Manufacturing industries turning to automation

Firms using robots, new technology for safety, aesthetics, efficiency in production

Hyderabad: Manufacturing industries are now turning to automation for enhanced safety, aesthetics and also efficiency in terms of usage of resources, water, power and workforce. For instance, Pokarna Engineered Stone Limited (PESL), India’s largest manufacturer and exporter of premium quartz surfaces, recently launched its new plant with an investment of Rs 500 crore and created 500 new jobs. The focus has been on using concepts of Industry 4.0, which uses digitisation at several levels.

Paras Kumar Jain, Chief Executive Officer, PESL, told Telangana Today that the company uses four robotic machines for creating designs. “Since designing is controlled by robots, the efficiency of reproducing the same design improves,” he said. The company is also able to make the largest quartz sheets – 76 sqft compared 45 to 60 sqft done normally, making them the best wall claddings and other uses that have to use a joint.

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“The dust and styrene extraction plants ensure that there are no volatile organic compounds (VOC) left in the final products. Except for the evaporation losses, all the water is recycled and pumped back for polishing to give it the shine,” Jain said, adding that efforts are on to see if the solid waste generated can be used for making bricks or construction material.

“The entire plant machinery can be operated from a single console from anywhere. There are barriers created in the plant and if someone touches them, the entire machinery will come to a halt. Several sensors are deployed for the safety alarm system. In some areas, the machines stop even if small wires are realigned,” Jain said. The new unit in Mekaguda is equipped with patented Bretonstone technology from Italy and its products are primarily used as kitchen countertops, wall panels, floor tiles and stairs, he said.

Another company, Premier Energies, which recently launched its solar cell and modules making facility at E-City with investment of about Rs 480 crore, too is using new technology in the production. It is now the second largest player in the country as an integrated facility producing both cells and modules. The manufacturing facility, which is ISO 9001/ ISO 14001 certified, uses total quality control (TQC) and statistical process control (SPC) processes.

Chiranjeev Saluja, Founder and Managing Director, Premier Energies said: “This hi-tech plant has been designed to produce the latest generation products, designed to drive the industry to a greener tomorrow. Other features include visual sorting, colour uniformity and minimum power loss among others.”

“With increased adoption of automation and robotics, our new factory will be on par with some of the leading manufacturing companies in Asia, Europe, and USA, producing world-class products,” Saluja said.

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