Industrial Automation Magazine India

Willingness to adopt IIoT to improve plant efficiency has grown

Published on : Friday 03-04-2020

Krishnan KM, Founder & Managing Director, Utthunga Technologies.

How do you assess the current state of Indian industry in terms of modernisation?
Indian manufacturing sector has traditionally been slow in adopting new technologies and processes. However, we definitely see an uptick in the last 2-3 years. From what I am hearing from our front-line sales people, the willingness to adopt IIoT to improve plant efficiency has grown. We also see industries investing in newer machines and tools, rolling out software applications, training their operators for safety and other key skills. Energy efficiency is also on the radar of a few industries. Having said that, when comparing with the rest of the industrial world, we may still be lagging.

What could be the reasons for the slow pace of modernisation of industry in general despite the availability of technology?
The primary challenge is actually non-technical, it has to do with people. Industries lack resources to implement projects and find it difficult to change the roles of people, work processes, organisational structure and silos.

Another problem seems to be that the old investments have not yet been fully realised. The systems, technology, and infrastructure adopted in the last decade cannot be easily undone. So the investment inertia is a problem.

High value added sectors like defence, aerospace, precision machineries need to be developed more aggressively. These sectors are more likely to adopt advanced manufacturing technologies. Low value added sectors such as textile, leather, etc., need policy push and a revamp to empower their workforce to adopt newer technologies.

The lack of continuous and quality power also hampers the adoption of technology in the form of hi-tech machineries and tools.

Further, both physical and cyber security is a challenge. There are several vulnerability points in the OT space. Intrusions can occur from variety of places that could result in loss of data and compromise on system integrity. New cyber security measures need to be built into the process where key characteristics of malware can be identified and blocked.

At the moment the renewable energy segment in India is growing, but so is the demand. What should be the ideal energy mix?
As of now, India’s energy mix is skewed towards the coal and petroleum based power generation. It is difficult to imagine India suddenly leaving the fossil fuel based methods and completely becoming a renewable energy producer. While there is impetus to the renewable energy segment in India which is growing, Oil & Gas cannot be fully be replaced. It would be difficult to say what should be the ideal mix and it depends on the growth rate of renewable energy sector. However, the attempt should be to target a double digit growth in the near term for the renewable energy sector and progressively scale up. I hope we can touch 70% on fossil fuel & 30% renewable energy by 2050.

What more can the government do to boost manufacturing in India with the vision for a USD 5 trillion economy by 2025?
In the last few years we have seen easing of bureaucracy and new industrial policies aimed at boosting manufacturing. This momentum needs to continue as the correct and timely implementation is the key. Increased FDI would enable the growth of the manufacturing. Indian still ranks low globally in the ease of doing business.

The continued work to improve the physical infrastructure (transportation, logistics) and alleviating the shortage of power or quality power in needed. The government should also implement policies to protect the innovations coming out of industries via neatly defined intellectual property rights.

Policy intervention to enable SMEs, which form a huge chunk of our manufacturing, to enable them to build competencies to compete on a global scale is sorely needed. We can learn from other advanced economies like Germany where their Mittlestand is the major contributor to the national GDP. Several new industrial belts need to be created with incentives for production at scale. Look at China as the model for economies of scale.

Is sustainable development a difficult goal to achieve for a growing economy like India?
Sustainable development by definition should include socio-economic and environmental objectives being met simultaneously with the industrial growth. For a developing nation like us, it certainly is a challenge. Industry has to be incentivised to focus on using energy and environment efficient ways to produce products and services and at the same time creating wealth and employment for the workforce. The major obstacle that I see on this journey is human greed. Only with proper policies and their enforcement can we see an inclusive and eco-friendly society. Further, government investment in R&D in higher education has to increase considerably to make an impact on sustainable development.

(The views expressed in interviews are personal, not necessarily of the organisations represented) Krishnan KM is the Managing Director of Utthunga Technologies, headquartered in Bangalore, India. Krishnan is an industrial automation expert with over 20 years of experience including the last 13 years building a phenomenal team of engineers at Utthunga. An engineer in his heart, Krishnan also has deep affinity to agriculture/farming. An exemplary leader, Krishnan has the knack to connect with global CEOs and new hires at Utthunga equally well. Krishnan aspires to make Utthunga one of the most recognisable industrial software and hardware services provider in the world.

#April 2020 Magazine Cover Story

Transforming the Industry. Experts debate the factors that are holding back the Indian industry in quest of modernisation, and improved productivity. Digital Transformation is the buzzword for industry in the wake of the Fourth Industrial Revolution or Industry 4.0. Like much of India with various States at different stages of development, the Indian industry too is not a uniform entity in terms of modernisation and technology. The automotive industry is perhaps the most automated and leading on the digital transformation front as well, but many other segments, especially the MSME component that forms the largest chunk, are still at various stages of modernisation. To read the full cover story Please click here