PEIE Hosts World Summit on Innovation & Entrepreneurship

Hosted by PEIE and staged at Muscat’s Shangri-La Barr Al Jissa Spa & Resort the World Summit on Innovation & Entrepreneurship is the first-of-its kind forum, which aims to develop practical solutions to address the most important issues facing emerging nations and to inspire the development of the next Generation of entrepreneurs and innovators to fully celebrate the opportunities of the 21st century in a climate of global prosperity.

The summit consists of inspiring themes that simultaneously address real issues facing entrepreneurs and innovators within the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and across the world while providing opportunities for established leaders and entrepreneurs alike to spread prosperity for future generations and create a new and vibrant future.

Four hundred of the World's leading innovators and entrepreneurs - with a talent for changing the global economy - will come together for three days of workshops and roundtable discussions to help create a new future for the next generation of entrepreneurs. One of the key factors that influence innovative thinking and economic and social development is the geopolitical factor associated to its respective region. Geopolitical factors mainly include macro-environment, religious freedom, public security and intellectual property rights. The World Summit on Innovation & Entrepreneurship will shed light on these geopolitical factors with reference to the Arab world and regional geography.

In total, more than 85 confirmed high profile speakers from the MENA and across the globe will participate at the World Summit on Innovation & Entrepreneurship, including several prominent thought leaders, entrepreneurs, investors and developers, including:

T.H. Peter Hansen, Former Commissioner-General, United Nations Relief and Works Agency H.E. Noel Dempsey TD, Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Ireland
Dr. Jose Luis Machinea, Executive Secretary, United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America & the Caribbean
Dr. Bruce Jenks, Director UNDP Bureau for Resources and Strategic Partnerships
Dr. Naomi Tutu, Founder, Tutu Foundation for Development and Relief in Southern Africa
Mr. Mohamad Saleh, Chairman, Al Aqariya TV
Ms. Randa Ezz El Din Fouad, Secretary General, The Arab Media Forum for Environment and
Development Dr. Iman Bibars, Regional Director, MENA, Ashoka
Mr. Abdullah Atatreh, President, Bonyan Holding

The World Summit on Innovation & Entrepreneurship is the ultimate platform, which will make innovation work for emerging nations, helping them achieve global competitiveness through initiative and action.

The Summit program focuses on six key themes:
Infrastructure & Competitiveness
Knowledge & Development
Energy & Sustainable Environment
Geopolitics & Innovation Society
Growth Strategies & Prosperity
Disruptive Innovations & Value Creation

PEIE Helps Boost National Economy

Trade links between Oman, Europe and Africa are set to grow following a series of international visits to PEIE-run Knowledge Oasis Muscat (KOM). Representatives from a variety of countries have recently toured the Rusayl-based Technology Park in order to make business contacts and learn how PEIE and KOM can help foreign hi-tech companies and manufacturers establish a Middle East base.

One visit was organised by the Arab-British Chamber of Commerce (ABCC). Founded in 1975, ABCC is devoted to the encouragement of Arab-British trade and economic co-operation. Sir Roger Tomkys, Chairman ABCC, headed the Chamber’s delegation to KOM. According to KOM Management, the ABCC delegation visited the Park to understand the facilities available to British hi-tech companies wanting to locate in the Middle East.

In addition to KOM, the ABCC delegation were also given a presentation on the Public Establishment for Industrial Estates (PEIE), its newly-launched Al Mazunah Free Zone and expansion plans for its Sohar Industrial Estate.

A second group, headed by Jose Nuno, Spain’s Economic and Commercial Counselor for the GCC region - and representing several industries, visited KOM to look at the way the Park promotes the development of hi-tech businesses and discuss manufacturing issues related to PEIE’s six industrial estates in Al Buraimi, Sohar, Nizwa, Rusayl, Sur and Raysut.

Three further groups visited KOM recently. A UK Trade & Investment team accompanied by Janet Ford, Commercial Attaché, British Embassy, discussed KOM’s facilities and services and how they could help UK-based hi-tech companies looking to expand in the Gulf. A five man team from the Japanese International Co-operation Agency (JICA) visited the Park to discuss innovation and entrepreneurship and the development of the Knowledge Mine, a 30 office business incubator program based at KOM. Dr. Kennedy (pictured above) an advisor to the Kenyan Government also toured the Park where he visited Gulf Air’s Worldwide Reservations Contact Centre, Singaporean firm, Infocomm and The Knowledge Mine.

Mohammed Al Maskari said: 'We’re delighted to see PEIE and KOM’s reputation growing not only in the Gulf but around the world as the perfect location for manufacturing and hi-tech firms. By forging stronger relationships with these countries we aim to encourage inward investment and promote trade, providing a boost for the national economy.”

HP & Intergraph New Tenants at KOM

Hewlett Packard (HP) and Intergraph announced today that they have signed tenancy agreements with Knowledge Oasis Muscat (KOM) – Oman’s technology park based in Rusayl.

Mohammed Al Maskari (pictured left), Acting Director General, KOM said: "We’re pleased to welcome both HP and Intergraph as tenants at KOM. The Park obviously offers both companies exactly the right fit. They will be able to take advantage of operating alongside a skilled network of successful high-tech firms, from multinationals to one-man start-ups. We wish them every success in developing their businesses. It’s great to see that we’re attracting such large and innovative companies. KOM’s clearly fulfilling its goal in stimulating growth in Oman’s ICT sector. HP and Intergraph can only add further value to KOM’s growing international reputation.”

HP is a technology solutions provider to consumers, businesses and institutions globally. The company's offerings span IT infrastructure, global services, business and home computing, and imaging and printing.

Headquartered in Huntsville, Alabama, Integraph is a NASDAQ listed firm that employs 3,400 professionals across 30 countries. “Intergraph’s a world leader in delivering software and services for the management and visual representation of complex information. Governments and businesses in over 60 countries around the world rely on Intergraph’s technology and services to support better and faster operational decisions,” remarked Maskari.

HP and Intergraph have both chosen to take advantage of KOM’s exceptional facilities and supportive business environment, which has been designed to offer comprehensive support for multinationals as well as for start-ups. We were particularly attracted to KOM’s high quality, flexible accommodation, which supports the growth of IT firms, said Divesh Loomba of HP.

“We felt that we needed to increase HP’s office space in Oman to enable us to meet the needs of our growing portfolio of clients. The facilities here at KOM are superb and we’re delighted to be in a state-of-the-art office environment which complements the highly creative and technical work that we do,” added Loomba.

PEIE on Re-branding

Branding's a hot topic among many of PEIE's tenants - we've over 400 - So, we've decided to explore the nitty-gritty of branding and explain when, why and how to undertake it.

There are as many definitions of branding as there are branding agencies and consultants. Your brand is what you stand for, and what you won’t stand for. It’s your company’s personality. It’s how you will and won’t do business. It’s the customers you seek and the ones you don’t. It’s how you treat employees, partners, vendors and customers. It’s the care that goes into your product or service. It’s your overriding principles and your diligence in adhering to them. In short, branding is the sum total of your values, as evidenced by how you deliver on those values, at every point of contact.

Now, if you think about it, we’ve all seen oil companies, telcos, manufacturers and banks proudly telling us they’ve revitalised and redefined their brand. They release a new logo — generally a poorly designed one — and a meaningless slogan. And believe it or not, they’re genuinely chuffed with what they’ve got. More to the point, they’ve paid through the nose to get it. Listen up folks, a slogan and a logo don’t make a brand.

Background

Originally, branding referred to burning one’s mark on bovine rears to help US ranchers distinguish among look-alike cattle but it was the American railroads that brought branding into the marketing lexicon. Railroads made mass distribution possible, which, in turn, made mass production viable. With mass production came copies, and with copies came the need for manufacturers to differentiate their products. They solved the problem by adding proprietary marks to their packaging and began referring to the practice as branding.

To cut a long story short, branding worked. Consumers liked brands and it wasn’t long before brands became highly valuable assets. For example, after an unsuccessful foray as a women’s cigarette, Marlboro reintroduced itself as the cigarette for manly men. Powerful TV spots, road-side billboards and magazine ads featuring handsome cowboys puffing away on the cigarette quickly had any male smoker who wanted to look cool, smoking Marlboro, and the Joe Consumer was willing to pay extra for the privilege.

