Concrete

Innovative AFR

Published

2 years ago

December 13, 2023

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Asok Kr. Dikshit, Richa Mazumder, Sanjeev Kr. Chaturvedi and Lok Pratap Singh, National Council for Cement and Building Materials (NCB), discuss the themes of sustainable development in India’s cement sector, in the concluding section of a three-part series.

Studies carried out in NCB in the area of raw material substitution are discussed below:

I. Investigation for Standardisation of High Magnesia (MgO) Clinker for the Manufacture of PPC and PSC Blended Cement
The objective of this study was to investigate the performance of PPC and PSC cements prepared from high magnesia clinker to utilise high MgO bearing low grade limestone for the manufacturing of Portland clinker resulting in preservation of natural resources and sustainable development. Four types of high MgO clinker samples containing MgO as high as upto 8.4 per cent from different cement plants were procured along with other cementitious and additive samples such as fly ash, GBF slag and gypsum for the manufacture of OPC, PPC and PSC. These cement samples were prepared by intergrinding the constituents in a laboratory ball mill keeping the fineness level 350±10 m2/kg. The results of investigation revealed that addition of fly ash and granulated blast furnace slag (GBFS) in the blended cements prepared from high MgO clinker samples were found to have potential effect on arresting the expansion caused by periclase (MgO). The minimum fly ash content was optimised to be 25 per cent by weight in case of PPC and the minimum slag content was optimised to be 35 per cent in case PSC while utilising high MgO clinker for the manufacture of blended cement. The performance results obtained so far are quite encouraging. Use of high magnesia (MgO) clinker for the manufacturing of the PPC and PSC will pave the way for utilisation of high MgO content low grade limestone containing high MgO resulting in increased mine life besides improved sustainability in cement manufacture.

II. Manufacture of Synthetic Gypsum from Marble Slurry for Subsequent use in
Cement Production
The generation of waste marble slurry in India is in the range of 5 to 6 million tonnes per annum. The heaps of this waste material occupy large land areas and remain scattered all around at the marble processing unit, affecting the environment, eco-system and health of the people in the area. The chemical composition of marble slurry indicates predominance of calcium carbonate which is a suitable raw material for various industrial applications. One of its possible areas of utilisation is its conversion into gypsum that can be used as set controller in cement industry. Marble slurry samples were collected from clusters at Kishangarh, Makrana, Rajsamand and Udaipur in Rajasthan and characterised for their physical and chemico-mineralogical properties. Samples of synthetic gypsum with well grown crystalline phases were prepared in the laboratory by inducing chemical reaction using sulphuric acid and marble slurry. The amount of sulphuric acid to be consumed in its complete reaction with marble slurry was found to be dependent on the composition of the marble slurry especially on CaO and MgO content. The physical characteristics like specific gravity and whiteness index of the laboratory prepared gypsum samples were found to be more or less comparable to mineral gypsum. The percentage purity of different synthetic gypsum samples prepared were 87.91, 89.55, 86.02 and 88.26 per cent.

III. Production of Synthetic Slag from Low Grade Limestone
For development of Synthetic Slag using low-grade limestone, a study was carried out at NCB laboratory. In this study laboratory slag samples prepared with low-grade limestones and other additive materials, which found to be conforming the IS: 12089-1987. These laboratories made synthetic slag samples as shown in Fig 9. were also investigated by optical microscopy as shown in Fig 10. They found to have maximum 92 per cent glass content, which is greater than 85 per cent as specified in IS-12089. PSC samples were prepared with 40 and 60 per cent synthetic slag replacing equal quantity of clinker. The performance of PSC blends prepared using synthetic slag sample equal quantity of clinker. The performance of PSC blends prepared using synthetic slag sample were found as per requirements of Indian Standard Specification, IS: 455-1989 for PSC. As the limestone, which is getting depleted and has reached to an alarming level where the availability of cement grade limestone in India has reduced to 8949 million tonnes only, Synthetic Slag may play a vital role to replace clinker or indirectly cement grade limestone. However, the main challenge would be to produce synthetic slag at industrial scale.

