Safety First

Bangalore is known for IT. I do not know why those businessmen back then chose this city, but that trend has followed since and now the place is full of them. Besides Google, MS, Yahoo! and the usual Infy, CTS, TCS and the like, there are other smaller companies that emerge from here. And the most interesting part is that a lot of these small start-ups would be initiated by an ex-employee of the big guns. So this is just how I visualise the environment in an IT firm. They make sure the employees have the right atmosphere to work, in every way. Else the people take a print of their resume, go to the adjacent IT Park, meet the HR, get a higher salary package fixed and confirm the switch. There was one thing that caught my eye when I went to one of the companies. The place was very neat. Im mean, very. There was a guy sweeping the floor. The only safety board I encountered in that building was in front of that wet floor where the sweepers did their work saying “WET FLOOR. CAUTION WHILE WALKING”. I agree that it is a nice thought to have placed that board. But having placed that there, one would expect them to have kept it at places where it is expected to be too.  This is my only visit to an ‘IT’ company. And to be honest, it was good. Forget the Safety board. AC room, individual cabin, personal computer/laptop, cafeteria, food court, the struggle to find guys amidst all the ladies who seem to be everywhere, flexible work timings, a chunk of scheduled holidays, plus unofficial holidays.. Oh Im sorry..  I meant “work from home”. How stupid of me to have misinterpreted that. And a big fat salary to match all that. How can you get bored of this life????? Ya ya I know what you’re thinking. “But we have so much work, they take every bit of soul from us to get the work done, blah blah”. If you still can’t stop cribbing, well, welcome to the world of core engineering my dear IT boys. Now think again. Wanna switch places or do you mind living your life happily ever after?? 

Safety First

It’s not until this new millennium that people really considered safety as a necessity rather than an extra that we get when buying a product. And probably the first name that comes to mind when asked to relate cars and safety will be Volvo. I do not know if there is an award for the safest car to drive. If there was one, I bet the judging panel would be scratching their heads over this one. The MC would stop at “And the nominees are……………….”

• Volvo S60
• Volvo S80
• Volvo XC 60
• Volvo XC 90

If you’re someone living in a metro, what is going through your mind now will be the sight of those big red/orange/green buses that the local Govt hired to provide a comfortable and tireless journey (read maintenance-free and higher tax). If you happen to be from the Tier II cities, then you’d be imagining a long AC buses with the name and logo of that private travel splashed on the front and side. And if you’re from neither of these places, then the chances of you having herd of a company beyond a ‘Benz’ is highly unlikely. Sorry folks, but you’re missing out on what is pretty much the most under-valued auto-brand in India. It’s got the potential to be one of the best with its new engine, seductive styling and packed performance; all at a price that could well shame the local auto makers. So why am I saying all this now? Because Volvo recently announced that they will be selling their range of vehicles at a reduced price with the entry level vehicle S60 at 23 lakh. Now when you argue that there are other cars at slightly lesser price with better dealership too, I will be thinking about Sonata, Superb, Passat, Accord and Camry. These are the major players in the segment. Well that is the difference. This ain’t the segment I’m talking about. Im talking about the actual luxury segment. Well logically speaking the better choice is to get the best value for money vehicle, irrespective of the ‘segment’. But that is where the off-paper factors come in. Besides the flooded luxury and overflowing safety equipments that come in when you have a Volvo tag on the front grille, what is also attached is the feeling of belonging to that elite group of Indians that own a proper ‘luxury’ car. And that, not many statisticians would be able to differentiate and fit that into their mathematics.


"Cars are driven by people. The guiding principle behind everything we make at Volvo, therefore, is and must remain, safety", Co-founder of Volvo.


