Augmentir and UKG are working together to create a digitally connected frontline workforce that is shaping the future of work in manufacturing.
In manufacturing, success isn’t just about machines—it’s about people. But here’s the problem: workforce skills tracking and daily work execution have been handled separately for too long. The result? Misassigned tasks, skills gaps, slower production, and higher error rates.
The solution? Modernizing workforce management by digitally connecting frontline workers with AI-powered skills management and connected worker technology.
Together, Augmentir and UKG are delivering this solution to manufacturing companies around the world. Read on to discover how Augmentir and UKG are working together to create more productive, more engaged workforces in manufacturing.
Workforce Management for Modern Manufacturing Operations
Think of it like peanut butter and jelly: great on their own, but unstoppable together. When manufacturers sync traditional workforce management with AI-powered connected worker technology, they unlock huge benefits:
UKG’s leading workforce management solution, combined with Augmentir’s AI-powered connected worker platform empowers manufacturing companies to optimize labor efficiency, streamline scheduling, reduce mistakes, and ensure compliance, all while boosting productivity on the production floor.
Manufacturing organizations that utilize both Augmentir and UKG Pro Workforce Management™ can benefit from connecting time and attendance, scheduling, and workforce data with Augmentir’s connected worker platform. Through this new integration, manufacturers can gain visibility into real-time, accurate employee information and skills tracking combined with AI-driven insights into work performance. By doing so, manufacturers can improve workforce efficiency and productivity and deliver more impactful training and support for frontline workers.
Right worker, right job – Workers are assigned tasks based on real-time skill assessments.
Training in the flow of work – No need to step away from production; learning happens in real time
Faster onboarding – New hires get up to speed quicker with AI-driven, step-by-step guidance.
Fewer mistakes, higher efficiency – Workers get exactly the information they need, when they need it.
Continuous upskilling – As employees complete tasks, their skills profiles automatically update.
Smarter capacity planning – Give production teams improved capacity planning and a better decision support tool for daily workforce scheduling and management. Proactively look ahead and see coverage gaps based on employee scheduling.
Augmentir’s UKG connector streamlines the flow of employee data into Augmentir, providing operations leaders and plant managers with valuable insights into worker availability, productivity, training effectiveness, and more. This gives production teams improved capacity planning and a better decision support tool for daily workforce scheduling and management.
Gone are the days of outdated skills databases and generic training programs. Today, learning happens on the job, in the moment, and at the worker’s fingertips. Manufacturers can provide personalized on-the-job support to employees through Augmentir’s digital guidance, bringing training in the flow of work and alleviating potential skills gaps.
The Future of Training: Learning in the Flow of Work
Traditional workforce training methods are outdated. Long classroom sessions, dense manuals, and generic training modules don’t cut it anymore—especially in fast-paced manufacturing environments. Workers need real-time, task-specific guidance to build skills and stay productive.
That’s where embedded training comes in. Instead of separating learning from work, Augmentir enables:
Just-in-time training – Employees learn exactly what they need, right when they need it.
Mobile, interactive work instructions – Step-by-step guidance delivered on the shop floor.
Skills-based task assignments – Workers are matched to jobs they’re qualified for, with training baked in.
Continuous learning & upskilling – As workers complete tasks, their skills profiles evolve, keeping pace with job demands.
This approach not only accelerates onboarding but also reduces downtime, improves accuracy, and keeps workers engaged—all while production continues at full speed.
How Augmentir and UKG are Shaping the Future of Work in Manufacturing
Augmentir’s AI-powered connected worker platform makes skills integration effortless. By delivering smart, adaptive digital work instructions, Augmentir ensures that:
Workers receive personalized guidance based on their experience level.
Skills data stays fresh, automatically updating as tasks are completed.
Training gaps are filled in real time, keeping production smooth and efficient.
Supervisors have full visibility into workforce capabilities and gaps.
For manufacturers like Armstrong World Industries (AWI), this has been a game-changer. Facing workforce shortages and declining tenure rates, AWI needed a way to ensure workers had access to the right information at the right time. By adopting Augmentir, AWI empowered its frontline workers to operate equipment, troubleshoot issues, and execute tasks with confidence—all through a single, mobile interface.
The Power of the UKG + Augmentir Partnership
The digital transformation of today’s manufacturing workforce doesn’t stop with Augmentir alone. The partnership between UKG and Augmentir takes workforce optimization to the next level.
