NXP India Opens its Wall of Fame to Acknowledge Innovators with Over 450 Patents Displayed

NXP India, a world leader in secure connectivity solutions for embedded applications, recently inaugurated its patent wall to recognize the significant contributions of inventors and augment the spirit of innovation at NXP India. The wall highlights technological achievements of innovators, motivating them to tread the path of invention-led careers. Benny Chang Global VP of R&D, BL AMP, BU Automotive and Lars Reger SVP & CTO, BU Automotive brought up the curtain on the Patent Wall that NXP engineers were aspiring for years.

“India is the hub of automotive innovation and this bright wall at NXP Noida with more than 450 US patents is but a grand showcase of every time we have led that innovation,” said Benny Chang.

“Innovation is the salt of our organization. I hope that soon these walls are too small for all of the inventions coming from our team,” added Lars Reger.

The wall showcases more than 450 US Patents for innovations, which are granted by United States Patent and Trademark Office (US PTO), an agency in the U.S. Department of Commerce that issues patents to inventors and businesses for their inventions, and trademark registration for product and intellectual property identification. The showcased patents cover innovations from a wide spectrum of applications, such as Automotive Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) using Radar and Vision technology and cutting edge networking and security applications. The Patents focus on next generation technologies and architectures including integrated circuits, extremely low power designs, area efficient circuit design, high density dual bit storage circuits, tamper detect power supplies, advanced techniques for design for Test, traffic schedulers for wireless applications and signal processing for radar applications, among others.

Sanjay Gupta, Vice President & India Country Manager, NXP India said, “NXP India has incessantly motivated and transformed young engineers into a fierce technology force and vibrant innovators. In that spirit, this Patent Wall is a source of inspiration for the next generation of innovators and an encouragement to innovation within our organization.”

The Phase 1 of NXP India Patent Wall was launched in Noida and soon plans to complete the next Phase inaugurations in Bangalore and Hyderabad.

Seventh Edition of RBS Earth Heroes Awards Confers Heroes of Environment and Wildlife Conservation for 2017

The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), a subsidiary of the RBS Group, today announced the winners of the RBS ‘Earth Heroes’ Awards for 2017. Eight individuals/institutions from the field of wildlife and conservation, who have demonstrated exemplary work on the ground, were chosen by an independent jury, for the RBS Earth Heroes Award. The jury panel, comprising of active wildlife enthusiasts, environmentalists and conservationists, reviewed nominations received from across the country.

Pankaj Phatarphod, Managing Director Country Head of Services; India Chairperson – RBS Foundation India, said, “Earth Heroes Awards’ journey has truly been enriching for us at RBS, by giving us an opportunity to honour and encourage individuals and organizations who work towards environmental sustainability. This year as well, we have been fortunate enough to receive numerous nominations of such high calibre and have the privilege to celebrate and honour the best in the field for their respective efforts. This year’s awardees’ demonstrate how sheer dedication for their respective field can help make a positive change to the environment. We hope to serve as a source of inspiration for the youth of India, by encouraging the exemplary work done by the Earth Heroes”

N Sunil Kumar, Head of Sustainability, India, Royal Bank of Scotland and Director, RBS Foundation India, said, "The unsung  heroes of the country who dedicate their lives, go beyond the call of duty to conserve our wild habitats  deserve to  be celebrated.  Forest carbon sink and biodiversity is an important Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) committed by India at the UN Climate platform (COP 21 of UNFCCC). The Earth Heroes work is a direct contribution to this NDC.  I am honoured to acknowledge their efforts towards conservation of our wildlife and habitats.  It is indeed a privilege for us to be hosting these awards each year.”

The seventh edition of RBS Earth Heroes Awards saw Sumitra Mahajan, hand over award citations and cash prizes to the winners, at the awards ceremony in New Delhi.

