A British multinational automotive manufacturer which has used digital twins and generative artificial intelligence to create digital advertising assets that respond to spoken commands, says that someday consumers might use the same technology to configure their cars. For another aircraft engine manufacturer, artificial intelligence technologies are enabling a swathe of operations, right from engine design to turbine blade inspection.
Powered by smart technologies, such as AI, IoT and advanced analytics, with an emphasis on automation, data integration and sustainability, modern manufacturing is almost unrecognisable from the linear, efficiency-focused traditional production model. Even the revenue model is changing, as manufacturers embrace servitization to sell product-related services, including installation, predictive maintenance, upgrade and design. While top U.K. manufacturers, such as JLR and Rolls Royce, are at the forefront of digital and AI adoption, this is still a work in progress for the industry overall. A November 2024 research report on AI adoption in the U.K. manufacturing sector found that just about half – 52 percent – were evolving in AI usage and were in the process of transforming their business. Besides a clear knowledge gap – only 7 percent claimed to have “good knowledge” and another 36 percent said they had “some” – manufacturers’ list of challenges included complexity, implementation cost and technology issues.
On the bright side, manufacturing organisations that overcome these challenges to increase AI usage, will find a world of opportunity awaiting them:
AI optimises operations from end-to-end
From welding and painting to picking materials and spotting product defects, AI-powered solutions can perform tasks with high accuracy, efficiency and speed. Apart from saving cost and time, automation improves employee well-being by relieving workers of tedious or hazardous shop floor tasks, enabling them to focus on more sophisticated work. For example, with a quadruped robot monitoring high-tech equipment used for EV development, engineers in JLR’s Coventry factory are now able to spend more time on analysis.
Manufacturers can also leverage AI tools to integrate planning, ordering, transportation and inventory management operations for real-time visibility across the supply chain, enabling them to respond quickly to demand fluctuations, track shipments, monitor vendor compliance, and manage returns with very little manual intervention.
Using an AI-powered digital twin – a virtual replica of manufacturing processes, assets and systems – companies in the U.K. can simulate and refine new products and processes before implementing them in the real world.
The latest developments, such as generative AI and agentic AI, are also transforming manufacturing operations by automating content creation (think equipment manuals, training documents, administrative reports) and customer service respectively.
AI offers data-driven insights for innovation
Capable of gathering, processing and analysing humungous quantities of data in a variety of formats in real-time, AI is creating unimaginable possibilities for innovation. Instead of undertaking resource-intensive field research, product manufacturers can deploy smart tools to quickly gather information from a range of sources – product performance and returns data, market trends reports, user sentiment gathered from service interactions, and social media ratings, etc. – to understand customer needs. Advanced analytics can identify desirable product attributes and translate them into input parameters for generative AI to churn out multiple product design options at a speed and creativity beyond the reach of traditional methods. Manufacturers can also leverage AI insights and computations to prototype innovations quickly and economically.
AI facilitates new business and revenue models
Servitization, the offering of product-related services by manufacturers to deepen customer relationships or earn additional revenue, is not a new concept. Rolls Royce launched its pioneering “Power by the Hour” program in 1962, offering aviation clients engine maintenance and service for a fixed fee per hour of flight. Today, the company leverages artificial intelligence in a number of ways to enhance the services business: AI/ analytics tools collect and analyse real-time performance data (for example, speed, temperature, pressure) from engines in operation to identify anomalous behaviour and predict maintenance requirements. Another AI solution analyses parts demand and availability data to streamline inventory and shorten lead times. The company also has data sharing partnerships that provide insights for new product and service development.
AI technologies also contribute to marketplace platforms that connect producers, distributors, suppliers, marketing services providers and consumers from around the world. Manufacturers can strike innovation and distribution partnerships within the marketplace ecosystem to expand the business, and even sell directly to end-users.
Move forward
Be it operations, innovation or business model, artificial intelligence technology can transform every aspect of manufacturing. U.K. manufacturers, who have just scratched the surface of AI’s potential, should accelerate adoption to unlock immense value for themselves and their customers.
