Leveraging AI to Improve Supply Chain Management

CIO Applications| Wednesday, July 22, 2020

From simple digital watches to complex urban planning and development, AI has made its way into every industry. The supply chain management sector is no different, where AI has been slowly made an impact

FREMONT, CA: Technology is all around us and transforming lives at a rapid pace. Innovative technology aims to reduce human effort and make processes more efficient each day. Over the last few years, various disruptive technologies have become an integral part of every industry. One such technology is Artificial Intelligence (AI). From simple digital watches to complex urban planning and development, AI has made its way into every industry. The supply chain management sector is no different, where AI has been slowly made an impact. However, many business people are still wary of the technology due to the long time involved in the process.

Here are some advantages of applying AI to supply chain management systems.

Automation

One of the prime benefits of implementing AI technology in supply chain management systems is automation. An AI-powered warehouse will be mostly reliant on robots to store, locate, and pick goods. Once the machines are programmed as per requirement, the process will become routine. This speeds up the packaging process and takes productivity to a whole new level. There will be fewer people involved in the process, but the efficiency of the business will definitely increase.

Inventory Management

AI can accumulate, filter, and analyze enormous datasets, making inventory management effortless. AI systems can discover consumer habits and compare supply and demand to keep stocks to the bare minimum without disrupting the supply chain. This is not a novelty, as many other industries use the same strategy to control operations.

Delivered on Time

AI can also significantly improve the logistics process by making it more straightforward and more accurate. New systems take into account multiple factors simultaneously, such as weather forecasts, alternative routes, traffic, and delays. This makes them capable of creating highly accurate estimations timing-wise so that goods can be delivered as promised.

Improved Safety

AI makes the supply chain process better and more organized, and along with it also improves workplace safety. The technology replaces the majority of manual processes with machinery, leading to fewer accidents caused by human errors.