JK Cement: Laying a scalable foundation for fast, intuitive processes driven by intelligent automation with SAP Business AI
Explore JK Cement’s shift to AI-driven purchasing flows
JK Cement Ltd., one of India’s top cement producers, faced considerable strain from processing thousands of transactions daily. Using SAP Business Technology Platform and SAP Business AI, the company turned slow, manual purchase processes into fast, intuitive ones—freeing teams to focus on bigger opportunities.
| Industry | Region | Company Size |
| Industrial manufacturing | Kanpur, India | 4,100 employees |
efficiency achieved in creating purchase requisitions.
greater time savings in purchase-related processes.
Chief Digital Officer, JK Cement Ltd.
Tackling heavy manual workloads that slowed growth and drained teams
As part of its storied 140-year-old heritage, JK Cement Ltd. has innovation and progress woven into its DNA. The cement manufacturer has built on a foundation of trust, collaboration, and bold ambition—from pioneering quality products to expanding sustainably into new markets.
But behind the strong brand presence and accelerating growth was mounting operational tension. Every day, more than a thousand purchase requisitions are initiated and up to 5,000 invoices are processed. Every single one of these tasks relied heavily on manual effort.
These back-office processes were the lifeblood of a business scaling rapidly across India and globally, yet they were bogging down teams with tedious, repetitive tasks. Purchase requisitions alone meant navigating complex screens and filling out 16 separate fields, draining time and energy that could be spent driving new opportunities.
JK Cement’s leaders knew they couldn’t keep leaning on traditional methods. Critical processes needed to be modernized to ease the strain on employees, simplify work, and ultimately set the stage for even bolder growth. Otherwise, manual bottlenecks could harden into barriers that might slow their impressive momentum.
Chief Digital Officer, JK Cement Ltd.
Unlocking a simpler way to work with intuitive AI and a unified platform
JK Cement addressed the challenges of manual work by embedding SAP Business Technology Platform (SAP BTP) with SAP Business AI. Together, these technologies reshaped the user experience and paved the way for smarter process automation.
Using the ChatGPT-4o model through the generative AI hub feature in the SAP AI Core infrastructure, employees can create purchase requisitions by typing a sentence in plain English—an experience that feels more like chatting with a colleague than using software. SAP Business AI then interprets the request, applies business logic, and completes the process in the background.
This transformation is grounded in an integrated architecture that connects cloud-native services, on-premises systems, and user-facing applications (see the figure below). End users can access the chatbot through SAP Build Work Zone and authenticate with SAP Cloud Identity Services that can federate with third-party identity providers.
A custom Python application deployed in SAP BTP, Cloud Foundry runtime serves as the central processing layer. It helps JK Cement manage requests, interact with the SAP HANA Cloud database, and coordinate responses from the ChatGPT-4o model through SAP AI Core and the generative AI hub. In addition, the SAP MaxAttention program—part of the premium engagements portfolio from SAP Services and Support—provided expert-led services to help ensure the successful implementation and smooth integration of this AI scenario.
More-secure communications with JK Cement’s ERP, SAP S/4HANA software, are enabled by a cloud connector from SAP. The Python application consumes operational data services exposed by the back-end system to create fully formed purchase requisitions by turning natural-language input into an enterprise-grade transaction.
Since SAP BTP unifies enterprise data, workflows, and applications, SAP Business AI operates with a more complete business context. It draws from accurate data and understands JK Cement’s processes, transforming a once tedious task into one that is quick and intuitive. The result is a digital experience that feels remarkably human and allows employees to focus on what truly matters to customers and the business.
Chief Digital Officer, JK Cement Ltd.
Reducing process time and setting up for smarter, faster growth
With SAP BTP and SAP Business AI working behind the scenes, JK Cement transformed how daily work gets done. Employees who once spent their days navigating complex screens and manually keying in their purchasing information now interact with a digital experience that feels refreshingly human.
For JK Cement, this integrated approach has brought a new way of engaging with work. AI quietly handles the complexity, while the technology platform ties everything together in the background, keeping each step smoother, more secure, and firmly grounded in the company’s operational realities.
JK Cement has reduced the purchase requisition process time by 50%, which is a notable achievement in a business that’s handling a rapidly growing volume of purchase requisitions and invoices daily. This means less time wrestling with systems, fewer repetitive steps, and more space for employees to focus on the strategic initiatives that truly drive customer value and fuel long-term growth.
By relieving that burden, JK Cement is unlocking immediate efficiency and renewed energy across teams while laying the groundwork for even bigger ambitions ahead.
Chief Digital Officer, JK Cement Ltd.
Expanding AI-driven simplicity to scale smarter, enterprise-wide
Energized by the success of transforming its purchase requisition process, JK Cement plans to extend this same intuitive, conversational experience to invoices, sales orders, and goods receipts. The goal is to create a ripple effect of simplicity and speed across the enterprise.
By continuing to embed SAP Business AI within SAP BTP, JK Cement is setting the stage for even more intelligent, human-like interactions that free employees from routine work. This empowers teams to stay focused on what matters most: delighting customers, driving strategic growth, and contributing to the legacy of trust, innovation, and bold ambition that has defined the organization for over a century.
JK Cement’s forward-looking approach is about more than technology. It’s about building a stronger foundation for people to do their best work and make daily life more rewarding for the customers and communities they serve.