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The Success of
Swift |
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The
Swift's success story is a combination of innovation, cost focus
and teamwork.
In May 2005, when the car was launched, 9000 customers placed an
order without having seen the car in a showroom or having known
the price.
The journey that the team went through to develop the product has
been incredible.
Many people in the team attribute the success of the car to teamwork
with no barriers. |
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Vision Translated |
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Maruti engineers co-worked along with Suzuki engineers to bring
about the Swift ' the world car. One of the most challenging aspects
of the development was to keep the stylist's vision and creativity
in tact. This was particularly seen in areas like the styling of
the bumpers ' which are more muscular and heavier than models manufactured
on the same production line. Installing the exquisite front lamps
and the enchanting wraparound rear lights on a usual assembly line
was challenging.
Right at the beginning, it was decided that Swift would come in
8 vibrant colours, the most for any new model.
Under the hood, The Swift turned out to be one of its kind. To begin
with, it had a 1300 cc engine. After this was the challenge to incorporate
the distinct design and make it a viable car for mass production. |
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The Process |
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Many
dies were developed in-house, a change from the past where dies
used to be made only by Suzuki Motor Corporation. All aspects from
the paint shop to critical equipment modifications were done in
house.
The design, development and evaluation of Swift in Maruti was done
at the same time as was elsewhere in the world. Maruti engineers
worked simultaneously with other Suzuki plants.
The weld shop was on a flexible line ' where two models could be
manufactured on the same line with the changing of dies '. |
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The Indianness part |
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The torque generated by the Swift was kept superior for Indian traffic
conditions. The electrical system is cost effective. The roofline
has been modified to increase head room. The suspension, brakes
and tuning of tyres was done in accordance with Indian road conditions. |
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Aggressive cost |
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Though the Swift is a clear winner in the looks arena, it did not
make Maruti ignore the cost part. Taking on from a DNA of value
and trust, Team Maruti went in for an aggressive mode to make the
car as accessible as possible for a customer in terms of cost.
Global Sourcing was a strategy taken up to reduce costs on dies
and capital investment.
Critical equipment modifications and testing to accommodate the
Swift was done entirely in-house. All component development was
localized.
The predominant method of bringing down the cost of a component
is Value Engineering. With Swift, Value Engineering combined with
Value Analysis gained prominence.
Digital Engineering was used to make the product development process
faster. Designing of conveyor mounts, jigs and fixtures, door carrier
mounts, engine sub assembly pallets were all done through Digital
Engineering. |
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Swift is a car that is loved by all, across all age groups and is
an ideal choice for one who needs the nimbleness of a small car
and the space and feel of a mid-size. |
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The market response, customer feedback and all else about the swift,
as they say, is history. |
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All rights reserved. Copyright Maruti Suzuki India Limited.