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In India, rising fuel costs and increasing focus on sustainable farming are gradually pushing interest toward electrified agricultural equipment. While electric mobility has gained traction in urban transport, its application in agriculture remains more complex. Machines must operate reliably in harsh environments, often with limited service infrastructure and tight cost margins.
Industry observations suggest that while electrification can reduce operating costs and emissions, adoption in agriculture depends heavily on durability, affordability, and ease of maintenance in real-world conditions.
Within this evolving landscape, Prakashkumar Mistry, a Technical Manager with nearly two decades of experience, has been working on integrating mechanical systems with electric powertrains in agricultural and utility equipment. His work spans design, engineering, and manufacturing, with a focus on developing practical and scalable electric solutions suited to local conditions.
Q1. Could you summarize your professional background and technical focus areas?
“I started my career as a trainee engineer, and over time, I’ve worked across vehicle design, mechanical and electrical integration, manufacturing, and product development,” says Prakashkumar Mistry. “My role often involves connecting different areas such as industrial design, powertrain systems, electronics, supplier coordination, testing, compliance, and cost management.”
He adds that his current focus is on electric platforms for agricultural and power equipment, particularly in areas such as durability, battery systems, modular design, and scalable manufacturing. His work typically involves collaboration across cross-functional engineering teams and external suppliers to bring products from concept to production.
Q2. What distinguishes your engineering approach in electric agricultural equipment development?
“Agricultural equipment operates very differently from most consumer electric products,” he explains. “These machines deal with dust, vibration, moisture, high temperatures, and long working hours.”
Because of this, his approach emphasizes durability, simplicity, thermal management, and protection of key components. At the same time, cost remains a central consideration. “If the product is not cost-competitive with conventional equipment, adoption becomes difficult,” he notes. This makes it necessary to align engineering decisions closely with sourcing, manufacturing, and long-term service requirements.
Q3. What was your role in the development of India’s first fully electric lawn mower?
Mistry worked as the technical lead on the development of a fully electric lawn mower for a multinational agricultural equipment company that did not have prior in-house expertise in electric systems.
The project involved end-to-end ownership by his team, including benchmarking existing products, defining system architecture, designing mechanical and electrical layouts, integrating battery and motor systems, developing prototypes, conducting validation testing, ensuring regulatory compliance, and supporting supplier selection and manufacturing scale-up.
It also became the organization’s first fully localized electric product, developed and executed within India.
Q4. What were the performance and commercial outcomes of this project?
According to Mistry, the product delivered measurable improvements in both efficiency and cost. “We were able to achieve around 20 percent higher battery efficiency compared to similar international products, while also reducing production costs by approximately 10 percent,” he says.
These outcomes supported entry into new market segments and demonstrated that competitive electric equipment could be developed locally. The project also created a foundation for subsequent electric mobility initiatives within the organization.
Q5. How did this project influence subsequent product architectures?
“The project gave us a clearer understanding of how products perform in real-world conditions, what tends to fail, what needs improvement, and how serviceability affects users,” he explains.
These learnings informed the development of more modular systems, such as electric sprayer platforms where individual components can be replaced independently. “This approach helps reduce downtime, lowers maintenance costs, and makes repairs more practical in regions where service infrastructure may be limited,” he adds.
Q6. What current electric mobility concepts are you developing?
Mistry is currently working on concepts for electric tractor platforms that incorporate swappable battery systems. The aim is to make equipment easier to maintain and more adaptable to varied agricultural conditions.
“The focus is on keeping the design straightforward, so it can be serviced locally and used across different environments,” he says.
At the same time, he acknowledges that broader adoption of such solutions will depend on factors beyond engineering, including battery costs, charging or swapping infrastructure, and overall ecosystem readiness.
Q7. How do you contribute to organizational engineering capability beyond product development?
In addition to product development, Mistry is involved in mentoring engineers and strengthening internal capabilities in electric mobility. This includes conducting technical reviews, guiding teams through complex engineering challenges, and encouraging collaborative learning.
“Many engineers in the team initially came from non-electric backgrounds, but over time, they have been able to contribute to production-ready electric platforms,” he notes. This transition has helped build stronger organizational capability in electrification and product lifecycle management.
Q8. How is your work perceived by clients and peers?
Mistry’s work is often associated with taking responsibility across the full product lifecycle, including regulatory requirements, supplier coordination, manufacturing, and product deployment.
“Clients and peers generally value the ability to connect detailed technical understanding with practical decisions, whether it is about system architecture, localization, cost, or long-term reliability,” he says.
Q9. What broader impact do you see in your work?
“My work contributes, in some part, to building local capabilities in agricultural electrification,” Mistry observes. “Developing solutions within the country helps reduce dependence on external technologies and supports domestic manufacturing.”
He adds that improved efficiency, reduced operating costs for users, and lower environmental impact are key outcomes associated with this transition, aligning with broader goals in sustainable agriculture.
Conclusion
Prakashkumar Mistry’s work reflects a practical approach to electrification in agriculture, one that balances technical requirements with real-world usability and cost considerations. His contributions across product development, modular system design, and engineering capability building align with the broader shift toward more sustainable and locally developed agricultural technologies.
As electrification in agriculture continues to evolve, its long-term success is likely to depend not only on technological advancement, but also on how effectively these solutions address on-ground realities such as affordability, serviceability, and infrastructure readiness.