The winners of the 2017 RBS ‘Earth Heroes’ Awards are:

No.	Winner	Award category
1	Jadav Payeng	RBS Earth Hero’ Award
2	Valmiki Tiger Reserve	RBS Earth Guardian’ Award
3	Mr. Khenrab Phuntsog and Mr. Smanla Tsering	RBS ‘Save The Species’ Award
4	Mr. Atul Deokar	RBS ‘Save The Species’ Award
5	Mr. Rohan Chakravarty	RBS Inspire’ Award
6	Dr. Shekhar Niraj	RBS Green Warrior’ Award
7	Mr. Ipra Mekola	RBS Green Warrior’ Award
8	Mr. Chandrakant Naik	RBS Green Warrior’ Award

RBS ‘Earth Hero’ Award (Felicitation)

This award recognizes extraordinary achievements of an individual who has worked a life time in conservation of wildlife, natural resource management, and environment and has influenced policy.

The RBS ‘Earth Hero’ Award was conferred upon Jadav Payeng for his outstanding achievements and his passionate engagement in environment and wildlife conservation.

Jadav Payeng, popularly known as the ‘Forest Man of India’ is one of the most inspiring stories of our time. 31 years ago, the Assam Forest Department started out a project to plant life on the tough terrain of the eroded island covered with sand and silt. Jadav Payeng was a part of the project and continued even after the project ended. Shri Payeng, through his continuous effort over decades, succeeded in turning a sandbar of the river Brahmaputra into a forest reserve by planting trees. The forest, called the ‘Molai’ forest after him is located near Kokilamukh of Jorhat, Assam, India, and encompasses an area of about 1,360 hectares.

Amongst several other esteemed recognitions and awards, ‘The Forest Man of India’ was also a recipient of RBS ‘Green Warrior’ Award in 2013. Shri Payeng was honoured with the fourth highest civilian award in India, the ‘Padma Shri’, in 2015.

Unlock your Holiday Home with OYO's Favorite Destinations in India

Investing in real-estate, building a home in the hills or by the beach to holiday with family, or just making a savvy investment – there may be many reasons for you to have purchased a second home in Pondicherry, Coorg and Goa. But does this home stay locked and unused except for the few days in a year when children are able to take leave and the whole family can holiday together? Are you unable to put it on rent for fear of not being able to manage and oversee the maintenance from a different city? Are you not receiving expected returns from your investment? If any of these issues sound familiar, you are not alone. All across the country, in India's favourite holiday destinations, there is an abundance of empty, unutilized "holiday homes" - second-homes that owners are able to visit only a couple of times a year.

One of the major reasons for this is the lack of a trusted maintenance and managing partner. When you consider visiting your holiday home, you also have to devote a couple of days for cleaning and setting the place up. Further, since maintenance and plumbing issues usually go undiscovered in an unused home, you have to be ready for a few surprises.

Help is now here in the form of OYO Home. This is the latest initiative from OYO – India’s largest hospitality-company with a mission to create beautiful, high-quality living spaces.OYO has built technology led capabilities of managing infrastructure quality, delivering great guest experience and meeting owner expectations – which it is now employing to unlock homes across the country.

In 5 of the most popular holiday destinations across India – Pondicherry, Coorg , Goa, Nainital, and Shimla – OYO has unlocked over 300 homes to 15,000 guests.  The company takes care of maintenance, upgradation and repair, housekeeping, revenue-management and marketing. It has a dedicated representative called OYO Captain who visits the property regularly for maintenance and upkeep, as well as checking in the guests and responding to their needs. OYO also works with home owners to upcycle their current space and establish functional aesthetics to make the homes beautiful and comfortable. Home-owners receive higher yields from OYO Home's revenue share model as compared to rentals.

Antonio Pinto, owner of a home in Goa, stays in Germany. According to him, “I live outside the country 6 months of the year so my home in Goa stays locked for a large part of the year. It’s not easy taking care of the property especially since regular maintenance and upkeep could not happen. So when this opportunity came up, I thought to give the OYO folks a chance. This has been one of the best decisions – not only does OYO takes great care of the property but they also did a good job with refurbishing the interiors to give it a great, heritage look. All this, while I sit back and relax here in Germany and get a monthly deposit in my account.”

Owners like the professional maintenance of their home and the enhanced yield from their asset. They love the trust and one-stop-shop service that comes with partnering with OYO. Owners are happy that their locked homes are being cleaned and furnished, regularly maintained and are now being utilised. An added benefit is the assurance that they can visit their holiday home anytime and without prior planning – since OYO ensures the home is clean and functional at all times. 

