Industry experts Steven Yu, Divya Ramraika and Anil Sathe discussed how robotics, AI and automation are gradually reshaping India’s facility management and cleaning sectors, while addressing operational efficiency, workforce shortages and the realities of deploying robots in complex Indian environments.
The first hour is usually chaos. People gather around, pull out their phones, click selfies and watch the robot move through the corridor like a celebrity entering the building.
But once the excitement settles, the machine quietly gets to work — cleaning floors, avoiding obstacles, mapping spaces and becoming what industry experts call the “101st worker” inside the facility. And that, perhaps, is where India’s robotics story is beginning.
It was this transition — from curiosity to operational support — that formed the centre of a recent discussion hosted by Clean India Journal featuring Steven Yu, Senior Vice President at OrionStar; Divya Ramraika, Managing Director at Kinetiq Rrobotics Pvt. Ltd; and Anil Sathe, Chief Growth Officer at Kinetiq Rrobotics Pvt. Ltd.
The discussion explored how robotics, AI and automation are gradually reshaping India’s facility management and cleaning sectors while addressing labour shortages, operational efficiency and the realities of deploying robots in complex Indian environments.
Why India
At the heart of the discussion was a question both simple and significant: “Why India?”
For Steven Yu, the answer came from years of observing the Indian market evolve. Before entering the robotics business nearly a decade ago, he had worked with Indian telecom companies during the country’s mobile phone boom — an experience that revealed both the scale of the Indian market and its willingness to embrace technology rapidly.
“That was when I realised India is truly a vast market,” he said, recalling how quickly Indian consumers adapted to mobile technology. He now sees a similar shift unfolding in robotics.
According to Steven, changing workforce patterns and growing labour shortages are creating the right conditions for automation-led solutions, particularly in repetitive sectors such as cleaning and facility management.
“Doing the same work every day is not ideal for human beings. This is where machines can contribute,” he observed, adding that younger generations are increasingly unwilling to take up repetitive labour-intensive work.
At the same time, he rejected the common perception that robots are designed to replace workers.
“Robots are tools to help people work more efficiently,” he said, explaining that workers can instead learn to operate robotic systems and move into newer roles.
Growth Opportunity
India’s infrastructure story is growing faster than its operational systems can keep pace with. For robotics companies entering the country, that gap between expansion and execution is emerging as one of the biggest opportunities for automation-led technologies.
Divya Ramraika highlighted what he described as a “huge vacuum” in the country.
“While infrastructure growth has accelerated, advanced automated cleaning systems are still relatively new in the Indian market. At the pace with which our country is developing, we need robots for our large infrastructures,” he said.
For now, he believes partnerships with global robotics companies remain the fastest route to adoption while helping India gradually build local manufacturing and software capabilities.
Smart Navigation
Robots operating in neat, predictable environments is easy. The real engineering challenge begins in India — where crowded hallways, moving trolleys, heavy footfall and constant interruptions are part of the everyday landscape.
Divya said the company is investing heavily in software capabilities that allow robots to map and understand operational spaces more intelligently.
“Dedicated software teams train the robots to identify where they need to move, which areas require cleaning and which zones are designated for service operations,” he explained.
Equipped with LiDAR systems, cameras and sensing technologies, the robots continuously scan
and interpret their surroundings while functioning.
“If there is some obstruction, it can stop, take a detour through another route and continue the work,” he said.
Rather than stopping permanently, the robots are programmed to reroute themselves and continue operations with minimal interruption. The systems can detect moving humans, chairs, walls and other obstacles before responding through automated navigation adjustments.
According to Divya, Indian public spaces are precisely where robotic systems can be most effective.
“In airports, malls and hospitals, the robots operate through predefined cleaning routes while revisiting areas periodically depending on footfall and operational requirements,” he explained.
The systems are also equipped with AI-enabled visual detection capabilities that help identify localised dirt, spills and garbage in real time.
Labour Shift
The cleaning industry has traditionally depended on manpower-heavy operations, but the pressure points are becoming increasingly visible.
As workforce shortages deepen and facilities become more complex to manage, the conversation is gradually shifting from manpower availability to operational efficiency, accountability and real-time data.
