The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at

www.emeraldinsight.com/1755-4195.htm

Cummins India
Cummins India: brand leadership
through service excellence
Thomas Varghese
Saintgits Institute of Management, Kottayam, India 181
Abstract
Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to highlight the fact that brand image creation is an elaborate
and long-term activity through consistent strategic initiatives and the importance of understanding
customer expectations and delivering them consistently.
Design/methodology/approach – The paper is based mainly on the information gathered by
conducting interviews with executives of the case study company (Cummins India Ltd), field sales and
service team members of the company and some important customers.
Findings – Cummins in India has been the market leader in manufacturing diesel, gas, and dual fuel
engines for various industrial purposes such as generating sets, industrial, mining, and marine
applications. The case mainly focuses on the generating set market where customers look for a brand
which can assure not only a quality product, but also quality service. It covers a series of activities
initiated by Cummins India Ltd, that span about two decades to make available spare parts and
service support to customers. The case is a description of the history of Cummins India creating an
organizational structure with service focus, a culture of service orientation and the systems to ensure
service delivery. This corporate brand image has contributed immensely to the success of the
company.
Originality/value – The paper is based mostly on primary information gathered through interviews
and provides an insight into various initiatives of a successful organization to develop a
customer-focused service strategy.
Keywords Corporate strategy, Brand image, Customer services quality, Customer orientation,
Spare parts, India
Paper type Case study

1. Introduction
Diesel generating sets are a vital support to the various industries in India due to the
issues related to electricity supply unavailability, power shortage during peak load
times, load shedding, low voltage, low frequency, and power interruptions. In areas like
health care, hospitality, and process industries, power interruption can be fatal, or
seriously weaken activities. Manufacturing organizations, especially process industries,
depend on electric power generated through diesel generators for their continuous
manufacturing activity as even a short interruption will cause huge losses in production.
Poor power quality can lead to serious product quality issues. This being a critical
product for most organizational activity, equipment availability, in good condition,
is important, ensuring which is the role of service support. Cummins India emerged as
the biggest brand in the diesel engine market not only by using its high-quality
manufacturing capability and product range, but also as a service leader. Service focus
emerged in the early years and matured in 1970s and over the years the practice adopted Journal of Indian Business Research
Vol. 2 No. 3, 2010
by the company to “put the customer first and provide real value” has paid rich pp. 181-189
dividends and contributed to its brand image substantially. Cummins has been q Emerald Group Publishing Limited
1755-4195
recognized as a super brand in India and a lot of credit for its consistent financial DOI 10.1108/17554191011069460
JIBR performance can be attributed to the strong brand image of “service par excellence”.
2,3 Figure 1 shows the growth in income of Cummins India for the past decade.
Branding is important in this industry, as the product being a high-value item with
long life is critical to the customer’s operations and a sense of assurance is what customer
looks for. A brand’s personality and reputation for performance can distinguish it from
the competition, engendering customer loyalty, and growth (Kotler and Pfoertsch, 2006).
182 One of the mission statements of Cummins requires the company to partner with its
customers to make sure they succeed. The case takes a look at the diesel engine industry,
Cummins India Ltd (2009) as a key player and the service support initiatives which have
earned the company the reputation of being a “dependable partner”. Service therefore is
an integral part of Cummins brand personality. Cummins vision, mission, and values are
as follows.

Vision
Making the people’s lives better by unleashing the power of Cummins.

Mission
.
Motivating people to act like owners working together.
.
Exceeding customer expectations by always being first to market with the best
products.
.
Partnering with our customers to make sure they succeed.
. Demanding that everything we do leads to a cleaner, healthier, and safer
environment.
.
Creating wealth for all stakeholders.

