94. Entrepreneurial Model for Supporting Handicrafts Clusters in the Context of Industry 4.0

There has been a progressive drop in the craft sector due to the rising market in the twenty-first century. This resulted in a loss of market for crafts entrepreneurs. In this context, an example of the bell metal industry is discussed. Sarthebari is a traditional crafts cluster hub in Assam, Northeast India. The bell metal industry is in high demand in Assam and other states and countries. A bell metal cluster (locally known as Kanhar or Ojha) employs 6–7 male workers/craftsmen to make bell metal products. Traditional tools such as the hammer, tong, and niyari (popularly known in the Assamese language) are used to make bell metal crafts. The first step in the manufacturing process is obtaining raw materials such as charcoal, borax, zinc, copper, and tin. The rejected metal is subsequently melted into an earthen pot known as a Mohi. The melted metal is cooled by immersing it in water to prepare it by hand. Due to the traditional manufacturing process, craftspeople have lost their ability to compete in the market. In this regard, the crafts cluster is experiencing a value clash in traditional culture and socioeconomic points of view. However, technological advancement is one of the most important reasons driving up crafts and society’s needs. The Industry 4.0 strategy aspires to achieve excellence in design and development through innovation and technology. It can be facilitated to streamline the activities of crafts clusters without losing their identity traits. It is possible to establish an interdisciplinary collaboration between industrial designers, industrial manufacturers, and craftsmen. The research proposal intends to validate the finding of a qualitative study conducted with collaborative tools to improve knowledge and contribute to developing and consolidating crafts activities for crafts entrepreneurs. The research work is a comprehensive study of the traditional bell metal manufacturing process method that is still followed in Assam by the local craftsman. The finding of the research work helps to study, compare, and upgrade the traditional bell metal manufacturing process with the intervention of Industry 4.0. This intervention will help retain the traditional method without hampering the quality and increase quantity in less time and man labor.