Having witnessed the shift from manual cleaning to mechanised systems since joining the industry in 2007, Anil Sathe described autonomous robotics as the next logical progression.
“The journey from mechanised cleaning to autonomous robotics is now beginning,” he said.
Contrary to the perception that India has abundant manpower, Anil argued that labour shortages are already becoming a major operational challenge.
“If companies require 100 people, very often only 80 are available,” he explained, adding that those 80 workers are then expected to complete 100% of the work.
This growing manpower gap within facility management has created what he described as an operational vacuum — one that robotics and AI-driven systems are beginning to address through “robotic co-working”.
“Most of the top leadership is looking forward to this type of innovation where they can handle efficiencies properly,” he observed.
According to him, once organisations begin understanding efficiency management through automation, robotics could emerge as one of the industry’s biggest focus areas.
Measurable Outcomes
Anil pointed out that while large workforces are already deployed across the cleaning industry, most operations still lack measurable quantification.
“With robotics and AI, every process can be quantified,” he explained.
Facility management companies traditionally evaluate operations through square-foot coverage, but robotics takes that further by generating real-time operational data and measurable performance insights.
The shift, according to experts, is no longer only about replacing manual effort with machines. It is increasingly about visibility, consistency and measurable operational outcomes.
Common Myths
For many, the biggest concern around robotics in India is not the technology itself, but whether machines can realistically function amid crowded corridors, unstable connectivity and constantly moving public spaces.
According to the experts, however, most of those fears are built more on perception than reality.
Addressing one of the biggest misconceptions around robotics, Anil said, “People think robots stop because Wi-Fi is not available or internet is not available. That is one of the biggest myths.”
The systems function as AMRs — Autonomous Mobile Robots — operating through sensors and navigation technologies rather than internet-based commands.
“Whether it is a delivery robot or a cleaning robot, each machine is equipped with multiple sensors that continuously monitor movement and surroundings,” he explained.
At the same time, he acknowledged that introducing robots into facilities comes with an adjustment phase because people are still adapting to working alongside machines.
“The most exciting thing that happens is everybody wants a selfie with the robot,” he remarked.
Having overseen nearly 20 to 25 proof-of-concept deployments across India, Anil described this initial excitement as a “good chaos” that accompanies almost every implementation.
“Our first job is to take this one hour of excitement in a positive way,” he said, adding that once the novelty fades, the robot gradually becomes part of the workforce.
Imperfect Spaces
India’s challenge is not just scale, but unpredictability. Floors vary, layouts shift constantly and public spaces rarely stay still long enough for automation to function in perfectly controlled conditions.
Steven Yu said navigation technology and hardware systems are evolving rapidly to handle increasingly complex environments.
“Currently, the navigation algorithms solve most of the problems. We are now introducing 3D LiDAR-based systems for smoother and more intelligent movement around obstacles,”
he said.
When asked how the robots would respond to potholes or damaged flooring, the experts clarified that while the systems can detect potholes and navigate around them, they are fundamentally designed for flat surfaces.
The software can also identify different floor types within the same property.
“You can define that one area has wooden flooring and another has marble flooring. Accordingly, the robot can take decisions and use suitable accessories while cleaning,” they explained.
Beyond Cleaning
As robotics adoption expands, the conversation is also shifting toward sustainability, battery ecosystems and long-term manufacturing ambitions.
Talking about water recycling, Steven informed that OrionStar currently offers two categories of cleaning robots.
“In one category, dirty water is collected separately and discharged after use. The second category — expected to enter India later this year — will feature water recycling technology,” he said.
According to him, the system filters dirty water internally, removes solid particles and recirculates treated water back into the cleaning process, functioning similarly to an STP-based recycling mechanism.
The robots currently operate with water tank capacities of around 35 litres for standard office applications, while larger machines ranging from 25 litres to 45 litres are also available.
The discussion also turned to lithium battery systems, which experts admitted is becoming an important subject within India’s growing electronics ecosystem.
“The robots currently use lithium batteries manufactured according to European standards,” Steven said, adding that future localisation of battery manufacturing in India remains part of the long-term roadmap.