At a time when most OEMs are grappling with compliance costs and shifting trade winds, CASE Construction Equipment is doubling down on India. During a recent walkthrough of the Case New Holland Construction Equipment India Pvt Ltd’s manufacturing facility in Pithampur, Madhya Pradesh, Emre Karazli, Vice President Construction Segment, APAC, and Shalabh Chaturvedi, Managing Director, India & SAARC, explained how India is playing a central role in both product innovation and global supply resilience. The highlight was the new line of CEV5-compliant equipment, which was not just about hitting regulatory targets but using it as a springboard to expand global exports, enhance modularity, and redefine value without compromising quality.
India Is The Most Flexible Arm Of CNH’s Global Operations
Karazli called CASE’s India plant “the most flexible” in their global network. Unlike facilities in Europe or North America, Pithampur’s production model allows for late-stage customisation, last-minute order changes and leaner frozen periods. This agility, rare in heavy equipment manufacturing, makes India the preferred sourcing base for nearly 80% of CNH’s needs in the APAC region. The facility’s flexibility is credited not only to skilled labour but also to a unique local work ethic, teams willing to adapt, work nights, and meet high-mix, low-volume demands with speed and precision.
CEV5-Compliant Is Export-Ready By Design
The new generation of construction equipment showcased at the facility, including compactors and backhoe loaders, meet India’s latest CEV5 emission norms. In fact, this leap in emission compliance aligns India with only a handful of advanced markets like Europe, Israel, and South Korea. Chaturvedi pointed out that this convergence unlocks fresh export corridors, especially to Europe and North America, where CASE already sends around 10% of its construction equipment from India.
What differentiates CASE’s approach is its commitment to a “one-quality” philosophy, machines made for India and those meant for export share the same structural platform. The difference lies in modular tweaks to meet market-specific needs such as emission levels, safety features, or component configurations. This modularity not only ensures scale but also accommodates diverse global standards without compromising quality.
Balancing Cost vs Quality
As with any new major shift in technology, the transition to BS-V technology often raises concerns about cost escalation. CASE’s leadership, however, maintains that quality cannot and should not be compromised for price. Instead, they bank on three levers: deep localisation, strong after-sales support, and a customer-first finance model. For instance, while BS5 machines come at a higher upfront price, they also save 2 to 3 litres of diesel per hour and come embedded with IoT-enabled electronic engines that allow predictive maintenance.
Despite higher complexity, CASE is building capacity through dedicated training programmes like Shilpi, Vijeta, and Hunar to ensure that local technicians and operators are fully equipped to handle new-generation machines. These are not marketing phrases but grassroots skilling efforts meant to strengthen the support ecosystem across India.
Manufacturing & Distribution
India is now producing machines not just for itself, but for Southeast Asia, Africa, the Middle East, and even North America. CNH’s tractors, harvesters, and construction equipment from Pithampur and Noida have been going global for years. What sets India apart from China in CNH’s strategy is not just labour cost; Karazli notes that Chinese labour is already 4 to 5 times more expensive, but also the talent pool and a favourable policy landscape. While China’s plants mostly serve domestic demand, India is the launchpad for global reach. The 50-50 revenue split between domestic and export sales from the Indian plant is a testimony to this balanced strategy.
Chaturvedi highlighted that network expansion is keeping pace with growing demand. The Bharat Mala corridor, North-East roadworks, and state-led projects in Andhra Pradesh are opening up new zones for equipment demand. CASE is responding with a push into high-potential but underserved markets. The dealer network spans 60 cities within India and several across APAC, with strong support in Australia, New Zealand, and Southeast Asia.
Additionally, CNH’s central warehouse in Indore stocks INR 100 crore worth of parts, ensuring 24- to 48-hour delivery timelines even in remote areas. Their digital tools and telematics platform further improve visibility on fuel use, machine location, and preventive maintenance, all accessible via a customer app.
IoT With The Indian Customer Is A Work In Progress
There’s clear recognition that while telematics is robustly integrated into CASE’s products, adoption among small-scale Indian buyers remains low. Only 30% of them renew their IoT SIM subscriptions. Yet, the backend systems still track and alert users on critical faults, underscoring CASE’s aim to stay connected throughout the product lifecycle, even if the customer opts out. The war room approach to breakdown alerts, error-code tracking, and training is gradually reshaping perceptions of maintenance from reactive to proactive.
Future Pipeline: Mini Excavators & Skid-Steers On The Radar
CASE has firmed up plans to introduce new product lines such as mini excavators and skid-steer loaders. The mini excavator programme, recently approved, targets both APAC and North American markets. It underscores the company's strategy to address the growing demand for compact, versatile machines suited to urban and light construction, a segment that’s rising even in India.
CNH’s Pithampur facility is no longer just a domestic production base; it is a benchmark within the company’s global operations. As emission norms rise and supply chains become less predictable, India’s blend of cost competitiveness, regulatory maturity and modular production makes it indispensable. With exports at par with domestic deliveries, CNH is building not just machines but a self-sustaining ecosystem, one that understands local requirements yet delivers to global standards. Maybe next time around we will get a more practical experience with any of these CEV5 machines.
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