Manufacturing Happy Hour · 28 Nov 2023 · 1h 16m
Sudhi Bangalore, Founding Partner & CEO of Full-Bore, and Mike Tomasco, VP of Pfizer Digital, discuss the smart manufacturing mindset, emphasizing that it is a continuous journey driven by data and people rather than a one-time project. They highlight specific strategies such as using cobots for quick wins at Stanley Black & Decker and leveraging the Digital Plant Maturity Model at Pfizer to break down organizational silos. The episode also features insights from Patrick Gaughan of Axiom Manufacturing Systems, Aldo Ferrante of SORBA.ai, and representatives from Microsoft and the OPC Foundation on standards, interoperability, and AI.
Where this conversation describes AI being used to build or deliver a product. Part of the AI in practice tracker.
Running the companySorba.ai
The platform automatically creates machine learning algorithms from machine data to detect anomalies or failures without requiring manual integration or coding.
“All I do is point to that system. And our system then takes that model, automatically creates a machine learning algorithm and generates a prediction for you. Eliminates all of the legwork.”
Aldo Ferrante · Hear it at 57:32
Running the companyBennitAI
The company uses AI algorithms to match manufacturers with problems to subject matter experts with relevant skills in a database.
“opportunities are posted by manufacturer, whoever has a problem, and, you know, our algorithms, our AI, will match them to people that have put their skill sets into the database, and we connect them.”
Katherine Cahalane · Hear it at 1:10:51
large enterprises and early-stage companies
Other shows on the same ground, closest first.
Brian Zakrajsek, Smart Manufacturing Leader at Deloitte, discusses how manufacturers can implement IoT technology, highlighting the convergence of IT and OT, the importance of data context, and the shift toward industry-specific solutions. He details Deloitte's Smart Factory in Wichita, Kansas, as a physical experience center and notes the company's move from pure advisory to implementation and managed operations. Zakrajsek emphasizes that successful adoption requires aligning technology with clear business value, managing change in high-turnover workforces, and leveraging AI to make sense of heterogeneous data.
Anna-Katrina Shedletsky, CEO and founder of Instrumental, discusses how the pandemic accelerated digital transformation in electronics manufacturing, validating her prediction of five years of innovation in 18 months. She explains Instrumental’s cloud-based platform that collects engineering data from across the supply chain to identify defects and improve first-pass yield, moving away from opaque, just-in-time models toward resilient, data-driven collaboration. Shedletsky highlights the shift from Capex to Opex for manufacturing technology and the critical need for transparency between brands and Contract Manufacturers (CMs) to solve problems faster.
Annie Lu, co-founder and CEO of Laminar, explains how her company uses process-aware AI and proprietary sensors to optimize process manufacturing, specifically targeting Clean-in-Place (CIP) and changeover inefficiencies. She details how Laminar overcame early dismissal by legacy industry scientists by proving the technology's viability directly with major customers like Anheuser-Busch InBev and Coca-Cola. Lu argues that manufacturers must move beyond 'pilot purgatory' by designing for scale from the start, focusing on tangible ROI and change management to drive productivity and sustainability across entire factory footprints.
Shane Fox, co-founder and CEO of Link3D, discusses the practical application of digital transformation in additive manufacturing, arguing that the industry must move beyond the 'artisanal' approach to achieve scalable production. He outlines a strategy for organizations to shift from on-premise to cloud infrastructure and implement unified data layers that connect machines, CAD, and ERP systems. Fox emphasizes that successful digitalization requires a cross-functional team aligned on long-term goals, such as distributed manufacturing, to optimize yield, quality, and sustainability across global sites.
Will Patrick, Managing Director of FermionX, explains how he transformed his family's electronics manufacturing business from flat revenue to scalable growth by replacing tribal knowledge with a data-first operation. He details the implementation of a fully traceable MES (Luminovo), Power BI dashboards, and quality tools like Koh Young's KSMART to create a single source of truth for customers. Patrick highlights that this infrastructure allows the company to grow from £10M to £25M without proportional overhead increases, while laying the groundwork for future AI-driven exception reporting and agentic systems.
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