As a part of this ambition to integrate itself with the global manufacturing industry, India is participating in the Hannover Messe 2016 with participation of the country’s top firms in the private and public sector along with a high level official delegation, led by Secretary in the Department of Heavy Industry and Public Enterprises Girish Shankar.
Apex engineering export organisation, EEPC India is the lead agency for ensuring a measurable success for the country’s participation in the world’s leading technology fair. India had participated in the Hannover Messe last year as the ‘Partner Country’
Briefing the media at the Hannover Messe on April 25, Shankar said India has to take part in the development of a globalised manufacturing environment. “The ‘Make in India’ is a strategic initiative to reform the manufacturing industry in the country ”. Reaching out to the global technology majors to invest in India with strategic collaborations with Indian industry, the Secretary, Department of Heavy Industry and Public Enterprises, said the country is working with a clear vision and strategy to be the world’s preferred manufacturing destination by a series of initiatives like improving ease of doing business, liberalising foreign direct policy in most of the industries, including defence production. The country has recently announced new policy initiatives like pricing freedom for hydrocarbons found in the deep waters.
He said with a strong domestic demand, India provides an excellent alternative for the global industry with Chinese economy slipping into painful slowdown. A lot of interest is visible at the Hannover Messe for India’s new initiatives in the manufacturing sector.
As part of strengthening and deepening relationship with the German technology giants, a new progamme ‘Industry 4.0’ has been unveiled. It is a meeting of real and virtual worlds in manufacturing and involves the full integration of manufacturing technologies and systems to make a ‘smart factory’. The smart factory is a highly flexible manufacturing set-up that is digitally interlinked with every aspect of the manufacturing ecosystem, from suppliers to customers.
Speaking on the occasion, EEPC India Chairman, T S Bhasin said, the Indian engineering industry is taking several steps to move up the value chain and is now getting increasingly into areas like spacecraft components, aero-space, defence production, automobile and railways, among others.
“There is a realisation that with prices of commodities like steel and iron ore remaining subdued and subject to cyclical fluctuations, Indian engineering has to invest in R and D and forge new tie-ups with global majors from countries such Germany. India attaches a great importance to Hannover Messe as a global platform which was used last year with India being the Partner Country”.
India will leverage its reputed IT industry to transform manufacturing not only in India but also at the global scale with the new concepts such as smart factory, artificial intelligence and Internet of Things which itself is projected to be USD 15 billion for India by 2020.
On this occasion, 2 important MoU were also signed. An MoU was signed between Department of Heavy Industry, Ministry of Industries & Public Enterprises, Government of India & Steinbeis GmbH for desiring to develop cooperation in manufacturing sector. The second MOU was signed between Department of Heavy Industry, Ministry of Industries & Public Enterprises, Government of India, Hannover Milano Fairs India Pvt. Ltd. & FICCI for promoting technology & innovations through WIN India series of events.