Why AI and Intelligent Automation is Important to Manufacturing

Updated on July 8, 2026

As a manufacturer, it’s all about improving business process to achieve high levels of production while maintaining quality. To this extent, technology innovation has focused on the shop floor and the production line. But what about the administrative and strategic processes which support production? Quickly getting the right information into decision makers hands, optimizing the order process, giving staff more time to work on valuable work such as improving customer experience – these areas often come as a second or third thought when considering technology adoption. Intelligent Automation can change that. Let’s take a look at why AI and Intelligent Automation is important to manufacturing.

As a service provider delivering AI and Intelligent Automation solutions, we have witnessed the benefits our customers realize from implementing automation. This article is to help manufacturers understand exactly how automation makes a difference. By addressing some of the current challenges the Manufacturing industry is facing we will discuss why Intelligent Automation, a valuable tool in Digital Transformation, is an effective solution in resolving those challenges.

Current Challenges in Manufacturing

Lack of System Integration

Challenge: If a manufacturer grows quickly, the tendency is to install new applications ASAP to keep up with operational growth. Chances are – organizations don’t take the time to fully plan how a new application might integrate with existing systems, because as a last resort manual efforts can be employed to keep data moving from one system to another. Unfortunately, manual work takes time and is error prone, as data is rekeyed in multiple places. Fixing this problem down the road may mean rewriting or updating applications which requires considerable time and effort commitments.

Solution: Intelligent Automation synchronizes data across multiple systems and platforms, resulting in processes which require little or no manual effort. Automations are layered onto existing applications within a short time frame, meaning less system disruptions than rewriting or updating applications. Positive results, such as increased accuracy and productivity, are often realized in as little as 3-5 weeks, depending on the complexity of the automation.

Reporting

Challenge: As a byproduct of poor system integration, manufacturers often have a tough time getting a clear picture of their operations. The immediate fix is to gather data from many sources by importing data into spreadsheets, which staff then manually manipulates – sometimes in multiple iterations.

Solution: Automations are set up to define data extraction from multiple systems and platforms. The process then standardizes and loads the data into spreadsheets as a final report or for further manipulation if needed. These types of automations not only save time, but also improve accuracy with standardization. The opportunity to have data on hand more quickly supports decision making which is timely and better informed.

Knowledge Transfer

Challenge: The combination of aging workforces and low hire rates are resulting in an immediate problem manufacturers in knowledge transfer. Older workers are retiring with job knowledge which has not been passed down to the next generation of workers.

Solution: As processes are automated, the rules for running those processes are defined and documented within the code of the automation tool. This includes rules for exception and error processing when the application consumes invalid data . Automation is a great way to easily document process knowledge while also increasing productivity and reducing the opportunities for error.

Multiple Document Formats

Challenge: Manufacturing operations process documents from many different vendors. Often, these documents have unique formats and may contain hard to read handwritten data. Training staff to process each document format is time-consuming and introduces a high degree of inaccuracy.

Solution: Automation uses AI to process documents in any format. With Intelligent Document Processing (IDP), bots can be trained to recognize multiple types of document formats. Form recognition and data retrieval are performed quickly, with a high degree of accuracy. In addition, the rules for data retrieval are built into the automation process, documenting usage of forms data and securing knowledge transfer for future workforces. The time required for staff training is reduced and again, the opportunity for error in rekeying or interpreting data is greatly reduced.

Process Optimization

Challenge: As a result of all the above challenges – lack of data integration, inefficient reporting, multiple document formats, challenges with untrained workforces – process optimization suffers. Poor optimization affects the ability to respond to customers and business fluctuations, reducing competition in the marketplace.

Solution: When a manufacturer begins to adopt automation across the organization, all departments benefit. This results in staff having more time to focus on strategic and complex work issues throughout the company, increasing overall workflow optimization.

In Summary

At its core, Intelligent Automation is about optimizing business processes by automating repetitive and rule-based tasks. Whether it’s data entry, invoice processing, or customer service inquiries, Automation bots handle a wide range of tasks with speed and accuracy, freeing up human employees to focus on more strategic activities.

The benefits of AI and Automation extend beyond efficiency gains. By automating routine tasks, businesses reduce errors and improve data accuracy, leading to better decision-making and enhanced customer satisfaction. Additionally, Automation helps organizations achieve compliance with regulatory requirements by ensuring consistency and auditability in process execution.

Even though you may be tired of hearing about the latest technologies and all they could possibly do for you – take another look at Intelligent Automation. It really does live up to the hype.