JCBL (South), formerly known as JML, a leading trailer and truck solutions company, recently achieved a new sales milestone. The company delivered its 100th trailer to BEML, a Miniratna PSU under the Ministry of Defence, Government of India.

It designs customised trailers as per client specifications. JCBL shared that its manufacturing facility is equipped with a dedicated layout that uses a single-piece flow concept. It uses software and precision tools to design the trailers as per the demanding needs of its customers.

Sandip Chakroborty, MD, JCBL, said, “It is a proud moment for us at JCBL South to announce the production of our 100th trailer, with more to come. This milestone reflects the collective efforts of our team and stakeholders, resulting in the successful rollout of the 100th vehicle with an emphasis on quality and timely delivery.”

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Volvo Buses India, a division of VE Commercial Vehicles, has secured an order for 200 Volvo 9600 coaches from the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRTC). The contract marks the single largest order received by Volvo Buses in India.

The order comprises 170 seating coaches and 30 sleeper coaches, intended to support intercity and interstate routes across the public transportation network in Maharashtra. The seating variant features a 51-seat layout equipped with calf support, while the sleeper variant provides berth arrangements for long-distance overnight travel. Manufactured at Volvo Buses India's facility in Hoskote, Karnataka, the 9600 series coaches integrate vehicle safety platforms, chassis engineering and passenger seating configurations for state transport operations.

Suresh Chettiar, Executive Vice-President of the Bus Division, VE Commercial Vehicles, said, "We sincerely thank the Transport Minister of Maharashtra, Pratap Sarnaik and Dr. Madhav Kusekar, IAS, Managing Director and Vice Chairman, MSRTC, for their continuing trust in Volvo buses. This landmark order reflects our shared commitment to elevating travel and making premium passenger experiences more accessible for the citizens of Maharashtra. We are proud to continue to partner with MSRTC to enhance the state’s public transportation network."

The fleet addition forms part of MSRTC's modernisation plan to upgrade intercity bus services and expand premium transit options across state-operated routes.

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Eicher Trucks & Buses, a division of VE Commercial Vehicles, has introduced Uptime NXT Services supported by an AI-enabled (artificial intelligence) Uptime Centre. The initiative expands the company's aftermarket service ecosystem through connected vehicle data, predictive analytics and service support infrastructure to manage fleet operations.

The Uptime Centre functions as an operational hub connecting transport operators, technicians and engineering teams. Services delivered through the platform include fuel management advisory, driver performance scorecards, vehicle operation insights, remote immobiliser controls and proactive maintenance alerts.

The system integrates with the My Eicher application, which currently connects over 460,000 commercial vehicles across 200,000 fleet accounts to provide real-time vehicle tracking, trip tracking and maintenance monitoring.

B. Srinivas, MD and CEO, VE Commercial Vehicles, said, "For our customers, uptime directly impacts productivity, profitability and business continuity. At Eicher, our vision has therefore been to create an ecosystem that helps keep vehicles operating at their best - everyday. By bringing together connected technology, predictive insights, a responsive service network and strong aftermarket support, we are moving towards a more proactive approach to uptime — one that anticipates customer needs, minimises disruptions and enables customers to run their businesses with greater confidence and predictability. Our ambition is to make uptime a defining part of the Eicher ownership experience."

S S Gill, Chief Commercial Officer, VE Commercial Vehicles, said, "The new Uptime Centre brings together the people, technology and intelligence needed to manage uptime more proactively and at scale. The Uptime Control Tower gives our teams greater visibility across vehicle and service operations, while our Gen AI-powered platform bring actionable intelligence closer to our service teams and technicians. This enables faster diagnosis, better coordination and stronger First-Time-Right performance, helping us reduce disruptions and deliver a more seamless service experience for our customers."

The company first established a centralised Uptime Centre in 2019. The upgraded Uptime NXT architecture introduces an Uptime Control Tower for real-time monitoring of service operations and deploys generative artificial intelligence tools, designated as the Service One platform, to assist dealership technicians with fault diagnostics and repair procedures.

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Chennai-headquartered commercial vehicle major Ashok Leyland, the flagship company of the Hinduja Group, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Union Bank of India to establish a vehicle financing agreement for purchasers of its commercial vehicles.

