With Glass Futures' upcoming Next Generation Industry Conference on 18 March at the Centre of Excellence in St Helens, now is the perfect moment to explore how digital tools, particularly artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) and digital twins, can accelerate growth and decarbonisation across the UK Foundation Industries (UKFIs).

The UK's foundation industries, cement, glass, metals, paper, ceramics, and chemicals, form the backbone of national manufacturing. Yet they are also among the most carbon intensive sectors, responsible for nearly 10% of UK industrial emissions. As the pressure to decarbonise intensifies, the sector faces a dual challenge: cut emissions while strengthening productivity and global competitiveness.

Digital technologies offer one of the most powerful opportunities to meet this challenge. Far from being futuristic buzzwords, AI, ML and digital twins are now practical, deployable tools that enable efficiency, resilience, and accelerated progress toward Net Zero.

Data for Growth

Across the UKFIs, organisations generate enormous amounts of operational data, from energy usage and furnace temperatures to emissions, quality metrics and maintenance logs. Yet without the ability to analyse and use this data effectively, its value remains unrealised.

This is where AI and ML unlock transformative potential. Across the FISC network, we are already seeing powerful examples, including:

Optimising energy use
ML algorithms can predict and adjust energy loads in real time, reducing waste and peak demand.
Start-ups like Ada Mode are pioneering energy optimising AI solutions for industrial environments.

Predicting equipment failures
AI enabled predictive maintenance models anticipate equipment issues before they occur, reducing downtime and extending asset life.
Companies such as Hybird are helping industrial plants shift from reactive to proactive maintenance.

Enhancing process control
ML models can fine tune complex processes (such as kiln operations or chemical reactions) to maximise yield, improve quality, and minimise emissions.
Innovators including Luffy.ai and Anomalyse are developing adaptive, self learning control systems for heavy industry.

Forecasting emissions
AI can simulate emissions under different operational, regulatory, or commercial scenarios, supporting stronger strategic decision making.
Start-ups like Carbon Re are advancing emissions driven optimisation across cement and other energy-intensive sectors.

Simulating Sustainability

A Digital Twin is a virtual replica of a physical asset, process, or system. In foundation industries, digital twins can be used to model entire production lines to test innovations in a safe environment before physical deployment, thereby enabling faster commercialisation journeys for innovative technologies. By simulating energy and material flows, integrated with real-time data, we can use digital twins to identify inefficiencies and hotspots through a live dashboard for operators highlighting key performance metrics. Digital twins can also be used in scenario analysis to de-risk new processes such as a change in fuel or a new material input.

Collaborating for Scale-Up

Although the implementation of these digital technologies is known to lead to both cost and carbon savings, adoption across the UKFIs remains uneven due to legacy infrastructure, data silos, and skills gaps.

FISC partners can support you to:
• Identify the highest value digital opportunities
• Conduct digital readiness assessments
• Improve data quality and interoperability
• Build more effective business cases for digital investments
• Accelerate scale-up by sharing proven solutions across sectors

Working together ensures that digital tools are not just developed but deployed at the speed and scale required to meet the UK's economic and climate goals.

The Future is Smart

Decarbonising and growing the UK Foundation Industries remains a significant technical challenge, but one that becomes far more achievable when underpinned by intelligent, data driven tools.

By embracing AI, ML, and digital twins, the sector can shift from reactive compliance to proactive transformation, building a smarter, more competitive, and more sustainable industrial base.

FISC is committed to convening industry, policymakers, academia, and investors to drive demand-led innovation, align policy and skills, and accelerate the deployment of digital technology across the UKFIs.

To learn more about the opportunities and impacts of deploying AI, join us at the Glass Futures "Next Generation Industry Conference"

Published: 11-03-2026