Siemens Centre of Excellence for Industry Automation:

A Strategic Initiative Skills and knowledge are the driving forces of economic growth and social development for any country. An economy like India requires a large and skilled workforce to achieve the ambitious plans of Government of India (Gol) and to raise the share of manufacturing from the current GDP of 16 percent to 25 percent by 2025. This goal can be achieved only when the companies adopt high end and innovative technologies. However, the availability of limited skilled workforce creates a roadblock in the adoption of newer technologies. Subsequently, a gap exists between the growing demand for and the scarce supply of skilled personnel across sectors. This gap, if not addressed quickly, will have a strong bearing on the productivity and competitiveness of the sector itself. While the current capacity of the skill development program is 3.1 million, India has set a tarQet of skilling 500 million people by 2022.

And as focused skill development initiatives are essential to sustain and enhance India's manufacturing competitiveness in the long run, Kalabhavan (Faculty of Technology and Engineering) at the M S University of Baroda together with Siemens Industry Software (SISW) - a 100% subsidiary of Siemens AG involved in providing product life cycle management solutions , and the Pune-based DesignTech (a leading CAD / CAM / CAE, PLM solutions provider for Siemens) established the Siemens Centre of Excellence (COE) in Industrial Automation. The initiative is part of the agreement signed by the Government of Gujarat with the Siemens India for the establishment of five Centers of Excellence (CoE) in diverse industry segments: automotive, industrial machinery, industrial automation, aerospace & defense, and shipbuilding across the state. These COES are not just an academic activity, but an initiative to meet the emerging education needs and aspirations of not only Gujarat, but also our country as a whole. It will also help make fresh engineering graduates employable and productive as there is a dire need to improve the quality of learning.