In India, digitisation in manufacturing has largely been restricted to accounting. Though a large number of manufacturers across products and sectors are process-oriented, they make little or no effort to digitise their processes.

Imagine the wealth of information processes have. A machine operated for say 14 hours a day being measured for performance once every minute would provide over 250,000 data points in a year. Evaluating this data for information can open new horizons in process improvement, leading to increased profitability for the enterprises.

If this information could be so valuable, why has it been ignored so far? Experts suggest, traditional Indian businesses look at investing in Information Technology as an expense and not as an investment. While this has got a lot to do with available technologies and infrastructure a decade ago; present technologies have brought down the cost of technology implementation, reduced delivery timelines and provided measurable performance enhancements. These factors are certainly helping in changing the mindset towards the use of technology.

Once processes are measured, they can also be optimised by using machine learning. Raw data from measurement of processes can be worked-upon to create meaningful insights. This information can then be used to create more efficient processes that cut down on losses and enhance profitability.

While Make in India is a beautiful concept, it needs to be ready for tomorrow by complementing it with process digitisation. Government needs to encourage enterprises that invest in technology of the future. Innovation needs to be encouraged. Technology companies as well as Manufacturing units needs to work hand-in-glove with the Government to ensure Make-In-India is a true success!