Page 17 - Construction_Opportunities_July_2026

COVER STORY

conditions, with a potential payback period of approximately Propel Industries is another important Indian example. Its high-
one to two years. The machine therefore represents more than capacity 90CED and 70CED electric dump trucks bring battery-
another electric vehicle; it is an attempt to make electrification electric technology into heavy off-road applications, with high
commercially relevant to the demanding duty cycles of mining. body volumes, rapid charging, advanced safety systems and
The development also reinforces India’s indigenous engineering DGMS compliance. Designed for applications including coal,
story. overburden, limestone and iron ore, the machines underline the
BEML’s mining and construction portfolio already spans 35- to growing effort to develop electric equipment around the realities
205-tonne dump trucks, excavators, shovels, dozers, loaders and of heavy-duty mining rather than adapting technology developed
other heavy equipment, while its R&D portfolio includes larger for lighter applications.
electric dump-truck platforms such as the BH150E and BH205E. Tata Hitachi is pursuing the same transition through its EX210LC
Prime E, a tethered electric excavator that brings electric operation
Powering the Next Generation to an established excavator platform. The company’s technology
SANY is taking electrification into another demanding category. In proposition extends beyond the powertrain: ConSite uses machine
June 2026, Hindustan Zinc deployed India’s first 250-metric-tonne data and analytics to monitor equipment health, while INSITE
electric crane from SANY at its Zinc Smelter in Debari, Rajasthan. provides visibility into utilisation, fuel consumption, location and
The diesel-electric hybrid all-terrain crane can operate on both operating performance.
electric and diesel power and is expected to avoid approximately The combination is important. The future machine is unlikely to
250.8 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent annually, replacing a diesel crane be defined by its powertrain alone. Electric propulsion, digital
consuming around 93,600 litres of fuel a year. monitoring and predictive maintenance are increasingly
The deployment is notable because it takes electrification into becoming interconnected parts of the same equipment
heavy lifting, where load requirements, duty cycles and reliability proposition.
create very different engineering challenges from conventional
electric construction equipment. SANY’s wider India proposition From Machine to Intelligent Asset
is following the same trajectory, combining electric excavators The most consequential change, however, may be taking place
and mining equipment with intelligent cranes, advanced piling inside the systems that surround the machine. At EXCON, L&T
solutions and digitally enabled machines. Construction & Mining Machinery and Komatsu demonstrated
The underlying proposition is changing. Electrification is no remote operation of a Komatsu hydraulic excavator located more
longer simply about replacing a diesel engine with a battery. than 7,000 km away in Japan, controlled from Bengaluru through
Manufacturers are increasingly designing machines around the Komatsu’s EarthBrain ecosystem. The system brings together
specific energy and operating requirements of an application— high-speed data transmission, real-time machine feedback, IoT
including charging infrastructure, duty cycle, payload, terrain and sensors, drone surveys and 3D terrain models.
utilisation. The significance goes well beyond remote control. It points to an

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