March 2022, Gujarat:The fourth industrial revolution or Industry 4.0 in manufacturing can help increase productivity and reduce the environmental impact of industrialization. It offers huge potential to advance economic growth and human well-being, safeguard the environment and achieve the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Through intelligent automation, machine learning, the Internet of Things, factories can become more efficient and less wasteful.
At an orientation workshop, organized by FIC-ISID and the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry, stakeholders discussed the benefits and challenges of industry 4.0 for inclusive and sustainable industrialisation.
Shri Vijay Nehra, IAS, Secretary, Department of Science and Technology, Government of Gujarat urged small businesses to overcome barriers to Industry 4.0 adoption. He said, “So far, Gujarat has benefited from the spirit of entrepreneurship and understanding of commerce. However, in the future, entrepreneurship will not be the only condition for success. For this reason, we need to ensure that our MSMEs adopt and upgrade and become global leaders in manufacturing.”
Dr. René Van Berkel, UNIDO Representative, Regional Office India observed that digitalization to Advanced Digital Production or ADP will drive the post-pandemic industrialization. He further added that firms stand to benefit from practicing manufacturing excellence to get efficient, lean and mature and ready to achieve ADP benefits.
Dr. Van Berkel also informed the participants how UNIDO was incorporating industry 4.0 in its interventions in the state of Gujarat - in the pulp and paper industry in Vapi, supported by UNIDO, focus is on demonstrating the applicability of manufacturing excellence tools in the industry to improve productivity. Similarly, in the Automotive Components Manufacturing project in Gujarat, where UNIDO is working with 37 manufacturers in six clusters, the aim is to improve conditions in the shops, and productivity. Furthermore, as part of the cleantech deployment and validation project, four technologies have been deployed under UNIDO’s facility for low carbon technology deployment. Through energy efficiency in MSMEs project, energy monitoring cells have also been established for brass, ceramic, dairy and foundry sectors in the state.
Elaborating on how GCCI was creating awareness among MSMEs about the benefits of Industry 4.0, Mr. Hemant Shah, President GCCI said, “Industry 4.0 is the need of the hour for any industry to survive and grow today. It is going to be beneficial for increasing the productivity, reducing maintenance cost and reducing the cost effectively.”
Through inclusive and sustainable industrial development, UNIDO is helping MSMEs unlock the new opportunities offered by industry 4.0 to drive positive change.