The Hindu Business Line : Microsoft targets SMEs in export clusters

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New Delhi Feb. 16 Microsoft India has kick-started work on extending end-to-end IT-based efficiency improvement solutions to enhance the global competitiveness of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in three major export clusters — the Tirupur textiles hub, the auto component cluster in Pune and the chemicals hub in Ahmedabad.

As part of a National Manufacturing Competitiveness Commission (NMCC)-Microsoft cluster development programme, the software major is designing tailor-made networking solutions for each of these manufacturing clusters to enable units, especially SMEs, to access information and trends in the global markets on a real-time basis to enhance competitiveness.

The package, being initiated through a $15 million funding from Microsoft, is to be implemented with the aim of skill and capacity building, knowledge dissemination and establishing linkages across units in a cluster.

Microsoft is also working on IT solutions that would enable units to reduce their cost of production and cut down on export lead time to compete better in the export markets. "The framework has been completed by Microsoft in collaboration with industry associations of each cluster and implementation work in these three clusters has started. More industrial clusters will be taken up under the programme in the due course," NMCC Member-Secretary, Mr V. Govindarajan, told Business Line.

Eventually, computer training labs and software knowledge courses will also be extended to the units.