By combining UKG’s workforce data (scheduling, time tracking, and HR insights) with Augmentir’s AI-driven skills tracking and adaptive work instructions, companies can:
Schedule workers smarter – Assign shifts based on real-time skill levels.
Close skills gaps faster – Proactively upskill employees before gaps cause production delays.
Improve retention & engagement – Give workers clear paths for career growth and skill development.
Boost operational efficiency – Match the right person to the right job, every time.
This isn’t just about automation—it’s about empowering people. When employees have the skills, training, and resources they need in the flow of work, they stay longer, perform better, and drive business success.
Bottom Line? Augmentir + UKG = The Future of Work in Manufacturing
The manufacturers that integrate digital skills tracking with connected worker technology that supports daily operations will be the ones that thrive in an era of workforce disruption. Augmentir and UKG are making it happen – helping companies close skill gaps, improve efficiency, and build a workforce that’s future-ready.
https://www.augmentir.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/future-of-work-in-manufacturing-with-ukg-augmentir.webp6301200Chris Kuntzhttps://www.augmentir.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Augmentir_Logo_Sm-300x169.pngChris Kuntz2025-02-18 12:10:032025-06-10 13:02:19The Future of Work in Manufacturing with UKG and Augmentir
Augmentir welcomes Mike Carroll to our Board of Advisors! Mike is widely recognized as an industry trailblazer and visionary, with a proven track record of driving innovation, industrial transformation, and AI strategy.
We’re excited to welcome Mike Carroll to Augmentir’s Board of Advisors!
A recognized leader in industrial operations, digital innovation, and workforce strategy, Mike brings decades of experience driving transformation across manufacturing and industrial enterprises.
Widely regarded as an industry visionary, Mike most recently served as Vice President of Innovation at Georgia-Pacific, where he led transformative initiatives across the company and its parent, Koch Industries. His leadership in AI strategy, operational excellence, and workforce enablement makes him a powerful addition to Augmentir as we continue to grow our AI-powered connected worker platform — helping manufacturers tackle their most critical workforce challenges.
A Career at the Intersection of Manufacturing, Innovation, and Industrial Transformation
Mike’s career spans key leadership roles where he has helped organizations modernize operations by aligning people, process, and technology. At Georgia-Pacific, he led enterprise-wide efforts in operations, engineering, and manufacturing excellence, creating more adaptive, future-ready workforces.
His expertise extends beyond technology adoption — encompassing workplace modernization and the human side of digital transformation. These experiences make him a valuable voice in the evolving conversation about the future of work.
Why This Matters Now
Manufacturing is undergoing a seismic shift. With aging workforces, widening skills gaps, labor shortages, and increasing production complexity, manufacturers are being forced to rethink how they engage, support, and train their frontline teams.
At the same time, emerging technologies like AI, connected worker platforms, and intelligent automation are opening new opportunities — but only when implemented with real-world operational understanding.
That’s where Mike’s experience is invaluable. Having led transformation initiatives from within the industry, he brings both a strategic lens and practical wisdom to ensure that workforce transformation remains central to industrial innovation.
Mike has a unique ability to connect operational goals with frontline execution. His strategic vision and practical insight will be a tremendous asset as we continue helping manufacturers digitize their frontline operations and unlock workforce potential through AI.
We see the future of industrial work now being realized by emerging AI approaches, utilizing generative AI knowledge management, and AI factory agents collaborating alongside humans on the shop floor. Augmentir’s focus on delivering an intelligent frontline operations platform goes beyond visualizing data to actually driving action. It digitally connects people, processes, and systems, enabling proactive management through intelligent workflows, digital task management, and continuous improvement tools. With Augmentir, data isn’t just displayed—it’s used to empower smarter, faster, and more effective operations.
“Augmentir isn’t just another layer of dashboards, it’s goal is to be a unified ‘single pane of glass’ that closes the loop between training and work execution, empowering frontline teams with AI-driven insights and augmented guidance to drive continuous improvement in safety, quality, and productivity. I’m excited to join a company that doesn’t merely digitize processes but learns from every action on the shop floor and delivers in-line support, whether through generative AI assistants or remote expert collaboration, so manufacturers can onboard workers faster, optimize skills, and unlock their full potential.”
– Mike Carroll
Driving the Future of Connected Work
At Augmentir, we’re committed to helping manufacturers digitize and optimize their frontline operations with AI-powered tools for skills management, digital workflows, industrial collaboration, and continuous improvement.
