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How to Improve Production Quality in Manufacturing

It’s vital that customers receive products that are free of defects. Learn 5 steps for improving production quality and how the right software can help.

Unexpected product quality issues can be a hassle to manage, especially when staff is stuck with processing time-consuming complaints, replacements, and refunds. Even worse, the impact on your bottom line can be substantial.

Manufacturers risk a significant cut to their profit margins when quality standards are not followed during the production process. To improve quality on the shop floor, plant managers need to pinpoint the root cause of quality issues.

Explore this article to learn how to start boosting your industrial processes today:

improve production quality in manufacturing

 

What is Production Quality

Production quality, or manufacturing quality, measures how well a manufacturing process develops products to fit design specifications. Manufacturers must devise a plan for how they want specific items to appear and function before creating them. This can include things like colors, durability, range of motion, measurements, and more. How well a product is made will depend on meeting these conditions.

After the design is planned, a number of factors can affect production quality, including:

  • Equipment/machines
  • Materials
  • Batch size
  • Human mistakes
  • Environmental issues
Pro Tip

Frontline workers often witness quality issues on the factory floor. They are effectively a “human sensor” in the manufacturing process and can readily identify issues that need to be addressed. Today, recording data and resolving those quality issues is most often a manual and paper-based process. As such, there is minimal data collection, latency in resolving the issue, and little-to-no feedback to the frontline worker on resolution.

Equipping workers with mobile and digital tools can help optimize production quality.

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5 steps to improve production quality

Although there may not be one single method for improving manufacturing quality, there are steps you can take to maximize success.

Here are five steps that should be part of your strategy.

Step 1: Assess your current workflow.

Start by reviewing your existing manufacturing processes. We encourage management to ask the following questions as part of their review:

  • What quality benchmarks do you hope to achieve for each product?
  • How much money have you lost from material, energy waste, and wasted time due to quality problems?
  • What is your margin for improvement?
  • What quality standards are implemented in the creation of products?
  • Is your equipment inter-connected with different databases, or just a single database?

We recommend connecting your factory devices to one central database with a cloud-based, connected worker solution that operations management can use to create, assign, manage, and monitor the work being done. This kind of software can help streamline operational processes and track results in real-time.

Step 2: Remove unneeded processes.

Once you’ve accessed your current workflow and set up a connected worker solution to collect frontline worker data, we recommend coupling it with AI-powered analytics that can derive actionable insights. Then you can use these actionable, data-led insights to see which processes are adding value and which ones are not.

quality manufacturing data collection

Step 3: Boost worker training.

It’s important to maintain regular employee training and skills development programs to ensure workers are staying on top of industry best practices, equipment upkeep, and product knowledge. AI-powered connected worker solutions make learning more accessible, engaging, and effective.

Step 4: Create quality goals.

Developing quality goals is a great way to measure product benchmarks, production time, material usage, labor cost, working hours, and more. By digitizing and standardizing quality processes, you’ll be able to see which manufacturing processes are adding to your bottom line and which can be eliminated to bring value to the customer.

Step 5: Cut production waste.

Cutting waste from your production run can improve your business’s supply chain management. Connected worker solutions can identify which processes aren’t needed to reduce waste. It also gives real-time visibility into your supply chain to help you manage supply problems, optimize manufacturing processes, and adjust production schedules.

FAQs about improving production quality

How can the quality of the manufacturing industry be improved?

Measuring your current production processes to see which methods work can help improve product quality and increase the value of goods manufacturers make. You can strengthen the processes related to production by digitizing and automating them. Implementing a connected worker solution that offers real-time insights helps ensure that all goods meet quality standards and compliance criteria.

How do you ensure product quality in manufacturing?

There are a number of factors that can ensure product quality in manufacturing. We recommend following the five steps listed above to minimize defects as well as improve workflow and output.

What are 5 ways to improve production quality?

Assessing your current workflow, eliminating needless production processes, boosting work training, creating quality goals, and cutting production waste can all help improve production quality (see list above for a full description of each, as well as how implementing a connected worker solution can boost their overall impact).

Why is quality improvement important in manufacturing?

Enhancing production quality in manufacturing is a must as the industry moves towards fully connected enterprises, digital transformation, and automation. Businesses risk huge profit losses when quality standards are neglected in the creation of each product.

Digitize and Improve Production Quality with Augmentir

By digitizing and standardizing quality protocols, organizations can maintain compliance through an auditable and verifiable quality management system that gives workers access to the correct procedures as they need them with expert guidance. This ensures that tasks are performed in a standard manner to avoid errors on the production floor, reduce defects, and decrease resources lost to rework.

