Tata Nano Case Study
ysiA Project Report Submitted on the Technology of “Tata Nano Car” As Part of the Course Managing Technology for Competitiveness
PREPARED BY
Choidup Dorji (113378) Wangmo Chador (113377) Pishenbay Adilbaevich Umirbekov (113417) Nipu Kumar Nath (112889) Christian Riisager (112846)
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Executive Summary
The study of Tata Nano car technology has demonstrated the fact that how a technological revolution has taken place in Automobile sector by the introduction of Tata Nano car in the market. It is 2 feet shorter than a Mini Cooper, has a comical appearance and weighs less than the four passengers it seats. But for the 350-millionplus middle class of India, Tata Nano, the world 's cheapest car at $2,000, is a cause for exhilaration and for the first 100,000 lucky customers drawn via lottery, it 's a dream come true. A century after Henry Ford put America on wheels with the Model T; the affordable Tata Nano is doing the same to the less privileged of the world. What is now dismissed by many as a "toy car" could soon reveal itself to be the mouse that roared, one of the most transformational consumer products of the century. Roughly 100,000 Indians lose their lives on the road every year, seven times the rate of the developed world. In a country where it is not uncommon to see entire families overflowing a rickshaw or women in saris sitting side-saddle on a bike with small children on their laps, moving one 's family from an unsafe bike into a plastic capsule is a sensible $2,000 investment. Safety and affordability were what Ratan Tata, chairman of the Tata Group, envisioned for the Nano. The low sticker price means a 65 percent increase in the number of Indian families who can now afford a car. But India is not the only hub of poverty and what works for its middle class could appeal to those in Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Guatemala, Congo and scores of other countries, including China, where the middle class is projected to hit 700 million by 2020.
PREPARED BY
Choidup Dorji (113378) Wangmo Chador (113377) Pishenbay Adilbaevich Umirbekov (113417) Nipu Kumar Nath (112889) Christian Riisager (112846)
1
Executive Summary
The study of Tata Nano car technology has demonstrated the fact that how a technological revolution has taken place in Automobile sector by the introduction of Tata Nano car in the market. It is 2 feet shorter than a Mini Cooper, has a comical appearance and weighs less than the four passengers it seats. But for the 350-millionplus middle class of India, Tata Nano, the world 's cheapest car at $2,000, is a cause for exhilaration and for the first 100,000 lucky customers drawn via lottery, it 's a dream come true. A century after Henry Ford put America on wheels with the Model T; the affordable Tata Nano is doing the same to the less privileged of the world. What is now dismissed by many as a "toy car" could soon reveal itself to be the mouse that roared, one of the most transformational consumer products of the century. Roughly 100,000 Indians lose their lives on the road every year, seven times the rate of the developed world. In a country where it is not uncommon to see entire families overflowing a rickshaw or women in saris sitting side-saddle on a bike with small children on their laps, moving one 's family from an unsafe bike into a plastic capsule is a sensible $2,000 investment. Safety and affordability were what Ratan Tata, chairman of the Tata Group, envisioned for the Nano. The low sticker price means a 65 percent increase in the number of Indian families who can now afford a car. But India is not the only hub of poverty and what works for its middle class could appeal to those in Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Guatemala, Congo and scores of other countries, including China, where the middle class is projected to hit 700 million by 2020.
References: 1. Nano: The people’s car – A design story from India by Seema Khanwalkar, Center for Environmental Planning & Technology, Ahmadabad, India. 2. Financial & Strategic analysis of Tata Motors by Miel Van Blitterswijk & Rosen Karadzhov. 3. Tata Nano: Poor Man’s Car or Radical Innovation? By Gerard J. Tellis. 4. http://www.autoobserver.com/2008/08/little-tata-nano-faces-big-challenges-as-jobone-could-be-delayed.html 5. http://www.scribd.com/doc/26552806/Tata-Nano-Innovations-Approaches ************************************************************************ 18 19