As industries increasingly prioritize efficiency, safety and sustainability, the role of automation, artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics in industrial cleaning are undergoing a profound transformation. A recent session at the Industrial Cleaning Conference brought together leading experts to dissect this evolving landscape, exploring how smart technologies are redefining cleanliness on the shop floor. Anchored by Pankaj Patil, Head-Asset Management, Siemens Limited and Sandeep Rawal, Deputy General Manager, Motherson Automotive Engineering, the discussion provided a comprehensive overview of the opportunities and challenges in adopting advanced cleaning solutions, emphasizing their critical link to operational excellence and environmental responsibility.
There is a critical link between industrial cleaning and maintenance. Dust is a major adversary to electrical systems and manufacturing efficiency. IoT and AI enable smart predictive maintenance, shifting from reactive to proactive upkeep.”
Pankaj Patil
Nexus of Cleaning & Maintenance
Pankaj Patil set the tone by drawing a direct connection between industrial cleaning and maintenance. “Though working in maintenance for the last 23 years, I am just doing the dust control. Dust is the enemy of electricity and its presence in manufacturing is undesirable. How can we prevent dust from the shopfloor, be it precision manufacturing, food and beverage, or pharma?” he queried.
He elaborated on the far-reaching impact of dust, explaining, “HVAC systems, with filters at the entry of AHU, control dust in the environment. However, dust beyond a certain limit creates high static on the blowers, increasing power consumption. In a power supply system, dust in the panel can lead to fire hazards, short circuits, heating of terminals and impact the reliability of power supply. I was just trying to connect the dots between cleanliness and industry cleaning practices/maintenance.”
Automation: From Home to Industry
Sandeep Rawal from Motherson Automotive Engineering offered a different perspective, highlighting the role of machines and robots in material handling and cleaning. He drew a parallel to the domestic sphere: “Maids for cleaning at home, janitors for offices are difficult to get, so vacuum cleaners or floor scrubbers are pressed into service.
“The requirement for manual handling of these machines remains, availability is less, forcing companies to come out with automated cleaning robots, like a toy car. These robots placed in a room would do the vacuuming, wet scrubbing and so on.”
Scaling this up, he noted, “On an industrial shop floor, you don’t want a person to handle the cleaning activity. In the western world, people are incentivizing and getting points for using robots. Job shortage in India, however, forces educated people to accept mundane activities like cleaning.” The discussion then naturally shifted to the use of robots in hazardous environments like boilers or nuclear reactors.
“Manual cleaning is banned in most countries, but in India many users follow conventional practices,” he observed, advocating for automated cleaning methods for their reliability, safety, accuracy and repeatability. While acknowledging the initial cost, he emphasized, “Automated industrial cleaning comes at a cost, in the long-term, reducing risk and improving safety is beyond anybody’s imagination.”
It is important to distinguish client’s seriousness for automation. Also, advanced machines require operators who understand dashboards. The focus should be on – value of SLAM technology, adaptive cleaning for customized solutions and predictive maintenance to minimize machine downtime.
Vedant Matta
Navigating the Path to Automation
Vedant Matta from Charnock shed light on the considerations when clients inquire about automation. “When people are researching automation and robotics, first distinguish between whether curious or serious and whether the machines can work on the shopfloor,” he advised. He also highlighted the operational aspect: “The second aspect is these machines operate on their own; monitoring needs a person who understands a dashboard, even drones used in a facility need a pilot to operate.”
Matta underscored the importance of technology, noting, “None of the machines used in India, including the robotic devices, use the SLAM technology (Simultaneous Localisation and Mapping), wherein the robots placed on the shopfloor detect themselves, make a map for themselves and get to work.”
He also stressed the need for adaptive cleaning technology in conventional machines, where the machine senses the type of chemical needed, the brush pressure and calibrates itself accordingly. Predictive maintenance was another key point, aimed at reducing machine downtime by predicting the lifespan of consumables like brushes, squeegees, batteries and motors.
Automated cleaning solutions, driven by labour shortages and the need for safer practices, particularly in hazardous environments where manual cleaning is often banned. AI-powered cameras for quality control and material handling helps eliminate complete dependence on manual cleaning.
