Smart Factory Ecosystem: A digital boost for the chemicals industry in an era of turbulence

Chemical manufacturers face volatility, uneven demand and shifting trade regimes. Unlike many industries, they also operate long-lived, capital-intensive plants with complex batch and continuous processes under stringent safety and environmental requirements. These conditions have slowed digital and AI adoption, while global overcapacity and feedstock and energy pressures are making traditional models increasingly unsustainable.

That inertia is giving way to urgency. With 92% of manufacturers recognizing smart manufacturing as critical to competitiveness, leading manufacturers – including companies in the World Economic Forum's Global Lighthouse Network (GLN) – are moving beyond isolated use cases at individual sites or functions. They are building capability-led programmes connecting operations, R&D, supply chains, sustainability and people, increasingly end-to-end, to create integrated systems that continuously learn and scale value.

Through the Global Lighthouse Network, the World Economic Forum convenes advanced manufacturers to define and share operational excellence today. The Lighthouse Operating System (LOS) codifies this knowledge into a practical model. Developed with contributions from Lighthouses and industry partners, including Jubilant Ingrevia, it helps companies build the enablers for responsible transformation across sites and supply chains.

Against this backdrop, Jubilant Ingrevia began a multi-year, staged digital journey by building strong foundations. Robust plant connectivity, cloud infrastructure and a centralized data lake enabled it to scale advanced analytics, AI/machine learning, internet of things and automation through its programme, Surge. Over three years, over 100 initiatives involving hundreds of employees generated around $14 million in value, accelerated R&D by over 20%, enhanced sustainability, safety and resilience, and fostered a digital-first culture that culminated in Global Lighthouse Network recognition. Building on this experience and the insights and proven practices codified through the Lighthouse OS, Jubilant's latest phase is its Smart Factory Ecosystem: an integrated approach to continuous enterprise-wide value creation.

The Smart Factory Ecosystem is not just a collection of digital tools deployed at individual plants. It is the company's integrated digital architecture, creating continuous feedback loops between operations, R&D, supply chain, sustainability and people systems.

While every organization may be at a different stage of this journey, Jubilant's interpretation is to build the ecosystem deliberately, block by block:

Gajraula, one of the organization's largest and oldest manufacturing facilities, is an integrated site for specialty chemicals and intermediates with over 25 plants, seven multipurpose units and highly complex batch and continuous processes spanning kilogram to kiloton-scale production. This complexity presents a strong case for digital transformation across both brownfield and greenfield environments.

Over the last three years, the transformation spanning 10+ molecules, 30+ use cases and 50+ cross-functional members generated over $5 million in annualized value, while driving scalable adoption and continuous improvement. Beyond monetary benefits, significant reductions in steam and energy consumption, coupled with enhanced safety through sensors, interlocks and digital monitoring, have earned global sustainability and safety recognitions for the organization.

As the world's largest producer of a key molecule, manufactured at Gajraula, and the only scaled non-Chinese player globally with leadership across 35+ derivatives, maintaining this market position required continuous improvement at scale. This made digital and AI-led transformation of the legacy manufacturing plant a strategic imperative. The resulting interventions delivered significant economic and environmental impact, as highlighted below.

Use cases proven at Gajraula have been replicated across other plants and sites. The upcoming Multi-Purpose Plant (MPP8) is being designed as a smart factory from inception. From data-driven material handling, process analytical technologies, intelligent batch execution and predictive maintenance to AI-enabled workforce development, MPP8 is embedding adaptable, next-generation manufacturing capabilities into its design, operations and culture.

The evidence is increasingly clear: integrated, end-to-end transformation programmes are becoming a source of competitive advantage across industries, especially in chemicals, where value depends on complex, interdependent operations. Companies embracing these capabilities are achieving 10-20% higher production output, 7-20% workforce productivity gains and up to 15% additional capacity without significant capital investment. Jubilant's Smart Factory Ecosystem is one expression of this frontier; many Global Lighthouse Network stories reflect the same end-to-end shift across sectors:

Winning companies will no longer treat digital as a standalone initiative or a series of disconnected site projects. They will integrate operations, sustainability, innovation, supply chains and talent at enterprise scale, underpinned by trusted data, connected infrastructure, governance, leadership and continuous learning.

By sharing proven approaches, the Forum’s community can accelerate measurable gains in growth, resilience, innovation and talent. As volatility becomes the norm, holistic transformation at scale will distinguish tomorrow’s leaders.