ground. We have invested significantly in rebuild capabilities, workshops, parts infrastructure, field support and on-site customer solutions.

All these capabilities come together with one objective: to maximise equipment availability and productivity for our customers.

For us, aftermarket is therefore not simply about servicing a machine when something goes wrong. It is about helping customers keep their assets operating efficiently throughout their lifecycle.

How is the connected ecosystem playing a major role in aftermarket services?

Construction and mining are becoming increasingly technology-driven industries. Connected assets and IoT-enabled equipment have already created enormous amounts of machine data.

Across the GMMCO ecosystem, we have a large connected population of equipment. But collecting data itself is not the objective. The real value comes from converting that data into actionable insights for the customer. That is where our focus lies.

For example, we have invested significantly in Scheduled Oil Sampling. By continuously monitoring oil samples and identifying changes in patterns, we can detect potential internal deterioration much earlier. This allows us to intervene before a problem becomes a failure and potentially prevents unplanned downtime.

That represents the next stage of aftermarket support — moving from reactive maintenance to predictive and preventive interventions.

Technology becomes meaningful only when it improves availability, reduces downtime and makes the customer’s operation more productive.

How is GMMCO creating a strong aftermarket ecosystem?

A contractor does not ultimately buy a machine simply to own equipment. The machine is purchased to deliver an outcome — to move a certain volume of earth, construct a kilometre of road or achieve a production target.

Our aftermarket philosophy therefore revolves around three things: availability, productivity and capability.

First is availability. The machine must be operational when the customer needs it. We are challenging ourselves to bring machines back into operation within defined turnaround times, supported by strong parts and service capabilities.

Second is productivity. Availability alone is not enough. The machine must deliver the required output efficiently. That means optimising equipment configurations, selecting the right combinations of loading and hauling equipment, managing site-specific operating conditions and helping customers improve fuel and operating efficiency.

Third is operator capability. Even the best equipment and technology cannot deliver their full potential unless the operator knows how to use them effectively.

That is why we are investing in operator development through simulators, driver trainers and structured customer training programmes. At customer sites, we work closely with operators to help them use the equipment safely, efficiently and productively.

When equipment, technology, service and people come together, that is when the customer begins to see the full value of the solution.

What are your plans ahead?

India is at an exciting point in its growth journey.

A road today is not simply a road. It connects markets, reduces travel time, lowers logistics costs and unlocks economic activity. A railway line creates new supply chains. A mine supports industries further downstream. Every infrastructure project has a multiplier effect on the economy.

Therefore, the opportunity ahead is not simply about building more infrastructure. It is about helping India build infrastructure faster, safer and more efficiently. That is where organisations such as GMMCO and Caterpillar have an important role to play.

Our responsibility is to bring together world-class equipment, technology, aftermarket capabilities, people and customer support to help projects achieve higher levels of productivity.

At GMMCO and Caterpillar, our role is to support the India growth story — by helping our customers achieve more from every asset, every site and every hour of operation.

And given the scale of infrastructure development ahead of us, we are extremely excited about what the future holds.

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Sambhav Malhotra
Chief Strategy Officer
GMMCO Ltd (A CKA Birla Group company)