Amar Dhamane from Kolhapur says, “I am delighted to partner with OYO. The team took charge of managing and beautifying interiors, space, and design, something we do not have expertise in. Our Goa property now looks fantastic and has been fetching handsome returns in terms of business.”

VIP Clothing Ltd Unveils Regal & Frenchie Casuals in Bangalore; Focus on Offline Market in South India to Boost Sales

Premium Men’s innerwear company, VIP Clothing Ltd embarked on a new journey with the launch of VIP Regal and Frenchie Casuals designed to cater to the sensibilities of the Modern Indian man.  The listed company will remain focused on offline market to boost its sales in the country. Presently only 1 percent of its sales comes from online market players like Flipkart and Amazon.

Both collections cater to 2 unique consumer segments. VIP regal is a contemporary classic brand, crafted for the sophisticated taste whereas Frenchie Casuals targets the fashion oriented youth. The collections are designed keeping ‘FIT’ as the most important factor while retaining its aesthetic appeal and was unveiled cricketer and currently a cricket commentator also known as ‘Very Very Special’ – for his initials V.V.S and splendid performance during his tenure, Yogesh Tiwari, CEO, VIP Clothing Limited and Sunil Pathare – CMD, VIP Clothing Limited along with the attendance of more than 450 distributors of VIP clothing ltd. The company official says that south India contributes to almost 49% of the market and would like it to grow further over the years.

Bangalore is one of the most vital consumer market for VIP. The event was held at Sheraton Grand, Bangalore commenced with an interactive session with the distributors followed by a speech by the CMD of the company and finally unveiling of the two premium collection exclusively for the Bangalore market.

“VIP Clothing Ltd is constantly developing products to suit the needs of the modern consumers and the launch of the 2 new collections, VIP Regal and Frenchie Casuals is going to define the brands direction in the coming years. We are bringing international designs and fits while reviving the tone of the brand. As Bangalore being one of the most important market for us, we are launching our new collections exclusively in this regions and aims to strategically maximize the outreach at PAN India level in the days to come. The launch embarks the beginning of a new era in the company’s life,” said Yogesh Tiwari, CEO, VIP Clothing Ltd.

VIP as a company has been at the edge of excellence when it comes to fit, fabric and quality factors. Both our collections are refreshing in terms of design and accustomed to the modernized feel. We have infused different flavors to cater to varied sensibilities of modern man who is not just fashion conscious but also comfort savvy. We hope our customers will love our new offerings like they have always loved our previous ones,” said Sunil Pathare, CMD, VIP Clothing Ltd.

‘It’s a pleasure for me to be associated with VIP as this is one of those time-travelled brands I have grown up with and still have some of the promotional jingles fresh in my mind. It’s an honorable gesture to be a part of the timeline of such a renowned and heritage brand’, said  V.V.S. Laxman, Cricket Commentator and former Indian Cricketer.

RICS Announces Change of Leadership for South Asia as Sachin Sandhir Departs

RICS announced that Sachin Sandhir, Global MD – Emerging Business and Managing Director for RICS in South Asia is stepping down to pursue other opportunities.  Nitin Kapoor, Associate Director, RICS South Asia will take responsibility for the RICS professional body on an interim basis.  Ashwani Awasthi, Chief Operating Officer will lead operations at RICS School of Built Environment (RICS SBE).

Under Sachin’s leadership, RICS has become a respected standard-setting, qualifications and assurance body in India.  In 2013, Sachin was instrumental in RICS establishing its historic first educational institution in partnership with Amity University.  Today, RICS has offices in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and RICS SBE has campuses in Noida and Mumbai with combined staff strength of over 150.

India is a priority market for RICS in its vision of being a global professional body fit for the 21st century.  We are committed to expanding the footprint of RICS qualified professionals in India and embedding our standards via government policies, employers and end users.

Sachin will be leaving his role in January 2018 and will assist management in smooth transition.  RICS has commenced the process for seeking a new Managing Director for its South Asia Region.

Will Myles, Regional Managing Director - Asia Pacific, RICS said, “Sachin has been instrumental in building and leading a thriving and successful organization for RICS in South Asia. He leaves behind a strong team, which is well positioned to continue to serve the needs of stakeholders in India. We thank Sachin for his contribution and wish him all the best.”

