Shri DP Agarwal, Chairman, TCI Group, lights the lamp at the inauguration of the TCI-IIMB Supply Chain Sustainability Lab on 28th April 2023. Prof. Rishikesha T Krishnan, Director, IIMB, Prof. Jitamitra Desai, Chairperson, Supply Chain Management Centre, IIMB, Vineet Agarwal, MD, TCI Group, looks on.
In his welcome address, Prof. Jitamitra Desai, Chairperson, Supply Chain Management Centre at IIMB, spoke of the work that went into setting up the lab. “We worked hard for two years. We were focused on sustainability and digitalization in this space.”
Dr Devi Shetty, Chairman of the Board of Governors, IIMB, speaks at the inauguration of the TCI-IIMB Supply Chain Sustainability Lab. He says “We have a serious problem of supply chain logistics in India. Sustainability – in terms of pollution control, and Efficiency – in terms of digitalization, are two key areas that need to be addressed. A lab like the TCI-IIMB Supply Chain Sustainability Lab will fill this gap while also contributing to bringing down diseases caused by pollution.”
Shri DP Agarwal, Chairman, TCI Group, says “I am honoured to flag off this ambitious project. We have found a like-minded partner in IIMB. This lab will help the logistics industry to implement green practices.”
Vineet Agarwal, MD, TCI Group, launched the beta version of a GHG Measurement Tool. Named TEMT, the tool has a multi-lingual interface, enabling grassroots-level adoption by India’s logistics and supply chain ecosystem. It covers all modes of transportation – road, rail, air and sea.
Prof. Rishikesha T Krishnan, Director, IIMB, spoke of the intent of setting up the lab: “The Supply Chain Management Centre at IIMB has close interactions with industry in terms of live projects for our students. As we move into two new areas – impact of digitalization on supply chains and bringing in sustainability into all aspects of supply chains, a lab like this has special significance. I would like to specially thank TCI for their forward thinking and their wholesome partnership.”
Dr Aditya Gupta, COO, SCMC at IIMB, walked the audience through a live demo of the tool – TEMT developed by the TCI-IIMB Supply Chain Sustainability Lab. “The tool has a dashboard that helps the user measure, monitor and mitigate emissions, and a scale. It provides reports for users. We have lots of plans for phase 2 in the development of the tool.”
Rajkiran Kanagala, Vice President and Group Head, Business Strategy, TCI, said: “There is transparency in the calculation of emission and it has an API which can be part of the ERP. There is a provision for EVs too. To ensure ease of use for all logistics players in the ecosystem, the tool is multi-lingual.”
Anand Ganapathy Chennira, Chief Strategy Officer, Sun Mobility, and alumnus of IIMB says “India’s movement to commercial EV is starting from two- and three-wheelers. Economics is driving the green movement in this segment. A gig economy also blurs the lines between personal and commercial vehicle. Swappable batteries will not only bring down cost of vehicles, but also aid movement to net zero. This is an exciting space, and a tool like TEMT can be very useful to this sector.”
Sreejit Roy, Senior Partner, Computing & Green IT, IBM, busted a few myths around sustainability. “A lab like this with a tool like TEMT can go a long way in showing us how to include sustainability in design, architecture and code.”
(L-R) Rajkiran Kanagala, Vice President and Group Head, Business Strategy, TCI, Prof. Rishikesha T Krishnan, Director, IIMB, Shri DP Agarwal, Chairman, TCI Group, Prof. Jitamitra Desai, Chairperson, Supply Chain Management Centre, Vineet Agarwal, MD, TCI Group, Dr Aditya Gupta, COO, SCMC at IIMB, Dr Devi Shetty, Chairman of the Board of Governors, IIMB( On Screen).