Other brands without a readily apparent competitive advantage were quick to differentiate by image as well. Substance was optional. It worked for a while, but as brands and choices proliferated and Joe Consumer paid more attention to the benefit of a product, brand loyalty began to erode. Folk soon realised that buying Hunts, Heinz or Paul Newman’s tomato sauce had little impact on the outcome of their Thursday night pasta sauce. The unthinkable was happening, despite distinctive trademarks and carefully crafted images, well-known brands were becoming parity products. Even the cowboy lost his grip, and mighty Marlboro found itself doing the ultimate brand no-no and lowered its price to compete.

Road to Damascus

For many companies, the branding process can be a real soul-searching journey, one that leads them to defining who they are, what they stand for and why customers should place their faith in their products or services. Brands are experienced through, inter alia, a company’s Website, letterhead, brochures, corporate film, office environment and the receptionist. The brand has to permeate every level of the organisation and every point of a customer’s experience to be effective. People want to connect with a brand, but for this to happen, the brand has to appeal on an emotional level.

Your brand should be thought of as a set of values implied by your product, service or experience and not simply as a symbol, which is usually your logo. Your logo is merely the manifestation of the brand, the visualisation of the emotional reality. Indeed, all the values associated with the brand, good or bad, are brought to mind when the logo is seen. Technically speaking, a brand isn’t created by designers or other professionals – it’s created in the minds of customers, audiences and participants through experiences with the brand. Brands, therefore, live outside the company. Let’s be clear, what the customer thinks, does and ultimately buys is driven by perceptions. So how does an Omani company go about branding? What are the hoops they need to hold up and jump through? Here are some tips:

Who are you Anyway?

Investigate and research, talk to your competitors, vendors and customers. Find out how your brand’s perceived. What is its current position? Consider your brand’s strengths and weaknesses. What are the opportunities and threats? Also think about the strategic goals behind existing marketing efforts and who your primary target is and how they behave. Figure out where your brand stands before you opt for a new direction.

Once you understand where your brand is and what it is to become, discuss with colleagues how to get it there. What tactics will help you achieve your strategic goals? What tonality and aesthetic is appropriate for the target? What’s your Brand Contract, the target’s “take away” after engaging the brand? And what needs to be done to continue the relationship once it’s begun?

Piece it Together

Answering these questions ought to give you a direction that can be pursued. The direction should take the form of a Concept Board and is the final step in the pre-design stage. The Concept Board should take your complex business strategies and mould them into a visual and verbal representation that triggers Joe Consumer’s emotive values. This is the litmus test against which all creative decisions are measured, keeping the work focused and on strategy.

The Bit Everyone Likes

Design is certainly the most difficult part, for many, it’s the most obvious; the best understood and needs the least explanation.

Roll Out

Print it and (e-)mail it. Immediately after launch, begin to generate findings. From this valuable data will emerge more questions, which will continue the focus on the most efficient, effective way to meet brand objectives. No matter how much brand designers contribute, if a brand isn’t viable or sustainable, it won’t succeed. On the other hand, well-managed and well-executed brands that keep business objectives and target audience in mind will effectively capture Joe Consumer and maximise return on your investment.

Who Brands Right?

BMW - the ultimate driving experience. When BMW makes a claim like this, it had better back it up with performance. What has BMW done? It has re-engineered its legendary 3-series and made it even better. Then it goes to the extremes of technology in its top-end 7-series. When they say 'the ultimate driving experience', that is the promise and BMW sales are strong because they are what they say they are. They’re keeping their brand’s promise.

Apple - think different. Who would have believed egg-shaped computers in citrus colours? Titanium cases and movie-shaped screens on laptops? Clear plastic cube-shaped computers? Flat screens suspended on articulating arms from hemispherical CPUs? A totally new operating system and software - is Apple thinking 'different'? Looks like it - because that's its brand promise, and it’s keeping it.

Ralph Lauren - enduring, consistency in style, quality and cachets. Ralph Lauren consistently uses its brand on products that match its image - good quality, comfortable, enduring and tastefully stylish. Ralph Lauren keeps his fashions on track because that's his brand's promise.

Changing Times

Times have changed. Linking a brand to a cowboy isn’t enough anymore. Indeed, it’s become more difficult to get Joe Consumer to part with his hard-earned Rials. Today, the practice of claiming to be unique without changing anything but your advertising isn’t enough.More and more Oman-based companies run campaigns telling us they’re different in the way they think, hire and behave. But when you visit them, you find a bank, a petrol station or a telco that looks, feels and acts just like it did before. This isn’t branding. It’s letting your customer down. Let’s be clear, Joe Consumer demands substance and rewards those who deliver it.

Attracting Talent

The concept of attracting talent and multinationals to Oman is an important issue. We hear a lot about the new economy as if it only applies to IT or is still some way in the future; that it is something only young techies in smart offices are involved in. If that's what you think then you couldn't be further from the truth. In fact it is here and it is now and it affects us all.

Today's modern economy is fast moving, dynamic, ever-changing and global. To become successful, companies, countries and cities must master the art of innovation, constantly developing and adopting the best products, techniques and practices and attracting the right kind of human capital. Indeed, successful cities will be those that can adapt to the demands of rapid change, those that are flexible, creative and diverse and manage change rather than being drowned by it.

Benchmarking Cities
The World Knowledge Competitiveness Index benchmarks the world's high performing cities in terms of their performance on four crucial variables - knowledge capital, human capital, regional economic outputs and knowledge sustainability and it makes for sober reading. The recent index is dominated by US cities. The top 21 world knowledge competitive cities are all in North America. In fact, the first European city to feature in the ranking is Stockholm at 22nd and there is no Gulf city listed in the top 125.

The world's burgeoning cities are a critical fact of the 21st century - and represent one of the greatest challenges of the future. By the year 2050, cities with populations over three million will more than double from 70 today to over 150. When knowledge is perhaps the most important factor in today's economy, there's a growing interest in the concept of the knowledge city. But it isn't just large cities that have cornered the market in attracting talented people. For example, in the US, a number of smaller cities have some of the highest conce-ntrations of creative people in the nation, notably college towns such as Austin, Texas, East Lansing, Michigan and Madison, Wisconsin. But where does Muscat stand on attracting talent and establishing itself as a knowledge city?

We've a Tech Park
Clean, unpretentious and safer than most cities, Muscat is home to KOM, the Rusayl-based technology park. Tenants on the 68 hectare park are exempt from corporate taxes, have access to Class A office accommodation and superb telco infrastructure. Its tenants live in modern, comfortable and affordable housing, their kids attend great schools and healthcare here is second to none. The park's firms are positioned to tap a growing, youthful Middle East market, and a young, educated, increasingly tech-savvy, multilingual indigenous workforce. All of this should bode well. Among others, Hewlett Packard, Siemens, Huwaie, Gulf Air, Infocomm and NCR are taking advantage of what KOM offers. But if we want to attract creative talent to the sultanate - multinationals and entrepreneurs that drive innovation and create employment - KOM won't achieve this on its own. The point is, Oman doesn't have just one competitor - either the UAE or Saudi Arabia or Qatar. That's not how the global economy works. We are competing against a collection of countries simultaneously, and the cumulative effect of UAE plus Saudi Arabia plus Qatar plus Thailand plus India is something to worry about. So what should we be thinking?

The concept of attracting talent and multinationals to Oman is an important issue. Indeed, in the battle for global talent, we are moving from a company-centric economy to a people-driven one. Simply put, people are turning to their community rather than to their company to define themselves and location is taking precedence over the corporation. For example, when smart individuals and firms visit KOM, they don't just consider the Class A office accommodation, the tax benefits and infrastructure on offer. Increasingly, they check out what's available and happening in Muscat - the recreation and sports facilities, the standard and availability of accommodation, schools, healthcare facilities, flight connections, cinemas, night life, museums, shopping centres, art galleries and restaurants. They're looking for audile and visual cues which signal whether Muscat is a place where they and their employees can live, work and play.

It is also apparent from talking to people that location is as important as salary and career opportunity. Again, recent studies suggest that folk who make a job-based decision to relocate but neglect lifestyle factors such as recreational and cultural amenities move again shortly thereafter.

