CHENNAI: As global corporations, struck by the coronavirus threat and their dependence on China, look to de-risk investments and spread their portfolios, captains of Tamil Nadu Inc have urged the state to get ready, which includes creating plug-and-play industrial parks along with living quarters for large workforce closer to these facilities.
On Monday, at the session on manufacturing in The Times of India’s virtual conclave, Sasikumar Gendham, MD of Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) company Salcomp, said, the state must create plug-and-play industrial townships, which will make it attractive for investors. "Today, TN is home to the second largest cluster for electronics manufacturing services (EMS) in India and has the potential to grow significantly." At present, Salcomp employs 7,500 people and plans to recruit 10,000 more in the next three years.
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Stressing on the role of the government, vice-chairman and MD of The India Cements N Srinivasan said it is the responsibility of the state to dispel the myths about the virus. "We have a peculiar situation. The trucks with cement are not being allowed to ply by villagers fearing spread of the virus. The government must communicate better. Production of cement is not a problem for us, it’s only the movement of cement as most trucks have been abandoned," he said. The bigger issue, Srinivasan said, is unpredictability of demand. "It is like flying in the dark. We don’t know how much demand is there for cement. Most businesses have not earned any revenue for two months," he said. "We expect sales of 50%-70%, but cannot assure anything after June. It is also possible that pent-up demand is illusionary and may vanish quickly."
Focusing on safety, Daimler India Commercial Vehicles (DICV) is introducing a wearable device on the shop floor which will help employees maintain social distancing.
"Our digital teams have come out with an app which will help employees know dangerous zones. We have sought the API from the Aarogya Sethu team to incorporate them in the app. It shall be made available to all our employees, vendors and any other company which needs it. We need to work together to overcome the present situation," said Satyakam Arya, MD & CEO. He said the DICV factory in Oragadam is implementing ‘physical distancing but social intimacy’, adding that it is important to bring back guest workers who have left for their hometowns.
There is also an urgent need to upgrade the skills of workmen, said Srinivasan. "We need large upskilling initiatives. The government can take up some of this work as the requirements in the post-Covid-19 world will be different. Very few staff have managed our 10 factories from our corporate office. The entire work process is set to change," he said.
On Monday, at the session on manufacturing in The Times of India’s virtual conclave, Sasikumar Gendham, MD of Electronics Manufacturing Services (EMS) company Salcomp, said, the state must create plug-and-play industrial townships, which will make it attractive for investors. "Today, TN is home to the second largest cluster for electronics manufacturing services (EMS) in India and has the potential to grow significantly." At present, Salcomp employs 7,500 people and plans to recruit 10,000 more in the next three years.
Read our coronavirus live blog for all the latest news and updates
Stressing on the role of the government, vice-chairman and MD of The India Cements N Srinivasan said it is the responsibility of the state to dispel the myths about the virus. "We have a peculiar situation. The trucks with cement are not being allowed to ply by villagers fearing spread of the virus. The government must communicate better. Production of cement is not a problem for us, it’s only the movement of cement as most trucks have been abandoned," he said. The bigger issue, Srinivasan said, is unpredictability of demand. "It is like flying in the dark. We don’t know how much demand is there for cement. Most businesses have not earned any revenue for two months," he said. "We expect sales of 50%-70%, but cannot assure anything after June. It is also possible that pent-up demand is illusionary and may vanish quickly."
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Focusing on safety, Daimler India Commercial Vehicles (DICV) is introducing a wearable device on the shop floor which will help employees maintain social distancing.
"Our digital teams have come out with an app which will help employees know dangerous zones. We have sought the API from the Aarogya Sethu team to incorporate them in the app. It shall be made available to all our employees, vendors and any other company which needs it. We need to work together to overcome the present situation," said Satyakam Arya, MD & CEO. He said the DICV factory in Oragadam is implementing ‘physical distancing but social intimacy’, adding that it is important to bring back guest workers who have left for their hometowns.
There is also an urgent need to upgrade the skills of workmen, said Srinivasan. "We need large upskilling initiatives. The government can take up some of this work as the requirements in the post-Covid-19 world will be different. Very few staff have managed our 10 factories from our corporate office. The entire work process is set to change," he said.
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