Sushim Banerjee, CEO, Indian Iron and Steel Sector Skill Council, in an exclusive interaction with Kanika Mathur discusses the skill gaps in the stainless steel manufacturing sector in this two part series. 

What are the key skill gaps you’ve identified in the stainless steel industry, and how is the Indian Iron and Steel Sector Skill Council addressing these gaps?  

The skill gaps in an industry are generally assessed based on the occupation mapping of the industry. Starting from the raw material procurement stage (chromium, nickel, molybdenum etc.), the handling of raw materials inside the plant, the processing of the raw materials to make them ready for the furnace to the process of melting and refining the primary output, continuous casting, hot rolling and forming, annealing and pickling, cold rolling, cutting and finishing, quality control and inspection and then to packaging and distribution, in each of these operational areas there are skill gaps that exist. 

It is the responsibility of the experienced personnel working in the plants and other experts in the industry to identify these gaps in terms of technical knowledge and skilling that enable the personnel to satisfactorily perform the operation with minimum wastage and cost. 

The whole gamut of SS production therefore can provide inputs for developing functional job roles with requisite contents and curriculum that can be prepared for the purpose. It is with this end in view the Iron and Steel Sector Skill Council (IISSSC) has developed the job role titled ‘stainless steel making.’ Secondly, as in SS sector, the role of downstream industries is predominant in terms of making a host of customized products of daily use out of Stainless Steel like, wheel rims, footrests, bumpers etc. in automobile, lhb coaches for railways, equipment for food processing industry, structural and decorative furnishings for ABC segment (Architecture, Building and Construction), artefacts, decorative pieces and cooking utensils for consumer goods segment. 

Currently, SS bars and structural sections are also being used for infrastructure construction. SS bars and sections are being used in bridges, railings, sitting spaces, doors and windows in the airport. It has been assessed that demand from ABC segment which currently has a share of 23 per cent in total SS consumption in the country is slated to go up to 27 per cent  in FY31.

In order to address this demand, a job role titled ‘Heavy Fabrication with Stainless Steel’ was developed by IISSSC with the active support from Jindal Stainless Steel. The required contents and curriculum have also been prepared by IISSSC. Shortly, the training programme for the downstream industries would commence. As this Qualification Package (QP) addresses primarily the joining with metals function with SS, the training components would emphasise this aspect.  

How is the rise of new technologies and automation impacting skill requirements in the stainless steel sector?

The infusion of new technologies including automation has led to changes in the working process and consequently in the skillsets requirements to address this transformation. 

The shift from manual to automated processes would result in reduction of repetitive jobs such as manual inspection and would lead to increased demand for technical and analytical skills to operate and maintain automated systems. There would be demand for Robotics and Automation Control. The demand for CNC Machining and Digital Manufacturing would rise that would necessitate skill raining on CNC Machine functioning and use in Stainless steel industry.

The adoption of Industry 4.0 and Smart Manufacturing would imply use of Industrial Internet of Things (IoT), AI and Big Data Analytics for process optimisation and predictive maintenance in SS plants. The application of AI would require that employees are able to read data from the sensors. 

The reliance on simulator-based welding using Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) would transform the welding technologies and lead to an improved fitting and fabrication methods. The Advanced Welding and Additive Manufacturing (3D printing) would further encourage laser and robotic welding.

All these technologies must precede a definitive set of skilling and training in AI-based machine learning, simulator-based welding, robotics and 3D printing.

In the ABC segment, there is a growing demand for façade and cladding with Stainless steel as these have been found to be sustainable and cost effective in architectural construction such as, airports, commercial complexes, escalators, lifts and canopies. Compliance with Bharat-VI norms would enhance the use of SS Steel in EVs and CNG operated Bus bodies.

The growing importance of green technologies would require skill training in various energy efficiency measures in stainless steel plants like use of natural gas, biomass etc., technologies such as Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS), Injection of green hydrogen in furnace etc. 

The stainless steel industry must spend on skill training of their existing employees on digitisation and new job roles in fabrication.

Could you elaborate on the training programmes or certifications that the Council offers to upskill the workforce in the stainless steel industry? 

The IISSSC set up in October, 2013, is an industry (Iron and steel, rerolling, sponge iron units, ferro alloys, steel construction and welding) driven non-profit company under Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) and National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) to develop Qualification Packages (QP) and National Occupational Standards (NOS) for various job roles relating to iron and steel and related industry, non-ferrous, foundry and forging sectors in the country, conduct training and assessment through affiliated agencies (trained trainers and trained assessors) and issue National Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF) aligned certificates to the successful candidates. 