A High Amenity City
In order to help Oman attract talent and multinationals, what we should be looking to develop is Muscat as a high-amenity place where you can get anything you need instantaneously. If you are pulling an all-nighter, you can get a Thai take away at 2 am. When your dry cleaning piles up, there's a place in CityCentre that will take care of it in 30 minutes. If you need to blow off steam, there's a skatepark to ride or a wadi to bash! In brief, a place that has all these amenities is efficient. You save time when you live there. Many of these amenities are on offer in Muscat - but are we (collectively) getting this message across to international firms and entrepreneurs? Perhaps not.

Obviously, cities differ considerably in their ability to attract and retain human capital and the companies these folk manage, this is why talent hasn't spread evenly across the economic landscape and helps explain the emergence of business and technology clusters. From experience, it's more than apparent that people look for the same things in a city that they look for in a company: energy, amenities and a sense of fun. In Oman, people want to be able to go camping, cycling and picnicking on beaches. Now, when you question potential residents whether they camp, cycle or picnic on beaches, generally the answer is 'no'. But they want such activities to be available, because they like the idea of being able to do them if they want to.

Low Entry Barriers
Economists have long spoken of the importance of industries having low entry barriers, so that new firms can easily enter and keep the industry vital. Similarly, it's important for a city to have low entry barriers for people, that is, to be a place where newcomers are accepted quickly into various social and economic arrangements. All things being equal, if Oman adopts this approach, we are likely to attract greater numbers of talented and creative people - the type of people who power innovation, entrepreneurship and create employment. Cities that thrive in today's world tend to be plug-and-play communities where anyone can fit in quickly. On its own, building a first class technology park won't attract greater talent and more international firms, we need to work harder on offering more lifestyle options and greater cultural diversity.

Talent Magnet
Talented people seek an environment open to differences. Many highly creative people, regardless of ethnic background, grew up feeling like outsiders, different in some way from most of their schoolmates. When they're sizing up a new company, city or country, acceptance of diversity is a neon sign that reads 'non-standard people welcome here.' Put simply, crusaders of the new economy increasingly take their professional identities from where they live, rather than from where they work. In the past you would meet a guy on a plane, ask him what he does, and he would tell you that he writes code at Oracle. Today, it is, "I design educational game software and live in Madison." The most important national and corporate resource over the next 20 years will be talent. Smart, sophisticated businesspeople who are technologically literate, globally astute and operationally agile. And even as the demand for talent goes up, the supply will be going down. We have great ideas, we have got money, we just don't have enough talented people to pursue those ideas. We are talent-constrained. So, if we are to compete, we've got to get our heads round this issue and look seriously at how we can retain and attract the right human capital.

Research clearly indicates that talent is attracted to three types of new economy hot spots. First, there's the traditional, high-tech industrial complex such as California's Silicon Valley. Then there's the 'latte town' - high-energy places with easily accessible outdoor amenities, such as Boulder, Colorado. Finally, there are new urban technology centres cro-pping up, such as Pioneer Square in Seattle, Washington. Indeed, Muscat's fate cannot depend, quite obviously, on the performance of one technology park or one free zone or one port. Its prosperity will depend on the productivity of all its economic sectors and in its ability to collectively create a diverse environment - and one that does not compromise local culture - that is attractive to both talented entrepreneurs and multinationals.

What's at KOM?
Tenants on the 68 hectare park are exempt from corporate taxes.
They have access to Class A office accommodation.
They live in modern, comfortable and affordable housing.

What Muscat Should do to Attract Talent?
To attract talent we need to work harder on offering more lifestyle options to compete.
To compete we have to look seriously at how we can retain and attract the right human capital.

Talent Appeal
If Muscat wants to attract and retain creative talent what are the questions we should be asking? Here's a starting point:

1). What will attract young bright creative minds to Muscat?
2). How do we inspire the Omani community (nationals and expatriates) as a whole to take ownership in making Muscat a more creative city?
3). What other cities should we model our efforts on and why?
4). What are some of the key success factors to making Muscat a creative city?
5). Conversely, what are some of the barriers?
6). Identify positive creative initiatives currently underway that we can build on.
7). Is the creative community in Muscat a cohesive one or does it function in silos?
8). Where are the opportunities for increased collaboration/cohesion?
9). What is the role of economic development in building a creative city?
10). What are some current opportunities to do this?
11). What steps can Muscat take to become an internationally recognised medium sized creative city?
12). What can the private sector do to improve the quality of life indicators of Muscat?

JICA Visits PEIE Head Office

Staff from the Japan International Co-operation Agency - pictured left - (www.jica.go.jp)
visited Knowledge Oasis Muscat on Sunday 12 March.
The four man team (Mr. Nakui Koji, Executive Technical Advisor to the Director General Economic Development Department; Mr. Shibuya Akir, Small & Medium Enterprise Team, Economic Development Department; Mr. Mitsuo Sato, Project Economists; and Mr. Yasuo Izumi, Advisor ICNet USA, Senior Consultant, Private & Financial Sector Development, Human Capital Development) discussed the Park's current and future development plans, its role in encouraging ICT uptake in the Sultanate as well as the importance of The Knowledge Mine, the KOM-based business incubator program.

eBrain Talks Website Transformation

Knowledge Oasis Muscat (KOM) will hold its monthly Open House seminar on Tuesday 14 March at 5:15pm. This month’s presentation entitled: Transforming Your Website - will be delivered by Fuad Al Busaidy, Founder and CEO of eBrain, a technology start-up based in KOM’s 30 office space business incubator program – The Knowledge Mine.

According to Ibtisam Al Faruji, Open House Co-ordinator: “No matter how good your website is, it could always be better. To maintain a competitive edge and get the most out of your online presence, it’s vital that your website realises its potential. In a continually-evolving and relatively new medium, new ways to improve your website are constantly emerging. We’re excited to have one of KOM’s most successful start-up firms deliver this session. ”

“If you already have a website but you aren’t entirely happy with its performance, and feel it could be doing more for your business, then this Open House session is for you. The eBrain CEO will take attendees through each step from objectively measuring and assessing your website, identifying ways to improve its appearance and usability to on and offline marketing for your site including search engine optimization,” said Mohamed Al Maskari, Acting Director General, KOM.

Al Faruji added: “Al Busaidy’s seminar is aimed at those people who make the critical business decisions within their organization – it's a must attend seminar if you're serious about improving your firm’s exposure on the Internet and your bottom line.” Blog contents copyright © 2006 PEIE

PEIE Wraps Up Smart Man Oman

Mohammed Al Ghassani, Executive Vice President, Public Establishment for Industrial Estates (PEIE) and organizer of the Smart Manufacturing Conference, held 23 – 24 January at the Muscat Inter-Continental Hotel commented: “Given initial attendee feedback, the Conference has to be described as an outstanding success. The seven sessions that made up the two day program plus the Lean Enterprise Workshop held on the 25th at Knowledge Oasis Muscat all went extremely well and we’re delighted with the outcome and the momentum the event has generated.”

In delivering the Conference closing remarks Al Ghassani said: “Oman’s Manufacturing is a success story – we excel in ceramics; precision engineering; furniture; fibre optics; batteries; textiles through to food processing. Indeed, manufacturing is a major contributor to Oman’s national wealth. It accounts for a major slice of our exports and provides thousands of jobs and supports a flourishing service sector. Our best manufacturers and best products are world class and sought after in the most highly competitive markets around the globe.”

However, he admitted that manufacturers also face huge challenges. As discussed at the conference, the future of Oman’s manufacturing depends on raising investment, applying innovation and technology, smarter marketing, design and packaging, best practice and skills to create even better products that the world wants to buy.

To ensure that the momentum created by the Conference is maintained, Al Ghassani announced PEIE’s intention to establish a Manufacturing Discussion Group – a group that would aim to stimulate ideas and discussion in priority areas such as skills development, marketing, design, links between industry and academia, technology, logistics, new markets and the image of manufacturing.

“No one would claim that the way ahead for Oman’s manufacturing is easy. Recent failures highlight some of the difficulties. But they are only a tiny fraction of the overall equation. Manufacturing commitment to high value and skills, together with extensive practical government support and maintenance of the right conditions for business to flourish will enable Oman-based manufacturers to compete in the long-term. And that’s good news for everyone,” concluded PEIE’s Al Ghassani.

