Raising the Bar

How has the journey been so far Schindler in the Indian market?
Schindler India is a subsidiary of Schindler worldwide. And we have been in India for the past 20 years. We are the newest entrant amongst the multinational companies. But from being a startup 20 years ago to being the top three players in India today is a significant growth that the company has had. And it reflects the kind of commitment that people have in developing the organization to this level.

What makes your organization unique and different from other service providers?
Schindler has always been a company that drives people’s agenda first. We ensure that our employees are empowered and well taken care of.

We also impart in them proper skill sets and the required training which allows them to take good care of the customers too. So when you focus on your people they invariably take care of your customers. And our portfolio of products too plays an important role, we offer the right kind of products and services depending on the market needs which evolve from time to time.

As far as technological innovation is concerned in the elevator industry what is your opinion on the same?
I think for many years we have not seen much innovation. But 25 years ago when we launched the destination control system we proved them wrong. In traditional elevators when you want to go to a floor you press the button and then it takes you to that floor. We introduced a system wherein this functionality was made available outside. This allowed people to enter the elevator in proper groups and it took everybody to the same floor in a much quicker time

Now we have evolved from that to our latest technology which is known as Personal Occupant Terminal Port. This is the fifth generation of the detestation control we launched earlier. It focuses on the movement of traffic and also offers a great deal of personalization. If you happen to go to the same floor every morning at 10:00 am and then go to the cafeteria on another floor every noon at 12:00 pm, these aspects gets programmed in the system. Next time when you board the elevator, it offers you suggestions based on your previous movement history before you can choose it. Likewise it can play your favourite music, your favourite visuals; it can also play a welcome message every time you enter the lift. Beyond this the scope of innovation in elevators has extended to the IoT space

Schindler has focused on predictive maintenance by using cloud IoT and data analytics to launch allied products and services. We have launched digital advertising in elevator doors. Earlier you had access to a TV in an elevator where you could see some news or advertisements. You even had sticker ads in place. But now what if the elevator doors itself becomes a digital advertising space. It transforms the elevator into an agent of monetisation. Traditionally elevators are a cost and now it becomes a profit centre.
Schindler has pioneered this concept in the world by introducing digital advertising for elevator doors and escalator panels. These concepts work best in malls and allow a client to splash his ads and also change them as per his requirements using his laptop at home, office or elsewhere.

Have you implemented such kind of projects in India?
No not yet, because we haven’t launched the product in India but worldwide we’ve already launched it and it has been very successful. What we have launched in India is the first set of IoT elevators which offer predictive maintenance. More than 3000 elevators from our product portfolio are already in sync with predictive maintenance.

Meanwhile we’ve already pitched the Schindler advertising programs. Buyers are also on board. In a year or less you will get to see them. In fact in October we are opening our experience centre too, where all the new products will be showcased. It’s a very new thing for India. And we don’t want to rush in without asserting the fact that the market is ready for it. But we are fully ready for it.

Can you let us know more about predictive maintenance?
Traditionally what happens is when your elevator breaks down you call the elevator company and then they come and fix the elevator. But now the elevator intuitively learns about it.

How does this happen? Each elevator has a microprocessor inside the shaft of the elevator moreover there are sensors all through the elevator. The sensors detect minute changes which includes temperature, pressure, speed, performance of the robes, the belts etc. So it is in a position to predict the occurrence of any problem the elevator may face.

And before the problem occurs a message is sent to the field technician on his digital toolkit. All our technicians are equipped with a digital toolkit which is an iPhone. The device also predicts the possible solutions to resolve the problem. If a spare part has gone bad, it will point it out too and by the time the technician reaches the site the spare part too will arrive and he will be able to fix the problem.

Owing to predictive maintenance, the problems are resolved on time. So the uptime now is almost 100 per cent.

Which segment offers you maximum business?
In India the residential segment forms a major crux of our business activities. Almost 70% to 80% demand is driven by the residential segment.

In India, what kind of market share do you have?
Our market share enables us to be one of leading companies in the segment. Without going into the game of numbers, I can confidently tell you that we are among the top 3 players in India.

Offering the right kind of products and services combined with timely innovation has allowed Schindler India to be among one of the top three players in the elevator segment.
Ashok Ramachandran, President and CEO, Schindler India and South Asia