Reflecting on the announcement, Sachin Sandhir said, “I am proud to have created a legacy in India by building a profession that will help the country address its built environment and skills challenges and raise standards in the sector.  At this time, having witnessed the first students joining the new Mumbai campus of RICS SBE, the time has come for me to look to my next challenge. I am confident that the profession is in safe hands for the future.”

Rural Talents of Karnataka Win Accolades at the World Skills Competition 2017 Held in Abu Dhabi

Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) talents have won 3^rd and 6^th position at the internationally renowned 44^th World Skills Competition that was held from October 15 to 18 at Abu Dhabi. Also called as the ‘Skill Olympics’, the coveted event is one of the most prestigious forums recognizing excellence in vocational education and skills.  All three contestants who represented TKM in the 44^th World Skill 2017 held in Abu Dhabi during Oct ’17 were trained at Toyota Technical Training Institute. While Kiran bagged the bronze medal in the Prototype Modelling Skill, H Varun and T A Anand Kumar, were ranked sixth amongst 39 participants from across the globe in the Mechatronics Skill category.

This year, the competition saw participation from more than 1300 competitors from 59 countries challenging each other in 51 skill categories. India took part in 26 categories winning 2 Medals (silver in patisseries and bronze in prototype) and 9 Medallions of excellence in the respective categories. The team which consisted of 28 talented young minds showcased the best ever performance by India since the country began to take part in the competition in 2007. The participants were selected through a nationwide screening process under the guidance of National Skill Development Council (NSDC).

Initiated in 1950, The World Skills Competition is the global hub for skills excellence and development through international cooperation and development between industry, government, organizations and institutions.  The competitors are all under the age of 22 years (except for four skills that have the age limit of 25).  It is considered to be the global meeting place for government, education, industry and association leaders to discuss relevant and important issues related to skills management.

Commenting on the occasion, Sailesh Shetty, Vice President (HR) Toyota Kirloskar Motor said, “We at Toyota are honored that contestants who have been trained at TTTI are making the nation proud at an international platform. The young dynamic talents from rural Karnataka have time and again made their mark at the World Skill Contest under the rigorous training from TTTI.  Toyota’s skill development initiatives are aimed at contributing to Honorable Prime Minister’s ‘Skill India’ mission by bridging the gap between India’s rapidly growing industrial sector and availability of highly skilled workforce to match up with ever changing auto industry. . We further look forward to contributing to India by passing our global manufacturing skills to budding talents across the nation”

As a part of its commitment towards developing world class skilled workforce for the emerging Indian Auto Industry, Toyota in 2007 established the Toyota Technical Training Institute (TTTI) which offers a three year rigorous full-time training in – Automobile Assembly, Automobile Paint, Automobile Weld and Mechatronics (a combination of mechanical and industrial electronics) to financially challenged students hailing from Below Poverty Line (BPL) families from across Karnataka. This institute exclusively emphasizes on over all development of the trainees as per industry requirements & towards “Perfecting people” and there by contributing young multi skilled, energetic, ideal students to the nation. Training Curriculum is a unique blend which focuses on the holistic development of Knowledge (16%), Skill (34%), Body and Mind (50%) of the students. Last year Toyota’s TTTI institute accomplished a key milestone of being selected for “Manufacturing Skill Transfer Promotion Programme” under the MoC signed by Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Government of Japan (METI) and Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Government of India (MSDE).

The company has been tirelessly working towards enhancing the employability quotient in the automobile manufacturing industry in India by promoting unique skill development:

·         Toyota Technical Training Institute (TTTI) offers a three year rigorous full-time training in – Automobile Assembly, Automobile Paint, Automobile Weld and Mechatronics (a combination of mechanical and industrial electronics) TTTI has also been selected as a part of this partnership between Japan and India for the “Manufacturing Skill Transfer Promotion Programme’’

·         Gurukul is a well-equipped learning center at TKM imparts diverse training to employees at all levels which helps them to improve their abilities and thoroughly fulfill their roles. Everyone who works in Toyota experiences 70% of their development through the job itself; and the experience serves as a driving force in developing the next generation