Clinker substitution
A very effective strategy towards resource management and reduce CO2 emissions is to substitute some of the Portland cement clinker with other materials. These are known variously as mineral additions or supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs), and also include almost inert materials, which may also be called fillers. Clinker can be blended with a range of alternative materials, including pozzolans, finely ground limestone and waste materials or industrial by-products. The most common clinker substitutes are reactive by-products from other industries: granulated blast furnace slag (GBFS),a by-product of pig-iron production in blast furnaces, and fly ash (FA), generated by burning coal to produce electricity.
The clinker-to-cement ratio (percentage of clinker compared to other non-clinker components) has an impact on the properties of cement so standards determine the type and proportion of alternative main constituents that can be used. To ensure the future use of other constituents, the cement industry is dependent on the local supply of these materials. The use of other constituents in cement and the reduction of the clinker-to-cement ratio means lower emissions and lower energy use. Other materials that can be used: Natural pozzolans, such as clays, shale and certain types of sedimentary rocks., Limestone (finely ground), which can be added to clinker (without being heated and transformed into lime), Silica fume, a pozzolanic material and a by-product in the production of silicon or ferrosilicon alloys, Granulated blast furnace slag (GBFS), Fly ash etc.
Apart from these NCB also worked on several projects like Portland Limestone Cement, Composite cement, Portland Dolomitic Cement etc. NCB in one of its projects has successfully utilised up to 15 per cent dolomite as an additive replacing equal quantity of clinker. The cement performance was found to be similar to that of control cement prepared without dolomite.
Similarly, NCB has carried out several studies on composite cement wherein combinations of fly ash and granulated blast furnace slag were used for preparing composite cement blends. BIS has brought out standard specification IS: 16415-2015 for composite cement on recommendations of NCB.
Development of Portland Composite Cement (Fly ash/Slag and Limestone based), Development of Portland Limestone Cement (PLC), utilisation of low grade limestone and mines rejects, Utilisation of Construction and demolished waste (C&D) waste based aggregates in concrete structures and pavements are some of the key areas, where Indian Cement Industry and NCB is working together towards natural resource management and promoting circular economy which are the key themes towards sustainable development in cement sector. Some of the work that has been carried out in NCB discussed below:

I. Investigations on Development of Portland Composite Cements based on Fly Ash and Limestone
Portland composite cement blends were prepared (80 nos.) with four types of clinker from different regions of India along with the regional available Fly ash and limestone. The materials were ground in a laboratory ball mill with a capacity of about 8 kg by inter-grinding method. The clinker inter-ground with 3.7 per cent of gypsum by mass is referred to as OPC. A series of tests was carried out on various mixes of limestone-fly ash cement mortars in order to investigate the effects of using different percentages of lime and fly ash as a replacement of cement on the compressive strength of such mortars at various ages. Different mix proportions were adopted for the experimental work. Clinker quality plays an important role on performance of limestone and fly ash based composite cements. PCC samples containing Fly ash and Limestone up to the level off 30 per cent and 7 per cent respectively comply with IS 16415-2015 at all ages. Lower levels of limestone additions show higher percentage of difference between IS requirements and obtained results. Whereas 10 per cent replacement shows marginal difference between IS requirements and obtained results. PCC samples of 5 per cent replacement of Flyash with Limestone comply performance with respective PPC samples at all ages.

II. Investigations on Portland Limestone Cement
European Standard EN-197-1 permits the use of maximum 35 per cent limestone in the manufacture of Portland Limestone Cement. Presently, in India, there is no standard on Portland Limestone Cement. The main objective of the study is to investigate the feasibility of using different grades of limestone in development of Portland Limestone Cement in order to formulate new Indian standard for its commercialisation along with lowering in clinker factor in cement for environmental sustainability. To carry out the study, different Portland Limestone Cement blends were prepared by inter-grinding of 10, 20 and 30 wt. per cent cement grade of limestone, dolomitic limestone and low grade limestone with OPC clinker and gypsum. The cement blends were designated as PLC-A, PLC-B and PLC-C corresponding to cement grade limestone, dolomitic limestone and low grade limestone. The trend of compressive strength development showed marginal reduction in strength development with increasing dosages of limestone in cement mix. However, increase in the early strength has observed with addition of low quality of limestone that may be attributed to the formation of monocarboaluminate phase.

Alternative Binders
The idea of alternative binders/novel cements is to introduce different raw materials in clinker and cement manufacturing processes without compromising the efficiency and quality of cement that will emit less CO2 and utilise less energy. Below is a detailed description of potential alternative binders/novel cements.
A. Alkali-Activated Cements: Alkali-activated cements belong to family of hydraulic cements that are characterised by a high content of aluminosilicates bonding phase. Aluminosilicates are not reactive with water, or their reaction is too slow. However, due to their high amorphous content, they hydrolyse and condense when placed in alkaline medium, forming 3-D polymeric structures that have load-bearing ability (Habert et al. 2014). In cements, the natural alkalinity of the system and portlandite fulfill these reactions, while in the absence of Portland cement, a strong base is needed to activate the amorphous aluminosilicates (Habert et al. 2014). Based upon the composition of cementitious components, alkali-activated cements are classified into five major categories (Shi et al. 2018)
I. Alkali-activated slag-based cements
II. Alkali-activated pozzolan cements
III. Alkali-activated lime-pozzolan/slag cements
IV. Alkali-activated calcium aluminate blended cements
V. Alkali-activated Portland blended cements
In NCB a study on Investigation on Development of Geopolymeric Cements has been carried out and discussed in detail below:

