AI In The Production Industry: How has AI Impacted Production Lines ?

There is a growing dependency on artificial intelligence (AI) within our most important industries – including in production. How is AI being used in this industry? Find out here.

How Is AI Impacting The Production Industry?

For years, the concept of using artificial intelligence (AI) to speed up our productivity has been one to look forward to. While obvious worries exist about how this might impact employment in the future, the benefits of using AI look like they will far outweigh any potential cons. However, given humans are so important to the production industry, how will AI bring a positive impact?

We are already seeing signs of AI in the production industry. It has the potential to utterly transform the manufacturing and production of products, goods, and services entirely. Companies looking to boost productivity and reduce their expenses are likely to find that AI will play a pivotal role in achieving this goal.

Smaller businesses, then, will need to focus on finding the best AI solutions that fit within their budget.

While many of the greatest innovations that AI could bring to the industry are still far away, how is AI impacting production today?

How Is AI In The Production Industry Impacting Performance?

Reducing Defects

One of the most effective reasons to use AI in production is the reduction of defects. With the use of autonomous hardware, we can ensure that tasks can be managed without the need for human input.

Today, many companies have a quality control specialist who watches each product being produced. AI can be taught to provide an eagle-eyed watch over the products.

Defects can then be spotted ahead of time, meaning that companies can reduce wastage by stopping defective products from reaching their suppliers and sellers.

Machine Learning

One of the major impacts of AI within the industry is going to revolve around teaching AI to accomplish tasks normally assigned to humans. If this is done properly, machines can take over the mundane aspects of production.

Not only are they able to continually produce the same quality of result, but they do not require the same health needs as a human: they do not need to take breaks or finish for the day.

Through machine learning, AI in production can be used to help ensure that we can carry out the ‘easy’ parts of production without human supervision.

Human Collaboration

The most likely implementation of AI in production, though, will be to support instead of replacing human workers entirely. Collaborative robots – or cobots, as they are known – will work alongside human staff. These robots can carry out a variety of tasks which are likely to come up during any typical working day within the company.

Unlike autonomous robots that repeat the same task over and over, ‘cobots’ can be used to help work alongside humans. This means that they can easily avoid obstacles, spot mistakes, and adjust to carry out various roles that might be needed to allow the production line to keep moving.

The most common reason for a ‘cobot’ being assigned to a task will be things like heavy lifting that might put a staff member's health at risk. For example, ‘cobots’ within the auto industry could be used to help lift heavy car parts that might be beyond a normal person to life.

They can then hold these parts in place while the human staff fit them. They can even be used for finding materials needed for production, working their way through the warehouse quickly and efficiently.

Reducing Repetition

The last primary benefit of AI in production that we are likely to see shortly, or already see, includes reducing repetition. These tasks can be hard for a human to carry out at rapid volume without making mistakes.

Robots do not get bored, though, so they can continually produce the same standard of result again and again. In production, that is essential to ensure that we can keep things moving along.

By automating key functions like order processing and creating records, human staff can continue working on the parts of the role that need more human interaction. This can save time and labour and allows staff to focus on more specialist tasks that are unlikely to become tiresome.

These reasons only scratch the surface of the potential for AI in the production industry. AI is here to stay, and it will transform how we do everything. In the production industry, though, there are few arguments that AI can be anything other than a positive aid to staff working day-to-day. While concerns about potentially replacing the workforce remain, the benefits are clear.