The Webel-Fujisoft-Vara Centre of Excellence (CoE), is an initiative of the Government of West Bengal is aiming to create relevant skills and to harness the full scope of the technologies of Industry 4.0. It has been set up by the Department of IT& Electronics, through its nodal agency Webel, as well as the MSME Directorate, West Bengal. The project is being executed by Fujisoft Inc., Japan and Vara Technology, India. It is one of the only Centres of Excellence for four technologies of Industry 4.0, namely Data Science, Cybersecurity, Embedded Systems/ IoT, and Additive Manufacturing. The CoE brings together students, academia, industry, technology providers, and start-ups under one roof. Besides training and skill development the CoE aims to provide Corporates, MSME Unit and start-ups access to technology that can boost their productivity, product quality as well foster innovation.
The Centre of Excellence has tied-up with several global organizations and leading technology companies – both to provide the infrastructure, hardware and software as well as academic support and certification. Some of the companies in collaboration include Intel, nVidia, Boston Training Academy, Boston IT Solutions, Dassault Systemes, Stratasys, Trend Micro, Fortinet, IMI Israel, Think Cyber, Israel, to name a few. These global partners position the CoE as a true enabler for creating future- fit talent and future-ready businesses.
The world is in the midst of a significant transformation around the way we work and manufacture products. This is due to digitization of manufacturing. This transformation is being called Industry 4.0 and it represents the fourth revolution that has occurred in manufacturing. This fourth revolution will be epitomized by a range of new technologies that combine physical, digital and biological worlds. These new technologies will impact all disciplines, economies and industries. Therefore, organizations and workforce need to upscale their competitiveness by adopting the technologies of Industry 4.0. Banking on India’s strength in Information Technology and a large workforce of IT professionals, the transformative journey of manufacturing through Industry 4.0 has already begun in the country. Manufacturing today is cutting edge and requires a high level of skill. Though India depends heavily on its service sector for growth, the manufacturing sector needs to play a significant role in the Indian economy.
The Centre of Excellence has been set up as a triangulation of leading industry organizations, academia and technology providers to create relevant skills for Industry 4.0. It is India’s first technology platform which brings together the different technologies that define the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The objective of the Centre of Excellence, is to impart high quality education on emerging technologies to students, working professionals and new age entrepreneurs to upscale their competitiveness and develop highly skilled industry-ready professionals and technopreneurs.
The CoE provides a complete ecosystem for developing talent. The programmes at the CoE go beyond theory with 70 per cent hands-on learning, giving the beneficiaries valuable real-world insights. The courses entail case-studies, real time projects as well as Capstone Projects, brought by the corporates.
The CoE offers highly specialized training to fresh graduates and working professionals, who want to learn new technologies to enhance their employability or reboot their skills to give a fresh start to their careers, either as employees or as entrepreneurs. It offers 70% hands-on training, designed to build skills. The CoE courses are industry certified in order to ensure they are meeting the requirements of the market and enhancing employability. Training is offered in various formats, which includes on-premises and online courses. The CoE offers courses of varying lengths.
People who graduate from the Certificate Programmes also undergo sessions on problem solving, decision making, negotiations skills, communication and presentation skills, understanding finance and basics of project management as well as workplace ethics. The CoE has the best-in-class infrastructure in multiple technologies with the latest hardware, software, training modules, best in the class faculty members, Industry collaboration, hands-on-training, funding opportunities for startups to truly make it the Innovation hub of India.
The CoE can help organizations drive transformation, accelerate innovation and build talent and leadership in their business through Executive Education Programmes. In the current economic context, the continuing education programmes are tailored specifically to deliver value for executives, managers, leaders and organizations. These are carefully curated programmes, delivered by experts, to create an impactful learning experience.