Introduction

Aluminium is the second most abundant metal on the earth’s crust. The global consumption of Aluminium in 2023 has been estimated to be around 95.3 MT[i] (Million Tonnes), in line with AL Circle’s report on Global Aluminium Industry Outlook 2023. According to AL Circle’s research, the global size of the Aluminium ecosystem is over USD 1.3 trillion [ii]. Hence, the Aluminium industry is already a major force to be reckoned with. The industry is also embracing the digital transformation to improve efficiency and quality. Connected manufacturing, Industry 4.0, Artificial Intelligence, Robotic Process Automation, etc., are no longer alien terms to the Aluminium realm as they used to be even a couple of years back. Along with the familiarity, the traction and mandate for leveraging digital transformation have also increased manifolds. According to AL Circle’s research, globally, more companies now have Chief Digital Officer or CDO roles, and a good percentage of them are also finding their place in the Board rooms of the major Aluminium companies worldwide.

However, this is a respect rather hard to earn. The Chief Digital Officers (CDOs) face a number of questions every day depending on several factors – the maturity of the organization in the digital journey, the strategic priorities, the funds allocated for the digital transformation, the supplier or technology ecosystem the CDO can access and the like.

7 Major Questions

These are also the challenges, and how the CDO handles these challenges plays a pivotal role in determining the success of the CDO and the digital transformation journey of the Aluminium company. Such challenges are expressed in more detail in the recent report named, “Digital Transformation in the Aluminium Industry”. The table of content can also be accessed here . The 7 challenges are the following:

1. How to select a tool or software solution for the specific area?

This is one of the major questions faced by the CDOs from their inner self as well as the board or the other CXOs (CEO, CFO, etc.). However, this a good question – the earlier asked the better.

2. How to calculate the cost benefit analysis for a solution?

There are various methods – the CDO will have to adopt one of the methods. The answer is given in the Digital Transformation report from the AL Circle team.

3. How do we plan for the infrastructure?

It depends on a number of factors, like the strategy, the tools selected, the data volume, and many other factors.

4. How do you start your journey towards exponential technologies?

This typically starts at the confluence of business priorities, what is possible and the model to marry the two. There are a number of tools and artefacts which may be leveraged to find the right answer to this question.

5. How do we ensure the adoption of the technology solutions?

This is one of the key challenges faced by the CDOs. There are a number of strategies which may be effective in change management and quick adoption.

6. How can AI help our company?

A number of commensurate case studies for the aluminium industry have been given in the Digital Transformation in the Aluminium Industry report of AL Circle.

7. What are the challenges the CDO can envisage in an aluminium company for the adoption of digital transformation?

The challenges may be many. Such challenges are highlighted in the report.

Conclusion:

The Aluminium sector is seeing an increasing demand for the CDO position, which will also increase in the days to come. To succeed in the aluminium company’s digital transformation journey, the CDO must be privy to the above-mentioned questions and their answers. The methodology adopted by the CDO should be in line with the right answers. The areas like marketing, sales, business operations, finance, procurement, and HR will remain the critical demand points for the various digital and exponential technology areas. The recent report from AL Circle also discusses the detailed use cases. One can also download the sample copy here.