With introduction of the global and Indian NCAP (New Car Assessment Programme) safety standard norms, the automotive and the foundry industry (which is dependent on the automotive industry largely), should gear up to excel in the global market, said Shekar Viswanathan, vice-chairman and wholetime director of Toyota Kirloskar Motor Ltd.
Coimbatore chapters of Confederation of Indian Industry and the Institute of Indian Foundrymen organised the eighth edition of Foundry Conclave here on Friday, on the theme"Structure for Excellence".
Speaking at the inauguration of the conference, he said about 60 per cent of Indian foundries are dependent on the automotive sector. The government has announced incentives for electric automobile vehicle manufacturers and hence, all the stakeholders of the automotive sector should focus on sustainable future. While there might be hiccups in implementation of the GST, the challenges will only be for the short-term.
With regard to the oil and gas sector, he said the Government should introduce policies for importing fuel compliant to Euro 6 ratings which will be implemented in the country by 2020 to reduce pollution problems.
According to Kamal Bali, Managing Director of Volvo India, the transportation sector faces three main challenges - climate change. urbanisation, and road safety and these play a major role in transforming the sector's future.
For the manufacturing sector to contribute 25 per cent to GDP, the Government should identify 25 sectors with scope and focus on their growth. Foundries that adopt disruptive business models with create revenue models and these units should implement virtualisation and modernisation with immediate effect.
Anil Vaswani, president of the Institute of Indian Foundrymen, said foundries should study the oncoming trends and plan strategies accordingly. Adaptability is key to foundries in the volatile business environment. He also said the institute was conducting a Nation-wide study on the effect of GST on the foundry industry and the report will be released shortly.
