AI cuts manufacturing costs while improving quality and sustainability

If anyone in the automotive sector is ahead when it comes to AI, it is Johannes Weinert. “My job is to meaningfully integrate artificial intelligence and machine learning into our production and development processes,” explains the young engineer. “Our focus at the moment is to reduce production costs with our AI projects and at the same time further increase the quality and sustainability of our production through AI. As well as the work we are already doing in house, next year we will also be involved in an industrial research project on this topic.”

According to Weinert, there is no shortage of ideas. He is currently working with his team of students and master’s students on five specific projects. Some of these relate to battery technology, such as AI-supported production of the bursting membrane – a key battery component that is essential for safety. Another solution that has already gone live on several machines, says Weinert, is the use of AI to detect tool breaks. The AI-controlled machine stops automatically if the tool breaks, dramatically reducing waste caused by missing parts, cutting downtime and extending the lifespan of the equipment. According to Weinert, the benefits are clear: “We are currently able to stop machines in such a way that the number of missing parts per break is reduced from 100 to just three.”

Although the use of AI is already showing initial success, its potential is almost limitless, according to Weinert, who trained as a mechatronics engineer at HOERBIGER and then completed a dual course of study with a master’s degree in automation and robotics. “Thanks to AI we will produce even more accurately, precisely, sustainably, quickly and therefore more competitively in the future,” he says. Weinert is not afraid of AI – on the contrary, it’s clear to him that “AI will support us humans at work by freeing us from monotonous, tedious or even dangerous tasks.”