I. Development of Geopolymeric Cements
Investigation on formation and properties of geopolymeric cements based on alkali investigation of low lime coarser flyash have being taken up. The alkali treated flyash sample were subjected to initial thermal curing at two different temperatures upto 90° C for varying retention periods. SEM studies indicated the formation of geopolymers.

The performance of geopolymeric cement was found to be influenced by initial thermal curing conditions and therefore need optimisation. Investigations have also been carried out for preparation of cementitious binders at 27°C temperature using rationalised curing conditions by alkali activation of blends of fly ash with granulated blast furnace slag (GBFS) having 94 percent glass content. Studies indicated that ratio of fly ash and GGBFS in the blend affects the compressive strength property. The blend ratio as well as water content at fixed range of Na2O required to be optimised to obtain better compressive strength property. SEM image of alkali activated fly ash – GGBFS system cured for 28 days indicated formation of CSH gel along with NASH in this system resulting in development of compressive strength at 27°C
B. Belite-Rich Portland Cement: Belite-rich Portland clinkers are produced with the same process as ordinary Portland cement clinkers, but with less limestone in the clinker raw material mix, as well as lower clinkering temperatures so CO2 generation is reduced. The concept of belite-rich Portland cement is not new, but it takes advantage of the fact that modern OPCs have very high alite (C3S) contents. Market demand for rapid concrete hardening has driven cement manufacturers towards higher and higher alite contents, at the expense of higher
GHG emissions.
Belite-rich Portland cement belong to the same family as ordinary Portland cement in terms of clinker mineralogy, i.e., they are in the C2S-C3S-C3A-C4AF system. They are also commonly known as high belite cements (HBC). The difference in clinker composition lies mainly in the belite/alite ratio. For HBC the belite content is generally more than 40 per cent and alite normally less than 35 per cent, making belite the most abundant phase, as opposed to alite.
It has been established by various researches that belite-rich Portland cement typically exhibit similar setting times, lower water demands, lower heat evolution and early strength gain but
higher later age strength, and lower drying shrinkage compared with OPC. It has also shown better resistance to sulfates and chlorides, mainly due to the smaller proportion of portlandite in the hydration products.
It typically attains similar 28-day strengths to OPCs, and gain additional strength more rapidly than OPCs at later ages (Gartner et al. 2016).
A key reason they are not currently widely used is that they gain strength much more slowly than most OPCs. Such cements are well suited for niche markets where the strength gain after a few days is not critical. They are mainly employed for reasons of their low heat of hydration in the construction of massive concrete dams and foundations.
C. Calcium Sulfoaluminate (CSA) Cement: Calcium sulfoaluminate (CSA) cements are types of cements that contain high alumina content. To produce CSA clinker, bauxite, limestone, and gypsum are mixed together in a rotary kiln (Phair et al. 2006). By utilising CSA compositions, limestone quantity is reduced in the kiln that not only benefits in reduced thermal energy (up to 25 per cent) but also decreased CO2 emissions (up to 20 per cent) compared to the Portland cement. Industrial waste materials can also be used as raw materials for manufacturing CSA cements and thus calcium sulfoaluminate cements have significant environmental advantages.
It has the characteristics of early strength, high strength, high impermeability, high frost resistance, corrosion resistance, low alkali and low production energy consumption. They are widely used in rapid construction, rapid repair, winter construction, marine environments and underground engineering (Wang et al. 1999, Coppola et al. 2018). Its clinker is mainly composed of C4A3S (ye’elimite, 3CaO•3Al2O3•CaSO4) and ß-C2S (belite, 2CaO•SiO2). Among them, C4A3S is an early strength mineral that can quickly hydrate to AFt (ettringite, 3CaO•Al2O3•3CaSO4•32H2O) in the presence of gypsum to provide early strength (Hargis et al. 2013). Compared with C3S (alite, 3CaO•SiO2), the main mineral component of Portland cement, the formation temperature of C4A3S and the content of CaO are lower (Ali et al. 1994). Advantages of using CSA is that it not only saves a great deal of coal, power and limestone resources thus help in natural resource management but also reduces GHG emissions. However, it has many disadvantages also, such as the low percentage and slow hydration of C2S, resulting in no significant increase in the later strength of CSA and the formation of C4A3S, (ye’elimite) requires a large amount of natural gypsum and high-quality aluminium resources (Su et al. 2019).

