The Manufacturing Innovation Award
This category is about what happens on the shop floor — process, tooling, quality and throughput. It recognises manufacturing innovation measured in yield, cycle time, defects and cost per unit rather than in factory-of-the-future language.
- Independent jury
- 250
- Innovations evaluated
- 4,500+
- Star rating
- 1–5
- Running since
- 2010
Academics, scientists, officials, investors
Across seventeen editions
Every nominee earns an AGBA Innovation Star
India’s longest-running innovation award
Three categories sit close to data. This is the one about method and evidence.
Most nominations that fail here fail because they were in the wrong category. Read across before you write anything.
Innovation in Manufacturing
Process, tooling, quality and throughput work, measured on the line.
This category
Innovation in Industry 4.0 & 5.0
Connected plant, automation and human-machine collaboration across the enterprise.
Innovation in Supply Chain
Sourcing, logistics and planning around the plant rather than inside it.
Who should enter
- Process and tooling innovation with yield, cycle-time or scrap improvement
- Quality systems, inspection and metrology deployed on a production line
- Materials and chemistry work that changed what could be made or at what cost
- Additive, precision and advanced manufacturing at production volume
- Energy and resource efficiency inside the plant with metered results
What this award recognises is a line that runs better — fewer defects, shorter changeovers, less scrap. Pilot cells are welcome, but the numbers must come from production.
If the story is connected plant, automation or digital twins across the enterprise, enter Innovation in Industry 4.0 & 5.0. If it is sourcing or logistics, enter Innovation in Supply Chain.
What the jury looks for
- Problem definition & market opportunityWhether the innovation solves a real problem, backed by evidence and a measurable impact on its target audience.
- InnovativenessNovelty and uniqueness — new technology, functionality or business model — measured against what already exists, including IP.
- Market potential & impactSize and growth of the addressable market, competitive landscape, and scalability across geographies.
- Social impact & sustainabilityContribution to society and the environment, including social responsibility and the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
These are the same four criteria — problem definition, innovativeness, market impact and social/sustainability impact — used to assess every category. In this category the jury also weighs methodological rigour — including what you did to avoid fooling yourselves — the decision that changed as a result and what it was worth, the reproducibility and honesty of the evaluation, and the engineering quality of the data foundation underneath. Read the full evaluation criteria.
Who judges this category
Nominations are assessed by an independent jury, not by the organisers. Jurors are matched to the categories where their expertise lies. These are among those who read manufacturing and production engineering entries.
Prof Asim TewariG.K. Devarajulu Chair Professor, Mechanical Engineering, IIT Bombay
Prof. Manoj K TiwariDirector, National Institute of Industrial Engineering
Prof Surjya Kanta PalLord Kumar Bhattacharyya Chair Professor in Manufacturing, IIT Kharagpur
Prof. K. Srinivas ReddyProfessor, Mechanical Engineering, IIT Madras
Prof Amar SapraProfessor, Production and Operations Management, IIM Bangalore
Ms. ONG Soh KhimAssociate Professor, Mechanical Engineering, National University of Singapore
Dr. Shekhar C. MandeFormer Secretary, Department of Scientific and Industrial Research
Ms. Shobhana LeleChief Information Officer, The Bombay Dyeing and Manufacturing CompanyEight of roughly 250. The full panel spans the IITs, the IIMs, the IIITs, the Indian School of Business, NITI Aayog and central ministries, the Department of Science & Technology, MeitY and CERT-In. See the full jury panel.
The line on the podium
Manufacturing has been recognised across the recent editions, sometimes alongside a separate automation award. These are the most recent.
Previous winners
Manufacturing and automation have run as neighbouring awards across the editions; each row carries the name the award had that year. The complete record sits in the winners archive.
Category names have changed across editions as the field has moved; the rows above are the closest equivalents in the published record. See the winners archive for the full 1st–16th edition history.
What happens after you submit
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Stage one · nowNomination registration
Register your company and category through the nomination process, then complete the detailed nomination form and processing fee.
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Stage twoJury presentation
Present the innovation to the jury and take questions. Jurors score each entry against the four evaluation criteria and rank it within its category.
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Stage threeStar Certification
Nominees are also assessed for AGBA Innovation Star Certification, an independent maturity rating alongside the category judging.
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Stage fourFinalists announced
Once every category has been evaluated, finalists are announced on the website ahead of the ceremony.
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Stage fiveAward ceremony
Winners are honoured on 18 February 2027 at Hotel Ashoka, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi.
Before you write your nomination
Does the innovation have to be in production, or is a pilot line enough?
A pilot cell can be entered, but the evidence the panel weighs comes from production — yield, scrap, downtime and changeover data.
Is a materials or chemistry advance read here?
Yes, where it changed what could be manufactured, at what quality or at what cost. Say what became possible that was not before.
How is automation treated?
Automation that changes the process belongs here; connected-plant and enterprise-wide digital programmes fit Industry 4.0 and 5.0 better.
How do I submit a nomination?
Nominations are submitted through the nomination process, which sets out the stages, the supporting material required and the current edition’s dates.
Put your line in front of the panel
Nominations for the Manufacturing Innovation Award are read by an independent jury of production engineers and researchers. Bring the shop-floor numbers.