Technology

Ensuring safety

Published

9 years ago

December 31, 2016

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Dalmia Cement, a leading manufacturer of the commodity, has an enviable safety record. Gaurang Baxi speaks on the basic principles that the company adopts to ensure occupational safety.

Manufacturing of cement involves various operations which expose personnel working in the plants to various hazards and associated health and safety risks.

The health and safety risks based on activity and nature of operations could be categorised as high, medium or low depending on frequency of exposure and potential consequences. The risks include but are not limited to working at heights, exposure to hazardous energy sources, movement of vehicles, entry in confined spaces.

The approach towards reducing the risks to as low as reasonably practicable in cement plants is categorised under the following areas:

Leadership and Governance: The interventions include:
a.Visible Leadership: Conducting safety observation tours at all levels in the organisation to demonstrate leadership commitment and improve employee engagement.
b.Governance:

Implement a robust safety assurance programme to establish the current status of implementation of safety management system and standards and its implementation capability.
Establish performance management systems for leading and lagging performance indicators to align with all stakeholder requirements

Organisation and Culture:
a.Establishing Proactive and Just Reporting Culture to ensure learnings from incidents are disseminated and actions implemented to prevent reoccurrence.
b.Ensure adequate resourcing of the health and safety function to facilitate culture change and integration with business.

Improve competencies of stakeholders through conducting training pro?grammes at all levels. Improvement of trade skills (examples: scaffolding, rigging and slinging,) and behavior-based safety programmes are essential for hazardous work activities.

Risk Management :
a.Proactive Risk Management processes to ensure risks are controlled/mitigated through effective risk control measures with focus on engineering control of risks. The risk management will address the following areas:

Identifying and implementing risk control measures for all routine and non-routine activities like planned shutdowns, maintenance and construction activities. The key risks control measures include Fall Prevention and Protection, Isolation and Lockout, Traffic Management and segregation of pedestrians from heavy and mobile equipment.
Ensure robust management of change processes to capture changes in the working environment and people which can impact the risk levels.

b.Implementing safety management systems and integrating with other business processes to continually improve safety performance.
c.Engaged business partners (contractors and transporters) to increase awareness to ensure their participation in risk mitigation. Supplier and Contractor Prequalification processes integrated with a company’s procurement policies and programmes help ensure that contractors have competent people and standard equipment to perform high-risk activities.
d.Process Safety: Manufacturing of cement involves process safety risks (potential for fire and explosion) while handling conven?tional or alternative fuels. Engineered solutions to mitigate the risks involved in these operations need to be implemented after a thorough process hazard analysis.
e.Asset Integrity: There have been instances of structural collapses (steel and concrete) in cement plants which have led to multiple fatalities and business interrup?tions. To prevent these incidents, a structural integrity programme involving inspection processes and a risk-based action plan to prevent reoccurrence has to be monitored and implemented.

Logistics Safety
a.Safety during transportation of cement by road is one of the most critical areas where leader?ship influence can make a significant impact in risk reduction. The key focus areas include:

Improved infrastructure in parking areas and basic facilities for the truck drivers for fatigue management.
Use of technology to monitor movement of trucks by installation of RFID and GPS. This helps in providing valuable information to the stakeholders for improving perfor?mance and safety.
Defensive Driver Training and Driver Recognition Programs
Transporter engagement programs.

The effective implementation of the above interventions and risk control measures results in continuous improvement in safety performance and can help achieve sustainable safety.

(This article has been authored by Gaurang Baxi, Head (Safety), Dalmia Cement Bharat Limited).

Technology

ARAPL Reports 175% EBITDA Growth, Expands Global Robotics Footprint

Affordable Robotic & Automation posts strong Q2 and H1 FY26 results driven by innovation and overseas orders

Published

2 weeks ago

October 15, 2025

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Affordable Robotic & Automation Limited (ARAPL), India’s first listed robotics firm and a pioneer in industrial automation and smart robotic solutions, has reported robust financial results for the second quarter and half year ended September 30, 2025.
The company achieved a 175 per cent year-on-year rise in standalone EBITDA and strong revenue growth across its automation and robotics segments. The Board of Directors approved the unaudited financial results on October 10, 2025.

Key Highlights – Q2 FY2026
• Strong momentum across core automation and robotics divisions
• Secured the first order for the Atlas AC2000, an autonomous truck loading and unloading forklift, from a leading US logistics player
• Rebranded its RaaS product line as Humro (Human + Robot), symbolising collaborative automation between people and machines
• Expanded its Humro range in global warehouse automation markets
• Continued investment in deep-tech innovations, including AI-based route optimisation, autonomy kits, vehicle controllers, and digital twins
Global Milestone: First Atlas AC2000 Order in the US

ARAPL’s US-based subsidiary, ARAPL RaaS (Humro), received its first order for the next-generation Atlas AC2000 autonomous forklift from a leading logistics company. Following successful prototype trials, the client placed an order for two robots valued at Rs 36 million under a three-year lease. The project opens opportunities for scaling up to 15–16 robots per site across 15 US warehouses within two years.
The product addresses an untapped market of 10 million loading docks across 21,000 warehouses in the US, positioning ARAPL for exponential growth.

