IDF 2019 Nominated Speaker: Bianca Putri Ramadhani Welcomed the 4.0 Revolution in the Textile Industry with BRIDG.IT ’

Bianca Putri Ramadhani

The textile and garment industry is not easy to adapt to the industrial revolution 4.0 so it needs a bridge. This was conveyed by one IDF 2019 Nominated Speaker, Bianca Putri Ramadhani, through her research entitled "BRIDG.IT for Sustainable Jobs". BRIDG.IT is a tool to help companies prepare themselves to welcome the industrial revolution 4.0.

"The government has prepared a road map for industry 4.0, but because I have experience in the industry, I feel that a bridge is still needed," Bianca explained.

Bianca is a Sustainability Project Leader at H&M Indonesia. Every day she focuses on the issue of sustainable development, specifically, on how global companies can improve their sustainability practices, help the success of global solutions, and make the sustainability agenda more attractive in terms of business.

Bianca's work is mainly related to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically in responsible consumption and production, affordable and clean energy, and climate action. Bianca holds a Masters in Chemical Engineering from the University of Indonesia. Previously, Bianca studied Environmental Engineering at the Bandung Institute of Technology.

The textile and garment industry is one of the focuses of Making Indonesia 4.0, Road Map Industry 4.0, which was launched in April 2018. Bianca explained that the growth of the Textile & Garment industry in 2017 was 6.6 percent, or had exceeded the national economic growth in 2017, amounting to 5.07 percent. More than that, the textile and garment industry constitutes an industry that absorbs a large number of workers, so it is necessary to think about how this industry will develop in the future.

"Companies must understand that automation is not the only manifestation of Industry 4.0 and will never put workers at risk of losing their jobs," Bianca explained.

Three Pillars of Anticipation in BRIDG.IT   

A bridge is needed to guide the textile and garment industry so that they know what to do to continuously retain their workers but at the same time remain sustainable. Bianca created a concept called BRIDG.IT.

"BRIDG.IT provides a user-friendly tool for textile and garment companies to determine their path to implement Industry 4.0," continued Bianca.

The BRIDG.IT concept refers to the 8th goal of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) that promote sustainable, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all. There are three pillars to this method.

First, Bridge the Value Drivers & Levers. In this case, the company sorts out the progress towards Industry 4.0 so that it can help determine the strategy that will be used.

Second, Bridge the Area & Technology. Technology is very important to improve the ability of factories to cope with changing market demands so that they remain globally competitive in the future.

"Companies must know in advance what areas and technologies must be approved. So, should all the areas adopt industry 4.0 or only a few areas? For example, is it related to quality, or shipping? It depends on each company," Bianca added.

Third, Bridge the Skill. If the area has been identified, then the roles of workers have to be organized.

"Companies must identify and develop a skills matrix to match the skills needed in the future," Bianca continued.

Three Skills for Workers

According to Bianca, the BRIDG.IT concept approach in industry 4.0 is people-centered. Bianca said there are three things that must be considered to prioritize the workers.

"Namely cognitive abilities, system skills, and complex problem-solving. Those are the three areas that must be bridged. Do not let the skills and knowledge of the workers to fall behind due to the rapid changes in technology and industry 4.0," Bianca added.

With these three capital skills, workers are prepared when facing the industrial revolution 4.0. Bianca pointed out, most workers in the garment industry work as sewing operators.

"Maybe they do it because it is their only skill, and in the future, as the sewing technology becomes more sophisticated, they will become highly dispensable," Bianca said.

When workers are equipped with cognitive abilities, system skills, and complex problem-solving skills, they will be able to carry out more complicated jobs.

"Changes in technology can lead to something good or bad, but it depends on us. When we decide to adopt industry 4.0, we must ensure that workers benefit from this decision, " Bianca said.

Bianca's research about how the textile and garment industry welcomes industry 4.0 was presented at IDF 2019 Ideas and Innovation Marketplace Co-creating and Collaborating session, on July 22. This study analyzed efforts to increase labor productivity and ensure employment creation towards the industrial revolution 4.0, as well as strategies to prepare the labor force and labor market to respond to industry 4.0. This discussion on industrial acceleration is part of sub-theme 1: Accelerating Structural Transformation, which compiles the big the 2019 IDF, "Mission Possible: Seizing the Opportunities of Future Work to Drive Inclusive Growth".