|
SmartPartnering in engineering business
The Indian engineering industry is making waves across the globe these days.
Manufacturing segments for the first time recorded better growth this year over
service sector. There are promising signals towards ever more robust growth
and value addition in domestic and export markets covering diverse segments
ranging from automotives, aerospace to heavy engineering, capital equipment
and many more. This article attempts to explain SmartPartnering as a strategic
concept for India Inc.
Act 1, scene 1
A managing director of an Indian garment firm is all euphoria on a contract
clinched from the US against stiff competition from Philippines. He speaks to
his manufacturing manager to line up all inputs and schedule export in eight
weeks flat. He proceeds on his two week summer break in Bahamas, hoping all’s
well...
Act 1, scene 2
A manufacturing manager summons a production planning meeting. He finds to his
horror that lead time for seam yarns is six weeks; copper revets is available
ex-stock but only for a premium of 75 per cent on price, a prospect he can ill-afford;
regular price delivery is six to eight weeks; there is pongal holidays coming
up and his supervisor has just agreed to give one week leave for his recalcitrant
workers to visit native village. There is no way eight weeks commitment can
be met!
Act 2, scene 1
A fruit processor company from Zurich wants to source Tottapuri mango pulp;
quality is good but packaging is not acceptable in 1 kg drums. He wants aseptically
sealed stackable square carbouys. The deal is about to fall apart and likely
to go to a Vietnamese company.
No, I have no intention to cut and paste the English bard in an Indian biz scenario,
all the same such experiences are all too familiar to Indian businessmen. So
many commitments regularly fall apart as illustrated above due to factors that
are typical to our country thanks to supply failures, infrastructure inadequacies,
operating mindsets, not to mention establishment bureaucracy in our country.
There are indications of change but those changes are bringing in miniscule
effects. On an average, the situation in India is far from satisfactory if one
benchmarks developed countries’ standards. Surely there is nothing to prescribe
one-remedy-cure-all. The changes in age-old practices can only be gradual.
Having said that it is well worth trying SmartPartnering as a means to improve
business environment and operations in India in order to compete in the global
market. Quite recently, there was a media blitzkreig by a well known Bangalore
based pharma firm placating ‘Partnering’ as a means to succeed in
the global arena. Essentially, it means leveraging manufacturing and R&D
infrastructure in strategic locales to deal out economies of scale in production
batch after batch resulting in value proposition to customer (or consumer) as
well as marketeer. In the engineering industry, it is a small recombinant version
of the same concept - we call it SmartPartnering.
What is SmartPartnering
‘Smart’ prefix was first time coined in a hybrid expression by the
fast food giants Yum brands (in their earlier avathar Tricon) who owns KFC and
Pizza Hut. Their expression “SmartSourcing” represented materials
procurement, supply chain and logistics management departments as a composite
entity to act right for sourcing raw materials, consumables and hardware to
run restaurants profitably.
Likewise, SmartPartnering is a strata above plain business partnering —
it is seamless working in chosen areas of strength by business firms that may
seemingly operate even in intensely competitive fields. In the 1980s and 90s
several firms like IBM-Microsoft, Nasa-Boeing, Lockheed-Mitsubishi amongst others
have adopted SmartPartnering. Nearer home candidates like Shanti Gears and Bonfiglioli
have adopted SmartPartnering for business growth notwithstanding the fact they
have several products in their basket competing for shelf space in marketplace
and mind space within buyers. Let us examine some areas of relevance.
SmartPartnering for components
In the context of Indian engineering industry we must recognise one fundamental
reality — all the products among engineering goods (inherently sophisticated)
are put to very demanding duty conditions in a unique way. Weather conditions
are extreme in India unlike EU countries enjoying moderate climate. Further
very high usage levels compounds the demands on performance due highly populated
regions.
(To be concluded)
The writer is with TurbuLens Technologies, Bangalore. E-mail:
info@turbulens.biz
|
