Muscat: OER’s Manufacturing Summit and Awards 2021, a flagship event by the Sultanate’s premium business magazine, made a strong pitch for innovation and closer collaboration between the government and the manufacturing industries to address the challenges faced by the manufacturing sector in Oman.
Dr Saleh bin Said Masan, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion for Commerce and Industry was the chief guest, while Eng. Redha bin Juma Al Saleh, Chairman, Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI) was the guest of honour at the summit.
In his key-note address, Eng. Redha focused on the initiatives of the Sultanate in the manufacturing sector, which is aligned with Oman Vision 2040.
Ibtisam Al Farouji, Director-General of Investor Services, Madayn Oman shared insights on the investment opportunities offered by Madayn, creating jobs for Omanis and sharing a combined vision to take its industrial cities to a global level.
Oman Chamber of Commerce and Industry (OCCI), Madayn, MIZAH, Credit Oman SAOC and Oman Manufacturers Association (OMFA) were the endorsement partners of the summit, which was organised by UMS Events. Shell Oman Marketing Company, Octal and Raysut Cement were the strategic partners while Al Maha Ceramics, Sohar Aluminium, Moon Iron and Steel Co (MISCO), Al Tamman Indsil Ferrochrome (FZC) (ATIFC), Areej Vegetable Oils and Derivatives (Minara brand), Voltamp Energy and Oman Cables Industry were the associate partners.
Ford Trucks was the official commercial vehicle partner. Times of Oman and Al Shabiba were the media partners, Alam Al Iktisaad Wal A’malmagazine, the Arabic media partner and oerlive.com, the online media partner. SSA International was the knowledge partner.
Kevin Baoke, Global CEO of b2wise, made a presentation on ‘Artistic versus Scientific Planning: Best Practices for a VUCA world,’ where he talked about sharing a balance between inventory, service and capability. Naveen Narayanan, Managing Director of SSA Business Solutions (P) Ltd, spoke on the importance of achieving manufacturing excellence and lean management for companies to streamline their operations as we move to Industry 4.0.
The first panel discussion deliberated on ‘Manufacturing: Negotiating anew Reality.’ The panellists included Manash Ranjan Sanyal, COO, Raysut Cement, Abdullah Bin Said Al Badri, CEO, Voltamp Oman, Cinzia Farise, CEO, Oman Cables Industry, Mohammed Harith Al Barashdy, CEO, Oman Fiber Optic, Himansu Mohapatra, Group GM – Investment, Muscat Overseas Group and Venkat AN, CEO, Al Jazeera Steel Products Company.
Mayank Singh, Executive Vice President and Group Editor, UMS moderated the panel session which focused on a cross-section of issues affecting the manufacturing sector in Oman, including strengthening supply chains for minimal disruption.
The first panel session was followed with presentation by Mohammed Al Jabri, Sales Manager, Credit Oman on ‘The role of Credit Oman in empowering the private sector,’ while Ramesh Kadaganchi, Founder of Cybrlytics Technology spoke on ‘Emerging trends in Industry 4.0 & Smart Manufacturing.’
The second panel session focused on “Crosscurrents changing manufacturing – Covid-19 to Industry 4.0 and The Way Ahead,” The panellists included Atul Misra, COO, MISCO, Rajeev Singh, CEO, Al Maha Ceramics, Said Al Rashdi, CEO, Oman Manufacturers Association, Pradeep Kumar B. Nair, CEO, Sebacic Oman and Skyline Duqm and IT expert Ramesh Kadaganchi Founder of Cybrlytics.
Oommen John, Deputy Editor, OER moderated the second panel session, which deliberated on the best practices and the way ahead for the manufacturing sector in Oman. It also dwelt on unlocking the potential of the sector, Industry 4.0 initiatives such as digital transformation, smart manufacturing and flexible production, creating job opportunities and negotiating newfound challenges i.e. logistical disruption, shrinking international export markets and enhanced global and regional protectionist policies.
Atulya Sharma, CEO, UMS Group, in his welcome address highlighted the importance of the manufacturing sector to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of Oman and how the ever-evolving sector will redefine the nation’s position as a leader in the region.
OER’s first of its kind manufacturing summit brought together government officials, C-suite executives, consultants and analysts to discuss a cross-section of issues impacting the manufacturing sector in Oman, solutions and the way ahead.
Manufacturing sector Excellence Awards 2021 in diverse categories was also presented during the summit. The awards recognised exceptional organisations and individuals in the sector.
Workshop on ‘Profit Leadership’
A workshop on “Profit Leadership,” was held during the Summit. Naveen Narayan, Managing Director – SSA International, who is also a Lean and Six Sigma expert, conducted the workshop to enable business leaders to identify and beat profit leakages and also facilitate businesses to be more effective post-COVID-19.
