KUALA LUMPUR (Nov 11): Digital transformation remains a challenge for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) as they don't immediately see the benefits of adopting processes that would make their operations more efficient and seamless.
Chun Jiat Yong, executive director of CTI Resources Sdn Bhd, says this is due to a lack of proper planning for their digital transformation journey. CTI Resources provides supervisory control and data acquisition solutions, which consist of software applications for controlling industrial processes.
"Digitalisation is not a destination but an entire journey and it needs proper planning, defining objectives and goals depending on organisational needs," says Chun.
"Most SMEs think that digitalisation is just digitising their data from manual paperwork to digitally store information and data. However, digitalisation is only part of the Industry 4.0 road map and is much more than just eliminating paperwork," adds Chai Kim Chen, the strategic director of CTI Resources.
Digitalisation helps manufacturers detect, identify and prevent operational bottlenecks by saving millions in delays, inefficiencies and losses of revenue, stresses Chai.
"Today, data is one of the most important assets for manufacturers to gain insight into their industrial process for both the decision-makers and production team within a shop floor. When a factory develops more data-driven manufacturing operations, it can break through the bottlenecks that clog productivity, growth, and profitability using data-driven decisions.
"Ultimately, digitalisation begins with a correct 'Edge to Enterprise' level solution as this helps collect the right data and samples from the plant floor and passes up to the enterprise level. This provides the entire team with a centralised view across the enterprise to help the right people make informed decisions and to bring end-to-end operational visibility to improve operational efficiency and productivity," he says.
As SMEs make up 98.5% of the 920,624 business establishments in the country, digital transformation can no longer take a back seat, Chai warns.
Recognising the urgent need to address the gap, CTI Resources has partnered with the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers to hold the "Go Digital Edge to Enterprise Conference" at Tropicana Golf and Country Resort on Nov 16.
The objective of the conference is to address the pain points SMEs are facing in rolling out digitalisation plans, especially in the supply chain, workforce and operations.
"CTI Resources intends to provide SMEs and manufacturers insight into the modern operations for them to help kick-start their digital transformation journey and to find the right solutions for their organisation," says Chai.
"This means demonstrating to SMEs how to manage their devices, bringing disparate data streams into a secure cloud environment for analysis and even building a hybrid solution to achieve their production goals," he adds.
To make things easier, there will be exhibition booths showcasing industrial automation, manufacturing execution system solutions, computerised maintenance management system, cloud, artificial intelligence (AI) and facial recognition technology for SMEs who are still hesitant to digitalise, adds Chai.
"For SMEs and companies who already have their digital road map planned out, participants can expect to hear discussions from industry experts on Edge to Enterprise strategy and various approaches around how to scale as they grow," he says.
Chun adds that there are ample Industry 4.0 applications and approaches that SMEs can benefit from but also acknowledges that it is easy for the companies to "get lost in buzzwords, trends and ideas".
"[To begin the process] manufacturers and companies could start by determining their organisation's digitalisation maturity level and which Industry 4.0 solutions and ways of working will fit their needs.
"This is also the objective of the MITI Industry 4.0 Readiness Assessment programme, which aims to help a company (SMEs specifically) undergo a comprehensive programme to assess an organisation's capability and readiness to adopt Industry 4.0 technologies and processes. Most of these initiatives will start with a proof of concept to determine and scale to the organisation's needs for the Industrial 4.0 transformation journey," he says.
Businesses that are inefficient or slow to innovate to adapt to market demand will be left out and lose competitive advantages, says Chun.
"To gain market share or continue growing their businesses, they will need to explore, plan and constantly be on their toes to implement and adopt the latest technologies in their industry. With globalisation, data and technology are valuable and easily accessible, the challenge is to hand-pick the correct solutions that fit each of their digital transformation strategies."
The last couple of years has been tumultuous as manufacturers face ongoing supply chain disruptions due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Production delays and workforce-related disruptions have severely impacted their production capabilities.
Despite the short-term pressures, Chun reiterates that SMEs have to make plans to prepare for the challenges a retiring workforce, shortage of skilled workers and sustainability drivers — which are pushing energy, emission and waste reduction — bring.
"With all these challenges ahead, large corporations and SMEs have no choice but to adopt the latest technology and solutions. Although technologies such as AI, IoT (Internet of Things) and cloud have been the key pillars in Industry 4.0, the need to have an effective digital transformation road map and solutions of the right fit remains crucial," he says.