Concrete

“AI should predict bottlenecks.”

Published

1 week ago

September 26, 2026

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Anuradha Parakala COO, Fleetronix Systems, discusses real-time visibility, predictive intelligence and proactive control in cement logistics.

As cement logistics becomes increasingly data-driven, fleet visibility is emerging as a critical lever for improving asset utilisation. Anuradha Parakala, COO, Fleetronix Systems, discusses how real-time tracking, AI-led anomaly detection and connected logistics ecosystems can help eliminate operational blind spots.

How can real-time fleet visibility help cement manufacturers eliminate blind spots and improve control from plant despatch to final delivery?
For decades, cement logistics has been run on blind faith and periodic phone calls. A truck rolls out of the plant gates, and management essentially crosses its fingers, waiting for an update that might come three hours too late. That is not supply chain management; that is operational gambling.
Let’s look at the economics. Real-time fleet visibility doesn’t just put a moving dot on a digital map—it forces discipline onto the balance sheet. When you have live tracking of arrival times, route adherence, and unwarranted stoppages, you remove the guesswork that bleeds capital.
Visibility isn’t about micro-managing drivers. It’s about converting a volatile cost centre into a predictable, accountable business process. In our deployment data at Fleetronix, absolute visibility cuts operational exceptions by over 20 per cent right out of the gate. That’s because we are tackling anomalies while they happen, not holding a post-mortem after the cement is already spoiled or missed its delivery window.

What are the biggest fleet-level inefficiencies in cement logistics today, and how can technology help address them?
The real cash drain happens long before the truck hits the highway.
The stagnation trap: Excessive idle times rotting away at plant loading bays and unloading sites.
The accountability vacuum: Fragmented communication loops between transporters, despatchers and yard managers.
The reconciliation waste: Finance teams wasting hundreds of man-hours manually matching proof of delivery with transit logs.
Technology shouldn’t just give you more dashboards; it should eliminate noise. AI-driven platforms act as an early-warning system for behavioural abnormalities. AI should predict bottlenecks,
before they snowball into heavy financial losses.
The companies winning tomorrow aren’t the ones scaling up their fleet size blindly—they are the ones extracting double-digit productivity out of the assets they already own.

How can digital fleet management strengthen cargo security and proactively identify risks such as theft, route deviations and unauthorised halts?
In heavy building materials, cargo security is no longer just a local transport concern. It is a direct line item affecting brand reputation and business continuity. Traditional security reacts after a pilferage or highway theft is reported. That is too late.
Modern digital architecture deploys smart geofencing, tamper-proof sensor integration, and anomaly detection algorithms. If a truck stops in an unapproved high-risk corridor for longer than a designated threshold, the system flags it instantly. Security isn’t a passive logbook; it is an active deterrent. True ROI comes from intervention before a loss occurs.

What will the fully connected end-to-end logistics ecosystem of the future look like, and what role will data and AI play in transforming cement transportation?
The market leaders of the future won’t necessarily be the giants with the largest physical fleets. They will be the ones with the most intelligent nervous systems. We are moving toward a fully integrated ecosystem where plants, trucks, inventory pipelines, and customer destinations talk to each other in real time.
Artificial intelligence will ingest millions of data points to automate dispatch planning, streamline preventive maintenance, and execute dynamic routing without human friction. The future of cement logistics is not about tracking where your truck is right now. It is about knowing what is bound to go wrong three hours from now, and fixing it automatically before it ever happens.

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Concrete

JSW Cement Announces Merger with Shiva Cement

Merger aims to create a unified cement platform and simplify operations

Published

6 hours ago

October 6, 2026

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JSW Cement has announced a scheme of arrangement to merge its listed subsidiary Shiva Cement with itself, creating a single unified cement platform. The boards of both companies have approved the proposal, which will require clearances from stock exchanges, the Securities and Exchange Board of India, the National Company Law Tribunal, Odisha Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation and other applicable authorities.

The transaction is expected to be completed within 12 to 14 months, subject to the necessary approvals from regulators, shareholders and creditors. Under the scheme, JSW Cement will issue 5 equity shares with a face value of Rs. 10 each for every 41 equity shares with a face value of Rs. 2 each held by Shiva Cement shareholders other than JSW Cement.

