SIAM Partners with IMT Ghaziabad to Host a Virtual Workshop on ‘Industry 4.0: Driving Towards Digital Transformation across Organizations’

New Delhi : Aligned with the Government of India’s vision of Industry 4.0 for manufacturing competitiveness, the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) conducted a Workshop titled “INDUSTRY 4.0: Driving Towards Digital Transformation across Organizations” in association with the Institute of Management Technology (IMT), Ghaziabad. The program witnessed participation from several automotive industry experts, government officials, academia, and other stakeholder associations.

Industry 4.0 refers to the fourth industrial revolution, which is based upon the cyber-physical transformation of manufacturing. Industry 4.0 has been defined as a name for the current trend of automation and data exchange in manufacturing technologies, including cyber-physical systems, the Internet of things, cloud computing, cognitive computing, and the creation of the smart factory. Further, SAMARTH Udyog Bharat 4.0 is an Industry 4.0 initiative of the Ministry of Heavy Industry & Public Enterprises, Government of India under its scheme on Enhancement of Competitiveness in the Indian Capital Goods Sector.

In his welcome address, Mr. Prashant K Banerjee, Executive Director, SIAM, said, “Industry 4.0 is fuelling the emergence of smart factories globally. Connected and intelligent digital technologies are transforming manufacturing shop floors into sustainable smart factories enhancing productivity, profitability, compliance, and customer delight. Industry 4.0 has significant relevance in the entire automotive value chain. Smart factories will be the main driver of competition for 2025.”

Adding to it, Prof. Vishal Talwar, Director, IMT Ghaziabad, said, “Industry 4.0 has been part of conversations across various corridors, and every organization is at various stages of its implementation. Industry 4.0 has huge transformational potential, but control over customers is a bit on the lower side. Digitalization will help in mitigating the challenges. We need to be agile with the change that Industry 4.0 will bring to the table. With data becoming the future oil, cyber security is becoming increasingly important in ensuring the industry’s smooth progression. ”

Setting the context, Mr. Satyakam Arya, Chairman, SIAM Manufacturing, Industry 4.0 and EODB Group & CEO & MD, Daimler India Commercial Vehicles, said, “We are living in an era where customers’ choices are changing rapidly and along with that, demand and supply chain complexities are also rising. Therefore, the adoption of technology in every aspect of the value chain will build resilience and agility to survive this kind of world. Seamless integration of systems across the value chain and creating frameworks for sustainable business is the need of the hour. Industry 4.0 will enable businesses to lead the change rather than just responding to it. As an industry, we need to focus on reskilling or up-skilling of our people to prepare for the impact of increased artificial intelligence on job security.”

Giving a Thematic Presentation on “Strategic Deployment in Hoshin 4.0”, Mr. Mahesh Kaikini, Co-Chairman, SIAM Manufacturing, Industry 4.0 and EODB Group & Chief of Quality, Hero MotoCorp, said, “Perspective change should happen across organizations, in tandem with the changing industry dynamics and everyone should be more than willing to accept and apply those changes. It’s very important to look at ways to strengthen control from within our organizations. We need to have a clear understanding of the objective, goal, and clarity on the way we intend to move forward.”

The virtual Workshop had a session on “Digital Transformation through Industry 4.0 Technologies- A Way Forward” moderated by Dr. Sanjiv Narula, Dy. General Manager Quality Excellence, Hero Motocorp, Gurugram, India on behalf of SIAM. The workshop witnessed active participation and touched upon various technologies in the Indian context.

Giving an “Introduction to Industrial Revolution and Industry 4.0”, Prof. Rameshwar Dubey, Reader, Operations Management, Liverpool Business School, UK, presented his views on the fourth school of thought, providing an understanding of the Industry 4.0 technologies and its benefits.

Talking on “Digital Transformation through Industry 4.0”, Dr. Surajit Bag, Associate Professor, IMT Ghaziabad, presented his views on newer technologies and industry 4.0’s future aspects.

Prof. Atanu Chaudhuri, Associate Professor, Durham Business School, UK, presented his views on “Overview and applications of 3D Printing/Additive Manufacturing for Smart Manufacturing”. He stated the applications of 3D printers in the automotive industry.

Giving a Practitioner’s view on “Big data and AI Industrial Applications”, Mr. Rakesh Sarangi, General Manager, Tata Motors Limited, Jamshedpur, presented his views on Big Data and its applications that benefit the automobile industry.

Prof. Vishal Talwar, Director, IMT Ghaziabad gave his views on “Challenges and Barriers of Industry 4.0 implementation”. He spoke about emerging technologies and challenges coming in from a context of job security with Artificial intelligence coming to the fore.

Mr. Dattatraya Navalgundkar, Executive Director, C4I4 Labs, Pune, presented his views on “Government Implementation Policy Perspectives”. He talked about Government’s support for Industry 4.0.

Over the years, SIAM has been engaging with governments, corporates, and various stakeholders in an effort to address newer technologies, aligning with SIAM’s objective of Building the Nation Responsibly.