Benchmarking

AIM

To study automotive benchmarking.

OBJECTIVE

• To create benchmarking report for the requirement of the Mr. D.S Pughazhendhi.
• Explain about benchmarking.

INTRODUCTION

Benchmarking:-

Benchmarking in the automobile industry involves a structured comparison between similar products, services or processes on some dimensions of performance.

It can be used to compare the availability and delivery of features in a product and in this form often provides the basis of consumer tests and reviews. These look at products and services and provide recommendations based on which is best or some form of ranking amongst competitors. It is particularly useful when comparing not only performance but also practice, in other words what do different organisations do to enable that performance to be delivered and applied in this way it is a powerful tool in process innovation on studying how to achieve their best performance can provide powerful clues for changing the way processes operate.

Step by step benchmarking :-

Benchmarking is five step process,

• Choose a product, service, or internal department to benchmark.
• Determine which best in class companies you should benchmark against, which organizations you will compare your business to.
• Collect information on their internal performance, or metrics.
• Compare the data from both organizations to identify flaws in your company’s performance.
• Adopt the process and policies in place with in the best in class performance.

REQUIREMENT

Benchmark with presently available cars in the market for the following case Mr. D.S Pughazhendhii is a married man who lives in bangalore which is a highly crowded city. His family comprises five members including his wife, five year old boy, his father, and his mother. He visits his native place Madhurai which is 500 kms away from bangalore once in a month. Also he will be using his car to commute to his office. His budget falls between 8 to 10 lakhs on road. Please suggest to him with options so that he will buy a good car for his family and he is fond of big cars.

In my view, l would suggest petrol engine sedans and suv.

Suggestible cars:-

• Tata Nexon
• Hyundai venue
• Maruti brezza
• Skoda rapid

• Tata Nexon (SUV)

figure 1. Tata Nexon

It is a Tata Nexon XE version. It has Rs. 9.28 lakhs on road price in Bangalore. It is 5 seater, petrol engine and manual transmission car. It returns a certified mileage of 17.5 kmpl. This XE variant comes with an engine putting out 118bhp at 5500 rpm and 170 Nm at 1750 rpm of max power and max torque respectively. Tata Nexon XE is available in manual transmission and offered in 3 colours, that is daytona grey, foliage green and calgary white.

Good things :-

• Upmarket looks – Exciting and impact design, proper no – nonsense SUV stance.
• G-NCAP safety- A five – star NCAP safety rating ensure buyers get a very safe car.
• Performance- The powertrains offer a satisfying mid/ top -end grunt for most situations.
• Spacious cabin- Despite the compact foot print, it is roomier than segment rivals.
• Sorted ride/ handling – Nicely tuned suspension offers apt damping at most speeds.

Could be better :-

• Interior quality, fit/ finish – scratchy hard plastics, rough edges , panel gaps.
• Infotainment screen- slow responses low resolution screen, interface not intuitive.

figure 2. Tata Nexon's dashboard

figure 3. Tata nexon's rear seats

figure 4. Tata nexon's boot space

• Hyundai venue (SUV)

figure 5. Hyundai venue

Hyundai venue E1.2 petrol is the petrol variant in the Hyundai venue lineup and is priced at Rs. 9.18 lakhs. It returns a verified mileage of 17.5 kmpl. This E1.2 petrol. Variant comes with an engine putting out 82 bhp at 6000 rpm and 113.8 Nm at 4000 rpm of max power and max torque respectively. Hyundai venue E1.2 petrol is available in manual transmission and offered in 6 colours. That is phantom black denim blue, titan grey, typhoon silver, fiery red and polar white.

Good things :-

• Interior quality- segment standout quality, good fit/ finish, sorted ergonomics.
• Road presence- Edgy design with an attractive grille and fittingly huge wheels.
• Powertrain options- There are refined and efficient petrol and diesel motors.
• Choice of gear boxes- A variety of smooth transmissions that ease driving chores.
• Equipment – The new venue feels more modern due to the revised features and trim.

