As Malaysia strives to become a leading
Food & Beverage (F&B) exporter, it turns to the power of digitalisation
or smart manufacturing to achieve desired outcomes. Through Foreign Direct
Investments (FDIs), Malaysia aims to attract established brands and with the
provision of right support for local companies in meeting global standards.
Foreign companies that are seeking to set
up their export hubs in Malaysia will be drawn to an ecosystem which has the
right infrastructure in place, and where production cost can be reduced while
productivity increased.
According to the announcement
made by the Malaysian
Investment Development Authority (MIDA), MIDA signed a Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) with Siemens Malaysia in order to integrate digitalisation
into Malaysia’s F&B industry.
The MoU signifies the collaboration between
both parties in improving the capacity and competitiveness of the industry
through the adoption of digitalisation and technology.
The signing was attended by MIDA’s Deputy
CEO, Mr Arham Abdul Rahman, who represented MIDA CEO Dato’ Azman Mahmud, and
Siemens Malaysia President & CEO Mr Indranil Lahiri, which happened during
the first ever “Recipe for the Future 2018” F&B event at the headquarters
of MIDA, in Kuala Lumpur.
The event was held for an audience of 250
participants and customers comprised of industry players and F&B
manufacturers to gain insights and find opportune possibilities on the
solutions and services that could be catered to their specific needs and
requirements.
Defined standards for manufacturing
operations of the future are compounded by some of the biggest challenges
facing the F&B sector, such as a fragmented manufacturing environment and
aging infrastructure that inhibit productivity.
The implementation of high-tech automation
is seen as the answer to enabling maximum plant-wide interoperability. This
would encompass concepts like an intuitive, uniform interface, a single
engineering platform for all tasks, integrated and real-time system diagnostics
as well as integrated, built-in safety that guarantees customers with better
machine uptime.
The Plant Wide Automation (PWA) concept for
Siemens will help address significant improvements in speed, flexibility and
efficiency, which will reduce time-to-market with shorter innovation cycles to
beat volatile markets, generating individualised mass production with greater
transparency, as well as keeping energy and resource efficiency to the optimum
with higher productivity.
During the half-day F&B event, Mr
Indranil Lahiri explained that digitalisation will aid manufacturers in meeting
the global benchmark for productivity and consistency. He highlighted that this
partnership with MIDA will facilitate the support system required for the
adoption of digital technologies and reach out to the larger base of MIDA
customers.
Aside from the MoU signing, activities
during the event included speakers from MIDA and Siemens who shared on topics
like the Future of Manufacturing in F&B, and Government Facilitation with
Funds and Incentives.
There was also a marketplace showcase
featuring various solutions by customers, a simulation demo kit on Industry
4.0, and individual business consultation sessions.
Dato’ Azman, whose speech was delivered by
Mr Arham, emphasised that the F&B industry has developed significantly over
the years in Malaysia, with new technology and innovations in tandem with
global economic growth.
He added that in order to seize growing
opportunities, MIDA encourages more companies to work with technology solution
providers such as Siemens and invest in technology, upskilling of talents and
R&D activities to create new growth opportunities and maintain their
competitiveness.