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Industrial Cafes to offer customer support -- To serve as platform for SMEs

Our Bureau

BANGALORE, March 24

A VERTICAL portal serving the interests of small and medium enterprises (SME) has proposed to set up `Industrial Cafes', a platform which would serve as customer support and e-commerce training centres.

These cafes to be set up in 70 industrial locations across the country, would be used by the Indian Institute of Materials Management (IIMM), amongst others, to conduct training session for members and affiliates.

The indiamarkets.com (IMO), the portal company claiming the support of community of SMEs, plans to invest about Rs. 1 crores in the project.

Strategic locations in Bangalore, Delhi and Mumbai have been identified for the project. Peenya and Bommasandra, Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation estate at Ghatkopar in Mumbai and Okhla Industrial Estate in Delhi have been chosen for the in itial phase.

Mr. Rohan Ajila, Managing Director of indiamarkets.com, said the indiamarkets.com community of SMEs outsourcing materials from suppliers who are members of the IIMM would benefit immensely through exposure and interaction with each other at such fora. Th e interaction amongst various constituents of the value chain would also facilitate shared learnings in the area of supply chain management.

Mr. Ajila said IMO would make continuous initiatives with leaders in supply chain management, to help implement the best trade practices in the manufacturing sector. This, he said, would be achieved through training provided at Industrial Cafes. Earlier, Mr. Ajila and Mr. S.B. Lovekar, Vice-President, IIMM (South), announced that a three-day exposition on supply chain and logistics will be held here from May 4.

The exposition, Scale 2000, will be jointly organised by IIMM and IMO and leading business companies representing manufacturing, materials supply companies and supply chain and logistics.

Scale 2000 will be a comprehensive business fair featuring an international exhibition and technical conference on the theme `Supply Chain and Logistics Solutions for Business Optimisation'. Along with the exposition, indiamarkets.com will host a virtual exhibition on its web site. It will enable online registration for the fair as well as booking for seminars.