At $930 million, however, the current size of the Indian automation industry is dwarfed by the size of the $8.14 billion Chinese automation market, he adds.
Uppal says the growth in the industry will largely come from the metals sector, as most of the major companies have announced massive expansion plans. Major steel companies will augment Indian steel manufacturing capacity to 120 million tons from 38 million tons. “The automation industry will experience significant increase in demand. Apart from steel, there is sign of demand increase from other metal industries also,” he notes.
Demand chain
The AIA says medium and small manufacturers will play a significant role in the demand chain. “The penetration of automation products has been low as only large manufacturers have been using it, but small and medium players could draw significant benefit by automating,” Uppal explains.
With India’s gradual integration with the world economy, automation will play an important role in bringing down the costs, he says. Besides costs, automation will also help increase productivity, efficiency, aesthetics and delivery systems. The manpower requirement in the industry is growing at 5 percent to 10 percent per annum.
Several international players are considering India as a development hub for automation products, he claimed. Various overseas companies have already set up offices in India to develop automation products, and around 12,000 people are working with them, say sources.