The company said the merger would consolidate financial, managerial, technical, distribution and marketing resources while reducing administrative duplication and compliance requirements. It would also provide greater funding flexibility, potentially lower financing costs and eliminate inter-company guarantees.

The consolidation is expected to strengthen backward integration by enabling JSW Cement to use Shiva Cement’s clinker manufacturing facility. This would reduce dependence on external clinker procurement and improve supply-chain efficiency. Public shareholders of Shiva Cement would receive direct ownership in JSW Cement, which has a broader institutional investor base and a more liquid listed presence.

JSW Cement acquired a controlling stake in Shiva Cement through transactions that began in January 2017. Shiva Cement operates a clinker facility in Odisha, near the borders of Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, and commissioned a 1 mtpa cement grinding unit at Sambalpur in FY26 through a commercial arrangement with Bhushan Power and Steel.

JSW Cement has 24.10 mtpa of cement grinding capacity and 9.74 mtpa of clinkerisation capacity. Its Indian operations comprise nine plants, including two integrated units, one clinker unit and six grinding units. The proposed merger is intended to simplify the corporate structure and align the financial statements of the two companies.

Concrete

UltraTech’s Kukurdih unit runs fully on green energy

The Chhattisgarh plant has met 100 per cent of its electricity needs through green energy since April 2026.

Published

5 days ago

October 1, 2026

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UltraTech Cement’s Kukurdih Cement Works in Chhattisgarh has met 100 per cent of its electricity requirement through green energy every month since April 2026. Commissioned in 2024, the integrated cement manufacturing unit has an installed grey cement capacity of 3.3 million tonnes per annum.

The plant meets its electricity requirement through a combination of renewable power sourcing and Waste Heat Recovery Systems (WHRS). UltraTech said the combination enables the unit to meet its power needs through green energy while maintaining operational reliability.

Since April 2026, nearly a third of UltraTech’s 76 manufacturing units in India have maintained green energy utilisation above 50 per cent of their electricity requirement. Five units, including Kukurdih, have exceeded 95 per cent green energy utilisation.

The company is also progressively deploying Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) across its manufacturing network to support greater integration of renewable energy. UltraTech said it has not invested in new captive thermal power capacity at its integrated units, including greenfield projects and brownfield expansions, for more than 10 years.

As of Q1FY27, UltraTech’s captive green energy capacity stood at 1,897 MW, comprising 1,463 MW of renewable capacity from solar, wind and hybrid sources, and 434 MW of WHRS capacity.

Under its RE100 commitment, the company aims to increase the share of green power in its total power mix to 85 per cent by 2030 and 100 per cent by 2050.

Concrete

Cement Prices Rise Rs. 7 per Bag in September; October Hikes Expected

Cement prices rose in September as companies weighed further increases.

Published

5 days ago

October 1, 2026

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Cement companies may seek to raise prices by Rs. 5 to Rs. 20 per bag across most markets in October, although the ability to sustain the increases will depend on demand recovery and dealer acceptance, according to a report by Centrum Broking. The outlook follows a pickup in pricing momentum during September after largely stable prices in July and August.

The all-India average trade price increased by Rs. 7 per bag month-on-month to Rs. 356 in September. Centrum Broking’s channel checks indicated gains across both trade and non-trade segments, with non-trade prices recording sharper increases in most markets. However, higher company billing rates were not fully passed on to customers in several regions because dealers continued selling at earlier prices to meet quarter-end volume targets.

The brokerage said demand weakness in Q2FY27 was less pronounced than the usual seasonal trend, with construction activity improving in several markets towards the end of the quarter. Demand remained range-bound across several markets in July and August, while September produced mixed regional trends. Higher rainfall affected activity in some areas, whereas lower rainfall supported construction work elsewhere.

South India recorded the largest price increase in September, at Rs. 11 per bag, followed by West India at Rs. 9. Central, East and North India each reported increases of Rs. 5 per bag. Despite the September recovery, the average all-India trade price for Q2FY27 stood at Rs. 351 per bag, down Rs. 1 sequentially, as weaker pricing in July and August offset the later gains.

Centrum Broking said the success of any October increases would depend on the pace of demand recovery and dealers’ willingness to accept higher prices. Fuel prices have also risen sharply in recent weeks, making the implementation and sustainability of price increases a key factor for the cement industry’s pricing outlook.