Hindustan Zinc Limited, India’s only and the world’s largest integrated zinc producer—and among the top five global silver producers—has implemented an AI-powered Switchyard Hotspot Monitoring System at its Debari smelter in Rajasthan, the world’s oldest zinc smelter. This digital solution offers real-time monitoring of electrical fluctuations, automated alerts via WhatsApp and tiered emails, and dual access through both on-premises and cloud platforms. By shifting unplanned shutdowns to planned maintenance, the system aims to improve equipment reliability, increase uptime, and enhance production efficiency.
Developed in collaboration with the startup Ripik.AI (an applied AI company developing computer vision agents, based out of Gurugram), the application incorporates extensive feedback and enhancement requests received during its trial phase. By enabling early issue detection and prompt intervention, this solution has significantly reduced total production losses by nearly 20% through 100% elimination of unplanned outages.
With seamless accessibility through cloud deployment as well as in the Electrical SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) Room, the system ensures operational teams can respond instantly to potential inefficiencies. This marks a key milestone in Hindustan Zinc’s broader initiative to deploy AI-powered monitoring and automation solutions across its operations, further maximising asset utilisation. Technology is planned for scale-up across Hindustan Zinc’s Mines & Smelters switchyards, Rectifiers & Flexible Busbars.
Commenting on the development, Hindustan Zinc’s CEO – Arun Misra said: “The Switchyard & Rectifier Hotspot Monitoring Application is another step forward in our journey towards more optimized operations. At Hindustan Zinc, we believe digital innovation is key to shaping the future of metals and mining. By embedding innovative AI-driven monitoring and technology-led predictive systems, we are not only increasing production efficiency but also solidifying the foundation for scalable, tech-first operations across all our units in Rajasthan.”
Hindustan Zinc is leading innovation in the mining sector by integrating advanced technologies like AI, robotics, blockchain, and IIoT to enhance safety, efficiency, and sustainability. The company has established a digital collaboration center for real-time data analysis and decision-making. Recent initiatives include an AI-powered camera surveillance system that boosts operational efficiency by 20-30% and cuts manual intervention by nearly 50%, as well as robotic automation in smelting to improve precision and product quality. These advancements position Hindustan Zinc as a pioneer in transforming mining operations in India and setting global industry standards.
