The effect of Covid-19 has further accelerated the shift to smarter manufacturing techniques.

Story by Bhushan Mhapralkar

Not only have the CV manufacturers in India had to go back to the drawing board to redraw the best and the seemingly fool-proof strategies to conduct their business, they have had to further accelerate the shift to smart techniques. They have had to, in the process, embrace new technological developments in the area of Artifical Intelligence (AI), the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), automation, big data, 5G, etc. While companies like Lincode, a leading AI-powered visual inspection company with multiple patent-pending defect detection capabilities, have announced collaboration with Switzerland-based Global Automotive Alliance, which has an in-depth domain knowlegde of the automotive and manufacturing segment on a global level, the accelerating shift to smarter manufacturing techniques in the Indian auto industry at various levels is opening the doors to the next level of efficiency, expertise and productivity enhancements. Expressed Vinay Raghunath, Partner & Leader, Automotive Sector, EY India, that automotive shopfloors are evolving and adopting digital technologies as challenges like slowdown in demand, non-availability of labour, concerns on health and safety management on the shop floor assume importance. An early adopter of digital manufacturing techniques, the Indian auto industry, he added, has not been able to keep pace with the developments in view of the uncertainty relating to ROI and other factors.

With techniques like AI playing a key role in the automotive value chain encompassing regions not just on the shopfloor but also design, pre- (supply chain and materials) and post-production (dealer network and aftermarket value-added services like predictive maintenance, spares, insurance, etc.), the shift to smarter manufacturing techniques has further accelerated in the post Covid-19 environment. Mentioned a source close to Ashok Leyland that the CV major took to smart manufacturing initiatives some years back. The planning of the application technique, he added, started even before and primarily for three reasons – to improve productivity through modernisation and digitisation, to address quality issues that are difficult for human beings to detect, and to incorporate made-to-order or mass customization capabilities. As suppliers, OEMs and other stakeholders of the Indian auto industry strive to overcome challenges made bigger or created by Covid-19, a shift towards hyper-intelligent digital technologies is also found to be growing. This, especially in view of the announcement to roll-out 5G later this year. The primary reasons being given in favour of this move are an ability to achieve resilience and develop immunity against market uncertainties in future.

Tackling disruptions
Stating that the Indian economy and the auto sector were already facing significant headwinds even before the Covid pandemic struck, an automotive industry observer said that 2020 proved to be a very unkind year for the Indian CV industry as well as the transporters. He explained that the transporters, already burdened with rising fuel prices and higher compliance costs, met with the prospect of sudden deceleration in fleet utilisation sans demand. The CV OEMs, at the other end, he added, saw a drastic drop in sales, the ripple effect of which set alarm bells ringing across the entire value chain. The transition to BSVI pointing at a 10 to 15 per cent escalation in acquisition costs amid a lockdown that brought utilisation levels down to 10 per cent roughly, got the CV industry in India to look at ways to ensure that unprecedented disruptions do not catch them unaware like the Covid-19 pandemic almost did. It immediately began to look at ways to achieve resilience and develop immunity against market uncertainties in future, The CV industry in India and its partners, according to an industry source, are working towards a new normal by adopting smarter manufacturing techniques. Amid an amount of trepidation concerning the results had from the application of smarter manufacturing techniques until now, industries they are looking at ways to overcome challenges like integration of Information Technology (IT) systems used for data-centric computing with Operational Technology (OT) systems. This, primarily includes digital platforms deployment and integration, data readiness and cyber security.
Redrawing strategies to seek as well as develop digital talent, a range of skills and capabilities that would be necessary to drive smart factory transformation including cross-functional profiles like engineering-manufacturing, manufacturing-maintenance, and safety-security, industries, attention to costs and ROI among various other factors is being looked at. Considering the rising need for soft skills such as problem solving and collaboration, attention is being given to adoption of new technologies and the right time to do so. With plant utilisation levels yet to get anywhere closer to the 2017 or 2018 scenario, CV manufacturers and suppliers are said to be evaluating ways to implement smarter manufacturing techniques against the backdrop of social distancing, lesser manpower, revised shift schedules, higher focus on employee health and safety, and modification of plant layout. Working on crisis management and building resilience to prepare for unprecendented events like the Covid pandemic in the future, the Indian auto industry is looking at productivity gains, emerging competition and risk aversity in the globalised world as per an EY report.

A smarter working environment
With the focus on making the employees smarter as well as the machines smarter, the rising shift to smarter manufacturing techniques is touching processes like inbound logistics, production planning, sourcing, press shop, body shop, paint shop, quality control and outbound logistics through data visualisation, sensors, analytics, AI-based alerting and fully automated workfloors is being increasingly compounded by data collection, historical data and high quality extensive data mining. This is in effect paving way to digitized performance management systems, digitally enabled quality management system, smart automation, technology enabled platforms to automate E2E processes. Stated a manufacturing head at a CV manufacturer on the condition of not revealing his name, that the race for lower takt time is getting smarter and more ruthless. It would hereafter be about artificial intelligence and automated processes than about employees and their participation in the manufacture of vehicles like it was until now. Pointing at the speed at which regulations are being thrust upon the Indian auto industry and sans a concrete long-term road map to boast of, he said that ROI is fast becoming a matter of big concern. Justifying the accelerating shift towards smarter manufacturing techniques, he also highlighted the fact that there will be less of humans and more of machines henceforth.

With electric vehicle startups making news, on the competitive front a new status quo is emerging. It is certain to have an effect on the shopfloor environment; on the adoption of smarter manufacturing techniques. The elements of Industry 4.0 influencing the move to smarter manufacturing techniques in order to reduce the cost of computation, storage and connectivity, a cloud-based culture is fast emerging. . It is supported by a gradual increase in the understanding of emerging technologies. The plummeting prices of sensors, 3D printers and robots are providing an advantage too. The CV industry, including OEMs and suppliers, is increasingly leveraging smarter technology solutions for asset tracking through the use of embedded sensors, RFID and GPS, etc. On the back of the challenge to keep manufacturing costs down, predictive maintenance with the use of smart manufacturing techniques is gathering force at even the tier-three lower rung of suppliers in the auto industry. This is about monitoring parameters like temperature, pressure, vibration, machine rpm, and flow rate.

Flexible manufacturing
Resorting to flexible manufacturing and AR-based solutions to upskill manpower, the shift to smarter manufacturing techniques is fast assuming a stance where technology would effectively tackle disruption, meet present and futire customer requirements, and provide them with a rich and differentiatied experience. With connected vehicles paving the way to the future, the shift to smarter manufacturing techniques, apart from underling quality, resource optimisation, streamlining of business processes and adoption of new emerging technologies, is about anticipating the advantage of solutions like digital twins and rapid prototyping using additive manufacturing among others versus ROI. As new regulations and disruptions present themselves, it is the judicious employment of smarter manufacturing techniques that will prove to be the big difference between ‘win’ or lose’.