Manufacturing AUTOMATION (Canada): Cognizant’s Vice-President for Mobility Talks About Harnessing Mobile Technology in Manufacturing

“As both consumers and businesspeople, Millennials favor virtualized environments that allow them to communicate and collaborate anywhere and anytime,” says Sowri S. Krishnan. “To fulfill this need, all businesses, especially manufacturers, must create enterprise-grade mobile apps that are simple and intuitive.” He says by combining existing technologies with a deep understanding of their business, progressive manufacturers can create app “stores” with application capabilities that can be easily configured to match employee, business partner, and customer roles.

“Mobile apps can increase workflow efficiency and productivity with approvals, submissions, and analytics,” Krishnan adds. “Manufacturers can not only enact greater productivity, but also achieve better cash management. One such mobile app allows senior manufacturing managers to view sales of their top 50 customers. Another app provides a days-sales-outstanding (DSO) view of all customers, calculating the maximum discount a salesperson could offer to customers who exceed DSO limits. Mobility can be a key enabling technology for manufacturers that seek to advance information quality, reduce costs, increase revenues, as well as improve customer service and responsiveness.”

According to Krishnan, enterprise mobility in manufacturing helps both discrete and process manufacturers by creating new and better efficiencies in their organization, driving down people and material costs and increasing asset utilization. It reduces errors and provides accurate data. The end result is increased profitability, raised customer satisfaction and a strong competitive advantage. Krishnan says manufacturers have to apply the aspect of mobility to eliminate key waste areas within their environment, including over-production, waiting time, transportation, processing, unnecessary motion, defects and inventory.

“Mobile apps create disruptive business and operating models that drive non-linear growth. This is particularly true of companies in emerging markets, where marketing and selling through mobile devices can be faster and less expensive than creating a traditional retail and sales network,” says Krishnan. “The manufacturing industry is moving quickly to adopt mobility. A ‘one size fits all’ model, however, doesn’t apply to enterprise mobility. In terms of implementing mobile technology, it’s important for organizations to have a strategic vision and ensure they choose wisely.”

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