Alternative fuels
Alternative Fuel (AF) becomes more popular to the cement manufacturer due to increasing fossil fuel prices, limited fossil fuel resources and environmental concerns. Generally fossil fuels such as coal, petroleum coke (petcoke) and natural gas provide the thermal energy required for cement industry. Usage of AF cover all non-fossil fuels and waste from other industries including tire-derived fuels, biomass residues, sewage sludge and different commercial wastes (Nielsen et al. 2011). These alternative fuels not only reduce CO2 emissions but also contribute to waste management and promote circular economy principles. Additionally, advancements in technology and improved combustion processes have made the use of alternative fuels more efficient and cost-effective.
The use of alternative fuels in cement manufacturing not only promotes circular economy but also helps in natural resource management. It is also one of the effective methods of achieving lower production costs. The process of clinker production in kiln systems creates favourable conditions for use of alternative fuels which include: high temperatures, long residence times, an oxidising atmosphere, alkaline environment, ash retention in clinker, and high thermal inertia. These conditions make certain that the fuel’s organic part is destroyed and the inorganic part, including heavy metals is trapped and combined in the product.
The cement manufacturers are consuming all possible Alternative fuels like refuse-derived fuel (RDF), industrial plastic, biomass, tyre chips, waste generated by pharmaceutical industry, Paint industry, Agro industry, Paper industry, chemical industry etc. (Mohapatra et al. 2014; Shaw et al. 2017). It is proposed to use either solar energy or hydrogen gas to mitigate for future energy demand in cement plants. India also has plan to emerge as a global electrolysers manufacturing hub to meet domestic demand and to emerge as a leading electrolyser exporter in future.

Conclusion
NCB’s current Research areas are well aligned to national priorities and requirement of society at large and include research in the area of low carbon and multi component blended cements, alternative binders and cementitious materials, alternate fuels and raw materials, productivity and environment improvement in cement industry etc. The research outcomes from these projects will provide Indian cement, building materials and construction industry a technologically sound platform to further reduce CO2 emissions, energy consumption and resource and environment conservation, higher thermal substitution rates etc. to achieve sustainability and cost optimisation taking due care of national and international commitments. The Research and Innovation projects of NCB are well aligned with the vision and mission of Government of India like decarbonisation, implementation of circular economy, increased sustainability etc.

Acknowledgment
*The Authors wish to acknowledge the Director General of National Council for Cement and Building Materials (NCB) for giving permission for publication and DPIIT, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, GOI, through various R&D projects supporting financial support for sustainable development of cement Industry. The Authors also acknowledge all scientific and technical staff of NCB for cooperation through R&D work for sustainability of cement
industry related projects.
Conflict of interest: The authors have no conflicts of interest, financially and ethically, to publish in this review work.

For a full list of references, visit www.indiancementreview.com.

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Concrete

Refractory demands in our kiln have changed

Published

3 days ago

February 20, 2026

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Radha Singh, Senior Manager (P&Q), Shree Digvijay Cement, points out why performance, predictability and life-cycle value now matter more than routine replacement in cement kilns.

As Indian cement plants push for higher throughput, increased alternative fuel usage and tighter shutdown cycles, refractory performance in kilns and pyro-processing systems is under growing pressure. In this interview, Radha Singh, Senior Manager (P&Q), Shree Digvijay Cement, shares how refractory demands have evolved on the ground and how smarter digital monitoring is improving kiln stability, uptime and clinker quality.

How have refractory demands changed in your kiln and pyro-processing line over the last five years?
Over the last five years, refractory demands in our kiln and pyro line have changed. Earlier, the focus was mostly on standard grades and routine shutdown-based replacement. But now, because of higher production loads, more alternative fuels and raw materials (AFR) usage and greater temperature variation, the expectation from refractory has increased.
In our own case, the current kiln refractory has already completed around 1.5 years, which itself shows how much more we now rely on materials that can handle thermal shock, alkali attack and coating fluctuations. We have moved towards more stable, high-performance linings so that we don’t have to enter the kiln frequently for repairs.
Overall, the shift has been from just ‘installation and run’ to selecting refractories that give longer life, better coating behaviour and more predictable performance under tougher operating conditions.

