Global digital transformation company GFT and Google Cloud are collaborating to bring their newest manufacturing-specific AI capabilities to factory floors.
Last year, GFT announced its implementation of Google Cloud’s Manufacturing Data Engine (MDE), which fueled new AI use cases, such as visual production line inspection, predictive machine maintenance, and production forecasting.
Now, GFT is unveiling its next set of applications built on Google’s Gemini Models, including the ability to determine the root cause of errors and defects, visual dashboards that enable users to query organization – wide data in natural language, predicting parts obsolescence before it results in machine downtime, and the ability to convert thousands of machine training manuals into avatar-led video demonstrations.
Seventy-two percent (72 percent) of manufacturers are looking to reduce costs and improve operational efficiencies, making manufacturing prime for AI transformation.
To do this, however, manufacturers need to infuse on-the-ground subject matter expertise with otherwise general Large Language Models (LLMs) to create AI applications specific to everyday manufacturing scenarios.
GFT leveraged its deep manufacturing expertise to first determine which processes it can automate with AI, and second, how it can inject the knowledge of highly skilled practitioners who are in high demand, but short supply, into AI systems.
The resulting use cases have already been implemented by GFT for a leading US auto manufacturer and a US furniture manufacturer:
- Identifying the root cause behind defects. Last year, GFT launched a visual-inspection solution on Google Cloud that automatically removes defective parts from the assembly line. The solution is now enhanced with a new level of AI-powered analysis that determines what caused the defect in the first place. By identifying the root cause, manufacturers can quickly intervene with a solution before producing more defective items.
- Generative AI converts manuals into virtual demonstrations, by the thousands. Every machine across the factory floor comes with a user manual that often substitutes as a training tool. Now, with Google Gemini Models, manufacturers can upload these user manuals to generate videos, hosted by virtual avatars, to demonstrate how to use the machinery. With interactive and visual training for every machine in the factory, manufacturers cut down on the time required for thousands of hands-on demonstrations.
- Visual dashboards enable stakeholders to query data, organization-wide, in natural language. When new shift managers come onto a factory floor, they need updates about the number of parts produced in the prior shift, any machine maintenance updates, staffing changes, and more. Now, with data-driven dashboards that update in real-time, stakeholders not only have access to this information in a visual format, they can also query the data conversationally to generate natural-language responses that inform better decisions.
- AI-powered maintenance schedules reduce machine downtime. Every machine on the factory floor consists of hundreds of parts, built by different manufacturers, with different warranty timelines. Now, the new AI solution can aggregate all of the parts data to proactively trigger inspections before parts expire or become otherwise obsolescent. This ensures the machine is in good health and significantly reduces the chances of downtime needed to address a broken part. This new functionality builds on the predictive maintenance capabilities GFT and Google Cloud launched last year.
Brandon Speweik, head of industry strategy at GFT, says: “Manufacturing is one of many industries that is ripe for AI transformation, but many enterprises struggle to apply their deep subject matter expertise to the general frameworks available to build on.
“GFT is in a unique position in that it has years of experience digitally transforming manufacturers and also speaks the language of AI.
“Our continued work with Google Cloud has the potential to reimagine every aspect of factory floors, resulting in up-skilled workers, increased efficiency and output, and a completely optimized way of operating.
“For GFT, our manufacturing success is validation for where we’re going: creating vertical-specific AI solutions for manufacturers, financial institutions, insurers and beyond.”
GFT uses generative AI across all of its AI-driven manufacturing solutions so that users can interface with the systems.
Fabien Duboeuf, industry lead, manufacturing at Google Cloud, says: “Our work with GFT continues to reveal the practical potential of AI in everyday scenarios.
“Since demonstrating our first visual inspection use case together at the Manufacturing x Digital Innovation Center in Chicago, our work has progressed with an expansive number of applications across factories leveraging generative and agentic AI capabilities.”
All new manufacturing capabilities are fueled by data that is centralized on the Manufacturing Data Engine, which GFT participated in developing and launching in 2024.