Refining your manufacturing methods can be difficult without the right technology. Augmentir’s AI-based connected worker solution makes streamlining and optimizing your production and quality procedures easier than ever before. Get in touch for a live demo today and learn why manufacturers are choosing Augmentir to help standardize and digitize quality processes!

 

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How to Reduce Changeover Time in Manufacturing

Learn how to reduce changeover time in manufacturing and the benefits of doing so to maximize production processes.

Providing quality products consistently and on time is at the forefront of customer satisfaction. In today’s competitive market, manufacturers must execute production runs quickly and efficiently to meet customer demand. But equipment and workers can’t operate 24/7. Machines must be properly maintained, workstations require cleaning and employees need rest. This is where optimizing changeover time comes in.

Changeover time is the period that it takes for workers to adjust machines or for assembly lines to start the next product run. A changeover usually includes swapping parts, sanitizing equipment, and preparing it for the next cycle. A good rule of thumb is to keep the changeover period down to less than 10 minutes. You can keep track of your organization’s changeover time by capturing how long it takes to produce each product.

Keeping an eye on your changeover time can help you maximize production and improve processes. Learn more about how you can reduce changeover time in manufacturing by exploring the following topics:

Three steps for reducing changeover time

Minimizing changeover time is a key component of lean manufacturing, a production method aimed at minimizing waste while increasing worker productivity. Implementation of this process can help manufacturers maximize uptime and cut down on waste caused by downtime.

Although there are various steps you can take to reduce it, here are some essential steps to help you get started:

Step 1: Assess your present changeover method.

It’s crucial to look at your existing changeover protocol before taking action to modify it. Try to identify which processes need optimization in order to cut down on the time between inventory runs.

Step 2: Implement single-minute exchange of dies (SMED).

Single-minute exchange of dies is a tool used in lean manufacturing to reduce changeover time to single digits. This means that a successful assembly run should be less than 10 minutes.

It’s helpful if workers have some idea of how long each task (such as switching parts, cleaning, etc.) takes during the production process. This awareness can be cultivated the more they familiarize themselves with procedures and day-to-day routines.

Step 3: Create standard changeover procedures.

Creating standard operating procedures (SOPs) and standardizing work can help with the changeover process. If there aren’t centralized procedures, changeover times will vary based on the employee, how long it takes them to clean up, set up and begin a new production run.

It’s important for procedures to contain explicit directions on how to perform successful changeovers. This can include highlighting which equipment needs to be calibrated and other machinery-related tasks.

Pro Tip

Digitizing changeover procedures can offer several benefits that enhance the overall efficiency, safety, and effectiveness of the changeover process. Digital procedures can be accessed by frontline workers through a mobile device or wearable technology, and help improve accessibility, accountability, standardization, as well as provide visual aids to less-experienced workers performing the task.

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In a nutshell, having clear instructions makes it easier for workers to know what to expect when it’s time for a changeover.

Benefits of reducing changeover time

Reducing changeover time can yield a number of benefits, especially for companies producing a large number of products on a day-to-day basis.

Some of the advantages include:

  • Makes it easier to transition between production processes
  • Creates a more productive work environment
  • Helps to reduce equipment downtime
  • Gets products to customers faster

How digitization can help

Implementing connected worker solutions that digitize and optimize changeover processes can help reduce the time each changeover takes by providing explicit digital instructions customized to any given task, machine, or worker.

benefits of digital work instructions

Digital work instructions are electronic versions of work instructions, quality manuals, or SOPs that provide necessary visual aids and real-time contextual information to help guide workers through complex tasks. These digital work instructions intelligently deliver guidance and streamline changeover processes with images, videos, augmented reality experiences, and live support from colleagues or subject matter experts.

Augmentir is the world’s first AI-powered connected worker platform that helps industrial frontline workers reduce changeover time in manufacturing using smart technology. Learn how world class manufacturers are using Augmentir to drive improvements across their industrial operations – contact us for a demo today!

 

 

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Benefits of Manufacturing SOPs and How to Write Them

Learn how to write manufacturing SOPs and the benefits of having standard operating procedures in a manufacturing operation.

Standard operating procedures, or SOPs, will change the way you run your manufacturing operations.

SOPs are imperative to a properly organized management structure. They are step-by-step guidelines workers must follow when carrying out tasks to standardize work and are designed to meet industry regulations.

Essentially, they provide general info about assignments, including the tools, methods, or machinery needed to complete projects. SOPs indicate what the task is, who will perform it, how it should be completed, and when it should be completed.

manufacturing sop

For example, manufacturers may write SOPs for employee training to reduce risk and injury. Leadership may also use procedures to assign goals and measure employee performance.