Mohammed Al Ghassani Talks Innovation

Eng. Mohammed Al Ghassani is Executive Vice President, PEIE and an initiator of the Smart Manufacturing Conference. In fact, he’s viewed by many as a key player in the government’s initiative to develop a stronger business culture of innovation and entrepreneurship. PEIE Mirror caught up with him to discuss his views on: corporate culture; innovation; business trends; and mentoring. This is what he had to say:

PM: Do you feel PEIE has a distinct corporate culture? If so, how would you describe it?

Our culture is extremely entrepreneurial. PEIE’s run like a growing for-profit business, with an emphasis on creative thinking, innovation, passion and quality.

PM: Knowledge Oasis Muscat (KOM) - which is part of the PEIE portfolio - is a sponsor of the Smart Manufacturing Conference what’s your understanding of innovation in a manufacturing context?

Innovation is for me an adventure. An idea you get excited about and which you pursue passionately. It evolves and develops throughout the minds of people and grows by teamwork. An innovation can be based on a new technology, a new service or changing the whole product system or business. As far as Smart Manufacturing is concerned, given the nature of the two-day program and the quality of presenters, KOM is honoured to be involved in such an important business event.

PM: What major trends will we have to consider within the next 5 years concerning innovation?

Major trends will be shaped by technology convergence and the totally new business opportunities resulting from this. This will in turn increase the need for new methods of exchanging knowledge between partners and the integration of knowledge from very different disciplines.

PM: As PEIE’s Executive Vice President, you’ve been involved in developing KOM, what have been the keys in bringing KOM to the level it is at today?

Hiring excellent people. It's the motivated staff who contribute the ingredients that enable us to keep taking it to that next level year after year.

PM: What do you feel the future holds for small firms over the next few years?

The future is very promising for small firms in Oman. The Government is constantly looking at ways to improve finance options for them – making access to loans easier and simpler for the people who actually run small businesses. Through the Knowledge Mine business incubator program we will continue to promote and assist start-ups and maintain our efforts to increase the participation of those under represented in business, particularly drawing on the wealth of talent in women’s business.

PM: What trends and changes do you see occurring in business today?

Younger people are starting companies that involve services and technology. We’re witnessing this trend very clearly on KOM. Business owners are focusing on conservation of resources, profit and greater customer service. Lenders are looking for proven businesses ready for funding, and money is out there. This is an opportunity time for KOM because more people are starting businesses.

PM: What advice would you give to a young person that wants to one day succeed in business?

Shed the industrial-age idea that you go to school and get a good life-long job with benefits and a pension. Entrepreneurs think differently - how can I create jobs and provide a valuable service/product? Begin to develop your network of contacts. Read. Find a peer group. Go to conferences such as Smart Manufacturing. And when you do find that great idea, focus on making a successful system, otherwise you just own a job.

PM: How important do you consider networking and building contacts to be for an entrepreneur's success?

Primary importance. You’re only as big as your neighbourhood. You must realize that you can't do it all, and building a knowledgeable network greatly increases your chances for success.

PM: If you could pin it down to just one thing, what is the one most important thing you have learned about business?

You have to be able to read and understand the numbers.

PM: Any final advice for young entrepreneurs, businessmen, or businesswomen just getting started?

Find a mentor and a peer group. Give respect if you want it in return. Have an attitude of gratitude, not an attitude of entitlement and give - it will come back to you 10-fold.

Innovation in a Manufacturing Context

In our increasingly competitive world, manufacturers are faced with pressures to achieve many different simultaneous outcomes with their products. With some of these outcomes being seemingly inconsistent at first sight. Manufacturers may at times be pressured to produce products that are:

* cheaper * faster

* more reliable * higher quality

* longer life * more functional

* more visually attractive * recycleable

* smaller * lighter

* more robust * safer for consumers

* more exciting * ecologically friendly

* easily available * upgradeable

to name but a few.

Whilst achieving these outcomes, manufacturers are urged to do so in a way that is;

* ecologically sustainable * politically sensitive

* serving stakeholder interests * being a caring employer

* law abiding * ethical

* safe * risk managed

* enhances national reputation * leads to employment opportunities

* benefits humankind * contributes to national economies

* respectful towards communities (both local and global)

It is perhaps not a surprise that such pressures result in wide ranging challenges for manufacturers. These challenges may be simple or extremely complex. They are seldom easy, yet often rewarding and frequently fun (for some of us).

Today, manufacturing is about so much more than just great products, and caring manufacturers!

As manufacturers toil to surprise and delight consumers with new products that are positively differentiated from their competitors (and their own past products), they inevitably make the task of the consumer a more challenging one. Many consumers may at times risk being overloaded with information about products, to the point that the choices available can become either stressful or uninteresting. Efforts by manufacturers to make the consumers’ task easier have become more and more appreciated by those consumers, and thus a further source of competitive differentiation. These efforts have moved manufacturers more and more towards a service orientation, where their products are at the core of such services. One example of this being, the moves by many car manufacturers to offer finance, insurance, extended warranties and break down cover to car purchasers. All these are aimed at making the consumer experience easier, regarding the cognitive effort necessary in purchasing choices. Rather than just selling a car, manufacturers are increasingly focused on providing a stress-free motoring experience.

If innovation is the answer, what is the question?

It is perhaps not surprising that with so many pressures to perform, business leaders, consultants and academics around the world have a history of looking for simple answers to complex business questions. In recent years human resource management, organisational learning, knowledge management, change management, management of intellectual capital, human capital management, talent management and performance management theories, have been presented as offering simple answers to the business challenges faced by many companies. Many of these theories have resulted in organisational implementations and changes in organisational structure becoming commonplace. However, established links to anticipated increases in business performance are much rarer. Return on investment (ROI) assessments are rare as many organisations move quickly onto the excitement and promise of the next answer.

Those organisations that have successfully answered their business questions have tended to be those that have worked to understand the question on the way to understanding the answer.

If innovation is to realise the many hopes that are attached to it, then we need to build upon the understanding that ‘innovation is good’ to develop an in-depth understanding of the following innovation dimensions in any given context:

* sources

* types

* drivers

* quality

* intelligence (related to context)

* degree

* measurement

* timing

* value

* management

* leadership

* strategy

* communication

* business exploitation

* influences

* blockers

* resourcing

* collaboration and co-operation

* application

It is only when the dimensions of innovation are understood that we can hope to manage the risk of innovation processes and move towards the certainty of successful innovation outcomes.

Niche Manufacturing to Thrive

Come January 23 - 25 2006 at the Muscat Inter-Continental Hotel, Mark Eaton will present on Lean Enterprise at PEIE’s annual Smart Manufacturing Conference. In this in-depth, no holds barred interview, Eaton, a veteran design engineer, and former Director of the UK’s Department of Trade and Industry’s Manufacturing Advisory Service, shares with us his thoughts on a range of manufacturing issues.

PM: How do you see manufacturing changing over the next 20 years?

Obviously, it is now possible to theorise about the worldwide impact of the growth in the Chinese economy and the stress it will place on global competition. I would also anticipate the continuing rise in the importance of brands in high-end manufacturing, both at the business and national level. I foresee the consolidation of low-end manufacturing into fewer, more specialised manufacturers who will offer flexibility and extremely high levels of productivity.

I also predict that increasing globalisation will have the impact of increasing the number of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) who chase low costs around the world, but are currently prohibited by the extreme costs involved. Within a little more than 20 years, I anticipate we will need to find new ‘emerging markets’ as the costs in China, India, even Eastern Europe will begin to reach a level where it is uneconomical to outsource to them. Throughout this period, niche businesses will continue to thrive by providing differentiated, flexible services at higher costs.

PM: Which emerging technology do you think has the most potential to change manufacturing?

You can't answer a question like this without first referring to the impact of the wireless communications and the continuing growth in the Internet, on all aspects of manufacturing - from machine measurement through to supply chain planning. A secondary technology that will have an impact will be RFID (radio frequency identification) with its applications in everything from product tracking to national security.

In terms of the new sectors that will impact on manufacturing, these are unequivocally micro/nano technology and bio-processing, all of which will make a major impact on the world. Due to the investment barriers to entry in the market, these will make it difficult for companies to break into in the medium term unless they consider their entry strategy in the very near future.

PM: What about the issue of knowledge transfer from academia to industry?

