MAS Holdings Saves 14,000 Labor-Days Annually with UiPath Automation

The situation

MAS Holdings, a leading apparel manufacturer based in Colombo, Sri Lanka, operates 53 manufacturing facilities across 16 countries and employs over 99,000 workers. Despite its scale and established market position, the company faced operational challenges rooted in manual processes and inefficiencies distributed across its global operations. These bottlenecks affected productivity and competitiveness in a sector where margins depend on operational excellence.

The company recognised that digital transformation was necessary to streamline workflows and reduce the labour intensity of routine administrative and operational tasks. Rather than pursue a broad technology overhaul, MAS Holdings identified specific processes—particularly in finance, human resources, and supply chain management—as candidates for automation.

The approach

MAS Holdings partnered with UiPath, a provider of robotic process automation (RPA) technology, to systematically identify and automate manual workflows. The engagement focused on processes that were repetitive, rule-based, and time-consuming—characteristics that make them suitable for RPA implementation.

The company began by mapping 52 distinct processes across multiple departments. These ranged from routine administrative tasks to more complex operations within finance, HR, and supply chain functions. Rather than attempting to automate everything simultaneously, MAS Holdings took a phased approach, allowing the organisation to learn from early implementations and refine its strategy for subsequent deployments.

What happened

The implementation of 52 automated processes using UiPath's RPA platform delivered measurable results. MAS Holdings achieved annual savings of 14,000 labor-days—a substantial reduction in manual effort that translated directly into operational efficiency gains and cost savings across the organisation.

UiPath helped the company automate 52 processes, driving key business outcomes around productivity, efficiency and cost savings.

The success of this initial phase validated the RPA strategy and demonstrated the potential for further expansion. MAS Holdings subsequently committed to implementing 25 additional UiPath robots in the coming months, signalling confidence in the approach and a commitment to deepening automation across its operations. This planned expansion indicates that the company identified additional processes suitable for automation beyond the initial 52.

The takeaway

MAS Holdings' experience demonstrates that RPA can deliver substantial labour savings and operational improvements when applied systematically to rule-based, repetitive processes. The achievement of 14,000 labor-days in annual savings across a global manufacturing operation with over 99,000 employees shows that automation can meaningfully enhance competitiveness without requiring wholesale organisational restructuring.

For manufacturers and large-scale operations facing similar pressures, the case illustrates the value of identifying specific process automation opportunities rather than pursuing unfocused digital transformation. The planned expansion of automation at MAS Holdings suggests that once organisations establish successful RPA implementations, the framework and confidence to scale automation further often follows naturally.