Is EACV the new kid on the technology block

For IT companies, there is a new sunrise sector

In India, big IT companies always played in the BFSI, Telecom and manufacturing space. The smaller IT players were more niche players. CAD, CAM, and engineering design were some of the big areas of work for them. Now there is a new kid on the block; EACV. Now EACV is an abbreviation for “Electric, Autonomous and Connected Vehicles” practice. Auto companies are sinking millions of dollars into research and development into the EACV vertical with a slew of orders flowing in this space. Not surprisingly, India is the obvious go-to place for these companies to get top-quality EACV practice talent. India, interestingly, has a number of companies in this area.

EACV practice and software content in vehicles

Auto systems are getting technologically savvier and smarter. With smart cockpits becoming an inevitable part of most modern cars, the big need of the hour is the requisite talent that can write such complex software for an emerging business. It is estimated that the EACV is likely to be the next big area for mid-sized software companies. In India, there are several companies with a very strong EACV practice as part of their solutions portfolio. Companies like Cyient, Tata Elxsi, L&T Technology Services (LTTS) and KPIT Infosystems are some of the companies that have already built sufficient traction and visibility in the EACV space. For Auto OEM players, these companies are becoming the obvious destination for economical solutions for their EACV needs.

Collaborating on product development cycles

One of the big learnings in the IT space is that such complex projects work best when the vendors and the clients collaborate in a more meaningful way. For instance, the urgency for OEMs to move towards an EACV ecosystem is so intense that they are working closely with the IT players to hasten product development cycles substantially. Some of the popular digital technology systems where work is going on are advanced driver assist systems (ADAS) and software-driven vehicles (SDV). The demand in some cases has been so intense that, as in the case of LTTS, they set up a delivery centre in Krakow in Poland to cater to a major US-based OEM auto client. Companies like LTTS, Tata Elxsi, Cyient are all sinking big dollars into R&D infrastructure for EACV.

Big deals have already started coming

Tata Elxsi already provides EACV services extensively for its own group of auto businesses, chief among them is Jaguar Land Rover, one of the major players in luxury automobiles in the world. Then there are the likes of KPIT Infosystems which has secured big orders from clients like Honda, Renault, and other European OEMs. The deal sizes are in the range of over $200 million. LTTS already has a big order coming from a US-based OEM manufacturer and has recently also picked up an order from BMW in Germany. Clearly, some of the biggest auto names in the world are betting big on India as the next obvious destination for EACV services to boost their auto business. 

Welcome to the smart cars of the future

A leading auto analyst had recently quipped that when you are driving a smart car in any part of the world, the probability is very high that the software underlying the EACV ecosystem was written by an Indian company. It is good that Indian IT companies are collaborating with academia and setting up an EACV practice that is making it a magnet to global auto companies. This is an area that is likely to boom in the coming years, irrespective of when the shift to green cars happens. The shift to smart cars is real and it is happening. The good news is that mid-sized Indian IT companies are leading the charge.

Content Source: Financial Express