The amount of research capability in academia far outstrips that is available in industry and there is an urgent need in many economies to make this research more accessible to industry; also to significantly simplify the process of working with academia. I have been deeply impressed by the Fraunhofer Institutes (http://www.iis.fraunhofer.de/index.html) that originated in Germany and how they are both accessible to industry and focused on the commercialisation of research.

PM: Should universities become more responsive to the needs of manufacturing?

I would agree that for many manufacturers the processes of accessing and then forming a relationship with universities has been very difficult - often caused by the different needs of the organisations concerned. There have been a number of attempts to simplify the process of getting access to universities and making them more responsive, including introducing layers of intermediaries. But there are still some major problems to overcome before universities are as responsive as they need to be to support industry effectively.

PM: What type of involvement would you like to see manufacturers have with universities?

Universities are fundamentally clusters of knowledge. Virtually no manufacturer could afford to have research capabilities as big as those held within even a single university. I would be delighted to see universities starting to become an integral, but outsourced, part of the R&D functions of organisations. I don’t just mean large manufacturers. This may mean that different funding models need to be used such as deferred payments or universities taking a percentage of future sales without requiring funding upfront.

PM: What are the common principles that guide the best manufacturers?

The most prevalent measures of success in manufacturers around the world appear to be having an appropriate culture that supports the aims of the business: whether that is to be the most innovative, lowest cost, fastest turn-round etc. For many manufacturers, relationships with customers and suppliers are also key and the formation of effective partnerships is going to be a major source of competitive advantage in the coming years. In addition to these internal factors and skills, governmental policy and regional trading conditions need to be monitored and reacted too accordingly and the best organisations are adept at keeping close to the external factors that affect the internal operations of their business.

PM: Anybody can buy the latest, greatest equipment, but manufacturing isn’t a purely mechanical system. It's the "people systems" that determine a plant's productivity. How does a manufacturer build the necessary “people systems”?

For all but the most automated factories, people are the essential variable that will make every product, fix every problem and identify every improvement. Without ‘people engagement’ no business can hope to be a success. But how you engage them is recognised as one of the most difficult issues faced by senior management and changing culture one of the most difficult and time-consuming change processes. There is no general solution to how you build the necessary people systems. It is a function of where the business culture and systems are today and where the business managers want business to move to and then planning the improvement roadmap. Wherever the organisation starts from the solution will include such things as policies, procedures, management style, measurements, communication and reward/recognition systems.

PM: We all think that the faster a plant can make a quality product, the less that product costs to produce. Those savings can be applied to new features. That's how you become more competitive, sell more products, increase profits and ultimately improve job security. Is this how manufacturing works in the real world?

This is a common misconception and the cause of many businesses going out of business. Doing things faster often implies throwing extra effort and resources at it and these carry extra costs. In addition, making things faster that you have not - or cannot - sell means wasting money faster too. Going ‘faster’ often drives people to build bigger batches of products to avoid costly set-up times which would slow things down. This means producing things that cannot be sold immediately which ties up significant cash and space. A better approach is to focus on shortening change-over times so you can run smaller batches and remove non-value adding activities so the business is more responsive. The benefit is that your productivity and flexibility will increase making it easier to cope with what the world will throw at you.

PM: Dell hit in excess of US$45 billion in annual revenue and is growing at nearly 20 per cent yearly. It seems well on its way toward surpassing its goal of US$60 billion within the next few years. To get better faster, it intends to slash US$2 billion in costs. It is indicated that much of the cuts will come from manufacturing operations and the supply chain. Is speed the ultimate competitive weapon?

Responsiveness is an effective weapon for many manufacturers, but not all. It is important for manufacturers to understand the key drivers in their markets – what are the market leaders doing? What do the customers value? The best weapon is to have a clear understanding of the competitive factors that drive the sector each company operates in – looking externally at what is required rather than internally at what is offered!

PM: Do small manufacturers need big-name supporters?

Many small manufacturers have difficulty managing larger suppliers in their supply chain and I believe there will be a continuing move toward purchasing clusters to allow smaller companies to leverage cost savings and improvements in responsiveness from larger suppliers. In wider terms, many smaller companies can be highly successful without big name supporters, especially in niche markets or for markets where the customers are ‘brand insensitive’ - as in they are not worried by brand value. Perhaps, the best big name supporters of smaller companies will be banks and the media and for many these should be the ones to ensure you have a good relationship with.

PM: Whether you're running a manufaxturing outfit with 3 or 3,000 people, you have to hire the best engineers, the best marketers and the best production workers. The products you make, the programs you have, the mission you espouse should make people feel good about working for you. In your view, are corporate values a real motivator?

In the first instance, I would like to challenge the assumption that you always need to hire the best, implying the most expensive. Misquoting Toyota, we get; “we produce excellent results from average people with excellent processes. Our competitors get average results, with excellent people and broken processes.” This statement says that a well organised (and lean) manufacturer will inherently be more effective than an organisation with any number of excellent people but with ineffective processes.

Answering the second part of the question, in a competitive situation where manufacturers are trying to attract talent and there are numerous options for the individual, then the decisions come down to which organisation best meets the personal needs of the individual. Some of these needs will be logistical (closeness to where they want to live, working hours that fit their lifestyle needs etc) and some will be emotional (values of the business, working environment, appropriate opportunities for advancement etc). The most effective manufacturers will aim to achieve the best fit between the needs of the business and the logistical and emotional fit of the individual.

PM: What do you do when the business world as you've always known it simply ceases to be? When new competitors and new technologies explode the industry economics? When everything that worked before won't work - and can't work ever again?

It is difficult for manufacturers to recover from a major fracture in the market and this is where there is a need to have good external scanning processes to try to predict major changes in the market in a timely manner. However, using a metaphor, whilst we have the technology to spot large asteroids that are likely to hit the Earth, there is a chance we will miss one, and one is all it takes! Therefore, in a market where the world has changed, the winners will be those who can evolve fastest, the most innovative manufacturers with the ability to quickly restructure their finances and operations to meet the new challenge.

If we don't have to own it, let's not own it. And if we do have to own it, let's reduce the risk by sharing it. How does this kind of thinking apply to today’s manufacturing sector?

There have been attempts to share resources and workforces (particularly in areas where the skills are difficult to access) and there are manufacturers who have recognised that one company’s waste is another’s raw material but these are in a minority at present. For many companies, forming trading partnerships to share resources will be an effective way of reducing risk, but the key issue is finding the right partner to link with. In the UK, this is being addressed by PSL (Partnership Sourcing Limited - http://www.pslcbi.com) who are a not for profit orgnisation originally established by the UK government and who are now leading the development of the new ISO standard (11000) which will cover how to effectively partner.

PM: If we can't dominate a category, let's get out. Is this smart thinking?

The answer to this is to look at the Boston Consulting Group matrix. If the market is low growth and you hold a low share (what is termed a ‘Dog’), then it may be best to plan an exit strategy, but if the market is growing and the company holds a low share (a ‘Question Mark’), then the organisation has options based on the competitive situation in the market. If the market looks likely to consolidate around one or two major players then it prompts one exit strategy (possibly holding out to be bought out). Lastly, if the market looks like it will support numerous suppliers, it may be prudent to hold your nerve and stay with it. The answer therefore is not simple and will need to be thought through by the business.

Smart Manufacturing Conference & Lean Enterprise Workshop

Make Oman your destination for manufacturing innovation! Would you like to increase your business competitiveness? Would you like to gain an insight into new methods of working, acquire additional knowledge of markets and discover new product developments? We can help you gain the competitive advantage your company needs. Join us at The Public Establishment for Industrial Estates’ (www.peie.om) 2006 Smart Manufacturing Conference, 23 – 24 January 2006 at the Muscat Inter-Continental Hotel, Muscat, Oman.

To survive in today's marketplace, manufacturers must embrace new ideas and processes. Keeping that competitive edge requires constant growth and improvement. That's where PEIE’s Smart Manufacturing Conference comes in. This annual event is aimed at helping small- and medium-sized Gulf-based manufacturers become progressively more successful in their marketplace. Indeed, this is the networking-with-knowledge-transfer event par excellence of the first quarter of 2006.

Why You Need to Be There
PEIE’s Smart Manufacturing Conference brings together experts from industry to give attendees the most useful and up-to-date information available.