IISSSC has been approved by National Council for Vocational Education and Training (NCVET) Govt of India as a National Awarding Body. The Governing Committee of the Council includes senior officials engaged in HR and Operations of major iron and steel companies like Steel Authority of India Ltd (SAIL), Rashtriya Ispat Nigam Limited (RINL), Tata Steel, JSW Steel, Jindal Steel and Power Limited (JSPL), AM/NS INDIA (Formerly Essar Steel), NMDC (Nagarnar Steel Plant), Mishra Dhatu Nigam (MIDHANI), Jindal Stainless, Arjas Steel, Bhushan Power & Steel, and Associations of Sponge Iron Manufacturers, All India Steel Rerollers, Indian Ferro Alloy Producers, Indian Foundry Association, Indian Refractory Manufacturers’ Association and Indian Institute of Welding etc. As a member of Task Forces of the Ministry of Steel (MoS) IISSSC is contributing a major role towards enabling the ecosystem for Green Steel in India.

IISSSC was advised by Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) on 4th April 2022 regarding inclusion of the non-ferrous sector in IISSSSC. The sectors include copper, aluminium, zinc, lead and others.

IISSSC offers three types of Training and certification programmes. These are:

1. Short Term Courses (3-4 months duration) for the freshers
2. Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) for upskilling and reskilling for the existing employees for short duration (2-6 days)
3. Apprentices (9 months to 1 year)

There has been a consistent endeavour by IISSSC, suitably advised and encouraged by MSDE to conduct upskilling programme for the steel industry. 

Jindal Stainless Steel was inducted into the Board of IISSSC in 2021.  It soon became one of the most enthusiastic and supportive organisations in the skill eco system and advised IISSSC on various skill development programmes. As an eminent board member, JSL hosted the quarterly board meeting of IISSSC in June, 2024.

Stainless steel industry in India has been undergoing a transformative phase in the past few years. The ABC segment had emerged as a major user segment for the stainless steel sector and as a prominent producer, the JSL was concerned about developing a skilled workforce especially in the downstream segments in order to penetrate successfully in the growing Infrastructure construction in the country. 

A job role on Stainless Steel Heavy Structure Fabricator was developed by IISSSC with active support from JSL and it was subsequently approved by NCVET for implementation. This job role is currently ready for upskilling programme for a host of downstream industries associated with fabrication of Stainless steel into various shapes and equipment customised for use in a host of Infra projects. 

The upskilling programme is primarily concerned with various steps in welding preparation for SS heavy fabrication and would engage simulator to learn the microstructural make-up of different grades of SS. Apart from training on use of specific tools and equipment for SS welding, the candidate would also be exposed to various welding techniques (TIG, MIG, Stick and Laser Welding) and understand the pre-weld and post-weld treatments to understand their influence on SS joint integrity. The NDT (Non-destructive techniques) would be elaborated to explain its contribution to identify flaws and irregularities within the welded joint. The candidate would be able to understand the variation of steel grades like, austenitic, ferritic, martensitic and duplex SS and their impact on welding properties. 

The upskilling programme would cover SS pipe welding, SS welding for girders, SS welding for columns and welding of stainless steel-clad plate.     

The duration of the upskilling programme would be flexible and would be decided in consultation with JSL. The uniqueness of the RPL Upskilling programme is assessment and evaluation, which is carried out by the independent Assessment Bodies affiliated with IISSSC to judge the effectiveness of the programme in making the candidates aware of the total operational areas and learn the new techniques in Welding and fabrication.

Generally, each batch size is composed of 25-30 candidates and IISSSC takes full responsibility of assigning the batches in advance to the assessment agencies for conducting the assessment on Skill India Digital Hub (SIDH) portal. The assessors must have undergone Train the Assessor (TOA) programme conducted by IISSSC who monitors the assessment process and records. 

The mode of assessment is Online (TAB/Computer) or Offline (OMR/PP). It is to be noted that the question papers of the assessor are pre-checked by the subject matter experts engaged by IISSSC. The question papers are prepared considering that level 1 to 3 are for the unskilled and semi-skilled individuals, and level 4 and above are for the skilled, supervisor and higher management. The time-stamped and geotagged assessment (Theory + Viva + Practical) photographs and videos are submitted to IISSSC. It is the responsibility of IISSSC to download the certificates of the successful candidates from the portal based on the marksheets given by the assessor and arrange to send it to JSL for onward despatch to the candidates. These certificates carry the logos of Skill India, JSL and IISSSC, name of the candidate, the job role in which the upskilling has been done and the NSQF level of 5.

The process of upskilling and certification is robust, defect free and serves as a great motivating factor for the candidates. IISSSC also provides handbooks containing valuable insights into the specific job roles like electrician, fitter-levelling and alignment, machinist, EOT cane operators, bearing maintenance, mobile equipment operator, Suraksha Sathi, etc.