By YR Nagaraja, Managing Director, Ramky Infrastructure Ltd
Smart industrial parks are moving their focus from “ground plots and power supply” to “systems and software.” Smart industrial parks include future-ready infrastructure like automation, IoT sensors, and rigorous ESG data tracking so that every kilowatt, litre, and kilogram of CO₂ is measured, managed, and continually improved. Following global standards such as the UNIDO–World Bank–GIZ Eco-Industrial Park framework that set performance criteria on energy, water, materials, and social outcomes, smart industrial parks are both competitive, sustainable, and prepared for Industry 4.0.
IoT forms the park’s “nervous system” connecting humans, devices, and machines, including machine-to-machine. Digitalisation with smart meters on feeders and substations, vibration and temperature sensors on motors, and online water-quality probes in treatment plants generates volumes of data that, with advanced analytics, creates a live picture of resource use. Acting on these insights leads to tangible gains. Automation then turns data into reliable outcomes. With predictive maintenance, algorithms flag bearing wear or pump cavitation before failure, allowing repairs during planned stops and avoiding energy-hungry, off-spec operation.
Case studies also show reduced unplanned downtime and lower maintenance costs. Digital tools identify opportunities with savings when teams close the loop with new operating set-points, automated controls, and standardisation of work protocols. An example is how Schneider Electric’s Lexington manufacturing facility in Kentucky was recognised with the distinction of 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR) Advanced Lighthouse by the WEF in 2020, using digital tools such as augmented reality, remote monitoring, and predictive maintenance to drive energy efficiency, sustainability, and overall cost savings. The optimisation led to 26% energy reduction, a 78% CO2 reduction, and a 20% water use reduction.
The use of water can be taken as an example of the loop closing. Many parks now aim for Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD), which treats wastewater to recover clean water and convert the remainder into solids, eliminating liquid effluent. ZLD helps in significantly reducing water scarcity, pollution risk, and enables recycling at scale, which is critical in water-stressed regions. The trade-off is energy as thermal brine concentrators and crystallizers are power-intensive. Here, IoT and automation help by blending streams in real time, optimizing membrane-thermal hybrids, and running heat-recovery routines to trim kilowatt-hours per cubic metre. The future will see ZLD becoming more efficient in resource recovery by becoming smarter and less energy-hungry.
Carbon management must also be rigorous. Smart parks pair efficiency and electrification with shared carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) infrastructure. Shared transport and storage cut costs and make CCUS deployable for hard-to-abate industries. An ambitious project in development is the Port of Rotterdam’s PORTHOS (Port of Rotterdam CO2 Transport Hub and Offshore Storage) project in which around 2.5 million tons of CO2 from industry in the Port of Rotterdam area will be transported and stored in depleted gas fields under the North Sea. The model of a common pipeline and offshore storage to serve multiple industrial sites is a model that industrial parks and clusters can study.
Credible ESG data tracking is another aspect of smart industrial parks. Investors and regulators now expect transparent reporting across Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions, along with water, waste, and safety metrics. Smart parks can align tenant-level metering to these scopes, allocate electricity and steam emissions accurately, and provide near-real-time dashboards. For Scope 3, parks can pre-define data exchanges with logistics providers and suppliers so embodied emissions in inbound materials and outbound shipments are captured with fewer gaps.
Governance matters as much as gadgets. The UNIDO Eco-Industrial Park framework offers a practical checklist for park operators and public agencies, from land-use and biodiversity to community engagement and circular-economy synergies between tenants. UNIDO’s tools help assess where a park stands and what to improve next. Embedding these criteria in park covenants and utility tariffs turns sustainability from a voluntary effort into the default operating model.
One must also manage risks. Digital systems introduce cybersecurity and privacy issues along with the benefits. Smart parks should budget for cybersecurity, adopt interoperable standards, and invest in upskilling so operators can act on analytics in time. The result will be a smart industrial park that is resilient, competitive, and attractive to global manufacturers who must hit tough ESG targets.
IoT provides the eyes and ears, automation provides the steady hands, and ESG data provides the accountability to make the smart industrial park an engine of growth that uses less water, less energy, and emits less carbon while giving the data needed to scale. That is what a true “smart” industrial park should mean!