Three major international rake manufacturers have plans to set up units in the country.
If all goes as per plan, the next phase of city’s monorail rakes running in the metropolitan region will be manufactured in India. All three major monorail manufacturing companies — Scomi of Malaysia, Bombardier of Canada and Hitachi of Japan — have plans to set up manufacturing plants in India.
Scomi, which is already delivering the first monorail to the city, has already short listed four states in the country where they would want to set up the monorail plant. “We expect to finish the formalities of finalising the location by the year-end. The four states we are looking at are Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Gujarat,” Suhaimi Tan Sri Yaacob, country head, Scomi (India)
told DNA.
“We see a huge potential market for monorail. As per our information, as many as 24 cities in India have shown keen interest in having a monorail. It would be our obvious target to tap this potential market and the best way to go further is by setting up a plant here,” Yaacob added. However, Yaacob also accepted the fact that they are bound to face stiff competition from Bombardier and Hitachi as there were only three monorail manufacturers in the world.
Besides India, many other countries are also looking at monorail as an alternative mode of public transport, said Yacoob. “Brazil, for instance, has tendered for one of the biggest monorail projects in the world. They are expecting football lovers from across the globe to come for the football World Cup 2014; and so the monorail, to make traveling convenient for these people. Brazil has ordered as many as 400 monorail rakes,” Yacoob said. “Many other countries, including Malaysia are also looking at monorail as a feeder service to their Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS).”
Commenting on the progress of the Mumbai monorail, Yacoob said the 9km first phase from Chembur to Wadala will be completed on schedule.
“The entire 9km stretch will have about 700 pillars, each at a distance of 25 metres from one another. All the pillars should be ready by September. The first team of 15 Indians, who had gone to Kuala Lumpur for on-job training, has returned this week. More employees will be now trained by the end of this year,” he said.
Yacoob added that the first phase service of the monorail is expected to start by March-April 2011. “Though our civil work and other related works are expected to complete by December this year, we will carry out a recce with fire brigade, police, and other officials of the security forces for about three months,” Yaacob said.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}