Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), a global IT services, consulting and business solutions company, has launched the TCS Industrial Autonomy & Engineering Lab – Lights-Out Factory at its Sahyadri Park campus in Pune. The facility is designed to demonstrate how artificial intelligence, digital twins, robotics, factory control systems and real-time operational intelligence can work together to support increasingly autonomous manufacturing operations. TCS said the lab is India’s first lights-out factory lab and will provide manufacturers with an environment to prototype, validate and scale AI-first production systems.
A lights-out factory is a manufacturing environment where autonomous systems can operate production processes with minimal human intervention. The Pune facility includes a fully robotic battery pack assembly line with multiple stages of production, allowing manufacturers to simulate and test different factory scenarios.
The lab aims to address a key challenge for manufacturers seeking to adopt Industry 4.0 technologies by providing a practical setting to assess how AI, robotics and automation can be integrated into live production environments. Customers will be able to test industrial use cases and operating models before moving them into full-scale deployment.
The facility is the latest addition to TCS’ Industrial Autonomy & Engineering innovation network. Earlier this year, the company launched the TCS Industrial Autonomy & Engineering Lab Powered by NVIDIA in Bengaluru to support Physical AI innovation for industrial and mobility applications. The Pune lab will support applications including predictive maintenance, automated quality inspection, real-time process optimisation, human-machine collaboration and autonomous factory operations.
Joakim Landholm, SVP Commercial & Operations Development at SKF, said, “Reducing friction has always been central to industrial progress, and the next wave of manufacturing will depend on smarter, more energy-efficient, and more reliable operations. We see TCS Industrial Autonomy & Engineering Lab – Lights-Out Factory as an important step in helping industry translate advanced automation and industrial AI into measurable operational value.”
Sreenivasa Chakravarti, Global Head and Vice President of Industrial Autonomy and Engineering at TCS, said the facility reflects the company’s focus on developing AI-first production systems. The lab brings together several connected capabilities, including AI-enabled production optimisation, predictive maintenance and resilient factory operations. It also provides digital twin and simulation environments that allow manufacturers to test factory scenarios before real-world deployment.
Other capabilities include Vision AI, robotics, industrial automation and sensor-to-cloud intelligence, connecting shop-floor data with edge and cloud platforms for real-time decision-making. The facility also focuses on software-defined engineering, enabling industrial systems to evolve through software, data and AI-driven automation. With the launch of the Pune lab, TCS aims to help manufacturers move beyond isolated automation projects and adopt integrated approaches across engineering, production and factory operations.
Tata Consultancy Services is a global technology services, consulting and business solutions company. Founded in 1968, TCS operates across 56 countries through a workforce supported by 194 service delivery centers. The company works with organizations across industries to develop and implement technology solutions and supports customers in adopting emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence.