Sandeep Rawal
Smart Shift: AI, IoT & Drones
The conversation seamlessly transitioned back to AI, robotics and drones in industrial settings as manufacturing evolves. Pankaj Patil elaborated, “Industrial maintenance was reactive and time-consuming, not so productive. This is where automation comes in.
IoT makes the equipment smart and connected. The data from IoT sensors, when connected with Cloud, can predict future failures. It detects a pattern, based on that pattern it can predict maintenance events.”
He gave an example: “Let us say in one of the utility systems, HVAC, the air sensor installed can measure the temperature gradient, measure the air flow and update about power consumption. The live feed of this asset or machine can be conveyed to the maintenance team; changing parameters can be spotted and be taken as factors for future failure.”
Sandeep Rawal explained the application of cameras in AI technology for maintenance and quality control. “Cameras are used for maintenance, for production and for multiple access points. The usage is to find out if the quality parameters are in line with those defined by the end user. In case of a known problem, or a defined problem, a decision can be taken by the machine about whether rejection or tolerance is acceptable or not acceptable. Critical applications like pharma or food can benefit from the use of AI-based solutions.”
When asked about the key benefits of shifting to automation, the Siemens spokesperson listed increased productivity, improved safety and increased sustainability.
There is a significant reduction in manpower and improved cleanliness in the last five years with robotics. However, there are ongoing challenges like robots’ inability to reach all hard-to-access surfaces and the continuous need to monitor bacterial counts.
Nilesh P Gokhale
Real-World Applications and Challenges
Nilesh P Gokhale (Regional FM-Lead, AEMA) of Mondelez India Foods Ltd shared their five-year journey with robotic cleaning. “Automated cleaning machines are still not getting to the hard-to-reach surfaces, which needs to be focused on,” he admitted. He detailed their operational efficiency: “Three people in shifts manage a factory, cleaned by machines for an area of about 180,000sqft; it is all automated and robotic.
“Robots, cameras do not reach the dark spots, a challenge we are facing, though use of manpower has come down considerably and cleanliness levels increased. The score remains down, because cleaning is all about the count of bacteria and viruses found.”
Sandeep Rawal, responding to this, drew an analogy to dishwasher usage in India versus Western countries, highlighting cultural adoption hurdles.
Manual intervention is still necessary as machines cannot access all areas. There are cultural barriers to automation adoption in India, particularly for domestic cleaning and the necessity of automation for safety in hazardous industrial processes and for cleaning at the source is all the more now.
Sahil Jain
Sahil Jain, Managing Director, columbus, offered his perspective on smart industrial cleaning, acknowledging the current limitations. “Manual intervention is required on the shopfloor, as machines do not access all areas,” he stated.
Addressing the dishwasher analogy, he humorously added, “With reference to low dishwasher usage, the kind of food we eat results in dishwashers not being competent enough to clean those oily surfaces. Manual intervention is needed there as well.”
He then contrasted cleaning robot usage in Europe and the US, where they are integrated into daily life. “We do not have carpets, believe in opening our windows for clean air to enter,” he said of the Indian context. Jain emphasized that automation is crucial where safety is a major concern and in industries like sugar where bagasse is generated, or textiles where a lot of fibre is produced.
He stressed the need for cleaning at the source, making automation essential for dust removal. He concluded by posing a critical question to the community: “Are we ready about technology, about budgets, in terms of user mentality, in terms of training? As far as robotics, we are still behind and need a few years before technology can replace manpower altogether.”
Future of Industrial Cleaning
Reducing manpower is impossible; there are areas where automation becomes a necessity, particularly when safety is involved. In industries where cleaning at source becomes necessary, automation and mechanization can come in, especially for hard-to-reach areas where automation is essential. Looking to the future, Pankaj Patil affirmed, “The future of cleaning is in the cloud, robots and industrial drones. Let us not maintain technologies of the past; together we can create smart technologies.” Sandeep Rawal echoed this sentiment, confidently stating, “With AI and robots utilized, dependence on manual cleaning will completely be eliminated.”