Hindustan Zinc Limited,India’s leading and the world’s largest integrated zinc producer, has rolled out an advanced Switchyard and Rectifier Hotspot Monitoring System at its historic Debari smelter in Rajasthan. The smart system continuously tracks electrical fluctuations, provides instant alerts via WhatsApp and email, and allows both on-site and cloud-based access, helping to turn unplanned outages into planned interventions. The initiative is expected to raise equipment uptime and improve overall production efficiency.
Developed in collaboration with Vedanta Spark and innovation partner Ripik.AI, the solution incorporates learnings from extensive pilot testing and operator feedback. By enabling early detection of anomalies and faster corrective action, the system has reduced production losses by nearly 20% through complete elimination of unplanned shutdowns.
The system is accessible through cloud deployment and the Electrical SCADA room, ensuring immediate response from operational teams. This marks a major step forward in Hindustan Zinc’s digital transformation strategy, aimed at maximising asset utilisation across all units. Plans are underway to expand this technology across mines, smelters, switchyards, rectifiers, and flexible busbars.
Commenting on the development, Arun Misra, CEO of Hindustan Zinc, said: “This monitoring system is a significant milestone in our drive for process optimisation. Digital innovation is central to the future of metals and mining, and we are embedding predictive systems and smart monitoring solutions across our operations to enhance productivity and build scalable, technology-driven processes.”
Hindustan Zinc continues to lead technology adoption in the metals and mining sector with initiatives focused on production optimisation, cost efficiency, ESG leadership, and workplace safety. The company is currently working with over 40 technology startups on more than 60 projects through Vedanta Spark – Vedanta’s global accelerator platform – to address critical business challenges through next-generation solutions such as computer vision, IoT, drone technology, and immersive AR/VR applications.
The company has also established a digital collaboration centre that provides real-time insights across its operations, supporting faster and more informed decision-making. Additional innovations include robotic automation in smelting operations, advanced surveillance systems for workplace safety and compliance, and blockchain-based systems for improved transparency. These measures have boosted operational efficiency by 20–30% and halved manual intervention requirements, reinforcing Hindustan Zinc’s position as a global benchmark in sustainable and tech-enabled mining.
