122 of technical documentation. “Troubleshooting time has dropped from 20 minutes to just one or two minutes, reducing aircraft downtime and improving service efficiency,” says Ladha. Similarly, Schaeffler, a Germany-based automotive and industrial manufacturer, has embraced factory-wide AI agents to empower engineers and plant managers. “Now they can ask questions like, ‘What caused downtime on line three yesterday?’ and receive immediate, detailed responses,” says Ladha. “This realtime insight has significantly increased operational uptime and productivity on the shopfloor. Schaeffler’s pilot demonstrated how generative AI empowers factory workers with actionable intelligence in near-real time, making them more agile and self-sufficient when solving problems.” While an increasing number of manufacturing organisations are reporting measurable operational improvements after implementing AI, the majority are yet to equip their frontline workers with these tools. According to Gallup’s October 2024 report AI in the Workplace, 81 per cent of employees surveyed in production and frontline roles never use AI in their work. This statistic doesn’t surprise Ladha. “Many frontline environments still operate with fragmented systems and paper-based processes, limiting real-time visibility and collaboration,” he says. “A major solution lies in leveraging AI-powered digital tools, which not only address challenges like employee engagement by fostering connectivity and empowerment but also enhance operational agility and efficiency through streamlined processes and real-time data-driven insights. “Security and compliance concerns also hold companies back, especially in regulated industries like manufacturing, healthcare and energy, where mobile device policies and data governance restrict frontline access to critical systems. There’s also a disconnect between corporate IT strategies and the practical needs of frontline teams, resulting in low technology adoption or tools that don’t integrate with daily operations.” This gap leads to disconnection and disengagement. “It can be challenging for frontline workers to feel connected to the corporate mission or even coworkers on the same shift,” explains Ladha. “To solve this, we’re evolving our unified platform to make connecting as simple and intuitive as possible” Role-specific, secure tools like Microsoft Generative AI has empowered factory workers at Schaeffler with real-time data and insights FEATURE Photo: Schaeffler
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