What are the biggest refractory challenges in the preheater, calciner and cooler zones?
• Preheater: Coating instability, chloride/sulphur cycles and brick erosion.
• Calciner: AFR firing, thermal shock and alkali infiltration.
• Cooler: Severe abrasion, red-river formation and mechanical stress on linings.
Overall, the biggest challenge is maintaining lining stability under highly variable operating conditions.

How do you evaluate and select refractory partners for long-term performance?
In real plant conditions, we don’t select a refractory partner just by looking at price. First, we see their past performance in similar kilns and whether their material has actually survived our operating conditions. We also check how strong their technical support is during shutdowns, because installation quality matters as much as the material itself.
Another key point is how quickly they respond during breakdowns or hot spots. A good partner should be available on short notice. We also look at their failure analysis capability, whether they can explain why a lining failed and suggest improvements.
On top of this, we review the life they delivered in the last few campaigns, their supply reliability and their willingness to offer plant-specific custom solutions instead of generic grades. Only a partner who supports us throughout the life cycle, which includes selection, installation, monitoring and post-failure analysis, fits our long-term requirement.

Can you share a recent example where better refractory selection improved uptime or clinker quality?
Recently, we upgraded to a high-abrasion basic brick at the kiln outlet. Earlier we had frequent chipping and coating loss. With the new lining, thermal stability improved and the coating became much more stable. As a result, our shutdown interval increased and clinker quality remained more consistent. It had a direct impact on our uptime.

How is increased AFR use affecting refractory behaviour?
Increased AFR use is definitely putting more stress on the refractory. The biggest issue we see daily is the rise in chlorine, alkalis and volatiles, which directly attack the lining, especially in the calciner and kiln inlet. AFR firing is also not as stable as conventional fuel, so we face frequent temperature fluctuations, which cause more thermal shock and small cracks in the lining.
Another real problem is coating instability. Some days the coating builds too fast, other days it suddenly drops, and both conditions impact refractory life. We also notice more dust circulation and buildup inside the calciner whenever the AFR mix changes, which again increases erosion.
Because of these practical issues, we have started relying more on alkali-resistant, low-porosity and better thermal shock–resistant materials to handle the additional stress coming from AFR.

What role does digital monitoring or thermal profiling play in your refractory strategy?
Digital tools like kiln shell scanners, IR imaging and thermal profiling help us detect weakening areas much earlier. This reduces unplanned shutdowns, helps identify hotspots accurately and allows us to replace only the critical sections. Overall, our maintenance has shifted from reactive to predictive, improving lining life significantly.

How do you balance cost, durability and installation speed during refractory shutdowns?
We focus on three points:
• Material quality that suits our thermal profile and chemistry.
• Installation speed, in fast turnarounds, we prefer monolithic.
• Life-cycle cost—the cheapest material is not the most economical. We look at durability, future downtime and total cost of ownership.
This balance ensures reliable performance without unnecessary expenditure.

What refractory or pyro-processing innovations could transform Indian cement operations?
Some promising developments include:
• High-performance, low-porosity and nano-bonded refractories
• Precast modular linings to drastically reduce shutdown time
• AI-driven kiln thermal analytics
• Advanced coating management solutions
• More AFR-compatible refractory mixes

These innovations can significantly improve kiln stability, efficiency and maintenance planning across the industry.

Concrete

Digital supply chain visibility is critical

Published

3 days ago

February 20, 2026

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MSR Kali Prasad, Chief Digital and Information Officer, Shree Cement, discusses how data, discipline and scale are turning Industry 4.0 into everyday business reality.

Over the past five years, digitalisation in Indian cement manufacturing has moved decisively beyond experimentation. Today, it is a strategic lever for cost control, operational resilience and sustainability. In this interview, MSR Kali Prasad, Chief Digital and Information Officer, Shree Cement, explains how integrated digital foundations, advanced analytics and real-time visibility are helping deliver measurable business outcomes.

How has digitalisation moved from pilot projects to core strategy in Indian cement manufacturing over the past five years?
Digitalisation in Indian cement has evolved from isolated pilot initiatives into a core business strategy because outcomes are now measurable, repeatable and scalable. The key shift has been the move away from standalone solutions toward an integrated digital foundation built on standardised processes, governed data and enterprise platforms that can be deployed consistently across plants and functions.
At Shree Cement, this transition has been very pragmatic. The early phase focused on visibility through dashboards, reporting, and digitisation of critical workflows. Over time, this has progressed into enterprise-level analytics and decision support across manufacturing and the supply chain,
with clear outcomes in cost optimisation, margin protection and revenue improvement through enhanced customer experience.
Equally important, digital is no longer the responsibility of a single function. It is embedded into day-to-day operations across planning, production, maintenance, despatch and customer servicing, supported by enterprise systems, Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) data platforms, and a structured approach to change management.