Welcoming Mike Carroll to our Board of Advisors is another step forward in that journey — strengthening our ability to serve manufacturers with both cutting-edge technology and real-world operational insight.
https://www.augmentir.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/augmentir-welcomes-mike-carroll-board-of-advisors.webp12602400Chris Kuntzhttps://www.augmentir.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Augmentir_Logo_Sm-300x169.pngChris Kuntz2025-06-05 13:54:542025-06-10 12:49:19Augmentir Welcomes Mike Carroll to Board of Advisors
Explore top use cases for generative AI in manufacturing, how GenAI copilots and digital assistants work, and benefits for frontline workers.
Generative AI in manufacturing refers to the application of generative models and artificial intelligence techniques to optimize and enhance various aspects of the manufacturing process.
While traditional AI focuses on data analysis, pattern recognition, and decision-making, generative AI creates new content and synthetic data, enabling innovative solutions. This involves using AI algorithms to generate new product designs, optimize production workflows, predict maintenance needs, and improve production efficiency within frontline operations.
According to McKinsey, nearly 75% of generative AI’s major value lies in use cases across four areas: manufacturing, customer operations, marketing and sales, and supply chain management. Manufacturers are uniquely situated to benefit from generative AI and it is already a transformative force for some. Generative AI is driving innovation and efficiency across the manufacturing sector, enabling advanced digital solutions and competitive advantages. A recent Deloitte study found that 79% of organizations expect generative AI to transform their operations within three years, and 56% of them are already using generative AI solutions to improve efficiency and productivity.
Manufacturing is rapidly evolving and by integrating cutting-edge technologies like Generative AI, manufacturers can better support, augment, and enhance their frontline workforces with improved decision-making, collaboration, and data insights. Gen AI is being adopted as a modern alternative to traditional methods, surpassing manual inspections and basic automation to deliver greater operational improvements.
Join us below as we dive into generative AI in manufacturing exploring how it works, the benefits and risks, and some of the top use cases that generative AI, specifically generative ai digital assistants, can provide for manufacturing operations:
Generative AI refers to artificial intelligence systems designed to create new content, such as text, images, or music, by learning patterns from existing data. In manufacturing, this includes the ability to generate new product designs and create synthetic data, such as realistic images, videos, or text, to support manufacturing innovation and AI training. The use of Large Language Models (LLMs) and Natural Language Processing (NLP) enables these systems to analyze vast amounts of data, leveraging advanced algorithms and machine learning algorithms to improve prediction accuracy and operational efficiency, simulate different scenarios, and generate innovative solutions that can impact a wide range of manufacturing processes.
Large Language Models
Large Language Models (LLMs) are a type of generative artificial intelligence model that have been trained on a large volume – sometimes referred to as a corpus – of text data. They are capable of understanding and generating human-like text and have been used in a wide range of applications, including natural language processing, machine translation, and text generation.
In manufacturing, generative AI solutions should leverage proprietary fit-for-purpose, pre-trained LLMs, coupled with robust security and permissions. Industrial LLMs use operational data, training and workforce management data, connected worker and engineering data, as well as information from enterprise systems. LLMs can also enhance document search by efficiently finding, extracting, and summarizing information from technical manuals, reports, and operational records.
Natural Language Processing
Natural Language Processing (NLP) is a branch of artificial intelligence that focuses on the interaction between computers and humans using natural language. It involves the development of algorithms and models that enable computers to understand, interpret, and respond to human language in a way that is both meaningful and useful.
For generative AI, NLP is a key technology that enables the assistants to understand and generate human-like text, providing seamless conversational user experiences and valuable assistance to frontline workers, engineers, and managers in manufacturing and industrial settings.
NLPs allow the AI to process and interpret natural language inputs, enabling it to engage in human-like interactions, understand user queries, and provide relevant and accurate responses. This is essential for common manufacturing tasks such as real-time assistance, documentation review, predictive maintenance, and quality control.
By combining large language models and natural language processing, generative AI can produce coherent and contextually relevant text for tasks like writing, summarization, translation, and conversation, mimicking human language proficiency. NLP also enables interactive learning experiences, allowing employees to engage with training content, receive immediate feedback, and clarify doubts in real time.