Read on to find out more about the benefits of manufacturing SOPs and how to write them by exploring the following topics:

Advantages of Implementing Standard Operating Procedures

According to Forbes, a comprehensive SOP keeps workers on the same page and improves efficiency and accuracy. Without documented procedures, there is no way to set proper standardized processes and workers might try to complete jobs in non-standard methods, which leads to disruptions in the production processes and causes all sorts of quality issues in a manufacturing environment. Thankfully, SOPs work to prevent that from happening.

Some of the advantages of using SOPs include:

  • Meets regulatory compliance: Product inspectors constantly ask to review SOPs when conducting audits. These serve as the point of reference for whether specific measures followed meet industry guidelines.
  • Standardizes tasks: The point of written procedures is to establish a standard way of completing tasks. They enable tasks to be performed in the same way across the company.
  • Improves accountability and tracking: SOPs define who is responsible for a work order, maintenance check or inspection. This reporting can improve accountability across departments. If a task wasn’t completed accordingly or a procedure was missed, management can take necessary steps to prevent it from happening again.
Pro Tip

Digitized SOPs can further improve tracking and traceability features, helping manufacturers comply with regulations and quality standards. With digital SOPs it becomes easier to maintain records of every step in the production process, including who performed each task and when.

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How to write a manufacturing SOP

Writing a comprehensive set of SOPs can help workers perform tasks in the safest and most efficient way possible. Although there isn’t an official way to write procedures, you can follow certain steps to make them more effective:

Step 1: Establish a goal.

It’s important to think about what you want your SOP to accomplish. Regardless if you’re starting a new process or improving an existing one, figuring out the end goal will make it easier to complete the document.

Step 2: Pick a format.

There are different formats you can use to write your document: step-by-step, hierarchical, narrative, etc. We recommend the sequential step-by-step format for its straightforwardness.

Step 3: Write the procedures.

Make sure your procedures are clear, concise, current, consistent, and complete.

Step 4: Review and update.

It’s important to review your SOP for any discrepancies and update them if necessary. Consider asking fellow leaders knowledgeable in procedure creation to read them over.

Why SOPs are Important in Manufacturing

Compliance with manufacturing SOPs is crucial for a number of reasons, including:

  • Prevents accidents and ensures worker safety
  • Promotes worker consistency
  • Improves product quality
  • Protects your business’s reputation

SOPs are a critical component of manufacturing operations because they provide a structured framework for achieving consistent quality, safety, and efficiency in the production process. They help manufacturers meet regulatory requirements, reduce errors, and ensure that employees are trained to perform tasks consistently and safely.

Digitizing Manufacturing SOPs with Connected Worker Solutions

Using connected worker technologies to create digital SOPs can significantly improve their impact on manufacturing by enhancing accessibility, effectiveness, and overall utility.

Through digitization and smart, connected worker technology manufacturers can improve SOPs with features like real-time access, remote collaboration and guidance, data-driven insights, workflow automation, enhanced training, traceability and compliance, and more. Essentially, with these advanced technologies, manufacturing organizations can augment and support their workers with optimized processes and SOPs creating an environment of continuous improvement.

Augmentir offers customized AI-powered connected worker solutions that transform how you write and create manufacturing standard operating procedures. Request a live demo today to learn more about why leading manufacturers are choosing our solutions to improve their manufacturing processes.

 

 

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Modernizing Manufacturing Training with Continuous and Workflow Learning

Learn how continuous and workflow learning can help modernize employee training in the manufacturing industry.

Staying ahead of the curve in today’s manufacturing marketplace means that businesses need to innovate and adapt. To accomplish this, organizations must have a skilled workforce and ongoing training and workforce management processes to support continuous learning and development.

Modernizing training cultivates employee skillsets by implementing continuous learning in the flow of work.

modernize manufacturing training with continuous learning

Continuous learning is the process of attaining new skills on a constant basis. Workflow learning involves educating yourself on the job using resources and self-directed learning materials. Done together, this modern training approach can help streamline productivity.

If you want to learn how to improve manufacturing training with continuous learning and workflow learning, explore this article that answers the following:

What is continuous learning?

Continuous learning in manufacturing involves enabling workers to learn new skills regularly. It’s a great way to improve employee performance and innovation. According to Forbes, embracing a culture of continuous learning can help organizations adapt to market demands, foster innovation, as well as attract and retain top talent.

