Digitalisation: A fundamental approach to innovation

Investors are showing a keen interest in emerging economies like Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar etc., in search of more affordable resources. As a result, developed manufacturing hubs like Singapore are starting to see a shift in gears. Reports highlighting this manufacturing migration are fuelling the conversation about what manufacturers in economies like Singapore can do to stay ahead and what the other countries in ASEAN can do to increase the amount of production demand coming their way.  

The key to success in today’s manufacturing environment is to adopt Digitalisation as a fundamental approach to innovation. Siemens PLM Software is taking a leadership position in merging the virtual and real product development and production automation so manufacturers can define, simulate, and control all aspects of product development and manufacturing processes whilst remaining efficient and cost effective. The recent 2015 Siemens PLM User Connection event has gathered Siemens PLM’s customers and other stakeholders. The event revealed how ASEAN countries can harness digitalisation to strengthen their manufacturing industry.

INTERNATIONAL METALWORKING NEWS FOR ASIA had a chat with Rajiv Ghatikar, Vice President and General Manager, ASEAN/Australia for Siemens PLM Software, spoke about how digitalisation can change and shape your business for the better.

The leader of product lifecycle management and manufacturing operations management software, Siemens PLM Software, assists a wide range of some of the world's best companies in bringing their ideas and innovations into fruition. Siemens PLM Software gives unwavering support from start to finish – from ideas to panning to development to manufacturing to production.

Digital Enterprise

To remain competitive, the company strongly believes that “with a fully optimised 'Digital Enterprise', manufacturers are better equipped to initiate or respond to disruptive innovation'. International Metalworking News Asia recently met with Rajiv Ghatikar, the Vice President and General Manager of ASEAN/Australia for Siemens PLM Software. Ghatikar strongly advocates the importance for companies to go digital and he believes that Siemens is on the forefront of innovation.

“Innovation means moving into a way where you can do things better. It is change,” says Ghatikar. “And Siemens PLM Software wants to change your business. Just as things are getting more connected, things are also getting simpler and it's really a transformation, because you can't move backwards anymore.”

Siemens PLM Software has the expertise eight main industries: automotive; aerospace and defense; high tech and electronics; industrial machinery and heavy equipment; medical equipment; consumer package goods; marine and ship building; and oil and gas. The first four industries remain to be their strong point. Perhaps that is because over the past few years, the company has started to market to their potential customer in a very specific and targeted way.

“Our presentations are much tailored to each customer according to their specific needs,” says Ghatikar. “One of our biggest changes in our company is moving to the market by industry. Today we are actually producing collateral and business processes and templates for people who are working in that industry. So we can meet their business needs more efficiently. So this conversation would be totally different than with someone from say, the ship building industry. We are looking to providing something that's more tailored for each customer. That's why I think that consultative selling and a higher ability to relate to the customer becomes so important. Because clients these days won't even speak to us if we don't make sense to their industry. Before they even speak to us, they already have an idea of what we want. So we have to be very specific and tailored.”

At the end of the day, their product is used across several industries that have to remain vigilant and competitive in today's market. This also means that business is competitive for Siemens PLM Software. However, Ghatikar believes that the company is able to dominate its market share because of its three main differentiators:

*Openness and flexibility of the software. While most of the company's competitors don't have open and flexible systems, this is one of the company's strongest points. Says Ghatikar, “It almost seems so obvious that [our competitors] should offer the level of openness and flexibility that we do, but not all of them do. It is our strong point.”

*The largest portfolio of solutions in the industry. The company offers a wide range of solutions for all of its core industries and more. Says Ghatikar, “If you want to go to a one stop shop, you probably don't have to look much further than Siemens PLM. We are the industry software provider to the word.

* Being a part of the Siemens family. This is the most important differentiator for Ghatikar as he believes that Siemens knows industry. The software company, which was acquired by the German company, used to and currently still calls Siemens one of its key clients.

“Who else can you speak to if you want to design the whole concept of a product and a virtual production system without spending a dollar on physical work?” Ghatikar says proudly. “You can envisage the whole product entirely and there really is no other company that can do that.”