40,000
Total income Profit after tax
35,000

30,000

25,000
Rs Millions

20,000

15,000

10,000

5,000

–
Figure 1.
1

9
0

-0

-0

-0

-0

-0

-0

-0

-0

-0
00

Financial performance of
00

01

02

03

04

05

06

07

08
-2

20

20

20

20

20

20

20

20

20
99

Cummins India Ltd during

19

the past decade

Source: Annual reports of Cummins India Ltd
Values Cummins India
.
Integrity. We strive to do what is right and we do what we say we will do.
.
Innovation. Apply the creative ingenuity necessary to make us better, faster,
and first.
.
Delivering superior results. Exceed expectations consistently.
. Corporate responsibility. Serve and improve the communities in which we live. 183
.
Diversity. Embrace the diverse perspectives of all people and honor both with
dignity and respect.
.
Global involvement. Seek a world view and act without boundaries.

Joe Loughrey, COO and President, Cummins Inc. declares:

Dependability is our key brand attribute. It goes beyond product performance or response to
a service event. Dependability means the customer can count on Cummins to do what we say
we will do.

2. The industry and the company

The supply-demand gap faced by the various electricity boards and the frequent power
quality issues have prompted most of the organizations – whether manufacturing,
service provider or even educational institutions – to opt for back-up captive
generation equipment, the most convenient being a diesel power generator. In spite of
the relatively high cost per unit of power, there is large number of generating sets
being added every year to the already huge generating set population. Cummins India
Ltd itself adds more than 1,000 MW generating capacity every year.
The basic technology uses a diesel engine coupled to an electric generator
converting mechanical energy to electrical energy and managed using advanced power
control systems. Often, there is an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) involved in
the diesel generator set market who buys a diesel engine from the engine manufacturer
like Cummins India Ltd or Caterpillar; an alternator from an electrical equipment
manufacturer like Stamford or Kirloskar Electric Co. Ltd and assembles them along
with electric control panels manufactured by them and markets the product as a set
widely referred to as a genset; though manufacturers of engines also sell a part of the
engines they make as assembled gensets. The major players in the diesel genset
market in India are Cummins India, Hindustan Power Plus (with Caterpillar engines),
Kirloskar Oil Engines Ltd, Greaves and Ashok Leyland.
Cummins India Ltd, started in 1962 in Pune as Kirloskar Cummins Ltd (name changed
in 1997), a technical collaboration of Kirloskar Oil Engines Ltd and Cummins Engine Co. of
the USA; the world’s no. 1 independent diesel engine manufacturer has been the market
leader in the diesel engine business in India since its inception. The engines produced by
Cummins India Ltd find their place in more than 500 different applications in various
industrial products. Cummins India’s major shareholder is Cummins Inc., based in
Columbus, state of Indiana in the USA. Cummins serves its customers through its
network of 500 company owned and independent distributor facilities and more than
5,200 dealer locations in over 190 countries and territories. Cummins Group in India has
nine companies, mostly engineering related. The group in India established itself as
the undisputed market leader due to its largest service support network before 1970s,
JIBR when the diesel engine industry in India was in its nascent stages and service network and
2,3 infrastructure building was a costly exercise. The company, with manufacturing and
service support facilities based in Pune, focus on service in areas like customer training,
service personnel training, providing after sales service and spare parts distribution
management through the subsidiary Cummins Sales and Service India Ltd.

184 3. Product profile

Cummins engines (diesel, gas, and dual duel) are used in power generation equipment,
borewell drilling compressors, mining equipments, marine vessels, locomotives and
railway equipments, and a variety of industrial applications. The product range of
Cummins India is wide, ranging from 20 to 3,000 hp with possibility of synchronized
operation making the plant capacity much bigger, as in the case of a 10 MW diesel
generator power house (Table I gives different models of engines and horse power ranges
for generating set application).

4. Customer expectations in the generator set market

Being a mechanical/electrical device with high-temperature operations, fast-
moving components that cause friction and component wear, periodic maintenance