Which digital interventions are delivering the highest ROI across mining, production and logistics today?
In a capital- and cost-intensive sector like cement, the highest returns come from digital interventions that directly reduce unit costs or unlock latent capacity without significant capex.
Supply chain and planning (advanced analytics): Tools for demand forecasting, S&OP, network optimisation and scheduling deliver strong returns by lowering logistics costs, improving service levels, and aligning production with demand in a fragmented and regionally diverse market.
Mining (fleet and productivity analytics): Data-led mine planning, fleet analytics, despatch discipline, and idle-time reduction improve fuel efficiency and equipment utilisation, generating meaningful savings in a cost-heavy operation.
Manufacturing (APC and process analytics): Advanced Process Control, mill optimisation, and variability reduction improve thermal and electrical efficiency, stabilise quality and reduce rework and unplanned stoppages.
Customer experience and revenue enablement (digital platforms): Dealer and retailer apps, order visibility and digitally enabled technical services improve ease of doing business and responsiveness. We are also empowering channel partners with transparent, real-time information on schemes, including eligibility, utilisation status and actionable recommendations, which improves channel satisfaction and market execution while supporting revenue growth.
Overall, while Artificial Intelligence (AI) and IIoT are powerful enablers, it is advanced analytics anchored in strong processes that typically delivers the fastest and most reliable ROI.

How is real-time data helping plants shift from reactive maintenance to predictive and prescriptive operations?
Real-time and near real-time data is driving a more proactive and disciplined maintenance culture, beginning with visibility and progressively moving toward prediction and prescription.
At Shree Cement, we have implemented a robust SAP Plant Maintenance framework to standardise maintenance workflows. This is complemented by IIoT-driven condition monitoring, ensuring consistent capture of equipment health indicators such as vibration, temperature, load, operating patterns and alarms.
Real-time visibility enables early detection of abnormal conditions, allowing teams to intervene before failures occur. As data quality improves and failure histories become structured, predictive models can anticipate likely failure modes and recommend timely interventions, improving MTBF and reducing downtime. Over time, these insights will evolve into prescriptive actions, including spares readiness, maintenance scheduling, and operating parameter adjustments, enabling reliability optimisation with minimal disruption.
A critical success factor is adoption. Predictive insights deliver value only when they are embedded into daily workflows, roles and accountability structures. Without this, they remain insights without action.

In a cost-sensitive market like India, how do cement companies balance digital investment with price competitiveness?
In India’s intensely competitive cement market, digital investments must be tightly linked to tangible business outcomes, particularly cost reduction, service improvement, and faster decision-making.
This balance is achieved by prioritising high-impact use cases such as planning efficiency, logistics optimisation, asset reliability, and process stability, all of which typically deliver quick payback. Equally important is building scalable and governed digital foundations that reduce the marginal cost of rolling out new use cases across plants.
Digitally enabled order management, live despatch visibility, and channel partner platforms also improve customer centricity while controlling cost-to-serve, allowing service levels to improve without proportionate increases in headcount or overheads.
In essence, the most effective digital investments do not add cost. They protect margins by reducing variability, improving planning accuracy, and strengthening execution discipline.

How is digitalisation enabling measurable reductions in energy consumption, emissions, and overall carbon footprint?
Digitalisation plays a pivotal role in improving energy efficiency, reducing emissions and lowering overall carbon intensity.
Real-time monitoring and analytics enable near real-time tracking of energy consumption and critical operating parameters, allowing inefficiencies to be identified quickly and corrective actions to be implemented. Centralised data consolidation across plants enables benchmarking, accelerates best-practice adoption, and drives consistent improvements in energy performance.
Improved asset reliability through predictive maintenance reduces unplanned downtime and process instability, directly lowering energy losses. Digital platforms also support more effective planning and control of renewable energy sources and waste heat recovery systems, reducing dependence on fossil fuels.
Most importantly, digitalisation enables sustainability progress to be tracked with greater accuracy and consistency, supporting long-term ESG commitments.

