Institution news
There could not have been a better start, the hall’s name ‘Da Vinci’ turned out to be prophetic of what was to come at the launch of the Automobile Division of IMechE.
The best minds in the automotive industry gathered to celebrate the profession of mechanical engineering and its past, present and future contribution to the automotive field.
The wheels of the evening were set in motion by the launch of the Automobile Division of IMechE by Dr Pawan Goenka, Managing Director of Mahindra & Mahindra, followed by an address by Mr Mahesh Shinde, Chairman, Automobile Division India Tech Centre, IMechE, on the role of this new Division, the first of its kind outside the United Kingdom.
Then followed the evening's second celebration: the induction of Dr Goenka as an Honorary Fellow of the IMechE, a highly prestigious honour conferred on him earlier last year and making him a member of a very select group within the engineering world.
Dr Goenka humbly accepted the honour and in his acceptance speech touched upon the importance and evolution of the mechanical engineering profession in the development of the world over the last few hundred years. Wittily, he also mentioned that he was still looking for the person who nominated him for this honour, in order to thank him.
While the audience thought that the evening couldn’t get any better, they were treated to an incredibly thought provoking panel discussion on the role of the mechanical engineering in the context of the evolving automotive domain of ACES, (Autonomous, Connected, Electrified and Shared), moderated by Mr Pankaj Jhunja, Head, Mobility Services at Tata Motors Ltd.
In an answer to a question of how Indian automotive companies are able to differentiate themselves in the evolving ACES scenario, Dr Goenka first congratulated the Indian auto companies who took the lead in getting to the first 5 star and 4 star-rated cars in the Indian market, placing them at a different level from all the other German, Korean, American and Japanese brands. He then went on to stress that, if we can define what is a customer value and convert that into a product, only then we can capture the customer's attention. Mr SJR Kutty, Head-Vehicle Attributes and Technical Services, Tata Motors then stressed the need of automotive companies to ensure they remain relevant to the customers of tomorrow.
On the question of how mechanical engineering should evolve in this fast changing world, Dr Goenka stressed on the need to take on cross-functional lessons, a need which was re-affirmed by Mr Mangesh Saraf, Deputy Director of ARAI. Mr. Mansinh Kumbhar, President R&D, Force Motors pointed out the need for robust integration of knowledge and collaboration in this evolving period. Mr Kutty nicely summed it up with his thoughts that interdisciplinary and soft skills will become increasingly necessary in the coming years and the companies need to understand this.
The panel then discussed the engagement models of OEMs with their ecosystem in this
disrupting world. To which the consensus was that the large companies who do not figure out how to work with start-ups will eventually perish in this tech dominated and disruptive era.
The panel also discussed how the Indian automotive industry is not driven by regulations as is
perceived, making a case in point with BS2, BS4 and safety where the industry was ready much
before the government mandated it.
Dr Goenka interestingly mentioned how the passenger cars are dividing into two distinct paths - as an object of mobility and an object of desire which will challenge the automakers to come
up with solutions for these contrasting set of requirements.
The panel then tackled some interesting questions from the enthralled audience including those
from varied industry sectors such as automobile, process and aerospace, academia and IMechE
India Members.
Though this marked the end of the formal part of the evening, the audience members, comprising of many young
automotive engineers from across Pune’s OEMs and institutions, then made most of the
opportunity to interact with Dr Goenka, who was incredibly gracious and enthusiastic on his part.
The audience took the opportunity to network with experts and seniors over cocktails and sumptuous dinner. There was even the opportunity to play snooker throughout the dinner, which surprised and enthralled the guests.
If this launch is any indicator, the Automobile Division of IMechE is all set to create new
benchmarks as an institution of change and a voice for the country’s millions of engineering
practitioners and students who want to make the world a better place.