Learning can come in different forms, from formal course training to hands-on experience. Employees are encouraged to be self-starters who want to evolve their skills on an on-going basis. A good example of a continuous learning model is everboarding; everboarding is a modern approach toward employee onboarding and training that shifts away from the traditional “one-and-done” onboarding model and recognizes learning as an ongoing process.

How can continuous learning be used in manufacturing?

When businesses don’t support continuous learning, manufacturing processes stagnate. This contributes to a lack of innovation and hinders potential opportunities for success that a company may experience.

In a nutshell, the more workers know and the more they can accomplish, the more they can contribute to business growth. This may consist of employees taking an online course or learning a new technique hands-on, no matter what department they’re in.

For example, assembly line workers may learn new manufacturing processes to ensure everything is functioning properly. Meanwhile, operators may study the latest machinery to learn new tricks of the trade.

What is workflow learning?

Workflow training in manufacturing involves learning while doing. This means that workers pick up new skills while on the job through hands-on experience.

The key to workflow learning is that it happens while employees perform their everyday tasks.

Many workers in the manufacturing industry work in shift-based environments, making it difficult for them to attend traditional classroom-based training sessions. With workflow learning, organizations can incorporate more learning processes into the everyday workday of frontline workers – essentially bridging the gap between knowing and doing. This “active learning” aligns with the Pyramid of Learning visual model that illustrates the different stages of learning and their relative effectiveness.

pyramid of learning

Active learning involves the learner actively engaging with the material, often through problem-solving, discussion, or application of the knowledge while they are on the job.

In general, active learning is considered more effective than passive learning in promoting deep understanding and retention of information. Therefore, learning leaders often strive to design learning experiences that involve higher levels of active learning, moving beyond the lower levels of the pyramid and promoting critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving skills.

How can workflow learning be used in manufacturing?

Workflow learning consists of using resources at your disposal to complete tasks. This strategy is sometimes referred to as performance support.

For example, workers can look up answers to questions, steps of a process, or new services while performing their jobs instead of interrupting their workflow to go to a class or training session.

Pro Tip

Active, or workflow learning can be implemented with mobile learning solutions that leverage connected worker technology and AI to provide workers with bite-sized, on-demand training modules that they can access on smartphones or tablets. These modules can be developed with customized learning paths that are focused on the type of tasks and work employees are doing on the factory floor.

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How can technology improve manufacturing training?

The nature of manufacturing training is changing in the age of artificial intelligence. Today, many training processes can be streamlined and optimized using digital and smart, connected worker technologies.

For instance, data collected from everyday manufacturing processes can polish training programs online. Experienced workers can share best practices on customized dashboards for other employees to access. These can be updated in real-time and show changes highlighted to better optimize manufacturing processes.

Digital training tools can also help improve learning speed and retention. For example, workers who need visuals or real-world scenarios can assess them using AI-powered software to maximize their training.

 

Augmentir is the world’s leading AI-powered connected worker solution that helps industrial companies optimize the safety, quality, and productivity of the industrial frontline workforce. Contact us for a live demo, and learn why leading manufacturers are choosing us to elevate their manufacturing operations to the next level.

 

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Why Integration is Key for Connected Worker Platform Success

Learn why integrations are key to the success of connected worker platforms, what systems should be integrated, and the benefits of a fully integrated connected worker solution.

Unlocking the potential of connected worker platforms becomes a game-changer when integrated with enterprise systems, giving them a live, closed loop connection to frontline processes and operations. This creates a truly connected enterprise that links diverse systems with the frontline workforce, paving the way for heightened efficiency, productivity, and safety.

connected worker platform integrations

However, a majority of connected worker platforms overlook the fact that connectivity doesn’t end with simply linking workers to their platform. They fail to recognize the immense benefits that live connections to enterprise systems of record bring to frontline business processes and activities.

Manufacturing success hinges on the seamless integration of connected worker platforms with legacy and enterprise systems to provide adequate support to frontline workers, giving them access to data and knowledge that can boost their efficiency and keep them safe.

Read below for more information on connected worker platform integrations; what they entail, which enterprise systems are essential for integration, and how AI-powered technology improves impact on frontline manufacturing activities.

Connected Worker Integrations: More than just an API

In manufacturing, it is critical that connected worker platforms are integrated with various enterprise systems to streamline operations and ensure that workers have the data and information they need at their fingertips. As critical as this is, most connected worker vendors believe that providing an open API is sufficient, and even boast that they integrate to enterprise systems, when in fact they place this burden on their customers.