So what is all this hype about Volvos and safety. I mean it has got to be exaggerated. Ummmm.... No! For a start, what is the first safety feature that we recognise in a vehicle? A seat belt. A Volvo engineer invented and patented the modern say 3 point Safety Belt. The Volvos then introduced the first 3 point seat belt for the middle of the rear seat and a child safety cushion integrated in the middle armrest. In 1991, it introduced Side Impact Protection System (SIPS) which channeled the force of a side impact away from the doors and into the safety cage. To add to the SIPS, Volvo was the first to introduce side airbags and successfully install them as standard equipment needed in all models. In 1998, Volvo developed and was the first to install a head protecting airbag. Apparently the side head protecting curtain airbags can reduce the risk of death in a side impact by upto 40% and brain injury upto 55%. Impressive stuff i guess...!! Volvo also introduced its Whiplash Protection System (WHIPS), a safety device to prevent injury to front seat users during collisions. in 2004, they developed BLIS system, which detects the vehicles entering the Volvo's blind spot with a side view mirror mounted sensor, and alerts a driver with a light. That year also saw Volvos sold in all markets equipped with side-marker lights and daytime running lights. In 2006, Volvo's Personal Car Communicator (PCC) remote control has been launched as an optional feature with all Volvo S80. Before the driver enters their car, he can review the security level and know whether they have set the alarm and if the car is locked. Additionally, a heartbeat sensor warns if someone is hiding inside the car.


And that's about it as for the Volvo's safety features. That's a lot of stuff they've done.. Wait!!!! There's even more...

Simple n Sensible

Volvo's Collision Warning with Auto Brake feature - It issues visual and audible warnings, begins to apply the brakes, and increases brake hydraulic pressure when sensing a likely collision with another vehicle. But Volvo is developing the technology one step further by detecting people with wide-angle radar technology that allows the vehicle to "see" people.


Volvo's Lane Departure Warning system - delivers an audible warning when the vehicle moves across lane markers without using turn indicators. In future applications. Volvo would like to integrate collision avoidance by Auto Steering - a feature that uses camera and radar to self-navigate a vehicle back into its original lane if it wanders into the path of oncoming traffic.

Proud to be a pedestrian?? This one's for you

While we most often think of the safety of a car's internal occupants, it's important to remember than a two-ton weapon of mass destruction moving at highway speeds is also extremely dangerous to pedestrians outside the car. In addition to a new Pedestrian Detection system, Volvo has introduced the world's first external airbag. Located at the base of the windshield, the airbag deploys from a cavity that expands upward from the rear of the car's hood in the event of a collision with a pedestrian.

“It’s better to be Mr.Late than Late Mr.” – That’s just a traffic police message that I happened to see near my place. Besides the lighter side, it makes sense too, dusnt it? But then there are unavoidable situations every time when even the most cautious of drivers gives a day off to patience and crosses the line. And what Volvo has done here is to make sure that if anything were to go out of hand, not just the passengers inside the vehicle but also the unfortunate soul who happen to be crossing the road at the wrong time, things would be much better than it could have been a decade ago. And for that, Volvo has to take home the credit for raising the bar and making sure its rivals also keep up. And to be honest, when it comes to saving lives, we wouldn’t mind a good competition as to who does it the best. Well Done Volvo!!

Heart says Yeah.. Mind says Hell Yeah..!! 

Well this is what it is if you’re a cricket fanatic. Consider you being the owner of a franchisee in IPL. You’re sitting at the auction for buying and setting up your team for the next season. You have room to fit in one more foreign player. You can prefer having to spend a little extra to get a Big Bang Chris Gayle or an express fast Dale Steyn. Or you can be a little smart. Pay a little lesser and get hold of the big Jacques Kallis. He may not be the fastest bowler on earth. He may not have a SR of 160 as some of the T20 specialists. But he has the right mix of all that’s needed to make him, in my opinion, the best all-rounder in world cricket.  That pretty much is the case here. The S60 still lacks the poise of the C-class, the dynamics of a 3-series or the sheer quality of an A4 - but it does offer a unique set of strengths – Luxury, safety, performance and a price tag that would make any manufacturer awe. This is the one - a convincing alternative to its more established German rivals. Finally.. But my heart says even this one will go down as one of those that always had but never did. Sad but admittedly 
true. 


For those Passat, Superb and the like aspirants, you really need to be sick not to have a look at this. Yes, Volvo's service network in India aint that great. But only if people buy their vehicle, will they setup any. And.... for those Bimmer, Audi takers, you've some decision making to be done. Go for prestige and invest the proven choice of style and pride. Or be a little smart and challenge the system.. Let the world know there is a new kid in town.