Industry professionals attend this event to:

o Network with those facing similar challenges
o Interact with industry professionals who can provide stories of success and failure
o Learn what options are available or will be available soon for their operations
o Take away knowledge they can use immediately to improve their process and product

You need to be there if you are a manufacturing professional involved in:

o Management
o Engineering
o Design
o Quality
o Maximizing resources
o Production improvement
o Operations
o Product development
o Marketing
o Manufacturing operations improvement

Conference Schedule

Conference Registration: 1:00pm – 7:00pm: 22 January, Muscat Inter-Continental Hotel, Jabrin Ballroom.

Day 1

Welcome Coffee 7:45am – 8:30am

8:30am: Opening Address – HE Maqbool bin Ali Sultan, Minister of Commerce & Industry & Chairman, PEIE

8:40am – 9:15am Keynote Address
Professor Mike Gregory (pictured above) Head of the Manufacturing and Management Division of the Engineering Department (www.eng.cam.ac.uk) & the Institute for Manufacturing, Cambridge University (www.ifm.eng.cam.ac.uk)

Manufacturers are facing a major challenge from dynamic markets, discerning customers and increased global competition; there is pressure for companies to become more agile, virtual, team-based and innovative. Indeed, to truly succeed, manufacturers need to grow beyond traditional methods and fundamentally change the way they do business. In this respect, Professor Gregory’s keynote address will embrace: developing people, leadership, strategy, globalisation, competitiveness, business efficiency, lean thinking and adding value. In brief, issues that will help lead the Gulf’s manufacturing sector into the future.

Coffee Break: 9:15am – 9:30am

Session #1: 9:30am – 10:30am - Design Driven Strategies: Increase Manufacturing Opportunities
Colum Menzies Lowe, NHS National Patient Safety Agency (www.npsa.nhs.uk) & Sunil Varughese, Brand Indigo LLC (www.brandchannel.com/features_profile.asp?pr_id=238)

Would you build a house today without an architect's plans? Then why would you consider manufacturing a product without a design driven strategy? Companies that are “in the know” are using design driven strategies to solve problems and get to market with fresh, innovative designs. Designs that touch emotional priorities of consumers yet are manufacturable and have proven benefits and fill a functional need. Designs on time. Designs that succeed.

This session will share insight on design driven manufacturing strategies. It’ll demonstrate how strategy with design as a priority creates platforms that in the end increase manufacturing opportunities. Most manufacturers know very little about how to use design to drive the manufacturing process. This session will change that.

Coffee Break: 10:30am – 10:45am

Session #2: 10:45am – 12:30pm - The Lean Enterprise
Mark Eaton, Director of Consultancy, Advance Projects Ltd (www.iee.org/oncomms/pn/manufacturing/biogs.cfm) & Mohammad Ajlouni, Managing Director, Jordan Specialized Vehicle Manufacturing Company.

Ever since the publication of The Machine that Changed the World in 1990, lean concepts have represented a powerful and influential set of management ideas. Originating from MIT-led research in the global automotive industry, lean principles represent an approach to managing operations that, properly applied, can yield unparalleled results in terms of efficiency and accuracy. The implementation of lean ideas thus promises enormous benefits in terms of productivity, quality and many other measures of operational performance. Lean implementations now stretch across many industry sectors and business processes. Lean initiatives have reduced in-process inventories, implemented cells and balanced takt times. The same Lean concepts of reducing waste and cycle time can be applied to the bureaucracy, manual paperwork and management procedures in the factory. By eliminating wasteful steps from the shop floor process management procedures, manufacturers can reduce the cycle time required to react and respond to unplanned events like machine downtime, part shortages, defects and critical engineering changes.

Lean process management procedures reduce the time required to respond to unplanned events from days to hours, from hours to minutes. The result is an even more agile factory. The reduction in cost of paperwork procedures and the reduction of buffer times will provide the next big leap in cycle time and productivity metrics.

In this session you’ll learn how to remove the various forms of waste from the information flow in complex discrete manufacturing and also learn how industry leaders are moving away from paper based processes on the shop floor.

Lunch: 12:30pm – 1:45pm

Session #3: 1:45pm – 3:15pm Innovation & Manufacturing
Professor Mike Gregory, Head of the Manufacturing and Management Division of the Engineering Department & the Institute for Manufacturing, Cambridge University, Dr. Tim Minshall, Institute of Manufacturing, Cambridge University(ifm.eng.cam.ac.uk/people/thwm100) & Adrian McCarthy, Oxford Brookes University.

Everyone knows the fable of Jack’s fast-growing beanstalk. It grew and grew as if by magic. Unfortunately, companies don’t have magic beans that can make profits grow overnight like Jack’s plant. However, innovative manufacturers have discovered a number of strategies that can, over time, provide a lift to a company’s top- and bottom-line performance. Manufacturers across the world are reconsidering their business models and employing tactics to gain a sustainable competitive advantage. Session 3 will explore innovative strategies that have helped large and small manufacturers achieve real and substantial growth.

Coffee Break: 3:15pm – 3:30pm

Session #4: 3:30pm - 6:00pm - Marketing for Manufacturers
Graham Porter, Sun Microsytems (www.ameinfo.com/70252.html), Jamal Al Asmi, RealityCG (www.realitycg.com), Pam McCarthy, Oxford Brookes University & Dr. S. Irfan Ahmad, Director, Yahoo! Middle East (www.strategiy.com/interview.asp?id=20050918071650)

This informative and insighful session will present marketing concepts and tips specifically geared toward manufacturers who need to know the fundamentals of New Marketing and Branding as a way of creating a strategic advantage.

In this high energy, high impact session, you’ll learn how to identify the “good money,” how to gain an advantage over your competition that has nothing to do with price, how to get on your buyer’s “short list,” how to use a little known secret of frequency to earn big dividends and how to hold your marketing department accountable for the budget. It’s a session that will help you improve your business situation and grow your revenue. In brief, this is the marketing session manufacturers need to attend!

Day 2

Welcome Coffee: 8:45am – 9:15am

Session #5: 9:15am – 11:00am China, the Gulf & the Realities of Global Competition
Dexter See, Vice-President, International Marketing, Ascendas Pte Ltd, Singapore (www.ascendas.com) & Professor Kulwant Pawar, Nottingham University Business School(www.nottingham.ac.uk/business).

China is careening down the path toward a market economy – with a long way to go, but with no turning back. To every manufacturer, China is both a threat and an opportunity. Over the next decade, nothing will be as important as China in defining corporate success or failure. How might manufacturers decide on what’s next - soft or hard landing or continued explosive growth? We interpret the key issues involving China – trade and legal reforms, WTO implementation, intellectual property, banking and finance, currencies, commodities, energy, FDI, infrastructure, the environment, privatization and the emerging greatest M&A boom in the history of the world. Where should China fit in to your global plans? What are the keys to manufacturing success in China?

Coffee Break: 11:00am – 11:15am

Session #6: 11:15am – 12:45pm - The Future of Manufacturing
S. Gopalan, Reem Batteries (www.reembatteries.com), Dr. Tim Minshall, Institute of Manufacturing, Cambridge University & Raza Ashraf, Total Alignment (www.peie.om/company_news_raza.asp), (www.apexstuff.com/bt/200511/column.asp)

Speed is increasing in every dimension of business and the ability to adapt rapidly to such changes will undoubtedly deliver significant competitive advantage. This session will examine how companies can leverage new technology innovations and transform them into new business opportunities from a variety of perspectives. Represented on this panel is a large Gulf-based manufacturer, a large consultancy company and a Cambridge University professor.

Lunch: 12:45pm – 2:00pm

Session #7: 2:00pm - 3:30pm - New & Emerging Technologies: Smart Machines
Antonio Briguglio, Sun Microsystems & Amrou Al Shareef, Seeb Systems. (www.kom.om/index96d9.html?lang=en& sub=tenant_directory&id=seeb_systems)

Technology is helping create a new class of machines that that can "think" and quickly produce parts to exact specifications, without unscheduled delays. This session will explore this technology and the type of Smart Machines that are being created, how they work and how they can save you time and money.

Concluding Remarks: 3:30pm.