Displacement Alternator output

S. no. Engine model No. of cylinders (litres) BHP at 1,500 RPM (KVA)

1 X1.7G1 2 1.7 20 15
2 X2.5G2 3 2.5 32 25
3 S3.8G3 4 3.8 45 30
4 S3.8G4 4 3.8 58 40
5 S3.8G6 4 3.8 69 50
6 S3.8G7 4 3.8 80 62.5
7 6BT5.9G1 6 5.9 105 82.5
8 6BTA5.9G1-1 6 5.9 124 100
9 6BTA5.9G2-1 6 5.9 154 125
10 6BTAA5.9G1-1 6 5.9 170 140
11 6CTA8.3G1-1 6 8.3 205 160
12 6CTA8.3G2-1 6 8.3 219 180
13 6CTAA8.3G1-1 6 8.3 245 200
14 6CTAA8.3G4-1 6 8.3 310 250
15 NTA855G2-1 6 14 380 320
16 NTA-14-G3 6 14 450 380
17 KTA-19-G9 6 18.9 600 500
18 VTA-28-G3-1 12 28 710 600
19 VTA-28-G5-1 12 28 750 625
20 QSK23-G3-1 6 23 880 750
21 KTA-38-G2-1 12 37.8 890 750
22 KTA-38-G5 12 37.8 1,180 1,010
23 QST 30-G4 12 30.48 1,180 1,000
24 KTA-50-G3 16 50.3 1,470 1,250
Table I. 25 KTA-50-G8-1 16 50.3 1,735 1,500
Cummins engine models 26 QSK-60-G3 16 60 2,165 1,875
and range for generating 27 QSK-60-G4 16 60 2,319 2,000
set application 28 QSK-78-G9 18 77.6 3,088 2,750
and emergency break-down repairs becomes essential. Maintenance of both Cummins India
categories, scheduled maintenance or break-down maintenance of a highly technical
product with several mechanical, electrical, and electronic components calls for
uninterrupted spare parts supply (several thousands of different spare parts are
required for various models and applications) and technically competent and trained
manpower. Any delay in supply of parts or services can cause downtime and each
hour the equipment is not available causes huge losses to the organization in view of 185
the ensuing production loss. The re-conditioned spares provided by technical product
manufacturers can be a great help to customers. An exchangeable-item repair system
is one to which customers bring failed items for repair, and receive serviceable ones in
return. Items are considered exchangeable in the sense that customers are ready to
take any serviceable item of the same kind they brought to the system (Berg and
Posner, 1990).
Research has demonstrated that the need for trust arises in any situation characterized
by a high degree of risk, uncertainty or lack of knowledge on the part of interacting
participants. So, the customers have an inherent need to have trust in their service provider
to deliver the desired service outcome (Coulter and Coulter, 2002). Since of the
organizations’ operations’ dependence on the genset, customers need to develop trust in
the brand and this is built over a period of time based on performance of the service
providing organization. Some of the factors that contribute to trust, as assessed by
Cummins, are: continuity of service and service professionals, fast response in providing
service, training of its people to operate the equipments in a safe and trouble-free manner,
prompt and good quality service, availability of critical components and two-way
communication.

