In a discussion with EFY, Narayan Kumar, Divisional Director of Panasonic Life Solutions India’s Industrial Devices Division (INDD), shared insights on the company’s strategy to enhance local engagement and leverage government incentives across key business sectors in India.
Q. What businesses does Panasonic’s Industrial Devices Division encompass?
A. Panasonic Industrial Devices Division (INDD) is a part of Panasonic Life Solutions India – a diversified technology company. It delivers advanced industrial components and electronic devices to businesses in India. These include industrial automation devices, relays, connectors, sensors, wireless connectivity, and other passive components. At Industrial Devices Division (INDD), we are driving strategic innovation through consulting, designing, and supplying a wide range of technologies and systems to various industries such as automotive, e-mobility, telecom, metering, renewables, HVAC, manufacturing, factory automation, infrastructure to name a few. Our industrial products and solutions are designed to enhance worker’s safety, drive productivity and deliver better overall equipment effectiveness (OEE). To address each segment objectively, we have organised our INDD business under four verticals, namely – automotive, industrial infrastructure and ICT, HVAC and Industrial Automation solutions.
Q. Of all these segments, which one takes the bulk of your business?
A. At the Industrial Devices Division every vertical is an integral part of our business contributing significantly to the revenues. The share of pie remains dynamic due to multiple factors ranging from economic (policy) to market conditions. For instance, government’s focus on Make-in-India driven by the PLI scheme (drives the automation vertical), ICT hardware implementation policy and smart metering (drives the ICT and Infrastructure vertical), rise in demand for EVs (drives the automotive vertical) to name a few. Due to increased focus on EVs, automotive is currently dominant; infrastructure, ICT, and factory automation are poised to grow in the next three to five years.
Q. With the government’s increasing focus on policies for localising component manufacturing, how does it impact companies like Panasonic?
A. It certainly, is a progressive step for us and the economy. A deeper focus on localisation will help boost manufacturing and create self-reliance for the Indian economy. This (localisation) can further integrate backwards into the entire manufacturing value chain, especially electronics, to create a demand for industrial devices and components. For instance, INDD has the capability and the materials to manufacture printed circuit boards (PCBs) including laminates for building high-frequency PCBs, amongst others. Additionally, our electronics component division handles the components onto the PCBs. At INDD, we are examining this entire value chain, from manufacturing, where PCB production begins, through to end-to-end component localisation.
Q. Who is your target market with regard to electronic components?
A. Our primary market is all electronic manufacturing service (EMS) providers responsible for designing, manufacturing, testing, distributing, and servicing electronic components and assemblies for OEMs. These, along with tier-one companies, form our complete target market.
Q. What does your engagement with the design team entail?
A. We work closely with the R&D team to understand their specific design-based requirements. The basis that we offer a variety of electronic components followed by industry norms, that is, pre-qualification, providing of samples, and then undergoing thorough training and testing which can take about six months.
Q. So, am I correct to understand that your target audience in the company is the design engineer in the R&D team?
A. Yes, predominantly when it comes to specifying our products in the BOM. However, we also work closely with strategic sourcing and procurement teams to assess the supply chain requirements.
Q. When INDD supplies components, is there a certain minimum order quantity that you supply and what does that look like?
A. Yes, there is a minimum MOQ (minimum order quantity) standard because components come in standard factory packaging—usually in multiples of hundreds to thousands depending on the product category.
Q. What challenges do you face while managing inventory and production forecasting?
A. This is a challenging question but allow me to break it down for easy understanding. We work closely with our partners to ensure optimum inventories. In the case of standard mature products, the supply chain is well-established. Demand is predictable, and our team can forecast it accurately using various tools for demand forecasting and planning. However, the real challenge comes with the launch of new products. When an OEM plans to introduce a new EV vehicle (for example) in the market, they estimate their demand and INDD works backwards from there to calculate the devices and components needed to meet that demand. However, if the product uptake is slower or faster than expected, issues arise. This variability in demand cycles poses challenges.
Q. What role do players like Panasonic play in ensuring a steady predictive demand cycle?
A. This is a common challenge for businesses alike. The key is to work closely with all stakeholders to assess the demand and plan accordingly to ensure optimum supply chain efficiencies.
Q. How can the forecast be better?
A. Forecasting is a two-way street. Both the customer and the supplier need to work closely to ensure better predictive demand forecasting. It can be achieved by mapping the entire supply chain onto a technology platform to enhance efficiencies. At INDD, we use advanced SAP-based systems to forecast, procure and ensure seamless supply to all our partners.
Q. What is the ideal lead time that you pitch to your customers?
A. Lead time can range anywhere from three to six months, depending on the product.
Q. How do customers place an order with you?
A. We follow the standard industry practice of an EDI (electronic data interchange) connection for our customers for order placement.
Q. Do you have any local partners in India, or do you engage in direct sales?
A. We have both local partners and direct customers to best deliver value to the customers.
Q. Do you also collaborate with electronics ecommerce distributors? How do you intend to develop local engagement within India?
A. No, we work with our local distributors for stocking and operations.
In India the distribution ecosystem is quite segmented. We work closely with our local distributors to develop the local engagement to lower expenses, speed-up deliveries, to enhance customer satisfaction.
Q. How do you reach out to your target market?
A. We reach out to our target market through various channels, such as EMS partners, esteemed publications such as yours, industry trade shows, industry associations, and development bodies. Additionally, Panasonic is a 100+ year old brand known for its Japanese trust and cutting-edge technology, which further helps in our reach.
Q. What kind of engagement do you have with startups?
A. We are engaging with startups primarily in the emerging, automotive and the industrial space. Through technology workshops, simulations, and demonstrations with R&D teams and design engineers we exchange knowledge and explain the Panasonic advantage to them. These workshops are often conducted in-house, at customer locations. Participants range from fresher engineers to seasoned professionals.
Q. Do you also partner with academia?
A. Not directly. However, at our automation vertical, we have recently developed pilot demo boxes for our partners. These demo boxes aim to showcase not just individual sensors but the entire system demonstrating how sensors function within a larger context. We have already started this initiative with some companies in the southern region, and we are planning to expand to colleges and participate in tech fests to further promote our initiatives. However, this journey is still in its early stages for us.
Q. You recently launched the MINAS A7, MINAS CZ1 Global, and MINAS A6SC series motors for automation. What are the industrial applications of these servo systems, and what level of demand do you anticipate?
A. The technology for automating servo motor tuning has been evolving over the years. Despite this progress, conventional automatic tuning methods were strained to deliver satisfactory results, especially for equipment that seeks ultra-precise positioning in the fields of semiconductor manufacturing, electronic components mounting machines, machine tools, and industrial robots, to name a few.
The newly introduced servo system solutions leverage advanced technology to automate the precise tuning process that was once only possible through expert human intervention. For instance, MINAS A7 equipped with precAIse TUNING (AI-based automated tuning) offers ultraprecise positioning accuracy through simple initial settings.
Similarly, all three servo systems have been designed to enhance the productivity of machines, people, and applications by adapting quickly and intuitively. For instance, in the diamond polishing industry, where precision is of essence MINAS CZ1 Global and MINAS A6SC servo systems can be used.
The new servo systems will continue to grow steadily. We do not yet have a well-established electronic manufacturing ecosystem on the semiconductor side, but as it progresses, this will also pick up.
