Concrete

The Collaborative Revolution

Published

12 months ago

August 5, 2025

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Dijam Panigrahi, Co-founder and COO, GridRaster, discusses how AI, digital twins and cobots are reshaping cement manufacturing.

The modern industrial landscape in cement production is changing, driven by the convergence of artificial intelligence (AI), digital twins and collaborative robots (cobots). This trifecta is not only enhancing existing operations but fundamentally reimagining how cement manufacturing functions, creating a synergistic environment where human and machine capabilities are maximised.
The International Federation of Robotics (IFR) notes that the global operational stock of industrial robots reached 4.2 million units in 2023, with cobots accounting for a considerable share. Furthermore, the global collaborative robot (Cobot) sales market, valued at $1,020 million in 2024, is projected to reach $2,199 million by 2031, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 11.8 per cent during the forecast period of 2025-2031.
At the heart of this evolution is AI, serving as the intelligent core that orchestrates a multitude of processes in cement production. Its capabilities span from optimising cobot control and predictive maintenance for kilns and grinding mills to ensuring stringent quality control of cement mixtures and streamlining complex supply chain management of raw materials like limestone, clay and gypsum.
AI empowers machines and robots with the ability to learn, adapt, and make real-time decisions, leading to significant improvements in operational efficiency and responsiveness across the board in cement plants. This intelligent automation is enabling the cement industry to achieve levels of precision and speed previously unattainable.

Digital twins: Virtual replicas for real-world optimisation
Complementing AI’s computational prowess are digital twins, which offer virtual replicas of physical assets and processes within a cement plant. These digital models provide an invaluable sandbox for businesses, allowing them to simulate and rigorously test new systems and workflows in a virtual environment before committing to costly physical implementation, such as optimising a new production line or a material handling system.
This capability is particularly crucial for optimising human-robot collaboration, as it allows for the fine-tuning of interactions and processes to ensure seamless integration and maximum output in potentially hazardous areas of a cement facility. The real-time monitoring capabilities of digital twins further enhance their utility, enabling continuous optimisation and proactive problem-solving, for example, by predicting equipment failure in a kiln. The synergy between AI and digital twins significantly reduces risks associated with new deployments and accelerates their time to market.

Empowering the human workforce: Upskilling and collaboration
While the focus on advanced automation might suggest a diminishing role for human workers, the reality is quite the opposite in cement manufacturing. Workforce enablement technologies are designed to empower and elevate the human element within this increasingly automated ecosystem.
These innovative tools facilitate comprehensive upskilling through immersive augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) training programmes, preparing the workforce for the demands of new technologies and roles, such as operating and maintaining cobots or analysing digital twin data. User-friendly interfaces are simplifying human-robot interaction, making it more intuitive and accessible for workers to collaborate directly with cobots in areas like quality control or material handling.
Furthermore, remote assistance capabilities provide on-demand expert support, ensuring that human workers have the resources they need to troubleshoot and optimise operations effectively in a cement plant.

A synergistic future: Boosting productivity, flexibility and safety
One of the most significant advantages of integrating cobots in cement manufacturing is their ability to offload repetitive, dangerous or physically demanding tasks from human workers, such as bagging cement, loading trucks, or operating in dusty environments. This frees up the human workforce to concentrate on higher-value activities that
demand critical thinking, problem-solving, and creativity – uniquely human attributes that machines cannot replicate.
This integrated approach not only drives remarkable gains in productivity, flexibility and safety but also cultivates a truly synergistic relationship between cutting-edge technology and a skilled, adaptable human workforce.
The implications of this integrated approach extend across various facets of cement manufacturing. The precision and speed offered by AI-powered cobots, validated through digital twin simulations, lead to reduced errors in mixing, faster production cycles, and greater customisation capabilities for different cement types. This translates into higher quality products and the ability to respond more rapidly to market demands.
The optimisation of supply chains through AI and the efficient handling of raw materials and finished goods by cobots result in faster delivery times, reduced operational costs and enhanced inventory management in cement plants. The ability to simulate and optimise complex logistical networks with digital twins means that potential bottlenecks in material flow can be identified and resolved before they impact real-world operations, leading to a more resilient and responsive supply chain for cement.
Moreover, the emphasis on workforce enablement ensures that as technology advances, human workers are not left behind but rather become integral components of the new industrial paradigm in cement production. Upskilling initiatives, facilitated by AR/VR, allow for continuous learning and adaptation, creating a dynamic workforce capable of navigating technological shifts.
The simplified human-robot interfaces remove barriers to entry, making collaborative robotics accessible to a broader range of workers in
cement facilities. This human-centric approach to automation fosters a more engaged and empowered workforce, leading to increased job satisfaction and reduced turnover.
The combination of AI, digital twins and cobots today represents a fundamental modernisation of the cement manufacturing landscape. AI provides the intelligence, digital twins offer the foresight and cobots provide the physical execution, all while workforce enablement technologies ensure that humans remain at the center of innovation and decision-making in cement plants. This integrated approach promises a future where operations are more efficient, resilient and adaptive, ultimately leading to unprecedented levels of productivity and a more fulfilling work environment for all in the cement industry.

About the author:
Dijam Panigrahi is Co-Founder and COO of Gridraster with over 21 years of international experience in market development, business growth, and product management.