Having an API is not enough

There are several not-so-obvious aspects to connected worker platform integrations, including:

  • Connected worker integrations with enterprise applications, even streamlined ones, have essential requirements such as logic that needs to be written, customized, run, and supported. Most, if not all, of this logic is initiated by the connected worker platform, propagating events and data from shop floor processes to the associated enterprise system of record.
  • Connected worker platforms with just an “API” require all of this functionality to be developed, hosted, and supported externally. The responsibility is then on the customer to build a custom product and select and support the hosting environment. This effort (building, hosting, and support) can cost between $50K and $150K to build and test, and then another $50K – $150K annually for 5 x 9 support. And, the customer is responsible for maintaining an SLA acceptable to the business (99.9% being typical).
Pro Tip

It’s critical that connected worker platforms include “platform-as-a-service” (Paas) capabilities that provide the ability to write, support, and execute both standard and custom integrations. These can be done by the platform provider, the customer, as well as third-party system vendors and system integrators. Providing PaaS capabilities puts the responsibility on the vendor for operating the integration service, and maintaining SLAs, geo-redundancy, disaster recovery, and privacy and security. In short, just saying “we have an API” places an undue burden on customers, and prevents building the sustainable connected enterprise necessary to remain competitive in today’s global economy.

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Which Enterprise Systems Should You Integrate

In any industrial environment, connected worker platforms should be integrated with various systems to support operations, help with cooperation and communication, and gain valuable insights into frontline manufacturing processes. These integrations streamline activities, improve efficiency, and provide a unified digital environment that empowers frontline workers.

This concept of a connected enterprise spans several initiatives within an organization: assets and equipment, the products being manufactured, the end customer, operations, workers, and the entire supply chain, and is highlighted below using the Industrial Transformation (IX) Reference Architecture from LNS Research.

connected worker enterprise system integration

Examples of enterprise management systems of record that are key to connected worker success and should be integrated are:

  • ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning)
  • EAM (Enterprise Asset Management)
  • HCM (Human Capital Management)
  • HR, Training, and LMS (Learning Management System)
  • QMS (Quality Management Systems)
  • MES (Manufacturing Execution System)
  • CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management System)
  • Supply Chain Management

Enterprise systems such as ETQ, Workday, UKG, SAP, Oracle, IBM Maximo, Microsoft Dynamics 365, Salesforce, and ADP provide transformational value for a manufacturing company if they can be connected into frontline operations. By integrating connected worker platforms with these systems, manufacturers can create an interconnected environment that supports frontline workers and drives operational excellence. Ultimately, integration enhances collaboration, workforce visibility, decision-making processes, and overall operational efficiency, making connected worker platforms an indispensable component for manufacturing organizations.

Improving Integration Success Through Augmentir

At Augmentir, we see integrations differently than other connected worker platforms. Our rich history of building integrations in the manufacturing space enabled us to design a connected worker solution that easily, bi-directionally, and securely integrates the enterprise systems of record to create closed loop processes involving the frontline workforce.

Augmentir has internal PaaS services to run connectors that we build and support for popular enterprise applications like SAP, Salesforce, ETQ, Oracle, IBM Maximo, and more. Additionally, our PaaS enables custom integrations to be built and executed for custom, and niche applications. All third-party integrations running in the Augmentir connected worker platform carry the same SLA and geo-redundant support. By facilitating connected worker platform integrations with enterprise systems in this way, we have provided leading manufacturers with increased workforce visibility, improved productivity, digitized and standardized processes, enhanced training and collaboration, and more.

augmentir enterprise integration

Furthermore, because we are the leading AI-powered connected worker provider, we have brought innovative generative AI technologies such as AI-driven analytics, machine learning algorithms, NLP, predictive maintenance, and industrial AI copilots to improve connected worker integrations with enterprise systems, providing real-time guidance, enabling predictive analysis, and enhancing communication and collaboration among workers.

Schedule a demo to learn more about our AI-powered connected worker solutions and how they are drastically improving frontline processes, training, and manufacturing activities.

 

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The Evolution of AI in Manufacturing

The evolution of AI in manufacturing has seen tremendous growth over the past few decades, now becoming more adaptive and collaborative, and being used to augment and directly support frontline workers.

The evolution of artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies in manufacturing has seen tremendous growth over the past few decades, with astounding leaps in technology and industry-wide transformations.

evolution of ai in manufacturing

Dating back to the 1960’s, manufacturers started using AI in robotics and basic automation. This early usage focused on automating manual, highly repetitive human tasks such as assembly, parts handling, and sorting, allowing for higher levels of production and efficiency.