Bonus Session: Lean Enterprise Workshop
9:30am - 1:00pm, 25 January 2006 - Knowledge Oasis Muscat
Mark Eaton, Director of Consultancy, Advance Projects Ltd

In addition to the two-day conference, attend a special, pan-sector, half-day Lean Enterprise Workshop. Many have tried to implement lean production in their businesses - some have succeeded, while many have struggled. Lean can be a key competitive advantage in all types of businesses, especially manufacturers, giving them shorter, more responsive production, more effective ‘office’ processes and higher productivity. This drive for ever better performance is a hard path to follow and sustain. This workshop does not promise magic recipes - instead it offers the chance to hear what it takes from those - big and small - who have lived through successful lean transformations. In particular, the workshop will highlight Lean case studies drawn from manufacturing, the armed forces and the health sector.

This Workshop is not just about listening - it will show you how to use the three key tools to start you on your lean journey. Learn to see the waste in the value streams in your organization, learn how to create continuous flow in your processes and learn how to improve customer service and cut costs by re-configuring your supply chains.

British Airways Supports Smart Manufacturing

Approximately 200 business people and public sector representatives are expected to attend PEIE’s Smart Manufacturing Conference, scheduled for 23 – 24 January 2006 at the Muscat Inter-Continental. According to Eng. Mohammed Al Ghassani, Executive Vice President, PEIE: “The main focus of the event is to benefit and build bigger Oman-based manufacturers through an open, frank debate on the strengths and weaknesses of manufacturers and their business models.”

Held under the patronage of Maqbool bin Ali Sultan, Minister of Commerce & Industry and Chairman, PEIE, the event has received the backing of British Airways. Commenting on the airline’s support of the two-day event, BA’s Country Manager, Sunita Gomes (pictured) said: “I fully expect PEIE’s Smart Manufacturing Conference to provide business professionals with an understanding of how manufacturing is developing today and most importantly, how it contributes to the development and growth of Oman’s economy. British Airways is proud to be involved in what is obviously an important and timely national event in the Sultanate of Oman.”

According to Al Ghassani, the Conference is intended to achieve some highly important objectives, these include: providing a unique forum for leading-edge, Oman-based manufacturers to meet and discuss their value-propositions, business models, markets, objectives and issues. The event will enable policy makers and service providers to listen in and learn first hand about what’s driving Oman-based manufacturers and therefore learn how best to support them. In addition, the Conference will provide an opportunity to make delegates' voices heard directly by Government and related organisations about the needs of manufacturers. Finally, the two-day programme will promote a bright and positive image of manufacturing in Oman, making it an area in which people want to work and invest.”

Commenting on the future of manufacturing, Graham Porter, Marketing Manager, MENA region, Sun Microsystems and speaker at the event, remarked: “Omani manufacturers must seek new ideas and opportunities and exploit them more fully and at a faster rate, and then reinvest that success in further R&D and marketing. They must also develop the recipes, process and business know-how and keep commercial lines in place or they will ever be passing up value opportunities.”

“PEIE deserves high praise for organising this Conference. In fact, it has the best line-up of speakers I’ve ever seen at a Manufacturing event,” said Smart Manufacturing sponsor Karim Rahemtulla and CEO of highly regarded mobile commerce firm, Infocomm.

Lean Manufacturing Interview

Mohammed Ajlouni is Managing Director of Jordan Specialized Vehicle Manufacturing Company and is without doubt one of the Middle East’s most influential Lean Enterprise experts. He will be presenting alongside the UK’s Mark Eaton at PEIE’s Smart Manufacturing Conference, 23 – 24 January 2006, Muscat Inter-Continental Hotel. PEIE Mirror sat down with Mohammed to talk Lean Enterprise, this is what he had to say:

PM: What got you interested in lean in the first place?

The first time I came across “Kaizen” was in 1992 while on a postgraduate management course. After reading more about it and understanding the concepts, tools and systems of Kaizen, I realized this was the best management philosophy I had ever come across. Later on I read the “Machine that Changed the World” followed by “Lean Thinking”. In 2001 I had the opportunity to accompany Masaaki Imai (www.qualitydigest.com/june97/html/imai.html) Founder and Chairman of the Kaizen Institute, on a series of tours in the Middle East. Since then I have become a believer, a consultant, a practitioner and an educator of lean in the Middle East.

PM: What’s the biggest challenge Gulf-based companies have in applying a lean approach to their supply chain or other operations?

The biggest challenge is to get management to buy in and get excited enough to start the lean journey. Once management is committed to lean transformation, the next challenge is to make it happen. They have to start looking for the right people with the right knowledge and experience to help them implement lean in their organizations.

PM: Why, suddenly, does everyone seem to be interested in lean? What took everybody so long?

Organizations have realized that lean has become an indispensable approach if they want to stay competitive in their markets. Although the Toyota Production System was in place more than 35 years ago, but the rest of the world only learnt about it in the early nineties. It is never too late for any organization to transform into lean.

PM: What are the key components of lean, those core elements without which you really can’t have a lean operation?

The key components of lean is that every step within the process must be valuable (creating value for the customer), capable (having a first-time through capability), available (having a high resource reliability), adequate (ensuring capacity) and flexible (being able to produce a variety of products or services). Implementation should be linked by flow (one-piece-flow where possible), pull (no over-production) and leveling (of mix and volume).

PM: What are the kinds of things companies typically find when they begin looking at their supply chain in an effort to become lean?

Long lead times, high inventory (raw material, WIP and finished goods), unreliable suppliers, a discontinued flow of material through the supply chain, demand fluctuations along the chain and other problems arising from material shortages.

PM: What’s the downside of squeezing suppliers?

Supplier selection and rationalization are two elements of paramount importance in lean supply. The idea is to select a few good and trusted suppliers who can supply a wide range of parts. Consolidation of suppliers might cause some problems for the suppliers and this may lead to losing some. The lean company has to assure suppliers they will benefit from the new relationship.

PM: How should you work with your suppliers in a truly lean environment?

In a truly lean environment, suppliers are partners. They will be expected to supply the required material, the right quality, the right quantity, at the right time, every time. To be able to do this, suppliers have to learn how to take the waste out of their processes. Indeed, many companies have to teach their suppliers how to become lean too.

PM: Let’s say you’re a logistics or a purchasing manager who really believes in the things you’re talking about. What can you do to promote lean thinking in the organization?

Usually two hidden costs are associated with supply problems. The first is the cost of fast and expedited shipments (specially air fright) when the supplier fails to deliver on time. The other problem is quality and the costs incurred in warranty claims. Moreover, one needs to compare the costs of frequent and reliable orders on the one hand, and keeping inventory on the other.

PM: What’s the key to sustaining a lean program once you get it off the ground?

Committed management with strategic vision is the most important key to sustaining lean, but there are other elements as well. Among these is the establishment of a dedicated and knowledgeable lean promotion team, getting expert training and support, involving employees at all levels and having strong line management, setting performance targets and motivating employees to achieve their goals, and maintaining a general sense of urgency for progress.

PM: Instead of thinking of lean as a program, how should people think of it?

A program has a begining and an end. Lean is not a “flavour of the month” project, but an ongoing process. It should be thought of as a way of life rather than merely an improvement program.

PM: Where does technology fit in a successful lean approach?

Lean works for both high- and low-tech organizations. If technology is available it can be used to support lean in a number of ways. But apply the technology after the waste has been cut out. For example, there is no point of automating a process that includes waste. “Don’t automate. Obliterate!”

PM: Any final words on why top management in Gulf-based companies need to start getting serious about lean?

As global competition increases, it is time for Middle East businesses to think seriously about implementing lean. Toyota - who is heading towards being the world’s number one automotive manufacture - has based its success on its operational excellence. In fact, it has turned this operational excellence into a strategic weapon. Very soon, only world-class organizations will compete globally. It is imperative that Middle East-based CEOs start getting serious about transforming their organizations into world-class outfits through lean, otherwise, they simply won’t qualify to compete.

Sun Sponsors Smart Manufacturing

It was announced today that Sun Microsystems will sponsor PEIE’s Smart Manufacturing, a two-day international conference scheduled to be held 23 – 24 January 2006 at the Muscat Inter-Continental Hotel.

Hisham Al Zubaidi, PEIE’s Marketing Director said Antonio Briguglio, Sun’s ERP Solutions Sales Manager for South East Europe and the Middle East, and Graham Porter (pictured), Sun’s Marketing Manager for the Middle East and North Africa will present at the two-day event. According to Al Zubaidi, Briguglio will discuss the trends and challenges facing the Gulf’s manufacturing sector and the way technology can be used to help – it is reported that Briguglio’s presentation will focus primarily around ERP, Supply Chain Management and Customer Relationship Management. He will also discuss how such applications can be integrated into existing business processes to improve business decision making and as a result improve a firm’s efficiency and profitability. “Briguglio’s presentation will use a number of case studies based on client experiences in the Middle East,” this is something we’re very excited about said Al Zubaidi.

