September 29, 2018
Manufacturers and enterprise solution providers have spent many years focused on automating processes that follow clear rules. Because of this, huge advancements have been made in areas like accounting and manufacturing.
Now thanks to Artificial Intelligence (AI), we have gained the ability to leverage machine learning and Big Data to automate less structured processes, such as complex decisions, conversations, and predictions.
AI is here for the manufacturing industry, and, as predicted, it’s huge. Let’s look at three big ways artificial intelligence is changing manufacturing.
Meet Coleman
Bolstered by its 2017 acquisition of Birst, a business intelligence platform that manages data across enterprise systems, Info™ has developed Coleman, an enterprise-grade AI platform that applies machine-learning technology to help Infor’s customers optimize and streamline their businesses. Coleman is now included in Infor’s CloudSuite solutions, including CloudSuite Industrial for complex manufacturers (formerly known as Syteline).
Named after STEM pioneer Katherine Coleman Johnson, whose trail-blazing work helped NASA land on the moon, Coleman is a powerful AI assistant designed specifically for business users to help execute tasks, make sound business decisions, and even predict maintenance issues.
Coleman helps manufacturers maximize their potential in a few key areas: augmentation, automation, and advice.
Augmentation
The goal of any technology is simple — to solve problems. In manufacturing, many of the tools we use serve this purpose by augmenting our human capabilities, allowing us to do more and more complex tasks in less time and with fewer errors. AI takes things to the next level by augmenting these technologies to make them even more powerful, accessible, and valuable.
Take Infor’s Coleman AI, for example. Coleman uses natural language processing and image recognition to help people use technology more efficiently. Through intuitive, verbal conversations, Coleman enables AI to become the user interface, allowing staff to wholly delegate data questions and searches to the AI system. It can learn, speak, read, respond, and predict outcomes. It can learn, speak, read, respond, and predict outcomes.
By adding AI into the mix, companies can minimize human errors, improve efficiency, reduce costs.
Automation
Augmentation has taken us a long way and will continue to be an important part of business success, but there is another major goal of AI that has manufacturers salivating — automation. With AI and machine learning, we can remove the need for humans to tell the computer what to learn.
Coleman is a true game-changer. The average interaction worker spends nearly 20% of their time looking for information or tracking down help. With the ability to instantly source data, automate repetitive processes, and optimize workflows, Coleman can free up your talent to focus on high-value activities—and create efficiency gains that result in significant savings for your enterprise.
Advice
Manufacturers produce a TON of data these days. AI helps make sense of all this data so companies can better identify risks, maximize revenue, plan & budget.
A company could, for example, utilize AI to analyze market factors, production data, and customer feedback info and automate price changes to maximize customer satisfaction, profitability, and competitive position.
Leveraging data and predictive modeling, AI can improve important business areas like forecasting, workflows, product development, and user experience. Artificial intelligence can even predict when technologies might fail or need maintenance, saving companies from unexpected costs or critical downtime.
A New Challenge for Manufacturing ERP Partners
Manufacturers are investing big in artificial intelligence this year. By 2020, Gartner firm predicts AI will be part of almost every new software product and service and will be an investment priority among more than 30% of CIOs.
Enterprise software providers, consulting firms, and ERP partners like Guide Technologies are also investing in AI. Our consultants are keeping pace with rapidly-evolving AI technologies so that we can continue helping our clients make better forward-thinking software choices and implement intelligent ERP to its fullest advantage.
Contact Guide Technologies about leveraging AI in your ERP implementations.