Over time, this evolved with AI-enabled machine vision systems, which were used to automate visual inspections, allowing for better quality control and precision during production cycles. More recently, AI has been at the center of warehouse automation, as well as the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), where physical machines and equipment are embedded with sensors and other technology for the purpose of connecting and exchanging data, which is used in predictive analytics for machine health monitoring. Manufacturers can now glean valuable insights from data collected over time about optimizing their operations for maximum efficiency without sacrificing quality.

Despite the breath of applications that AI has in the industrial setting, there is a common thread across all of the above examples – AI has largely been used to automate highly repetitive or manual tasks, or perform functions designed to replace the human worker.

However, these examples laid the groundwork for the adoption of AI in manufacturing and for the use of AI technologies that augment and directly support frontline workers today.

Read below for more information on how the use of AI and GenAI is evolving in manufacturing, and being used to augment the human worker, transforming productivity and efficiency at a time when workforce optimization is needed most.

Using AI to Augment, not Replace the Workers in our Factories

Today, AI technologies in manufacturing have evolved to encompass a diverse range of applications. According to Deloitte, 86% of surveyed manufacturing executives believe that AI-based factory solutions will be the primary drivers of competitiveness in the next five years. Robotics and automation have become more adaptive and collaborative, working alongside and augmenting human workers to streamline production processes and increase efficiency – rather than simply trying to replace them.

As computing power and algorithmic capabilities improved, AI in manufacturing has become more advanced and widespread. The emergence of Industry 4.0, characterized by the convergence of digital technologies, further accelerated AI’s role in manufacturing. By leveraging tools like connected worker solutions to gather frontline data, manufacturing organizations can now capitalize on AI’s extraordinary computing power to analyze that data and derive actionable insights, improved processes, and more.

Much like the industry has learned to optimize equipment from the 1.7 Petabytes of connected machine data that is being collected yearly, we are now able to optimize frontline work processes and people from highly granular connected worker data, with one major caveat: In order to leverage this incredibly noisy data, a system has to be designed with an AI-first strategy, where the streaming and processing of this data is intrinsic to the platform – not added as an afterthought.

The potential for AI to help augment the human worker is there, but why now?

Because for today’s manufacturers, time is not on your side.

The workforce crisis in manufacturing is accelerating, and at the forefront of the minds of Operations and HR leaders. Job quitting is up, tenure rates are down, and manufacturers struggle daily to find the skilled staff necessary to meet production and quality goals. The threat is huge – with significant impacts to safety, quality, and productivity.

AI-based connected worker solutions allow industrial companies to digitize and optimize processes that support frontline workers from “hire to retire”. These solutions leverage data from your connected workforce to optimize training investments and proactively support workers on the job, across a range of manufacturing use cases.

 

paperless factory

Furthermore, solutions that leverage Generative AI and proprietary fit-for-purpose, pre-trained Large Language Models (LLMs) can enhance operational efficiency, problem-solving, and decision-making for today’s less experienced frontline industrial workers. Generative AI assistants can leverage enterprise-wide data, provides instant access to relevant information, closes skills gaps with personalized support, offers insights into standard work and skills inventory, and identifies opportunities for continuous improvement.

Augmentir’s AI-First Journey

At Augmentir, since the beginning, we pioneered an AI-first approach toward manufacturing and connected frontline worker support. 

augmentir's ai-first journey

Many manufacturing solutions incorporated AI technology as an add-on or afterthought as the technology gained more advanced capabilities and popularity. We, however, have been championing and building a suite of solutions using AI as a foundation. Our platform was designed from the bottom up with AI capabilities in mind, placing us as a leader in the connected frontline worker field. 

  • 2019 – Augmentir launched the world’s first AI-first connected platform for manufacturing work empowering frontline workers to perform their jobs with higher quality and increased productivity while driving continuous improvement across the organization. This marked the start of our AI-first journey, giving industrial organizations the ability to digitize human-centric work processes into fully augmented procedures, providing interactive guidance, on-demand training, and remote expert support to improve productivity and quality.
  • 2020 – Augmentir unveiled True Opportunity™, the first AI-based workforce metric designed to help improve operational outcomes and frontline worker productivity through our proprietary machine learning algorithms. These algorithms take in frontline worker data, then combine it with other Augmentir and enterprise data to uncover and rank the largest capturable opportunities and then predict the effort required to capture them.
  • 2021 – Building on user feedback and field data, Augmentir reveals True Opportunity 2.0™, with improved and enhanced capabilities surrounding workforce development, quantification of work processes, benchmarking, and proficiency. By Leveraging anonymized data from millions of job executions to significantly improve and expand the platform’s ability and automatically deliver in-app AI insights we were able to increase benefits and returns for Augmentir customers.
  • 2022 – Augmentir announces the release of True Productivity™ and True Performance™. True Productivity allows industrial organizations to stack rank their largest productivity opportunities across all work processes to focus continuous improvement teams at the highest ROI and True Performance determines the proficiency of every worker at every task or skill enabling truly personalized workforce development investments.
  • 2023 – Augmentir launches Augie™ – the GenAI-powered assistant for industrial work. By incorporating the foundational technology underpinning generative AI tools like ChatGPT, we enhanced our already robust offering of AI insights and analytics. Augie adds to this, improving operational efficiency and supporting today’s less experienced frontline workforce through faster problem-solving, proactive insights, and enhanced decision-making.
  • 2024 – As this year progresses, we have already continued to refine our AI-first solutions and apply user feedback and additional features to best support frontline industrial activities and workers everywhere.
  • 2025 and beyond – True Engagement™, looking forward we predict the evolution of AI in manufacturing activities will continue, progressing until we can accurately measure signals to detect the actual engagement of industrial workers and derive useful information and insights to further enhance both HR and manufacturing processes.