Graham Porter will join Pam McCarthy, Essex University; Jamal Al Asmi, Reality CG; and Dr. Ahmad Irfan, Yahoo! on the Marketing for Manufacturers panel. Porter stated that: “The danger for most manufacturers is that they get caught up in a commodity market which is price centric, this is dangerous as cost becomes the key issue for the business and you can guarantee that Asia and the sub-continent have much lower costs than any GCC economy.” According to Sun’s Marketing Manager: “By using marketing and building a brand, the product can be positioned so that it stands out or is differentiated, thereby making a premium price possible. In the world of exports, image is everything and the Internet has allowed many small manufacturers create a perception of a much bigger enterprise to their end customers.”

Cambridge Comment on Smart Manufacturing

We sat down with Dr. Tim Minshall, Lecturer in Technology Management at Cambridge University and presenter at PEIE's forthcoming Smart Manufacturing Conference (23 - 25 January 2006, Muscat Inter-Continental Hotel). We spoke to him about various manufacturing issues - this is what he had to say:

PM: How long have you been involved in manufacturing?

I have worked in various manufacturing related activities for 10 years. Since 1998, my work has been focused on support for the creation and growth of new technology-based firms and their partnerships with established firms.

PM: How do you see manufacturing changing over the next 20 years?

A. Changes in the business models of manufacturing firms with increasing value add being generated through the provision of services and support activities to enhance the products themselves.

B. Increased emphasis on higher value manufacturing.

PM: Which emerging technology do you think has the most potential to change manufacturing?

RFID has the potential to bring great changes to supply chain management.

PM: What are your thoughts on the issue of knowledge transfer from academia to industry?

Universities can play a key role in increasing the productivity and competitiveness of a national economy. There is a wide range of ways in which universities can transfer knowledge to industry. These include: the provision of skilled graduates; making available the results of publicly funded research; consultancy and ‘soft’ knowledge transfer activities (such as student projects); provision of ‘packaged’ knowledge (through licensing of intellectual property); and the formation of spin-out businesses.

PM: There’s a lot in the press lately about how universities need to become more responsive to the needs of business ... what are your thoughts/experiences on this?

In the UK, great strides have been taken in this area. What is interesting is that different universities are developing different approaches to working with industry appropriate for their particular regional economic needs. Companies and universities are finding that there are many different ways in which they can work together.

PM: What type of involvement would you like to see business have with universities? What opportunities do you see?

There are so many ways in which universities and companies can work together. What is needed is a clear understanding of the ways in which each can help the other and this relies upon good communication and the building of long term value-adding partnerships. One of the areas I find particularly interesting is the ways in which smaller companies can benefit from working with universities.

PM: You’ve visited hundreds of plants around the world. While the industries, products, and equipment vary, what are the common principles that guide the best manufacturers?

I would say it is evidence throughout of the business that there is a clear focus on delivering what the customer really wants

PM: Dell hit in excess of US$45 billion in annual revenue and is growing at nearly 20% yearly, and seems well on its way toward surpassing its goal of US$60 billion within the next few years. And it's not letting up. Still relentlessly striving to get better faster, Dell intends to slash US$2 billion in costs. CFO Jim Schneider has indicated that much of the cuts will come from manufacturing operations and the supply chain. In your opinion, is speed the ultimate competitive weapon?

Speed alone isn't the key. It is the ability to respond efficently and effectively to changing customer demands.

PM: Do small manufacturers need big-name supporters?

Not necessarily. Small companies operating in specfic, niche markets can be extremely successful and profitable. These niches can be quite substantial. In and around Cambridge, there are companies that remain small but which are serving highly profitable and global markets. In some cases, the use of partnerships with large, established firms can be extremely helpful to smaller firms. However, making such partnerships work to the benefit of both parties is very hard. This is an area we are working on at present with a range of industrial partners.

PM: Whether you're running a company with 3 people or 3,000 people, you have to hire the best engineers, the best marketers and the best production workers. The products you make, the programs you have, the mission you espouse should make people feel good about working for you. In your view, are corporate values a real motivator?

Absolutely!

PM: We’re living in difficult times. Indeed, what do you do when the business world as you've always known it simply ceases to be? When new competitors and new technologies explode the industry economics? When everything that worked before won't work - and can't work ever again?

The issue of coping with ‘disruptive innovations’ is not new. If you look back over the centuries you can see time and time again how the established order in industry has been overturned. The difference now is that things are happening at a much faster pace and companies have to be constanlty looking for the distruptions on the horizon.

PM: If we don't have to own it, let's not own it. And if we do have to own it, let's reduce the risk by sharing it. How does this kind of thinking apply to today’s manufacturing sector?
The ‘make versus buy’ decision is at the core of any manufacturing business. Advances in communication and transport, and national cost differentials have certainly made global outsourcing commonplace. What is particularly interesting is to consider which elements of the manufacturing business do not get outsourced, and how certain functions often benefit from being kept in close proximity to one another (such as R&D and production).

Further information on Dr. Tim Minshall can be viewed at: http://www.ifm.eng.cam.ac.uk/people/thwm100/

New Speakers for Smart Manufacturing

PEIE, the producers of the Smart Manufacturing Conference, scheduled to be held at the Muscat Inter-Continental Hotel on January 23 – 24 2006, announced today the addition of three new speakers to the conference line-up. Adrian and Pam McCarthy are UK-based business, leadership and executive development specialists and will join sessions on innovation and marketing.

Currently, the McCarthys are working with one of the UK’s leading research universities, focused on developing new best practice in entrepreneurial leadership. Essex University is the first university in the UK to have a School of Entrepreneurship and Business and according to Pam McCarthy “is set to redefine world-class standards in this area.” Sunil Varughese, Brand Strategy Director at Brand Indigo LLC has been added to the Design Driven Strategies: Increase Manufacturing Opportunities session scheduled for the first day of the conference.

The Smart Manufacturing Conference is to be an annual event organized by PEIE. “This new and innovative program has been designed specifically to bring manufacturers, entrepreneurs, marketers, finance and IT professionals together to examine issues aimed at helping small and medium-sized Gulf-based manufacturers become progressively more successful in their marketplace,” remarked Hisham Al Zubaidi, PEIE’s Marketing Director. In particular, the two-day programme will focus on marketing, innovation, product design, lean enterprise, the realities of global competition and the importance of technology to the manufacturing sector. According to the organizers, the event has attracted speakers from Europe, the Middle East and Asia.

The conference will be held under the patronage of HE Maqbool bin Ali Sultan, Minister of Commerce and Industry and Chairman, PEIE, and the keynote address will be delivered by Professor Mike Gregory CBE, Executive Director, Cambridge-MIT Institute. Professor Gregory is also Head of Manufacturing and Management Division in Cambridge University’s Department of Engineering and Fellow of Churchill College. “He has served on a range of institutional and government committees including currently theUK’s Department of Trade and Industry’s Manufacturing Forum. Professor Gregory is also Chairman of the British Manufacturing Professors Forum. We’re delighted to have someone of Professor Gregory’s stature present at Smart Manufacturing,” remarked PEIE’s Ibtisam Al Faruji.

Commenting on the introduction of additional speakers, Al Faruji said: “After reviewing the excellent feedback we’ve received on the conference, we decided to make some changes to our sessions and expand the programme.” She added: “The new topics, which offer additional coverage on innovation and marketing in manufacturing, have been developed with the help of the presenters themselves, and we feel that attendees will benefit from their experience.”

In addition to the two-day conference, PEIE will host a bonus Lean Enterprise Workshop at Knowledge Oasis Muscat on 25 January, this will be delivered by Mark Eaton, former Director of the UK’s Manufacturing Advisory Service.

Smart Manufacturing is sponsored by Reem Batteries, Sun Technologies, Oman Economic Review, Knowledge Oasis Muscat, OEPNPA, Infocomm Group and Photo Centre. Further information on Smart Manufacturing can be obtained from Ibtisam Al Faruji on: Ibtisam@kom.om