The Road That Came With Proof
Customer
NLC India Limited (Naveli Lignite Corporation)
Sector
Mining · Lignite · Public Sector Undertaking
Location
Tamil Nadu, India · Multiple lignite mines
Scope
Predictive maintenance, inventory, HEMM service workflow
Cognecto modules
Boson + Cortex · Mining solution
Status
Active deployment
The Challenge
Service registers vs reality across continuous mining systems.
Lignite mining at NLC operates differently from coal — continuous mining systems, large conveyor infrastructure, and dozens of HEMM units on overlapping service schedules. Tracking 250-hour, 500-hour, 1000-hour, 2000-hour, and 5000-hour service requirements across this fleet — manually, through service registers — meant constant reactive scheduling.
Maintenance often slipped. Equipment failed between scheduled services. Emergency parts procurement at premium pricing became normal operating procedure. Inventory was managed by intuition rather than data, with stock-outs at critical moments and overstocked items sitting in storage for years.
- Manual service registers across dozens of HEMM units — frequent scheduling errors
- Calendar-based service dates ignored actual operating hours and load
- Emergency procurements at premium pricing — recurring cost overrun
- Inventory managed by intuition — stockouts during critical maintenance windows
- Pre-start checklist completion variable — DGMS compliance gaps possible
The Cognecto Solution
Service alerts tied to actual hours. Inventory tied to maintenance.
Cognecto deployed Boson's predictive maintenance module across NLC's HEMM fleet — connecting telematics hour readings to service schedules so reminders fire 7-15 days before threshold, not at calendar dates. Each scheduled service is linked to the consumables it requires, and inventory low-stock alerts trigger reorder workflows before a job card hits an empty bin.
Hour-Based Service Alerts
250-hr, 500-hr, 2000-hr, 5000-hr service reminders fire 7-15 days before the actual hour threshold — based on telematics data, not calendar dates.
Inventory–Maintenance Link
Each service schedule pre-shows required consumables — stock alerts fire before reorder windows close.
Digital Job Cards
Complete repair traceability per asset · parts used · technician · downtime. SAP PM compatible.
DGMS Pre-Start Checklists
Digital pre-start forms with mandatory completion — DGMS compliance maintained by system, not by reminder.
Continuous Mining Sensors
Conveyor health monitoring, motor temperature, hydraulic pressure — all feeding maintenance triggers.
SAP Integration
Service reminders and inventory data sync bidirectionally with SAP PM and SAP MM — one source of truth.
The Impact
Maintenance moved from reactive to predictive.
NLC's maintenance organisation now operates on advance signals from actual equipment data rather than reactive responses to breakdowns. Emergency procurement costs dropped by over a quarter. Equipment uptime improved by 10-12%. Pre-start checklist completion is uniform across shifts. The cumulative effect across the fleet over a year is significant — and entirely from the same equipment, the same workforce, and the same processes operating against better information.
10–12%
Fleet uptime improvement
25–30%
Reduction in emergency procurements
50–70%
Time saved on pre-start checklist completion
Zero
Service register paperwork — fully digital
SAP
PM and MM modules bidirectionally integrated
Hour-based
Service alerts replace calendar-based scheduling
"Lignite mining at NLC involves continuous mining systems, conveyor infrastructure, and surface mining equipment operating across two large mines simultaneously. The maintenance complexity alone — tracking 500-hour, 2000-hour, and 5000-hour service schedules across dozens of HEMM units — was managed through registers. Cognecto automated every service reminder, linked it to inventory stock, and cut emergency procurement events by over a quarter in the first six months."
NLC India Limited · Naveli Lignite Corporation · Tamil Nadu