Vedanta Aluminium & Sterlite Copper

Automated Inventory Management for Heavy Industry

Metals & Mining—Copper & Aluminium Manufacturing

Industry

Metals & Mining (Copper, Aluminium)

Scale

Large-scale smelter facilities, production lines, and warehouses

Solutions Deployed

Inventory Management (RM, FG, Stores)

The Challenge

Vedanta operates large-scale copper and aluminum smelters and manufacturing facilities handling thousands of tons of materials daily. The inventory management challenges included:

  • Manual tracking of raw materials (copper/aluminum ingots, billets, rods) across receiving, yards, and production lines
  • Inventory discrepancies between physical stock and SAP ERP records causing production delays and material shortages
  • No real-time visibility into raw material locations—from receiving yards to plant entry
  • Time-consuming physical verification for finished goods inventory causing dispatch delays
  • Stores management complexity—tracking thousands of consumable items (tools, spare parts, PPE) with manual logs
  • No traceability for quality issues or compliance audits linking finished products back to raw material batches

In heavy manufacturing, every percentage point of inventory discrepancy translates to significant revenue loss. Manual processes simply couldn't keep up with the scale and complexity.

The IoTReady Solution

RFID-based inventory management combining manual workflows and autonomous tracking

1. Raw Material (RM) Inventory Management

Automated tracking from receiving to production consumption:

  • Weight + RFID at receiving—incoming copper/aluminum ingots, billets, and rods automatically weighed and tagged
  • RFID printer for manual tagging—operators tag materials that arrive without RFID labels
  • Fixed RFID readers for autonomous tracking—materials moving from storage yards to plant automatically detected without manual scanning
  • Handheld RFID readers—for manual verification, cycle counts, and location updates
  • Real-time yard-to-plant visibility—know exactly which materials are in storage yards vs inside production facilities
  • Automatic GRN and material transfer—instant SAP ERP updates as materials move through the supply chain

2. Finished Goods (FG) Inventory Management

Real-time tracking of finished products ready for dispatch:

  • RFID tagging at production completion—finished copper/aluminum products tagged as they exit production lines
  • Handheld RFID/QR readers—for warehouse receiving, putaway, and picking operations
  • Batch-to-finished-product traceability—link finished goods back to raw material batches for quality audits
  • Real-time finished goods inventory—eliminate manual counting and reduce dispatch delays
  • SAP integration—automatic dispatch orders, transfer orders, and inventory adjustments

3. Stores Management (Consumables)

Tracking thousands of consumable items:

  • RFID tagging for high-value tools and equipment—eliminate manual tool logs
  • QR code scanning for spare parts—fast issue and return workflows
  • Handheld readers for cycle counts—continuous inventory verification without shutting down operations
  • Min-max inventory alerts—automated reorder points to prevent stockouts of critical consumables
  • Location tracking—know which tools/parts are issued to which departments or contractors

Business Impact

40%

Reduction in Inventory Discrepancies

Real-time RFID tracking vs manual logs

Real-Time

Yard-to-Plant Visibility

Autonomous tracking with fixed readers

100%

Batch Traceability

From raw material to finished product

Faster

Dispatch Cycles

Eliminated manual FG verification

Technologies Deployed

Weight Scales + RFID

Automated raw material receiving with simultaneous weighing and RFID tagging

Fixed RFID Readers

Autonomous tracking of materials moving from storage yards to production facilities

RFID Printer

On-demand RFID tag printing for manual tagging workflows and spare parts

Handheld RFID/QR Readers

Mobile scanning for cycle counts, warehouse operations, and stores management

SAP Integration

Real-time sync for GRN, transfer orders, dispatch orders, and inventory adjustments

Cloud Platform

Centralized inventory visibility, analytics dashboards, and business rules engine

Hybrid Manual + Autonomous Tracking

Vedanta's solution combines the best of both worlds—autonomous tracking where possible, manual workflows where needed.

Autonomous Tracking

  • Fixed RFID readers detect materials moving from yards to plant
  • No manual scanning required for major material movements
  • Continuous real-time inventory updates

Manual Workflows

  • RFID printer for on-demand tag printing
  • Handheld readers for cycle counts and verification
  • Flexible for edge cases and untagged materials

Why Vedanta Chose IoTReady

Hybrid Approach

Combine autonomous fixed readers with manual handheld workflows—flexibility for real-world complexity.

Multi-Technology Support

Mix RFID, QR codes, weight scales, and barcodes based on what each material type needs—no vendor lock-in.

Low-Code Adaptability

Vedanta adapted workflows themselves with minimal code. No waiting for vendor change requests.

In-House Hardware

IoTReady designs and manufactures its own RFID readers and integration hardware—no third-party integration headaches.

Expanding Beyond Inventory

With inventory management delivering proven results, Vedanta is exploring additional capabilities

Asset Management

Track forklifts, cranes, mobile equipment, and tools across production zones

Predictive Maintenance

Monitor equipment health with vibration and temperature sensors to reduce unplanned downtime

Productivity Monitoring

Track operator activities and ensure SOP compliance on production lines

Related Solutions

Inventory Management

Automated tracking from raw materials to finished goods with real-time ERP sync.

Asset Management

Complete lifecycle management of forklifts, cranes, tools, and mobile equipment—track, maintain, optimize, retire.

Manufacturing or Heavy Industry?

See how our hybrid RFID platform can bring real-time inventory visibility to your production operations

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