The FAB Challenge

LACK OF SEMICONDUCTOR MANUFACTURING IS TURNING OUT TO BE THE BIGGEST HURDLE IN INDIA’S TRYST WITH SELF-RELIANCE IN ELECTRONICS. IT REQUIRES ‘OUT OF THE BOX’ THINKING BY GOVERNMENT AND INDUSTRY

- SUMANT BANERJI & NIDHI SINGAL

INDIA’S LARGEST AUTOMOTIVE component maker Bosch faced an unforeseen situation in early December — shortage of semiconductor components. The reason was surge in demand for consumer electronics globally due to work from home and rise in adoption of 5G in household appliances.

This could not have come at a more inappropriate time. Demand for automobiles was just beginning to rebound after a torrid first half of the year when production was disrupted due to lockdown in April-May. Another disruption can impair the recovery, which is what Bosch warned in a letter to market regulator Sebi. “Imports of Bosch Ltd have been impacted with severe shortage of imported microprocessors (semiconductors), leading to reduced ability to deliver to the automotive market demand in India,” it said.

Disruption in supply of even a single part in the $120 billion automotive industry can bring the entire sector to a standstill. Two days later, utility vehicle major Mahindra & Mahindra said it was bracing itself for after-effects of the disruption at Bosch. “Operations of the company in the automotive sector will be affected by global supply shortage of micro-processors (semiconductors) used in electronic control units (ECUs) which are supplied by Bosch,” it said. “It is not clear as to what extent and for how long the shortage of semiconductors will impact vehicle production in India. Any stoppage of vehicle lines has a resonating effect on the entire auto component manufacturing ecosystem,” says D.K. Jain, President of the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association (ACMA).