By Naresh Kumar, COO, Lauritz Knudsen Electrical and Automation
“As India prepares for the Union Budget 2026, there is a clear opportunity to place productivity at the core of the country’s manufacturing strategy. Manufacturing is central to India’s ambition of becoming a developed economy by 2047, yet its contribution to GDP must rise meaningfully if this vision is to be realised.
Over the past few years, initiatives such as Make in India, the National Manufacturing Mission, and the Production Linked Incentive schemes have laid a strong foundation by encouraging capacity creation. The next phase of growth must now focus on how efficiently and intelligently factories operate, not merely on how many are built.
Productivity represents India’s largest untapped manufacturing advantage. A significant portion of the industrial base is approaching a natural modernisation inflection point, creating an opportunity to leapfrog legacy systems and embed automation, digital intelligence, and clean energy directly into factory design. This shift can position Indian manufacturing to compete globally by design and performance, not by cost alone.
Energy efficiency and reliability are critical levers in this transformation. Manufacturing accounts for a substantial share of India’s energy consumption, and improving energy intensity through clean energy integration, smart electrical infrastructure, and advanced energy management systems will be essential as industrial output scales. In parallel, reducing unplanned downtime through predictive maintenance and real time monitoring can materially improve operational resilience and supply chain reliability.
The upcoming Budget can accelerate this transition by supporting investments in automation, digitalisation, predictive technologies, and renewable ready industrial infrastructure, particularly for MSMEs. Productivity led growth will determine whether Indian manufacturing merely expands in scale or truly emerges as a global leader.
At Lauritz Knudsen Electrical and Automation, we remain committed to enabling this shift across factories large and small, spanning diverse sectors and stages of industrial maturity. By supporting manufacturers of all sizes with intelligent electrical and automation solutions, we aim to help build facilities that are smarter, more efficient, and future‑ready—aligned with India’s long‑term development priorities and its aspiration to emerge as a global manufacturing leader.