The agreement was signed by Neelakantan, Vice-President of Finance at Ashok Leyland and Alok Kumar, General Manager and Zonal Head at Union Bank of India, in the presence of D S Madhusudhan, Head of Sales Finance and Kapil Pandya, Head of Retail and Inventory Finance for Light Commercial Vehicles at Ashok Leyland.

As per the arrangement, Union Bank of India will provide end-to-end vehicle loans with structured repayment schedules across Ashok Leyland's line-up of trucks and buses.

K M Balaji, Whole-Time Director and CFO, Ashok Leyland, said, "Ashok Leyland is delighted to partner with Union Bank of India (UBI) to offer attractive and accessible financing solutions to our customers. This strategic partnership leveraging on UBI Network will further strengthen our market presence by enhancing access to our innovative range of commercial vehicles for businesses across the country. Built on advanced technology and engineered to deliver industry-leading total cost of ownership, our products are designed to drive greater efficiency, productivity and profitability for our customers."

Madhavi Deshmukh, Senior Vice-President and National Sales Head for Medium and Heavy Commercial Vehicles, Ashok Leyland, said, "At Ashok Leyland, we are committed to enabling our customers' growth through innovative products and seamless ownership experience. Our partnership with Union Bank of India (UBI) is a significant step towards making our industry-leading commercial vehicles more accessible with attractive and convenient financing solutions. Together, we aim to empower fleet operators and businesses with greater financial flexibility, while delivering superior value through our technologically advanced products and best-in-class total cost of ownership."

Alok Kumar, General Manager and Zonal Head, Union Bank of India, said, "Union Bank of India is pleased to partner with Ashok Leyland to offer seamless vehicle financing solutions. This collaboration underscores our commitment to enabling businesses with accessible and tailored financial solutions that simplify commercial vehicle ownership and facilitate sustainable growth. By enhancing access to convenient and customer-centric financing solutions, we aim to make vehicle ownership more seamless and accessible, while empowering our customers to strengthen their businesses and pursue new growth opportunities."

The partnership utilises Union Bank of India's national branch network to improve credit flow for transport operators, fleet owners and commercial enterprises acquiring vehicles ranging from light commercial models to heavy-duty trucks and passenger buses.

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Electric commercial vehicle leasing platform DRIVN and private intercity bus operator Prasanna Purple Mobility Solutions, operating as Purple Bus, have expanded their electric fleet agreement to 276 buses.

The agreement increases the initial commitment of 100 electric buses, utilising an operating lease model and fleet management software.

The initial deployment covered intercity routes in Western and Southern India, including the Mumbai–Pune, Bengaluru–Chennai and Hyderabad–Vijayawada corridors. The expanded fleet under the Letter of Intent will cover additional routes, including Nagpur–Chandrapur, Nagpur–Amravati and Bengaluru–Tirupati.

DRIVN will supply asset financing, leasing, charging infrastructure management, real-time battery diagnostics and route performance analytics to support the deployment.

Alpna Jain, Co-Founder and Chief Business Officer, DRIVN, said, "Expanding our partnership with Purple Bus marks an important milestone for us at DRIVN. Increasing the initial agreement from 100 buses to a commitment of 276 reflects the strength of the relationship we have built with the team. Our focus is to simplify the transition to electric commercial vehicles by bringing together the financing, vehicles and tech capabilities operators need to run their fleets effectively. We look forward to continuing our work with Purple Bus as its requirements evolve."

Saurabh P Patwardhan, Director, Purple Bus, said, "Our experience with the initial deployment has reinforced a key learning: scaling electric mobility requires not only putting more electric buses on the road, but also building the right ecosystem around them. A nearly three-fold growth in the commitment from our partner reflects our confidence in that approach and our intention is to make electric mobility a larger part of our operations. DRIVN combines operational expertise with a strong technology platform, using real-time data and insights across routes, vehicles and fleet performance to support smarter deployment. We believe this combination will be critical to scaling electric intercity mobility sustainably and efficiently."

The partnership combines Purple Bus's route operations with DRIVN's leasing and data infrastructure to support the transition to electric intercity passenger transport in India.

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