Automobile Industry Needs To Catch Up
Published on : Monday 30-11--0001
- What level of automation has the automobile industry in India achieved?
Automation in the Automobile Industry in India is very low and not up to the level seen in European Countries, America and East Asia. Robot deployment is very low in India as compared to the World, if you go through the Robot Density numbers that is number of Robots per 10000 workers, India has a Robot Density of approximately 1 compared with world average of 69. Countries like South Korea have a robot density of 539. Automobile Industry sector deploys highest number of Robots world over and in India, but in India, the highest number of Robots are deployed only in OEMS’s, process automation like painting and welding of car bodies is highly automated with all Indian OEMS but, automation is not present in facilities of tier 3, tier 4 suppliers. But then again all this is set to change with TAL BRABO in market.
We are increasingly trying to create the awareness that Robots are not only for big companies; we would want tier 3 tier 4 suppliers to also deploy Robots and increase their quality and productivity. In order to be globally competitive we need to catch up soon.
- What trends do you see for over the next two or three years?
In the next 2- 3 years smart manufacturing would be making inroads, where the shop floor would be connected to the top floor with real time data and alerts which would be collected and analyzed by software all leading to improvement in decision making. Aggregating data from various systems, assets and people will give 360 degrees view into operations and result in better decision-making and ultimately higher operational performance. We will see more and more number of Robots in the shop floors, for example for inspection of parts and assembled products which was done only manually based on human judgment which had its own limitation, it would soon be done with help of Robots and high precision 3D laser trackers which will increase quality and productivity. More and more operations which are dull, dangerous, and risky would be done by Robots. Collaborative Robots would also make inroads in the automation industry but not as fast as compared to the rest of the world. With TAL BRABO in market not only OEM’s but also tier 3 and tier 4 suppliers will automate their facilities. Through the Government of India and their efforts of improving ease of business and making automobiles manufacturing the main driver of ‘Make in India’ initiative, an upward trend in automation would be seen.
- Has the push for automation on the shop floor helped in improving quality or innovation?
Automation is the route for being globally competitive, automation not only improves quality but it reduces production cost, decreases cycle time which is in line with lean manufacturing which is crucial for increasing efficiency, where robots would work longer and faster leading to increase in production rates. Decrease in cost and delivering consistent products would be a direct benefit with robotic automation. Robotic automation will infuse speed into the business environment; commercial launch of automotive models would be much faster with the help of flexible robotic automation.
- Tata motors are a pioneer in the industry. What value have you seen added to it by adopting the level of automation it has?
Tata Motors, the Indian Giant in the automotive industry has always been an early adaptor when it comes to technology. Tata Motors is one of the biggest deployer of Robots in India, with their core business which is driven by scale they have dealt with discontinuity and disruption in market by keeping themselves updated with technology and focusing on customer behavior. Their recent launch of TAMO RACEMO at the 2017 Geneva Motors Show says it all, RACEMO is India’s first globally developed ‘phygital’ car, merging the physical and digital worlds. RACEMO is also India’s first connected car, it has connected car features such as advanced navigation, predictive maintenance, remote monitoring and over-the-air updates using Microsoft cloud-based technologies including advanced analytics, internet of thing (IoT) and machine learning powered by Microsoft Azure.
- Tell us something about TAL BRABO. What is its value proposition?
While designing BRABO we were conscious of coming up with a product which was easy to install, use and maintain and had low cost of ownership. We feel a vast majority of Indian SME and MSMEs are yet to utilize unique advantage of using Industrial Robot, the SME and MSMEs are still deprived of the benefits of Robotics due to entry barriers of Robotics but all this is set to change with TAL BRABO in market we came up with new technology based on two key factors, Reliability and Simplicity of machine. With a CE certification plus 4 patents in our pool and a few more to be granted in future, we intend to simplify industrial manufacturing and improve quality, productivity and also induce flexibility. Our effort is to change the manufacturing ecosystem where not only OEM but also tier 3 tier 4supplierscan automate their facilities and can easily deploy Robots. We also tied up with TATA Capital so that SME and MSMEs can easily deploy robots, our indigenous manufacturing of Robots easy availability of spares and trained manpower will usher in a new chapter of Robotics in India.
- Given the costs of automation, do you think TAL BRABO will provide a sufficient RoI for medium size companies?
Yes, I feel deploying TAL BRABO would make business sense for medium sized companies, as it has low cost of ownership, it is priced between 5-7 lakhs, additionally in terms of service and spares we would be different than other players as we would be quick and the after sales service would be given at a much lesser cost, additionally with a tie up with Tata Capital one can also opt for the finance scheme. We came up with TAL BRABO in the market with a vision to change the manufacturing ecosystem, we want automation to spread to grassroots where 3 tier, tier 4 suppliers can reap into the benefits of Robotic Automation.