NEW DELHI: Delving on how big data plays a significant role in the manufacturing sector to drive innovation enhancing productivity, Ashutosh Sharma , Secretary, Department of Science & Technology said that India has the potential to generate such technology which is world class and has the requisite capabilities.Speaking on the sidelines of the CII Manufacturing Innovation Conclave 2019 in the capital, Sharma, in his special address, added that data is key for successful implementation of artificial intelligence and emphasised the need towards reforming ideas related to data generation, data flow, data preservation, building of data and bringing value to data.Affirming Sharma’s point of view, Pankaj Dubey, Country Head & MD, Polaris India said data analytics can help them capture, cleanse and analyse machine data to reveal insights that can improve performance. “The usage of new concept technologies like IoT and apps are actually taking over the market place and it is important to look at such technologies that are converging,” he said.Addressing the inaugural session, Dilip Sawhney, MD, Rockwell Automation India said that adoption of contemporary technologies is imperative for the Indian manufacturing sector to realize the vision of $1 trillion manufacturing economy in the near future and to enhance global competitiveness.All industry experts were of the view that manufacturing has huge potential to generate wealth and employment and its potential needs to be tapped. “Manufacturing can help to transform India to a developed country like Japan and Germany, where one finds a predominantly manufacturing culture. We have to create infrastructure, generate demand and gear up for a collaborative approach to build up the nation,” Sudhir Mishra, CEO & Managing Director, BrahMos Aerospace said.Others were of the opinion that increased momentum is required across the manufacturing industry in India towards adopting innovative technologies to solve complex problems. “Today manufacturers are converging digital and physical worlds in which sophisticated hardware combined with innovative software, sensors, and massive amounts of data and analytics is expected to produce smarter products, more efficient processes, and more closely connected customers, suppliers and manufacturers. In Industry 4.0, manufacturing systems and the objects they create are not just connected but also drawing information from the physical world into the digital realm,“ Rajeev Singh, Partner, Deloitte India, said.The Conclave saw the presence of speakers from a range of companies such as Panasonic, PTC, Universal Robots, IBM and Infosys and was well attended by over 150 participants from various manufacturing companies.