Hindustan Unilever (HUL) said on Wednesday that its Dapada factory, manufacturing home care products including Surf excel, Rin, and Vim, has joined the Lighthouse Network, which makes it a part of the community of manufacturing sites recognised by the World Economic Forum (WEF) for applying advanced technologies, innovations, and sustainable practices to modernise business operations.

The factory has become the first FMCG manufacturing site in India which has been accorded this status.

The Global Lighthouse Network includes sites that have implemented end-to-end digitisation across the value chain, pushing the boundaries of technological advancement. These technologies result in reduced manufacturing cost, greater agility, and speed.

Established in 2001, the Dapada site produces 3 million units per day for brands like Surf excel, Vim, Rin and Wheel. This site started its digital journey in 2018 and is known to be the first Unilever dedicated home site globally to be recognised as an E2E lighthouse factory.

Commenting on the announcement, Sanjiv Mehta, president of Unilever South Asia and chairman and managing director of HUL, said, “The WEF recognition is a testament to our sustained focus on making the supply chain future fit as part of our ‘Reimagine HUL’ agenda. This is the first time an FMCG factory in India has been awarded this status, and I hope more will follow as Unilever increasingly digitises its supply chain function”.