Tata Motors recently took the wraps off the updated Harrier and Safari SUVs, and another slew of fresh offerings are in the pipeline. As the brand sees rapid growth in the Indian market, it has planned to invest in a new design studio in the next couple of years.
- Tata Motors has three design studios globally
- UK and India have 100 designers each
- Heavily updated Harrier, Safari to launch tomorrow
New design studio in India
At present, Tata Motors has three design studios – one each in the UK, Italy, and India. The company's global design head, Martin Uhlarik, told our sister publication Autocar Professional, "We are significantly expanding our portfolio and introducing a lot of new nameplates. At the same time, all our existing products are getting constantly refreshed as well. Our amount of work is growing exponentially and our three existing studios are barely coping with work. One can expect a big investment in the next couple of years in terms of expanding our design capacity in terms of a new facility in India."
Tata Motors has over 240 designers stationed across its three design studios, with the UK and India (in Pune) studios employing 100 designers each. All its designers come with individual specialisation, and the teams also include specialists mapping the social and technological trends to bring future-ready products. The company says it regularly absorbs students from design colleges, and around 40 percent of its current design workforce across the three studios comprises interns.
State-of-the-art infrastructure
Tata Motors says it adopts a conventional design approach of ideation, sketching, digital- and clay-modelling processes for any new design, and is mixing it with several new technologies such as digital design tools, rapid prototyping and 3D printing for quick assessments. "Our 'Model Operations' department is equipped with 3D printers and stereolithography machines that enable us to make individual parts, such as grilles, lamps, as well as complete scale models in-house, for assessments," explained Uhlarik.
Tata Motors plans to make its new design studio a world-class facility, one that would set the benchmark for automotive design centres in India.
Tata Motors car, SUV line-up in India in 2023
The facelifted Harrier and Safari SUVs will go on sale tomorrow, October 17. Additionally, Tata Motors sells the Nexon, Tigor and Tiago along with their EV versions, as well as the Punch subcompact SUV and Altroz premium hatchback. The brand is planning to introduce the Curvv SUV in India sometime next year.
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