·         Toyota Technical Education Program (T-TEP) provides technical know-how training to ITI students across India along with providing hands on real time experience within Toyota dealerships

·         Toyota Tantrajna is a unique skill development project initiated in association with the Automotive Skills Development Council (ASDC).  A comprehensive year and a month plus [Program duration - 13.5 months] training module consists of an induction and fundamental skill training, On the Job development and class room training and trade knowledge training [including Language - English speaking skills, Computer soft skills, Interview etiquettes, etc.,].  After completion of course evaluation and certification by ASDC, TKM synergizes to connect the trainees with prospective employers through “Job Fair”. Toyota provides an attractive stipend, free commutation and canteen facility for the trainees during the training period.

·         Toyota Apprentice Scheme (TAS) – Under TAS, TKM has trained over 12,000 Apprentice Members (ITI, Diploma and Engineer) since 2002, which makes it one of the largest sources of providing such manpower to the industry

·         National Sales Skills Contest – Launched in 2014, National Sales Skill Contest is an initiative that provides Toyota’s dealer sales & service personnel to showcase their skill levels with a view to identify gaps and improvise. Held at three levels – across dealership, regional and national levels, the contestants are evaluated on various parameters such as knowledge, process demonstration, soft skills and role plays among others. Continuous training skills are imparted to hone the dealer personnel skill sets to meet the growing expectations and deliver Toyota’s best-of-all Quality, Durability & Reliability for ultimate customer delight

SAP Unveils First APJ Leonardo Center in Bangalore to Accelerate Digital Innovation Journey

SAP SE has announced the launch of APJ’s first SAP Leonardo Center in Bangalore, India. The fourth SAP Leonardo Center globally, the facility is ago-to place for SAP’s ecosystem for digital inspiration and co-innovation. The center is located in the new 5.15 lakh square feet facility of SAP Labs India Bengaluru campus which was inaugurated earlier this year.

“In today’s digital economy, technology empowers organizations to drive competitive differentiation, transform customer experiences, create innovative business models and achieve breakthrough business results,” said Bernd Leukert, Member of the SAP Executive Board, Products & Innovation. “Using Design Thinking and the capabilities of SAP Leonardo, our SAP Leonardo Centers provide a space for joint innovation.”

“We are proud to announce the opening of SAP Leonardo Center Bangalore, in the city at the heart of India’s innovation efforts. We look forward to accelerating the digital transformation of our customers using Design Thinking methodology and unleashing the potential of SAP Leonardo, our digital innovation portfolio,” said Tanja Rückert,  president of IoT and Digital Supply Chain at SAP.

SAP Leonardo Centers are a global network of connected, physical locations that are the go-to places for digital inspiration and co-innovation, while also being the delivery mechanism of SAP Leonardo Services. The state-of-the-art-facility in Bangalore will showcase key elements of digital transformation like IoT, Blockchain, Analytics, Machine Learning, Big Data, Data Intelligence and SAP Cloud Platform. The center will offer businesses access to SAP’s deep industry knowledge and leading technology capabilities across 25 industries, applied in a live technology delivery environment. It will also enable businesses to experience innovation through customized visits, design-thinking and co-innovation workshops and sessions. Other SAP Leonardo Centers locations include New York, U.S., Paris, France, and São Leopoldo, Brazil.

“As SAP's largest Research and Development Center outside its headquarters in Germany and a part of a connected lab network of 20 labs in 17 countries, the launch of SAP Leonardo Center at SAP Labs Bangalore campus was a natural choice. SAP Labs India is an innovation center making significant contributions to SAP’s flagship products. It combines a high concentration of customers and partners with one of SAP’s largest market units”, said Dilipkumar Khandelwal, president, SAP HANA Enterprise Cloud and managing director, SAP Labs India.

SAP Leonardo is a holistic digital innovation system that seamlessly integrates future-facing technologies and capabilities into the SAP Cloud Platform. It enables companies to rapidly innovate and scale, redefining their business for the digital world. Designed to be adaptable and open to bring innovation at scale to every industry, SAP Leonardo allows customers to build solutions specific to their industry or business needs.