5. Initiatives for creating service excellence

With the declared objective of becoming the first choice of customer by creating a culture
of placing the customer first and caring for their success, the company took up initiatives
in five core areas: creating a structured organization for service support, identifying key
areas to focus, developing capable people, developing service support systems, and
developing parts delivery systems.
Cummins India Ltd (at that time Kirloskar Cummins Ltd) started the initiative to create
a structured organization by starting a subsidiary company, Cummins Diesel Sales and
Service (India) Ltd in 1967, now Cummins Sales and Service India – the distribution
business unit of Cummins India. A nationwide network of regional offices with a number
of area service offices under them were set up with factory-trained technical staff attached.
In critical locations, company spare parts depots were established. Exclusive dealerships
(mostly run by its employees with experience) were set up with parts and service
capabilities. The company recruited a number of engineers and trained them extensively
in service, manufacturing, theoretical aspects and in field service. Changing technology
called for enhancing their capabilities. On this, says Mr Rengaswamy, a field service
manager of the company:
Cummins engines have undergone drastic changes with emerging technologies and stringent
environmental norms. To meet the new expectations, service personnel capabilities had to be
continuously upgraded. This was a serious challenge for us. This has been successfully met
through intensive training programs at factory and field levels.
JIBR Further, the company identified some key areas to be addressed and actions were
2,3 initiated to take the company closer to customer. This included areas like:
. Reach. With the establishment of the network over a period of time, Cummins
was able to reach its customers the same day of getting a major complaint.
.
Training. Being a technically complex product, operators require training and a
186 free service training school was set up at Pune to train customer representatives
on good operational practices, in English and Hindi. Engineers of the company
were trained extensively on aspects like trouble shooting, vibration, engine
rebuilding, and manufacturing and then trained in field service with senior
engineers.
.
Technical skill building. Company engineers were trained not only to attend to
technical problems, but also to analyze and find root causes through a system
called field service problem analysis reports. Periodic meetings of technical staff
with service managers provided forums for discussing technical problems and
solutions. Technical staff was taken to Pune and other training locations where
theoretical and hands-on training were provided.
.
Spare parts support. Assessment of periodic requirements of parts for scheduled
maintenance and repairs was done to identify parts to be kept available at
dealerships, and systems like engine down order (EDO), breakdown support, etc.
were developed to dispatch parts from central stores to meet priority requirements.
Training programs for parts merchandisers were organized at the training school at
Pune. Maintenance kits for different models and applications were developed to
ensure supply of all required items for a specific model simultaneously.
.
Warranty support. With a number of equipments powered with Cummins engines
operating in the field, a system called mean time to restore (MTTR) to ensure
maximum uptime of engines under warranty was introduced and monitored at
area, regional and head office levels. Commitments of time for re-commissioning
engines were set for engine failures of different categories – major failures that
need replacement of critical components or the unit itself, equipments down and
that need minor parts replacement before putting back into operation, equipments
that can run with the defective items until replacement is done, etc.
.
Exchange programs of pre-serviced parts to speed up equipment repairs have been
extensively desired by customers. Recon Exchange program, where reconditioned
parts as well as full engines are given to the customer facing urgent need
before taking the repairs of their engines was introduced to meet this market
expectation.
.
Create an image of quality through quality-oriented efforts. This has found
success when the quality initiatives were recognized by external agencies, as in
1993, when Cummins became the first winner of India’s highest national award
for quality: Rajiv Gandhi National Quality Award “Best Among the Winners”,
1991-1992. Cummins was also the first diesel engine manufacturer to get ISO 9000
certification. The equipments and tools used for service were periodically
checked and calibrated at approved calibration centres to ensure quality of
repairs and services carried out.
 .
Service support quality assurance was done with training of technical personnel Cummins India
and use of diagnostic methods. These include use of the right tools and software,
engine data logger for recording performance parameters, testing of electrical
and electronic components, lubricant and coolant testing, and use of calibrated
tools and gauges.
.
Prevention rather than cure. Considering the cost of breakdown and equipment
downtime to the customer, the company developed a periodic maintenance schedule 187
called new engine performance inspection and made it mandatory for authorized
dealers to ensure the A (installation), B, C D checks based on time/operational hours
to be done for all engines operating in their territory. Tracking of engines moving
out of the factory/OEM locations enabled the company to inform its dealers about
new arrivals. Mandatory pre-installation visits to customer sites provided
opportunity to correct installation deficiencies and advise customers on correct
operational practices. Further, to ensure proper operation and maintenance of
equipments, the company initiated annual maintenance contracts in the 1980s. This
ensured trained personnel attended the engines, use of genuine spare parts, and
preventive maintenance.

6. Customer focus
The company encourages the field employees to be in constant touch with the
customers and understand their needs and problems. The customers were provided
with telephone numbers where 24-hour service support could be obtained.
A customer-assistance cell with toll free number was opened with 24-hour operation.
The “understand your customer” initiatives and customer visits to the production
centre brought the customer and his needs to the manufacturing and quality-assurance
environment. Employees were trained to be proactive to market requirements rather
than being reactive to developing situations.
“We have not only received good quality service, but have experienced a different
culture from Cummins employees. This has resulted in close personal relationship with
many Cummins personnel”, certifies Mr T.A. Samy, who has more than two decades of
experience with Cummins products at various locations and organizations, including
LPG plants.
Product information and product/service updates prepared on a bi-monthly basis
were sent to all customers using the respective model of products. Customer feedbacks
were collected periodically to identify improvement areas and customers were informed
about any action taken. Customer satisfaction studies by the organization and external
agencies were periodically conducted. Customer councils in major operational areas like
power generation, mining, etc. created opportunities for company-customer interaction
and mutual understanding. Company news letters were mailed to customers and
information on customer achievements were published in these newsletters.

