Megatrends for industry

Mr. Rao defines megatrends as global, sustained and macro economic forces of development that impact business, economy, society, cultures, and personal lives, thereby defining our future world and its increasing pace of change.

The top 5 megatrends:
Urbanization:

• mega city has a minimum population of 10 million. Example: London
• mega region has cities combining with suburbs to form regions over 15 million. Example: Johannesburg and Pretoria (Jo-Toria)
• mega corridor - corridors connecting two major cities or mega regions. Example: Hong Kong/Shenzen/Guangdong Province in China

SMART

• Over 40 global cities to be SMART cities in 2020.
• Smart is the new green
• Smart Technology, buildings, energy, grid, cars, satellite towns, infrastructure

Generation Y: Personalized, individualized, civic and environmentally friendly, demanding and impatient.

Growth of middle class

• Differs among countries across the globe.
• By 2010 Middle class will account for 52% of population.

Move toward zero: zero debts, zero defects, zero accidents, zero emissions from cars, zero waste, zero emissions from factories

Infrastructure development - Example: Yekaterinburg, Russia

For the Automation & Power World audience, Mr. Rao listed industrial megatrends that are closely aligned with ABB's capabilities:

• Control-on-the-go
• Sustainable manufacturing
• Service delivery innovation
• Smart collaborative manufacturing
• E-convergence

Mr. Rao also provided a comprehensive list of megatrends that Frost & Sullivan have identified:

• Mega cities
• Mega regions
• Mega corridors
• SMART cities and infra
• Generation Y
• Women CEOs
• Power to the middle class
• Reverse brain drain and CXO positions in developing economies
• Geo socialization
• Beyond BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China)
• New trade zones
• Virtual world (haptic technology)
• New shores; emerging outsourcing hotspots
• Smart clouds
• Personal robots
• Future global 500 companies by region
• Congested satellite orbits
• Future of consumer electronics. wireless intelligence
• Innovative technologies of the future
• Electric mobility
• Future broadband applications
• Future of global power generation
• Future in investment infra: power, water, transportation
• World war 3: cyber warfare
• Innovation to zero: zero emission technologies
• Emerging transportation corridors
• New business models
• From Fat to Fit: Healthier, wellness, and well-being
• Factory of the future: SMART and GREEN