We are deeply involved in applying AI and emerging technologies to manufacturing activities to augment frontline workers, not replace them. Providing enhanced support, access to key knowledge (when and where it does the most good), and improving overall operational efficiency and productivity.

The Future of AI in Manufacturing – The Journey Forward

As we press onward into the future, we at Augmentir are determined to champion the application of AI and smart manufacturing to augment and enhance frontline workers and industrial processes. We will continue to evolve our application of AI and its use cases in manufacturing to help frontline teams and workforces, reinforcing our AI-first pedigree.

The addition of Augie to our existing AI-powered connected worker solution is an important step forward. Augie is a Generative AI assistant that uses enterprise-wide data, provides instant access to relevant information, closes skills gaps with personalized support, offers insights into standard work and skills inventory, and identifies opportunities for continuous improvement. Augie is a result of our dedication to empowering frontline workers, leveraging AI to support manufacturing operations, and giving manufacturing workers better tools to do their jobs safely and more efficiently.

With patented AI-driven insights that digitize and optimize manufacturing workflows, training and development, workforce allocation, and operational excellence, Augmentir is trusted by manufacturing leaders as a digital transformation partner delivering measurable results across operations. Schedule a live demo today to learn more.

 

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AI: Revolutionizing How Humans Work in Manufacturing

AI is playing a key role in changing the manufacturing landscape, augmenting workers and empowering them with improved, optimized processes, better data, and personalized instruction.

Deloitte recently published an article with the Wall Street Journal covering how AI is revolutionizing how humans work and its transformative impact. They emphasized that AI is not merely a resource or tool, but, that it serves almost as a co-worker, enhancing work processes and efficiency. This article discussed how the evolving form of intelligence augments human thinking and emphasized this as a catalyst for accelerated innovation.

Manufacturing is uniquely situated to benefit from AI to improve operations and empower their frontline workforces. The skilled labor gap has reached critical levels, and the market is under tremendous stress to keep up with growing consumer demand while staying compliant with quality and safety standards. Manufacturing workers are crucial to the success of operations – maintenance, quality control and assurance, and more – manufacturers rely upon their workforce to ensure production proceeds smoothly and successfully.

AI is playing a key role in changing the manufacturing landscape, augmenting workers and empowering them with improved, optimized processes, better data for informed decision-making, troubleshooting, personalized instructions and training, and improved quality assurance and control. According to the World Economic Forum, an estimated 87% of manufacturing companies have accelerated their digitalization over the past year, the IDC states 40% of digital transformations will be supported by AI, and a recent study from LNS Research found that 52% of industrial transformation (IX) leaders are deploying connected worker applications to help their frontline workforces. Not only that, AI technology is expected to create nearly 12 million more jobs in the manufacturing industry.

Integrating AI into manufacturing not only enhances productivity, but also opens the door to new possibilities for worker safety, training, and innovative new manufacturing practices. Here are some ways AI is transforming manufacturing operations:

