Ahead of National Startup Day, Hindustan Zinc, India’s largest and the world's second-largest integrated zinc producer, felicitated technology and innovation startups engaged in driving operational efficiency across the organisation. The company has embedded technological excellence and innovation such as robotics, artificial intelligence, blockchain, and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), across its operations, setting new standards in the manufacturing industry. The startups working with Hindustan Zinc are focused on core areas such as volume enhancement, cost optimisation, value creation, ESG excellence, and enhancing safety practices. On National Startup Day, the company invited several startups, to demonstrate the impact of their technologies across Hindustan Zinc. The company also held a felicitation program presided over by Mr. Arun Misra, CEO of Hindustan Zinc Limited, and other leaders of the organisation. The company announced plans to launch a startup mentoring program to anchor startups and gain more insights in the manufacturing sector. The company recognized eight startups including infinite Uptime, Ripik.AI, Machine Max, Maximl Labs, Flux Auto, Detect Technologies and recent Shark Tank India participant Jarsh Safety. Currently, Hindustan Zinc is engaged with more than 40 tech startups on over 60 different projects and engaging with 50+ startups through Vedanta Spark to explore potential use-cases. Vedanta Spark is Vedanta’s unique global corporate accelerator and ventures program that collaborates with innovative startups to drive large-scale transformative impact by addressing critical business challenges through emerging technology. Under Vedanta Spark, Hindustan Zinc has unlocked high-potential opportunities by leveraging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning, computer vision, drone technology, the Internet of Things (IoT), and Augmented Reality/Virtual Reality (AR/VR). These projects cover diverse areas, including process optimization, enhanced metal recovery, asset reliability, productivity, and sustainability. Sharing his thoughts, Arun Misra, CEO of Hindustan Zinc Limited, said, “India’s startup ecosystem is the driving force behind today’s innovations. At Hindustan Zinc, our investments in the latest technologies enable us to ensure sustained operational efficiencies. As an energy transition metal producer, our agile response to technological developments by engaging with new-age startups equips us to create pathbreaking innovations and stay ahead of the industry curve. With these emerging-tech startups, we are developing an ecosystem that is lean and responsive to match the ongoing metal economy for a sustainable future.”Hindustan Zinc is currently leveraging computer vision to monitor and boost various aspects of the smelting process, aiding in cost optimization, volume enhancement, and ESG excellence through Ripik.AI The startup is focused on enhancing manufacturing competitiveness through advanced analytics. Founder of Ripik.AI, Pinak Dattatray, said, “We are focused on enhancing manufacturing competitiveness utilising advanced analytics. Working with the world’s second-largest integrated zinc producer is a privilege as it gives us a chance to drive large-scale impact across some of the world's largest and most advanced plants. By leveraging our patented vision ai model, we have helped HZL to scale up production, reduce energy consumptions and emissions by improving the time to action across 100+ users in 10+ units.Hindustan Zinc is also engaging with Jarsh Safety, a startup involved in the development of smart safety wearables for various industries that is focused on reducing heat stress and improving connectivity in various industrial setups. Kausthub Kaundinya, co-founder of Jarsh Safety, as seen on Shark Tank India, said, “Our Smart Safety cooling helmets align closely with Hindustan Zinc’s safety values. Through airconditioned helmets and smart wearables, Hindustan Zinc aims to reduce heat stress among the workforce and utilize AI-enabled cameras to monitor safety incidents. It is a privilege to work with the world’s most sustainable metals and mining company by improving connectivity, resulting in enhanced health, a reduction in accidents, and increased productivity through our smart helmets.”Other startups working with Hindustan Zinc are utilising new-age technologies like AI-driven advanced analytics, IoT sensors, machine learning, and real-time industrial diagnostics to monitor equipment and provide actionable insights to optimize performance and productivity. The company fosters a startup mindset internally through Innovation Cafés, enabling Hindustan Zinc to achieve best-in-class asset reliability and operational excellence. Hindustan Zinc also nurtures a vast ecosystem of micro-enterprises and rural entrepreneurs through its social impact initiatives in rural hinterlands. The company’s Sakhi initiative engages with rural women of Rajasthan and through the brand Upaya has enabled sales of various products produced by Sakhi women on e-commerce platforms utilizing technological intervention across value chain. Over the years, the company has supported numerous MSMEs associated with Hindustan Zinc’s business partner and supplier network across various domains such as supply chain, mine development, and production.