Schneider Electric

Schneider Electric (SE) partnered with Braincube to help with their digital transformation. A pilot was completed to validate Braincube’s relevance and efficiency at a high power inverter factory in the Philippines.

In order to improve certain production issues, Braincube was first used to identify the optimal production parameters for electronic boards. This initial experience led to good results in improving First Pass Yield.

Staff are now involved in optimising performance, which leads to improved production quality. Local teams need to improve their skills so that they are better able to use the tool.

After their successful demonstrator, Braincube was deployed across other sites. These efforts were led by Julien Goudon, Manager of a Supply Chain Performance service within Schneider Electric Asia.

Julien is responsible for performance at the group’s Asia factories helping to make them ‘Smart’, particularly through IIOT & Analytics. He is fully immersed in the world of the Internet of Things and artificial intelligence with the goal to transform into a smart factory.

Once operational tests on welding board production lines had been examined, colleagues measured the performance ratio and found an increase of several points. As a result, Schneider Electric decided to install Braincube on thermal circuit breakers that are used to protect motors. These are manufactured in Thailand.

Within Julien’s sector, artificial intelligence doesn’t really impact manual tasks. “We reorganize our resources so that they are more productive and add more value,” he says. Rather than constantly checking that everything is operating as it should, which is extremely time-consuming, staff are now involved in optimizing performance, which leads to improved production quality.”

Regardless of technology, people are at the center of all Braincube projects.

Julien refers to the importance of selecting the right resources in order to guarantee the best Braincube integration in production. When you work with the right people, Braincube becomes a real asset, as was seen during the second trial in Thailand.

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: “AI isn’t a job-eating monster, quite the opposite. At Schneider Electric, there’s no question of reducing jobs, but rather of developing them with a view to optimization.”

”Our Process and Data experts work hand in hand to provide the cleanest data possible before inputting these into Braincube. We are fully aware that this work affects Braincube’s efficiency.”

Clear and intelligible data provides software with what it needs to carry out applicable and prognostic analyses. It is important to adequately capture key process parameters, which are essential to ensuring quality.

This organizational aspect is crucial to Braincube becoming cost-effective, at 100% of what it can offer matched to the internal skills level.

In the future, Braincube will, without doubt, be in a position to address production self-regulation within Smart Factories. In any case, the software is already part of our production lines here in Asia, part of our system architecture and data acquisition strategy.