Could be better :-

• Cramped rear seat- Does not feel airy, uncomfortable for three occupants.
• Unsorted ride- broken surfaces are felt within the cabin, bounces at higher speeds.
• Pricey top- end variants- one can upgrade to a lower- spec creta instead.

figure 6. Hyundai venue 's dashboard

figure 7. Hyundai venue's rear seats

figure 8. Hyundai venue's boot space

• Maruti Brezza (SUV)

figure 9. Maruti Brezza

Maruti brezza Lxi is the petrol variant in the Maruti brezza lineup and is priced at Rs. 9.62 lakhs. It returns a certified mileage of 20.1 kmpl. This Lxi variant comes with an engine putting out 102 bhp at 6000 rpm and 136.8 Nm at 4400 rpm of max power and max torque respectively. Maruti brezza Lxi available in manual transmission and offered in 5 colours. That is exuberant blue, magma grey, sizzling red, splendid silver and pearl arctic white.

Good things :-

• Lots of features- get a slew of notable features that add convenience.
• Interior space- the cabin feels airy with ample storage spaces all over.
• Tall seating – offers a commanding driving position with good outward visibility.
• Ease of driving- light controls and the compact propotions make it nimble.
• Service network- is backed by Maruti suzuki’s exhaustive and robust network.

Could be better :-

• Engine lacks punch- the mid range grunt could have been more exciting.
• Pricey- top end variants are expenstive when stacked against segment rivals.
• Ride quality at slow speeds- conspicuous vertical movement over broken roads.

figure 10. Maruti Brezza's dashboard

figure 11. Maruti Brezza's rear seat

figure 12. Maruti Brezza's boot space

• KIA sonet HTE 1.2 (SUV)

figure 13. Kia Sonet

KIA sonet HTE 1.2 is the petrol variant in the kia sonet lineup and is priced at Rs. 9.06 lakhs. It returns a certified mileage of 18. 4 kmpl. This HTE 1.2 variant comes with an engine putting out 82 bhp at 6000 rpm and 115 Nm at 4200 rpm of max power and max torque respectively. Kia sonet is available in manual transmission and offered in 4 colours, that is gravity grey, sparkling silver, intense red and clear white.

Good things :-

• Flamboyant styling- great concoction of modern or youthful looks with a rugged stance.
• Refined motors or gear boxes – smooth performance, good refinement, frugal.
• Easy to drive – compact size, steering that’s light with reasonable feedback.
• Good quality – quality and fit or finish are on par with segment expectations.
• Boot capacity – reasonably sized book good for occupans to last seven days.

Could be better :-

• Firm ride quality – never feels settled. Bounces at high speeds under full load.
• Rear seat space – the rear bench is a squeeze for anything more than two adults.
• Rear visibility – is hampered by the chunky c-pillars and compact rear wind screen.

figure 14. Kia Sonet's dashboard

figure 15. Kia Sonet's rear seat

figure 16. Kia Sonet's boot space

CLOSE COMPARISON

MODELS	TATA NEXON	HYUNDAI VENUE	MARUTI BREZZA	KIA SONET
ARAI MILEAGE	17.5 kmpl	17.5 kmpl	20.1 kmpl	18.4 kmpl
ENGINE DISPLACEMENT (CC)	1199 cc	1197 cc	1462 cc	1197 cc
MAX TORQUE (Nm @ rpm)	170 Nm @1750 rpm	113.8 Nm @4000 rpm	136.8 Nm @4400 rpm	115 Nm @4200 rpm
TRANSMISSION TYPE	manual	manual	manual	manual
FUEL TANK CAPACITY (L)	44 L	45 L	48 L	45 L
MAX POWER (bhp @ rpm )	118 bhp @5500 rpm	82 bhp @6000 rpm	102 bhp @6000 rpm	82 bhp @6000 rpm
SEATING CAPACITY	5	5	5	5
BOOT SPACE (L)	350 L	350 L	328 L	392 L
BODY TYPE	SUV	SUV	SUV	SUV
SAFETY - NCAP rating	5 star	4 star	4 star	5 star
PRICE	9.28 Lakhs	9.18 Lakhs	9.62 Lakhs	9.06 Lakhs

CONCLUSIONS

I would suggest Maruti Brezza for Mr. D. S Pughazhendhi’s family. Brezza is a excellent offering, which provides good safety, good mileage, good fuel tank capacity and decent boot space it’s segment. It is also value for money product with class leading features.