7. Excellence as a competitive advantage

While new product development, existing product improvement and R&D initiatives
were taking place on one side; on the other side, recognizing service excellence as a
competitive advantage and differentiator, Cummins initiated activities on four fronts to
create service excellence that included service capable people with value system, closed
loop processes and system, high-quality tools, and external and internal customer focus.
JIBR To make Cummins the dependable partner of the customer, initiatives were
2,3 commenced to create an environment in which it is easy to do business with the
company. Single-point contact convenience was one among them. Empowerment of
employees resulted in more decisions at sites based on requirements without the hassle
of waiting for approvals. Field staff were encouraged to listen for ways to say “Yes” to
customer requirements and saying “No” was declared a last resort action after exploring
188 all options. Annual maintenance contracts with customer-specific terms were created,
which also encouraged customers to use genuine spare parts and authorized service.
Ensuring spare parts availability was another important issue to be addressed.
Order analysis and overall product trends were used to plan inventory. To give special
attention to equipments under warranty, the dealers were encouraged to keep specific
spares as warranty stock. EDO was introduced to ensure immediate dispatch of items
not available in the field to repair new engines that had a breakdown as a support
facility for the MTTR system. First-pass fill rates, a measure to ensure completeness of
order servicing was introduced to improve parts supply to customers. SCM initiatives
helped prompt delivery of parts at dealer/customer end.

8. Dealer as a service partner

Understanding the critical role of the field business partners, i.e. the exclusive
Cummins dealers who were closest to the customers, the company initiated a number
of programmes. Company representatives were deputed to the dealership to support
dealer activities and gathering market intelligence, dealer’s employees were trained at
dealership and company’s head office, parts ordering support systems were developed
with incentives for achieving targets and a scheme called “Functional Excellence of
Dealership” was established to develop systems for dealer operations such as finance
planning, inventory management, service management and social responsibility.
The rating based on the measures outlined in the functional excellence of dealership
was used to identify dealers who performed well and provide incentives.

9. Conclusion
Corporate brand building does not happen overnight. The image of Cummins India Ltd
as a high-quality service organization is the result of decades of consistent planning
and customer-led initiatives. Over the years, the customer-focused initiatives of the
company addressing areas critical to customer’s effective utilization of its products
have succeeded in creating strong customer relationships for Cummins. A brand image
of dependable people, products and services has been created. The global business
environment of competition raises some major challenges for the company: first, take
organizational vision, mission, and values to the frontline of the organization
consistently, and second, retain the reputation of customer-focused organization –
which call for innovative initiatives that provide best value to customer.

References
Berg, M. and Posner, M.J.M. (1990), “Customer delay in M/G and repair system with spares”,
Operation Research, Vol. 38 No. 2, pp. 344-8.
Coulter, K.S. and Coulter, R.A. (2002), “Determinants of trust in a service provider: the moderating
role of length of relationship”, Journal of Services Marketing, Vol. 16 No. 1, pp. 35-50.
Cummins India Ltd (2009), “Cummins India Ltd’s brochures and service bulletins”, available at: Cummins India
www.cumminsindia.com (accessed November/December 2009).
Kotler, P. and Pfoertsch, W. (2006), B2B Brand Management, Springer, Heidelberg, p. 51.

About the author

Thomas Varghese is currently a Professor of Marketing at Saintgits Institute of Management,
Kottayam, Kerala, India and a research student at Cochin University of Science and Technology 189
in the area of insurance marketing. He has two decades of industrial experience prior to taking up
academic profession. Thomas Varghese can be contacted at: thomasvkalathil@yahoo.com

To purchase reprints of this article please e-mail: reprints@emeraldinsight.com

Or visit our web site for further details: www.emeraldinsight.com/reprints