• Quality inspection still relying on manual checks that miss defects at line speed?

  • Production planning done in spreadsheets because your ERP's planning module is too rigid?

Generative AI in Manufacturing

Custom AI systems for manufacturers who need more than a chatbot -- production optimisation, quality inspection, predictive maintenance, and supply chain intelligence built around your actual operational data.

We connect AI to your MES, ERP, and sensor infrastructure. Not a demo on clean data. Production systems on your data.

  • AI-powered visual quality inspection trained on your specific product and defect types

  • Production schedule optimisation that factors in machine availability, demand, and material constraints

  • Generative AI for technical documentation, work instructions, and compliance records

  • Supply chain demand forecasting and anomaly detection on your supplier and inventory data

RaftLabs builds generative AI systems for manufacturing operations -- AI-powered quality inspection, production schedule optimisation, predictive maintenance, supply chain demand forecasting, and document generation for compliance and technical documentation. We connect generative AI to your existing MES, ERP, and sensor data rather than replacing your systems. Most manufacturing AI projects deliver in 10--14 weeks at a fixed cost, with full source code ownership.

Vodafone
Aldi
Nike
Microsoft
Heineken
Cisco
Calorgas
Energia Rewards
GE
Bank of America
T-Mobile
Valero
Techstars
East Ventures
100+Products shipped
20+AI systems built
24+Industries served
FixedCost delivery

AI that works on your factory floor, not just in a vendor demo

Most manufacturing AI demos run on clean, labelled datasets in controlled conditions. Production environments have variable lighting, worn equipment, inconsistent scan quality, sensor noise, and data that doesn't match the format the model was trained on.

We build AI systems for production environments -- trained on your product types, your defect categories, your historical data, and integrated with the systems your operations team already uses. The result is AI that improves throughput, quality, and planning -- not a pilot that never makes it past the proof of concept.

What we build

AI visual quality inspection

Computer vision systems trained on your specific product types and defect categories -- surface defects, dimensional variances, assembly errors, and packaging failures. Real-time inspection at line speed with pass/fail output and defect classification. Integration with your MES for automated line stop and routing. We build the model, the inference pipeline, the camera integration, and the dashboard your quality team uses to monitor accuracy. The inspection system that catches what manual checks miss at production speed.

Production schedule optimisation

AI-powered scheduling that optimises production sequences across machines, shifts, and material availability. Integration with your ERP demand data, MES machine availability, and inventory levels. Scenario modelling for demand changes, machine breakdowns, and supplier delays. The planning intelligence that replaces spreadsheet-based scheduling with optimised sequences -- reducing changeover time, improving OEE, and meeting customer delivery commitments more consistently.

Predictive maintenance

Machine failure prediction from sensor data -- vibration, temperature, pressure, power draw, and cycle time deviation. Models trained on your historical failure and maintenance records. Maintenance recommendations integrated with your CMMS for automated work order creation. The shift from scheduled to condition-based maintenance that reduces unplanned downtime without over-servicing. We've built AI systems that identified equipment degradation patterns weeks before failure.

Supply chain demand forecasting

Demand forecasting models for production planning and procurement, trained on your order history, seasonality, and customer signals. Supplier risk monitoring that flags delivery risk before it becomes a line stoppage. Inventory optimisation that reduces working capital without increasing stockout risk. The supply chain intelligence that gives your planning team forward visibility rather than reaction to what's already happened.

Generative AI for technical documentation

AI systems that generate and maintain technical documentation from your production data -- work instructions updated when processes change, batch records and certificates of analysis generated from production system data, non-conformance reports drafted from inspection findings, and maintenance records populated from technician inputs. The documentation that used to require hours of manual drafting per batch or process change is generated automatically, with technical staff reviewing and approving rather than writing.

Process anomaly detection

Anomaly detection across process parameters -- temperature, pressure, cycle time, material usage, and yield -- that identifies deviations before they cause scrap or quality failures. Real-time monitoring with threshold-based and ML-based detection for both known failure modes and novel anomalies. Alerts to process engineers with the context needed to investigate. The process monitoring that gives your operators early warning rather than discovering the problem in the quality check.

Frequently asked questions

We integrate with your existing MES, ERP, SCADA, and sensor infrastructure via API, database, or file-based interfaces depending on what each system exposes. Generative AI doesn't replace your systems -- it sits alongside them, reading operational data and returning structured outputs (inspection results, schedule recommendations, documents) that feed back into your existing workflows. Common integrations: SAP PP/QM, Siemens MES, Rockwell FactoryTalk, OSIsoft PI, and custom-built shop floor systems. The integration approach is scoped during discovery based on what your specific systems expose.

It depends on the use case. Visual quality inspection requires labelled image data -- typically 500--2,000 images per defect class for a starting model, improving with more data over time. Predictive maintenance requires historical sensor data and maintenance records -- typically 12--24 months to capture failure modes. Demand forecasting requires order history -- typically 2--3 years for seasonality modelling. We assess your data availability during discovery and design the approach around what you have. Gaps in historical data can often be addressed through synthetic data generation or transfer learning from pre-trained models.

ROI varies by use case. Visual quality inspection typically reduces defect escape rates by 40--70% and can eliminate manual inspection headcount for high-volume lines. Predictive maintenance reduces unplanned downtime by 20--40%, typically worth $50,000--$500,000 per line per year depending on throughput. Production schedule optimisation typically improves OEE by 5--15%. Demand forecasting improvements typically reduce inventory holding costs by 10--25%. We model the expected ROI during scoping based on your current metrics -- we don't lead with benchmark numbers that may not reflect your situation.

A focused manufacturing AI system -- one use case (e.g., visual inspection for one product line) -- typically delivers in 10--14 weeks. More complex builds involving multiple AI models, extensive sensor integration, or multi-site deployment run longer. We scope the project before pricing it: you know what's included, what the delivery milestones are, and what the fixed cost is before development starts.

Talk to us about your manufacturing AI project.

Tell us your production process, current data infrastructure, and the operational problem you want AI to solve. We'll tell you how we'd approach the build.