Forging a Future: How AI Reshapes Metal Procurement

AI-powered conversational tools are reducing lead-to-quote cycles by 60% at Enlight Metals, showing how human-machine collaboration is reshaping procurement in Industry 5.0.

- By Aanchal Ghatak

The global metals market is projected to grow from USD 4.23 trillion in 2025 to USD 4.97 trillion by 2029, fuelled by rising demand from cleantech, infrastructure, and electronics. At the same time, base-metal inventories are tightening, with London Metal Exchange zinc and aluminium stocks at multiyear lows. In this context, speed and accuracy in procurement have become critical.

To address these pressures, Enlight Metals has deployed a 24×7 conversational AI "digital colleague" that handles customer queries, accelerates quoting, and modernises interactions. The initiative reflects how Industry 5.0 is evolving through the partnership of human expertise and intelligent systems.

According to Dhananjay Goel, Director, Enlight Metals, this Al-driven approach has cut response times by more than 60%, transforming the procurement process and reshaping the customer experience in the new Industry 5.0 era.

Enlight recently announced the integration of conversational AI for metal procurement. What was the core problem you were trying to solve, and how does AI fit into that journey?

In the metals business, every second matters. The first company to respond with a clear, competitive offer usually wins the order. Before AI, we were losing valuable hours—sometimes even days—just capturing basic information from incoming inquiries, verifying specifications, and following up for missing details.

We realised that if we could automate the initial layers of interaction without compromising personal rapport, we could change the game. Conversational AI became that solution. It integrates seamlessly with multiple touchpoints—whether an inquiry comes via WhatsApp, our website, or over the phone. The biggest win is consistency and speed. We now have what I call a “24×7 digital colleague” who never gets tired, never forgets, and never misses a lead, allowing our people to focus on value-driven work rather than administrative loops.