A daylong seminar, hosting members from Italian, Latin American, Caribbean and the Indian Auto sectors was organised by Automobile Components Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA) concurrent to 9th Auto Expo.

The event brought to the fore the capabilities of Indian component suppliers and the challenges facing them. Present on the occasion, Deep Kapuria, past president, ACMA, addressed the delegation and underlined the infrastructure barriers facing the industry. He said, "Infrastructure problems, talent crunch, access to technology and quality practices, costs and globalisation are some serious challenges that need to be addressed. In spite of the huge reservoir of an under 35 workforce, India still faces a shortage of manpower with the required skills, quality and training."  He also wanted raw material conforming to globally accepted specifications to be made available.

Among the addressable opportunities, Kapuria advocated partnerships and joint ventures in India. He added that 70 per cent auto component manufacturers in India were either small or medium scale establishments. Partnerships that created value would create synergies for smaller companies.

The auto industry, which is confidently moving to establish global a footprint can establish itself by collaborative initiatives at project inception, recognising and addressing softer issues upfront and encouraging and global tier two and three suppliers to look for joint ventures.

Also present on the occasion were Jochen Oebels, marketing coordinator of From Concept to Car, and Alberto Caligaris of Unione Industriale Torino. Oebels, revealed that Piemonte with its local automotive industry has established its presence in the internal market and is popularly known as the "component industry of Piemonte".

Located in the northwest area of Italy, Piemonte has 1200 small-  and medium-sized companies, employs 80,000 people with an annual turnover of €15 billion. Today about 100 million cars are manufactured around the world with the design, know how and components coming from Piemonte. Concept to Car has a roster of clients that includes Tata, Toyota, Bajaj, Hero Honda and Eicher, apart from international names like auto engineering company, BERT. In his closing address, Alberto Caligaris thanked ACMA for organising an "incredible exhibition". He said that the exhibition was "a step towards greater co-operation between Indian and Italian companies."