The grand jury met to decide the fate of 300+ nominations across 15 categories. The results will be announced at the awards.
By Jayashree Kini Mendes
Seven years. you would think that
some kind of complacency must have sunk in. Far from it. The team at Manufacturing Today continues to drive the 7th Manufacturing Today Conference & Awards with the same vigour it did since it took over.
The annual affair that culminates in September sees its beginning in June when the team starts inviting nominations from manufacturing companies. The 15 categories encompass all aspects of manufacturing such as operations, technology, quality, supply chain, training & skill development, engineering design, sustainability and human resources. The categories mentioned here are for the large and small companies. There are people awards for plant heads, next generation leader and entrepreneurs.
Over the years, we have continued to add new aspects to the nominations. From tweaking the parameters to including new ones, Manufacturing Today has relied on the wisdom of the Jury members to add weightage to the overall awards. This year too, we incorporated some of the suggestions from the last year and fine-tuned the nomination process further. It has only whetted the flavour of the awards.
Having finished with the nominations, we moved on to the Jury Meet that was held on August 22 in Mumbai. Our esteemed Jury members (see box) gathered to pore over each nomination and had their work cut out for them.
Sanjay Bhan welcomes the Jury in the morning.
The Editors explain the methodology.
The Jury at work.
Sanjay Bhan, Director, ITP Media Group (India), began the day by welcoming the Grand Jury and offered them an insight into the magazine and Awards. Addressing the Jury, he said that the the rising popularity of the magazine and its familiarity in the world of manufacturing companies was a stepping stone to the awards.
The Editors offered a glimpse into the nomination process and the methodology. The Jury was given the parameters for each category and asked to rate the nomination on a scale of 1 to 10, with one being the least. The Jury was divided into five groups and each group was handed a bunch of nominations across categories. Thus began their day.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Jury Meet, Ashok Kumar said, “Some of the nominations are really outstanding. There has been a focussed approach to sending them across.”
Most Jury members are well aware that raising efficiency is what every company must indulge in. Fernando Rocha said that this must be revisited regularly to understand and is an endless job. He was surprised to find several companies implementing strategies that are simple and could be made global.
Considering that Indian companies are going global, there’s a dire need to improve expertise in terms of technology impetus. GK Pillai said that this will help stress on quality and lead time. Once Indian companies improve the quality of goods and gain lead time, they can meet global standards.
Adding to this, Rahul Mishra said that access to technology and skilled manpower could help buoy SMEs. There are government and institutional agencies that have been trying to bridge the skill gap.
The SME sector is what needs a boost. In this vein, Rajesh Nath said that they plan an important role in the manufacturing sector in India. They need to scale themselves to play in the global sector.
As a global company that offers expertise to manufacturing companies, Shekhar Chaudhari says, “Customers need to see value. One can only look within the company to improve themselves; it must help consumers. The quality of work that companies are doing is remarkable.”
As India aspires to become a global super-power, manufacturing is an integral part of it. The Make in India concept will help companies create more jobs, said Rakesh Tripathi.
The Jury pores over the nomination forms to arrive at winners and runners-up.
Overall, the Jury was impressed with the quality of nominations and most of them said that there were plenty of takeaways. It’s the small improvements that help companies improve processes and gain an advantage in the market as ultimately seen in the products they push out in the market.
The day ended with the Jury awarding points and choosing the winners in each category, thus bringing an end to a long day. Jury members were felicitated for their enduring work.
The Grand Jury
Ashok Kumar, Senior Expert, McKinsey & Company
B Anil Baliga, Sr. VP, VECV
Bhadresh Dani, VP, Drives & Automation, Bharat Bijlee
Fernando Rocha, Head of Industrial Engg CE Plant, Continental Auto
GK Pillai, MD & CEO, Walchandnagar Industries
Guruprasad Rao, Director & Mentor, Imaginarium India
Jitendra Mahajan, Chief Supply Chain Officer, Marico
Manish Kulkarni, Director, BDB India
Rahul Mishra, Principal, AT Kearney
Dr Rajeev Mishra, Chief HR Officer, Hindustan Platinum
Rajesh Nath, MD, VDMA
Rakesh Tripathi, Global Head, Heating Business, Thermax
Robindranath Som, President, Nickunj Eximp Enterprises
Shekhar Chaudhari, Principle, Goldratt Consulting
SM Vaidya, EVP & Business Head, Godrej Aerospace
V Anbu, Director General & CEO, IMTMA