Spirit 38 - Volvo Construction Equipment

“Europe is renowned for stateof-the-art
technology, very high
quality products created with
very high engineering skills
-- and this will give Europe an
advantage when working in
Asia and the other
emerging BRIC markets.”
-- and this is what we have to offer Asia and the New World
markets. Volvo is already in a very good position in Asia. We are
fortunate that we have people with vision, who saw Asia coming
a long way back and now we’re reaping the benefits of their
foresight. Today, we have a very strong presence in China, Korea
and India, which has given us a platform to expand.”
The congress went on to address the subject of how
the European construction equipment industry should adapt
to the new world order. How important, for instance, was the
internet going to become? Would it support the dealer network?
Is the profile of the dealer going to change?
Dealers Crucial
The overall view was that although the internet is
and will continue to be the principal source of information for
end-users, nobody predicted that purchasing will change from
B2B to internet only. It was unanimously acknowledged too that
the distribution network will remain a key factor for the success
of manufacturers in Europe, as dealers will continue to bring
substantial added value for the end-users through their after-sales
activities.
Dumail agrees. “We’ve had more and more feedback
from customers wanting more of a service rather than just a
product,” she says. “Softer products are going to become more
important. That will also be the case in the rental sector, which is
expected to grow. Today, the rental solution is about more than
just having a machine in the yard for a job; it’s about bringing the
machine to the job, providing an operator and generally providing
a wider range of services than in the past.”
“At the moment it’s a good thing to be Volvo and it’s a
good thing to be a European company with a big reach rather than
a national one with a narrow focus and a finite market. Volvo has
very good brands and we’re well respected in Asia. We’re not
arrogant, but when I introduce myself and people see that I’m
from Volvo, people really pay attention. That for me is the only
sign I need to know that our future is a bright one.”
Text: Niall Edworthy
SPIRIT38