  • AI-based Workforce Analytics: Collecting, analyzing, and using frontline worker data to assess individual and team performance, optimize upskilling and reskilling opportunities, increase engagement, reduce burnout, and boost productivity.
  • Personalized Training in the Flow of Work: With AI and connected worker solutions, manufacturers can identify and supply training at the time of need that is personalized to each individual and the task at hand.
  • Personalized Work Instructions: AI enables manufacturers to offer customized digital work instructions mapped to their skill levels and intelligently assign work based on each individual’s capabilities.
  • Digital Performance Support and Troubleshooting Guide: Generative AI assistants and bot-based AI virtual assistants offer support and guidance to manufacturing operators, enabling access to collaborative technologies and knowledge bases to ensure the correct actions and processes are taken.
  • Optimize Maintenance Programs: AI algorithms analyze data from sensors on machinery and other connected solutions to predict when equipment is likely to fail. This enables proactive maintenance, minimizing downtime and reducing maintenance costs. Additionally, with AI technologies, manufacturers can implement autonomous maintenance processes through a combination of digital work instructions and real-time collaboration tools. This allows operators to independently complete maintenance tasks at peak performance.
  • Improve Quality Control: AI-powered solutions can improve inspection accuracy and optimize quality control and assurance processes to identify defects faster. With connected worker solutions, manufacturers can effectively turn their frontline workforce into human sensors supplying quality data and enhancing assurance processes.
  • Ensure Worker Safety: AI-driven safety systems coupled with connected worker technologies monitor the work environment, supplying real-time data and identifying potential hazards to ensure a safer workplace for employees.

connected enterprise

As AI continues to advance, the manufacturing industry is poised for even greater transformation, improving both the quality of products and the working conditions for employees. AI is revolutionizing the way humans work and how the manufacturing industry approaches nearly every process across operations, augmenting work interactions, productivity, efficiency, and boosting innovation.

WebexOne Recap – Elevate Your Workforce with Augmentir

Recently, the Augmentir team was excited to support WebexOne as a gold sponsor. It was great to participate in such an inspiring event, where collaboration and hybrid work were key themes throughout the sessions.

Recently, the Augmentir team was excited to support WebexOne as a gold sponsor. It was great to participate in such an inspiring event, where collaboration and hybrid work were key themes throughout the sessions.

During the event, our team had an opportunity to speak with industry leaders to discuss their top challenges and how Augmentir and Cisco together are helping shape the future of work in the manufacturing industry.

Shaping the Future of Work

Augmentir’s partnership with Cisco was built to address some of the top challenges in the industrial sector today. During the WebexOne event, Augmentir showcased how the Webex remote collaboration tool, Expert on Demand, and our AI-Powered Connected Worker Platform together deliver a unique combination of technology and tools necessary to help increase safety, quality, and productivity for frontline workers performing industrial jobs in manufacturing and service.

These themes were prevalent throughout the WebexOne event – using technology to unlock human potential and elevate today’s workforce.

Elevating Workforce Performance

Many of the themes discussed during the event focused on today’s changing workforce, and the unique needs of the “deskless” workers, who have been underserved by technology.  This is especially true in manufacturing, where businesses face a growing skilled labor shortage, retention, and worker engagement challenges, all while lacking the appropriate digital tools and data to effectively train and continually support their workers.

Augmentir’s suite of AI-powered connected worker tools help industrial companies understand their diverse workforce at an individual level, enabling them to reduce the effort it takes to onboard, guide, and support their workforce.

  • Improve job quality – Drive quality improvements by moving from paper-based to interactive digital work instructions augmented with rich media, contextual data, and mixed reality experiences, ensuring your workers always have the correct information on hand to make error-free and safe decisions.
  • Improve Worker Safety – In addition to running on any mobile phone or tablet, Augmentir and Webex are supported on the voice-enabled RealWear HMT-1 and HMT-1Z1 industrial headsets, offering hands-free operation that can be used in nearly any industrial environment. This helps workers stay focused on the task at hand to improve safety and efficiency.
  • Reduce operational costs – Identify areas where the largest improvements can be made within your workforce and across your organization with insights from Augmentir’s AI.

Elevating Hybrid Work and Collaboration in Manufacturing

Hybrid work and collaboration were also central themes during the event, and both are core to Augmentir’s combined solution with Cisco. Augmentir’s digital workflow tools enable rapid creation and delivery of augmented work instructions to help guide workers in day-to-day tasks. This value is extended with Cisco Webex Expert on Demand, which gives workers the ability to quickly connect and collaborate with remote experts wherever they are located.

Cisco also announced Webex Hologram during the WebexOne event. This new augmented reality meeting solution was noted by Jeet Patel, Executive Vice President and General Manager of Cisco Security and Collaboration, as an “industry first” – combining Webex meeting functionality with augmented reality (AR) hardware to create immersive 3D holograms of participants during meetings.

The Stakes Have Never Been Higher

As you can tell, WebexOne was a successful 2-day event with great conversations around collaboration and hybrid work. As Jeet Patel stated during the event, “The stakes have never been higher” in regards to your workforce and working smarter and more efficiently. It’s time to elevate your workforce with Augmentir’s AI-powered Connected Worker solution.