The Automation Federation (AF) board of directors put their heads together in August to begin developing a “straw man” of strategies for the way ahead, said AF Managing Director Bruno Kisala, former director of business development for the test, evaluation, and analysis operation of Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC).
members, the board also discussed measures that would better allow AF to identify what was important to new members. “Each AF member organization brings their own market niche, strengths, and weaknesses, and they are all quite different. Conversely though, they are extremely complimentary, and we see this as one of our greatest collective strengths. ”
and we need to develop a plan on how to engage that organization.”
“This was the first time we pulled everyone together, representatives from each member organization,” he said. “One of our fundamental priorities was to refine the vision and mission statements and assess the strengths and weaknesses of each AF member organization. We also discussed the types of organizations we’d want to invite into AF in the future and considered factors such as valuation metrics and core competencies that aligned with and complimented each AF member organization, as well as the overarching AF organization.”
In addition to identifying potential new
Kisala said. In addition to getting the member organizations to openly share their strengths and weaknesses and identify opportunities and threats as they saw them, we wanted to continue fostering trust and confidence among the AF members,” Kisala said. “Individually each organization is strong, however collectively, we have the potential to be an even more powerful and valuable entity.”
As of now, those niches include batch (WBF), packaging (OMAC), and automation from ISA. The one missing component, however is the enterprise piece, Kisala said. “We need an organization to fill that void,
The team also identified common objectives that would benefit the AF membership (individuals and organizations) while supporting the AF mission. Long-term plans include conferences, workshops, and symposia focused more on technology, enterprise, and management. “The intent is to get more involvement from academia and the executive levels of management,” Kisala said. “We want to understand the very best each member organization has to offer and leverage it to provide viable solutions to present day automation challenges, as well as those in the future.”
Holding an AF conference in conjunction with WBF in Baltimore in the first part of 2007 was also up for discussion. Such a conference might focus on the benefits and detriments of offshore sourcing, supply chain management issues, plant-to-enterprise integration, and perhaps the aging workforce.
The team also discussed developing a communication and data exchange forum to address executive management needs.
ISA’s global strategy is coming to fruition after several years of ISA volunteer work from the Global Business Model Task Force. The plan is to globalize the ISA core competencies to an audience of automation professionals around the world. The ISA Executive Board has identified first steps in that strategy, which include a focus on Asia Pacific region (including India), Mexico, and Brazil. “The professional society needs to grow with the global nature of the automation profession and offer services in those parts of the world,” said ISA Global Operations Manager Tim Feldman, former vice president of industry programs at National Electrical Manufacturers Association.
One priority includes refining and updating the results of a market assessment already conducted from different parts of the world about what members and customers need and “how we are positioned to deliver services,” Feldman said. “If someone wanted a core service in Singapore or Abu Dhabi, we’re not able to do that in a fast, focused, and flexible manner,” he said. “We need to identify business partners in key markets who can deliver ISA products in a specific country or region. Instead of everything coming out of ISA headquarters, we’ll have business
partners, or possibly in some cases, ISA bricks and mortar on the ground in various countries delivering services.”
The task force is also pursuing government funding to jump-start efforts for training and certification programs in key regions of the world. Feldman will be traveling to Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore, Australia, and India to talk to government, education, and private-industry officials about collaborating to offer ISA’s services in those parts of the world.
An opportunity is the Asia Pacific region. “There are four industrial parks about 70-100 kilometers west of Shanghai that would make most U.S. industrial parks look tiny in comparison,” he said. “The newest park in the city Suzhou comprises about 16 square kilometers, which has filled in recent years with many names of the Fortune 500 and other global companies. The facilities are new, highly automated, world-class manufacturing operations. ISA doesn’t have a presence there now. But with the right focus and ability to serve the local market, that situation can change.” Feldman said there are estimates in China alone of automation professionals who could “very well be ISA members and benefit tremendously from accessing ISA products and services.”
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