Financial Performance – Q2 FY2026 (Standalone)
Net Revenue: Rs 25.7587 million, up 37 per cent quarter-on-quarter
EBITDA: Rs 5.9632 million, up 396 per cent QoQ
Profit Before Tax: Rs 4.3808 million, compared to a Rs 360.46 lakh loss in Q1
Profit After Tax: Rs 4.1854 lakh, representing 216 per cent QoQ growth
On a half-year basis, ARAPL reported a 175 per cent rise in EBITDA and returned to profitability with Rs 58.08 lakh PAT, highlighting strong operational efficiency and improved contribution from core businesses.
Consolidated Performance – Q2 FY2026
Net Revenue: Rs 29.566 million, up 57% QoQ
EBITDA: Rs 6.2608 million, up 418 per cent QoQ
Profit After Tax: Rs 4.5672 million, marking a 224 per cent QoQ improvement

Milind Padole, Managing Director, ARAPL said, “Our Q2 results reflect the success of our innovation-led growth strategy and the growing global confidence in ARAPL’s technology. The Atlas AC2000 order marks a defining milestone that validates our engineering strength and accelerates our global expansion. With a healthy order book and continued investment in AI and autonomous systems, ARAPL is positioned to lead the next phase of intelligent industrial transformation.”
Founded in 2005 and headquartered in Pune, Affordable Robotic & Automation Ltd (ARAPL) delivers turnkey robotic and automation solutions across automotive, general manufacturing, and government sectors. Its offerings include robotic welding, automated inspection, assembly automation, automated parking systems, and autonomous driverless forklifts.
ARAPL operates five advanced plants in Pune spanning 350,000 sq ft, supported by over 400 engineers in India and seven team members in the US. The company also maintains facilities in North Carolina and California, and service centres in Faridabad, Mumbai, and San Francisco.

Technology

M.E. Energy Bags Rs 490 Mn Order for Waste Heat Recovery Project

Second major EPC contract from Ferro Alloys sector strengthens company’s growth

Published

2 weeks ago

October 15, 2025

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M.E. Energy Pvt Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Kilburn Engineering Ltd and a leading Indian engineering company specialising in energy recovery and cost reduction, has secured its second consecutive major order worth Rs 490 million in the Ferro Alloys sector. The order covers the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) of a 12 MW Waste Heat Recovery Based Power Plant (WHRPP).

This repeat order underscores the Ferro Alloys industry’s confidence in M.E. Energy’s expertise in delivering efficient and sustainable energy solutions for high-temperature process industries. The project aims to enhance energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions by converting waste heat into clean power.

“Securing another project in the Ferro Alloys segment reinforces our strong technical credibility. It’s a proud moment as we continue helping our clients achieve sustainability and cost efficiency through innovative waste heat recovery systems,” said K. Vijaysanker Kartha, Managing Director, M.E. Energy Pvt Ltd.

“M.E. Energy’s expansion into sectors such as cement and ferro alloys is yielding solid results. We remain confident of sustained success as we deepen our presence in steel and carbon black industries. These achievements reaffirm our focus on innovation, technology, and energy efficiency,” added Amritanshu Khaitan, Director, Kilburn Engineering Ltd

With this latest order, M.E. Energy has already surpassed its total external order bookings from the previous financial year, recording Rs 138 crore so far in FY26. The company anticipates further growth in the second half, supported by a robust project pipeline and the rising adoption of waste heat recovery technologies across industries.

The development marks continued momentum towards FY27, strengthening M.E. Energy’s position as a leading player in industrial energy optimisation.

Technology

NTPC Green Energy Partners with Japan’s ENEOS for Green Fuel Exports

NGEL signs MoU with ENEOS to supply green methanol and hydrogen derivatives

Published

2 weeks ago

October 15, 2025

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NTPC Green Energy Limited (NGEL), a subsidiary of NTPC Limited, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Japan’s ENEOS Corporation to explore a potential agreement for the supply of green methanol and hydrogen derivative products.

The MoU was exchanged on 10 October 2025 during the World Expo 2025 in Osaka, Japan. It marks a major step towards global collaboration in clean energy and decarbonisation.
The partnership centres on NGEL’s upcoming Green Hydrogen Hub at Pudimadaka in Andhra Pradesh. Spread across 1,200 acres, the integrated facility is being developed for large-scale green chemical production and exports.

By aligning ENEOS’s demand for hydrogen derivatives with NGEL’s renewable energy initiatives, the collaboration aims to accelerate low-carbon energy transitions. It also supports NGEL’s target of achieving a 60 GW renewable energy portfolio by 2032, reinforcing its commitment to India’s green energy ambitions and the global net-zero agenda.