India has been ranked second, ahead of the United States and South Korea, in terms of manufacturing competence globally, a report by Deloitte has said.
China, India and South Korea have been ranked first, second and third, respectively, in the 2010 Global Manufacturing Competitiveness Index —a collaboration between Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu and the US Council on Competitiveness.
“In less than a decade, a new world order for manufacturing competitiveness has emerged along with a tectonic shift in regional manufacturing competence,” the report said.
“The rise in the manufacturing competitiveness of three countries in particular — China, India, and South Korea — appears to parallel the rapidly-growing and important Asian market,” said the 56-page report.
| BEST IN CLASS 2010 Global Manufacturing Competitiveness Index | ||
| RANK | COUNTRY | POINTS |
| 1 | China | 10 |
| 2 | India | 8.15 |
| 3 | South Korea | 6.79 |
| 4 | United States | 5.84 |
| 5 | Brazil | 5.41 |
| 6 | Japan | 5.11 |
It said China's ascent to the top of the list was not surprising, given its rising eminence in the manufacturing sector over the past ten years, particularly as a regional hub for outsourced production, foreign direct investment and joint ventures.
“Perhaps more surprising is that India is now positioned at number two and will gain an even stronger foothold over the next five years,” the report added, saying the country’s rich talent pool of scientists, researchers, and engineers along with its largely well-educated English-speaking workforce and democratic regime make it an attractive destination for manufacturers.
Noting that India's software industry has escalated to new heights since the 1990s and post-economic liberation has opened a pathway to market opportunities for Indian manufacturing, the report said beyond low-cost, Indian manufacturers have gained experience in quality improvement and Japanese principles of quality management.
“The country is also rapidly expanding its capabilities in engineering design and development and embedded software development, which form an integral part of many modern-day manufactured products,” it said.
The importance of India to manufacturing executives around the world underscores two important points, it said. One is its strength in research and development, engineering, software, and technology integration abilities.
“Two, manufacturing executives increasingly view India as a place where they can design, develop and manufacture innovative products for sale in local as well as global markets,” the report said.
Projecting the competitiveness ranking after five years, the report said while China with 10 points would still remain on the top, India would inch closer to China with 9.01 points.