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Cement Prices to Stay Flat in Q2 FY27 as Costs Squeeze Margins

HDFC Securities warns monsoon slowdown and higher fuel costs

Published

5 hours ago

July 17, 2026

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HDFC Securities has said the cement industry is unlikely to register a sequential increase in prices in Q2 FY27 as monsoon-related demand moderation coincides with rising fuel and packaging costs that will squeeze margins. The brokerage observed that price gains remained modest, with increases of two to three per cent quarter-on-quarter across regions, and noted subdued offtake in May with improvement in June as a delayed monsoon supported construction activity. The brokerage added that modest pricing gains so far have been insufficient to offset the input cost escalation.

The report stated that input cost pressures intensified in Q1 FY27 owing to the West Asia conflict, which pushed up coal and pet coke prices and is expected to keep fuel costs elevated, with a likely peak in Q2 FY27. It assessed that total variable costs, including packing, could rise by around Rs 150 per t quarter-on-quarter and that lower offtake and seasonal operating deleverage could further raise operating expenditure by about Rs 50 per t quarter-on-quarter.

Overall, cement prices were estimated to remain flat in Q2 FY27 as monsoon-led demand weakness offsets limited upside in realisation, and rising fuel costs alongside seasonal deleverage were expected to compress industry margins by over Rs 100 per t quarter-on-quarter to below Rs 880 per t. The brokerage indicated that the combined impact of energy inflation and higher packing expenditure would be the principal drivers of margin contraction in the near term. HDFC Securities projected a recovery in margins in H2 FY27 should the West Asia turmoil subside and energy and packing costs cool off.

The brokerage expressed optimism on long-term demand fundamentals and said improving realisation together with an anticipated cost cool-off should support a margin rebound from H2 FY27 onward, underpinning favourable industry prospects over the medium term. Its outlook rests on monsoon normalisation and a decline in imported fuel prices in the second half of the fiscal year.

Concrete

Dalmia Bharat Begins Rs 31 Bn Green Cement Unit in Kadapa

New Andhra Pradesh plant to add 9.6 MTPA cement capacity by FY28

Published

1 day ago

July 16, 2026

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Dalmia Bharat Limited recently laid the foundation stone for its second manufacturing unit at Kadapa in Andhra Pradesh. The company will invest Rs 31 billion in developing the next-generation integrated cement manufacturing facility.

The foundation-laying ceremony was attended by Nara Lokesh, Andhra Pradesh Minister for Information Technology, Electronics and Communications, Real-Time Governance and Human Resources Development, along with Puneet Dalmia, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Dalmia Bharat, senior government officials and company representatives.

Scheduled to be commissioned by the third quarter of FY28, the Kadapa unit will become Dalmia Bharat’s largest integrated manufacturing facility in southern India. It will have a clinker production capacity of 6.1 million tonnes per annum and a cement manufacturing capacity of 9.6 million tonnes per annum.

The facility is designed to produce what the company describes as one of the world’s greenest cements. It is also expected to generate approximately 1,000 direct and indirect employment opportunities while supporting local MSMEs, transporters, contractors and service providers.

Lokesh said the investment reflected Dalmia Bharat’s confidence in Andhra Pradesh and aligned with the state’s objective of promoting sustainable industrialisation, job creation and technology-led economic growth.

Puneet Dalmia said the project represented the company’s long-term vision of developing low-carbon cement manufacturing assets. He added that the facility would establish new benchmarks in operational efficiency and sustainability while supporting India’s infrastructure and environmental goals.

Dalmia Bharat will also expand its regional community development programmes in education, healthcare, skill development and welfare through its DIKSHa and Gram Parivartan initiatives.

The company currently has an installed cement manufacturing capacity of 54.7 million tonnes across 19 manufacturing units in 12 states. It is also the first cement company globally to commit to the RE100, EP100 and EV100 initiatives.

Concrete

Nuvoco Inaugurates Limla Cement Plant in Surat

Acquisition boosts Western India cement capacity

Published

2 days ago

July 15, 2026

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Nuvoco Vistas Corporation Limited inaugurated the Limla Cement Plant in Surat, Gujarat, marking a key milestone in its acquisition and revival of Vadraj Cement Limited.

The company completed the acquisition of Vadraj, which had been undergoing a corporate insolvency resolution process, by discharging a consideration of Rs 18 billion (bn) in June 2025. Vadraj’s asset base includes a clinker unit at Kutch and a grinding unit at Limla, along with high quality captive limestone reserves and a captive jetty at Kutch that enhance logistics efficiency.

Since taking over the assets, Nuvoco has undertaken revival, refurbishment and expansion across both sites, culminating in the opening of the Limla facility. The grinding unit at Limla achieved project completion ahead of schedule with the commissioning of two million tonnes per annum (mn t per annum) grinding capacity, further expanding the company’s scale and market reach.

Upon full operationalisation of the Vadraj assets, nearly 40 per cent of Nuvoco’s total cement capacity will be accounted for by plants in the North and West regions, supporting improved access to high growth markets. The plant is expected to support a phased volume ramp up in Gujarat and to serve adjoining markets in western Maharashtra while releasing northern capacities for other markets.

It will produce a complete portfolio of cement products including Ordinary Portland Cement, Portland Slag Cement, Portland Pozzolana Cement and Portland Composite Cement, and will offer the Duraguard range including the premium Duraguard Microfibre. The transaction is set to create synergies with Nuvoco’s existing manufacturing facilities at Nimbol and Chittorgarh, strengthening logistics optimisation and market access across key regions.

Nuvoco reported total income of Rs 113.62 billion (bn) in FY 2025-26 and stated it is on track to consolidate total cement capacity to 35 million tonnes per annum (mn t per annum) by FY2028. The company operates across cement, ready-mix concrete and modern building materials segments and highlighted a pan-India ready-mix presence alongside contributions to major infrastructure projects. Corporate communications contact details were provided by the company.