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Artificial intelligence is not as intimidating as it sounds. There are many common-day examples of AI but let’s dive into how AI revolutionizes the supply chain industry.
Have you ever wondered how Facebook detects your friend’s face when you upload photos? That’s an example of artificial intelligence right there!
You can find cases of AI everywhere which includes business functions. Let’s see how AI plays a role in the supply chain industry.
What Artificial Intelligence Can Do for Business
Artificial intelligence is an umbrella term that simply means making machines think and act intelligently like humans. It encompasses many technologies that are designed to discover patterns, learn, and create optimal choices and actions. AI is a major field of computer science that branches into subfields of robotics, machine learning, speech processing, and much more.
While you’re learning about AI, it’s also important to know about machine learning as the term is commonly used with AI. Machine learning is an application of AI that focuses on the development of computer programs that can access data to automatically learn and improve without being explicitly programmed. Therefore, all machine learning is AI but not all AI is machine learning.
So, what can AI do for your business? Well, AI enables confident decision-making, automates repetitive business tasks, and delivers human experiences. Not all companies use AI the same way, but it’s an important aspect of digital transformation for all companies.
How AI Solves Supply Chain Challenges
When you leverage AI, you can elevate your business to maximize the efficiency and responsiveness of your supply chain logistics. Smart technology like AI can achieve total transparency across your business networks, drive business processes to close the experience economy gap, and participate in sustainable business practices.
For example, SAP offers the Digital Supply Chain management software to optimize the supply chain process with innovative technology. The solution utilizes AI for processes like streamlining manufacturing and strategizing market-driven plans. With intelligent technology in this supply chain management solution, your supply chain will undergo a digital transformation.
Accurate Demand Forecasting for Optimal Inventory Levels
For any consumer-based business, success is reliant on maintaining optimal inventory levels. Supply flaws like overstocking or understocking can lead to disaster for your company, which means demand forecasting is especially important for your supply chain strategy.
Implementation of a forecasting engine with machine learning can prevent your business from suffering losses. The technology can discover patterns within supply chain data and provide predictive analysis for you to make informed decisions in a timely manner. Save on operational costs by becoming proactive with predictive power.
Increasing Efficiency of Warehouses
Who doesn’t want an efficient warehouse? With a fully automated warehouse, small tasks are simplified, and your operations become more cost-effective. Technology can increase productivity and efficiency while driving down manual labor at your warehouses.
Learn how companies like VAS Aero Services boosted their global distribution services with efficient warehouses.
Redefining Customer Support
AI not only benefits supply chain logistics but also the marketing and operational procurement landscape. AI-powered technology like chatbots can personalize the relationship between logistics providers and customers.
Chatbots can handle 80% of all customer engagement and, therefore, your company can provide better customer experience. Chatbots make it easy and fast for your customers to receive the support they need in real-time. The technology behind chatbots allows them to understand and solve your customers’ challenges, and then learn from these interactions to give better customer experiences in the future.
Improved Shipping Efficiency and Speed
In the logistics business, every mile and every minute counts. One of the biggest challenges that supply chain logistics face is the continuous improvement of delivery times. With expectations set by shipping giants like Amazon, customer demand calls for faster and faster delivery. AI technology can improve the last-mile delivery process with route optimization software to save time.
Carriers like UPS uses AI-powered GPS tools to find the most efficient route. The GPS tool collects data from customers, drivers, and more sources to find the best route when the carrier has many destinations to deliver shipments to. Not only can AI improve delivery efficiency, but it’s also sustainable for the environment by reducing emissions into the environment.
The Future of AI in Supply Chain
The future has a lot in store for the supply chain as AI continuously improves with time. For example, carriers will normalize autonomous transportation like drones and self-driving trucks soon enough. Currently, it’s still a concept in development but it is set to drastically change your supply chain strategy.
Modern supply chains are complex with many moving parts in which the integration of AI into the supply chain process is vital to keep your business moving forward. Companies with AI-enabled supply chains are up to 60% more effective. Now is a time to start investing in AI!
According to a 2020 market report, various AI-based technologies are set to reach in the billions of dollars in the supply chain management market globally by 2025. AI is truly in the development of revamping the operational process of supply chain logistics to improve overall performance. There will be many new possibilities and opportunities for your company to grow!
