Tata Motors celebrated the roll-out of its 100,000th Tata ACE ZIP at its Dharwad facility in Karnataka on February 11, 2015. The Tata ACE Zip is the second highest selling variant of the ACE family with an average volume of 2,500 vehicles per month.
Speaking at the occasion, Mr. Ravi Pisharody, Executive Director, Commercial Vehicles, Tata Motors, said, “The Tata Motors’ creation of the ACE in May 2005 and subsequently the ACE Zip went on to create new vehicle categories in India and are a clear indication of our understanding of the customer needs and commitment to cater to these with safe, cost-efficient transport solutions. Leading the segment with a large 78 per cent share, the ACE Zip micro-truck offers a safer, more lucrative cargo option for the cargo carrier businesses. It has found acceptability from first-time buyers and is seen as a successful self-employment generation model. Today, with the 100,000th roll out of this vehicle, we can confidently testify the value we offer to our customers”.
In May 2011, the ACE family grew with the launch of the Micro truck – Tata ACE Zip, a four-wheel micro truck with a payload of 600 kg for deep-penetration for door-to-door goods movement. With a turning radius of 3.5 meters, the Tata ACE Zip proved to be a runaway success in the small commercial vehicle industry. It is suitable for short intra-city deliveries, plying on narrow village roads as easily as on long highway hauls, carrying small bulky loads or even a heavy cargo. In India, the Tata ACE Zip has been used in various applications like Cargo Van, Water tankers, Dumpers, Tippers, Display Vans, Shop-on-wheels, Snack Centre, Delivery Vans etc. Around 200 Tata Motors dealerships with a total network strength of around 1,800 outlets retail the Tata ACE family.
Established with an investment of over Rs. 900 crores, the Dharwad facility, home to the ACE Zip is a green field project by Tata Motors for the production of this Micro truck. It is equipped with state-of-the-art equipment following lean manufacturing principles and has built-in flexibilities to assemble large numbers and different variants in mixed mode production. The plant spans across an area of 405 acres and has been constructed as per the norms specified by Indian Green Building Council (IGBC) and has been accorded Platinum Rating from its inception. This plant recently won the Union Power Ministry’s ‘National Energy Conservation Award’ for 2014 in the automobile sector.
The major capital outlay, encompassing civil and plant engineering work for the facility, has been sourced from Europe, the US, South Korea, Japan and best-in-class suppliers from India. The capacity of the plant is 90,000 units per year.