What role does digital supply chain visibility play in managing demand volatility and regional market dynamics in India?
Digital supply chain visibility is critical in India, where demand is highly regional, seasonality is pronounced, and logistics constraints can shift rapidly.
At Shree Cement, planning operates across multiple horizons. Annual planning focuses on capacity, network footprint and medium-term demand. Monthly S&OP aligns demand, production and logistics, while daily scheduling drives execution-level decisions on despatch, sourcing and prioritisation.
As digital maturity increases, this structure is being augmented by central command-and-control capabilities that manage exceptions such as plant constraints, demand spikes, route disruptions and order prioritisation. Planning is also shifting from aggregated averages to granular, cost-to-serve and exception-based decision-making, improving responsiveness, lowering logistics costs and strengthening service reliability.

How prepared is the current workforce for Industry 4.0, and what reskilling strategies are proving most effective?
Workforce preparedness for Industry 4.0 is improving, though the primary challenge lies in scaling capabilities consistently across diverse roles.
The most effective approach is to define capability requirements by role and tailor enablement accordingly. Senior leadership focuses on digital literacy for governance, investment prioritisation, and value tracking. Middle management is enabled to use analytics for execution discipline and adoption. Frontline sales and service teams benefit from
mobile-first tools and KPI-driven workflows, while shop-floor and plant teams focus on data-driven operations, APC usage, maintenance discipline, safety and quality routines.
Personalised, role-based learning paths, supported by on-ground champions and a clear articulation of practical benefits, drive adoption far more effectively than generic training programmes.

Which emerging digital technologies will fundamentally reshape cement manufacturing in the next decade?
AI and GenAI are expected to have the most significant impact, particularly when combined with connected operations and disciplined processes.
Key technologies likely to reshape the sector include GenAI and agentic AI for faster root-cause analysis, knowledge access, and standardisation of best practices; industrial foundation models that learn patterns across large sensor datasets; digital twins that allow simulation of process changes before implementation; and increasingly autonomous control systems that integrate sensors, AI, and APC to maintain stability with minimal manual intervention.
Over time, this will enable more centralised monitoring and management of plant operations, supported by strong processes, training and capability-building.

Concrete

Redefining Efficiency with Digitalisation

Published

3 days ago

February 20, 2026

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Professor Procyon Mukherjee discusses how as the cement industry accelerates its shift towards digitalisation, data-driven technologies are becoming the mainstay of sustainability and control across the value chain.

The cement industry, long perceived as traditional and resistant to change, is undergoing a profound transformation driven by digital technologies. As global infrastructure demand grows alongside increasing pressure to decarbonise and improve productivity, cement manufacturers are adopting data-centric tools to enhance performance across the value chain. Nowhere is this shift more impactful than in grinding, which is the energy-intensive final stage of cement production, and in the materials that make grinding more efficient: grinding media and grinding aids.

The imperative for digitalisation
Cement production accounts for roughly 7 per cent to 8 per cent of global CO2 emissions, largely due to the energy intensity of clinker production and grinding processes. Digital solutions, such as AI-driven process controls and digital twins, are helping plants improve stability, cut fuel use and reduce emissions while maintaining consistent product quality. In one deployment alongside ABB’s process controls at a Heidelberg plant in Czechia, AI tools cut fuel use by 4 per cent and emissions by 2 per cent, while also improving operational stability.
Digitalisation in cement manufacturing encompasses a suite of technologies, broadly termed as Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), AI and machine learning, predictive analytics, cloud-based platforms, advanced process control and digital twins, each playing a role in optimising various stages of production from quarrying to despatch.

Grinding: The crucible of efficiency and cost
Of all the stages in cement production, grinding is among the most energy-intensive, historically consuming large amounts of electricity and representing a significant portion of plant operating costs. As a result, optimising grinding operations has become central to digital transformation strategies.
Modern digital systems are transforming grinding mills from mechanical workhorses into intelligent, interconnected assets. Sensors throughout the mill measure parameters such as mill load, vibration, mill speed, particle size distribution, and power consumption. This real-time data, fed into machine learning and advanced process control (APC) systems, can dynamically adjust operating conditions to maintain optimal throughput and energy usage.
For example, advanced grinding systems now predict inefficient conditions, such as impending mill overload, by continuously analysing acoustic and vibration signatures. The system can then proactively adjust clinker feed rates and grinding media distribution to sustain optimal conditions, reducing energy consumption and improving consistency.

Digital twins: Seeing grinding in the virtual world
One of the most transformative digital tools applied in cement grinding is the digital twin, which a real-time virtual replica of physical equipment and processes. By integrating sensor data and
process models, digital twins enable engineers to simulate process variations and run ‘what-if’
scenarios without disrupting actual production. These simulations support decisions on variables such as grinding media charge, mill speed and classifier settings, allowing optimisation of energy use and product fineness.
Digital twins have been used to optimise kilns and grinding circuits in plants worldwide, reducing unplanned downtime and allowing predictive maintenance to extend the life of expensive grinding assets.

