India’s food processing and hospitality industries are increasingly turning to engineered LPG and natural gas systems to reduce fuel costs, improve safety and maintain consistent production as operations become larger and more energy intensive.
According to Jesal Sampat, Executive Director & CEO of Pune Gas Systems Pvt. Ltd., energy is still commonly treated as a procurement expense rather than an area where businesses can improve operational efficiency. In food factories, hotels, central kitchens and QSR operations, however, gas system performance can directly affect production speed, safety, product consistency and operating costs.
Sampat said undersized cylinder banks, poor vaporisation, pressure drops, freezing cylinders and residual LPG losses continue to affect many commercial installations. He estimates that shifting commercial LPG users from conventional VOT systems to more efficient LOT-based systems could potentially generate annual savings of nearly Rs. 21,900 crore across India.
The industry is consequently moving beyond basic fuel supply towards properly engineered gas infrastructure involving system sizing, stable pressure, efficient vaporisation, safe pipelines, metering, leak detection and preventive maintenance.
The requirement is particularly important for high-consumption operations such as hotels, institutional and mega kitchens, bakeries, mithai and namkeen units, snack manufacturers and ready-to-eat food facilities. Pune Gas has worked with food and hospitality businesses including The Rameshwaram Café, Haldirams, A2B, Monginis, Britannia and Nestle.
At The Rameshwaram Café, Sampat said the company’s LPGenius system helped achieve LPG savings of up to 114 kg per day while supporting high-volume kitchen operations. Pune Gas has also undertaken fuel-transition projects, including a diesel-to-LPG conversion at Dr. Morepen Laboratories that delivered approximately 33 per cent fuel cost savings.
Beyond cost, stable gas pressure is important for maintaining consistency in frying, baking, roasting, boiling, steam generation and process heating. Variations in flame and heat can influence batch time, texture, colour and moisture, making reliable fuel delivery important for product standardisation.
Safety is another growing priority. Pune Gas executes installations in line with applicable IS 6044 and PNGRB guidelines, with attention to leak detection, automatic shut-off systems, fire safety and preventive maintenance.
Sampat said businesses frequently expand kitchens or production capacity without upgrading older gas infrastructure, creating risks from undersized systems, unsafe modifications and inadequate emergency preparedness.
Technology is expected to further change gas management. IoT-enabled monitoring, flow metering, automation and predictive maintenance can help businesses track consumption, detect abnormalities and reduce downtime.
Pune Gas has also developed solutions including smart LPG systems and its patented indigenous Dry-Type LPG Vaporiser to address pressure fluctuations, freezing cylinders, residual gas losses and conventional vaporisation challenges.
With food processing and hospitality expanding into religious tourism centres, emerging destinations, the North East and other developing markets, the company is also establishing Experience Centres for technical demonstrations and customer education.
Over the next five years, Pune Gas plans to expand its focus on LPG efficiency, indigenous technology, safety, metering and intelligent gas management, as energy infrastructure becomes an increasingly important part of India’s growing food economy.