A Survey on Existing Facilities and Infrastructure in Small-Scale Machining Industries Dimensions and Future Prospects

This chapter presents an exploratory study based on an industrial survey concerning the status of machining industries in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India, which is known for its lock and hardware industry worldwide. The survey was performed on 50 manufacturing firms that are directly involved with basic machining processes. The developed questionnaire dealt with four fundamental concerns. The first concern is the machining industry's current status in terms of employed workpieces, machine tools, cutting fluids, etc., and the type of products from each. The second question concerns the methods/technologies used at their shop floor like cutting fluid application methods, automation levels, quality control measures/practices, etc. And the last concern is related to the problems associated with the existing facilities and future initiatives to be taken to better the firm's overall performance. Survey responses showed that most respondents are engaged with conventional processes, machine tools, cutting fluids, etc. Furthermore, the conventional application method of cutting fluids resulted in wastage, economic loss and health, and environmental concerns. The response from future initiatives/investments showed that introducing new cutting tool materials, automation and quality control practices, new cutting fluid and its application method, and quality control practices are the most common future developments opted by manufacturers. Lastly, sustainable-based solutions and discussions have been made from available peer works.