Grinding media and grinding aids in a digital era
While digital technologies improve control and prediction, materials science innovations in grinding media and grinding aids have become equally crucial for achieving performance gains.
Grinding media, which comprise the balls or cylinders inside mills, directly influence the efficiency of clinker comminution. Traditionally composed of high-chrome cast iron or forged steel, grinding media account for nearly a quarter of global grinding media consumption by application, with efficiency improvements translating directly to lower energy intensity.
Recent advancements include ceramic and hybrid media that combine hardness and toughness to reduce wear and energy losses. For example, manufacturers such as Sanxin New Materials in China and Tosoh Corporation in Japan have developed sub-nano and zirconia media with exceptional wear resistance. Other innovations include smart media embedded with sensors to monitor wear, temperature, and impact forces in real time, enabling predictive maintenance and optimal media replacement scheduling. These digitally-enabled media solutions can increase grinding efficiency by as much as 15 per cent.
Complementing grinding media are grinding aids, which are chemical additives that improve mill throughput and reduce energy consumption by altering the surface properties of particles, trapping air, and preventing re-agglomeration. Technology leaders like SIKA AG and GCP Applied Technologies have invested in tailored grinding aids compatible with AI-driven dosing platforms that automatically adjust additive concentrations based on real-time mill conditions. Trials in South America reported throughput improvements nearing 19 per cent when integrating such digital assistive dosing with process control systems.
The integration of grinding media data and digital dosing of grinding aids moves the mill closer to a self-optimising system, where AI not only predicts media wear or energy losses but prescribes optimal interventions through automated dosing and operational adjustments.

Global case studies in digital adoption
Several cement companies around the world exemplify digital transformation in practice.
Heidelberg Materials has deployed digital twin technologies across global plants, achieving up to 15 per cent increases in production efficiency and 20 per cent reductions in energy consumption by leveraging real-time analytics and predictive algorithms.
Holcim’s Siggenthal plant in Switzerland piloted AI controllers that autonomously adjusted kiln operations, boosting throughput while reducing specific energy consumption and emissions.
Cemex, through its AI and predictive maintenance initiatives, improved kiln availability and reduced maintenance costs by predicting failures before they occurred. Global efforts also include AI process optimisation initiatives to reduce energy consumption and environmental impact.

Challenges and the road ahead
Despite these advances, digitalisation in cement grinding faces challenges. Legacy equipment may lack sensor readiness, requiring retrofits and edge-cloud connectivity upgrades. Data governance and integration across plants and systems remains a barrier for many mid-tier producers. Yet, digital transformation statistics show momentum: more than half of cement companies have implemented IoT sensors for equipment monitoring, and digital twin adoption is growing rapidly as part of broader Industry 4.0 strategies.
Furthermore, as digital systems mature, they increasingly support sustainability goals: reduced energy use, optimised media consumption and lower greenhouse gas emissions. By embedding intelligence into grinding circuits and material inputs like grinding aids, cement manufacturers can strike a balance between efficiency and environmental stewardship.
Conclusion
Digitalisation is not merely an add-on to cement manufacturing. It is reshaping the competitive and sustainability landscape of an industry often perceived as inertia-bound. With grinding representing a nexus of energy intensity and cost, digital technologies from sensor networks and predictive analytics to digital twins offer new levers of control. When paired with innovations in grinding media and grinding aids, particularly those with embedded digital capabilities, plants can achieve unprecedented gains in efficiency, predictability and performance.
For global cement producers aiming to reduce costs and carbon footprints simultaneously, the future belongs to those who harness digital intelligence not just to monitor operations, but to optimise and evolve them continuously.

About the author:
Professor Procyon Mukherjee, ex-CPO Lafarge-Holcim India, ex-President Hindalco, ex-VP Supply Chain Novelis Europe, has been an industry leader in logistics, procurement, operations and supply chain management. His career spans 38 years starting from Philips, Alcan Inc (Indian Aluminum Company), Hindalco, Novelis and Holcim. He authored the book, ‘The Search for Value in Supply Chains’. He serves now as Visiting Professor in SP Jain Global, SIOM and as the Adjunct Professor at SBUP. He advises leading Global Firms including Consulting firms on SCM and Industrial Leadership and is a subject matter expert in aluminum and cement. An Alumnus of IIM Calcutta and Jadavpur University, he has completed the LH Senior Leadership Programme at IVEY Academy at Western University, Canada.