Benefits of Leveraging Generative AI in the Manufacturing Industry
Generative AI and solutions that leverage them offer several benefits for manufacturing operations, including:
Operational/Production Optimization and Forecasting: GenAI technology offers a significant boost to manufacturing processes by monitoring and analyzing in real-time, spotting problems quickly, and providing predictive insights and personalized assistance to boost efficiency for manufacturing workers. Through process optimization and enhancing efficiency with real-time data analysis and automation, manufacturers can streamline operations, reduce downtime, and improve productivity. Additionally, AI assistants empower manufacturers to explore multiple control strategies within their process, identifying potential bottlenecks and failure points.
Proactive Problem-Solving: Generative AI-powered tools provide real-time monitoring and risk analysis of manufacturing operations, enabling the quick identification and resolution of issues to optimize production and efficiency. They can spot events as they happen, providing valuable insights and recommendations to help operators and engineers rapidly identify and resolve problems before they escalate. Predictive analytics and improved quality control help reduce waste and support continuous improvement in manufacturing processes.
Reduce Unplanned Downtime: Generative AI solutions can analyze vast datasets to predict equipment maintenance needs before issues arise, allowing manufacturers to schedule maintenance proactively, minimizing unplanned disruptions. Generative AI can also optimize maintenance schedules and delivery schedules to further reduce downtime and improve supply chain reliability. This not only improves downtime but also contributes to the overall operational resilience of mission-critical equipment.
Personalized Support and On-the-job Guidance: Generative AI tools can be tailored to diverse roles within the manufacturing plant, offering personalized assistance to operators, engineers, and managers. It can provide role-based, personalized assistance, and proactive insights to understand past events, current statuses, and potential future happenings, enabling workers to perform their tasks more effectively and make better, more informed decisions. GenAI solutions and applications involved implementing generative AI provide optimized parameters for operators and help manage inventory more effectively.
These benefits demonstrate the significant impact of generative AI on frontline manufacturing activities, improving overall operational efficiency, adjusting processes where needed, and driving operational excellence.
Pro Tip
Generative AI assistants can take these benefits one step further by incorporating skills and training data to measure training effectiveness, identify skills gaps, and suggest solutions to prevent any skilled labor issues. This guarantees that frontline workers have the essential skills to perform tasks safely and efficiently, while also establishing personalized career development paths for manufacturing employees that continuously enhance their knowledge and abilities.
Risks of Generative AI in Manufacturing
Generative AI in manufacturing presents several risks, including data security, intellectual property concerns, and potential bias in AI models. The reliance on vast amounts of data raises the risk of data breaches and cyberattacks, potentially exposing sensitive information. Intellectual property issues may arise if AI-generated designs or processes inadvertently infringe on existing patents or proprietary technologies. Additionally, biases in training data can lead to suboptimal or unfair outcomes, affecting the quality and equity of AI-driven decisions. There is also the risk of over-reliance on AI, which may reduce human oversight and lead to errors if the AI models make incorrect predictions or generate flawed designs. Ensuring proper validation, transparency, and human intervention is crucial to mitigating these risks.
The use of any genAI tool in manufacturing requires careful consideration of ethical, data privacy, and security risks, as well as potential impacts on employment.
Top Use Cases for Generative AI Manufacturing Assistants
Generative AI assistants and frontline copilots are AI-powered tools designed to provide valuable assistance and insights in industrial settings, particularly in manufacturing. These assistants are a type of generative AI that are used in manufacturing operations to enhance human-machine collaboration, streamline workflows, and offer proactive insights to optimize performance and productivity for frontline workers. The manufacturing sector is being transformed by these advanced AI applications, which are driving efficiency, innovation, and better decision-making across the industry.
What makes frontline AI assistants unique among other generative AI copilots is the enhanced human-like interaction beyond standard data analytics and analysis to understand the context around a process or issue; including what happened and why, as well as anticipate future events.
Generative AI assistants work via specialized large language models (LLMs) and generative AI, providing contextual intelligence for superior operations, productivity, and uptime in industrial settings. Additionally, they typically involve natural language processing for understanding human language, pattern recognition to identify trends or behaviors, and decision-making algorithms to offer real-time assistance. This, combined with machine learning techniques, allows them to understand user inputs, provide informed suggestions, and automate tasks. AI and machine learning are used together in manufacturing to automate defect detection and optimize supply chains, further enhancing operational efficiency.
Here are 6 of the top use cases for generative AI in manufacturing:
1. Troubleshooting
Troubleshooting is such a critical use case in manufacturing. With today’s skilled labor shortage, frontline workers are often times in situations where they don’t have the decades of tribal knowledge required to quickly troubleshoot and resolve issues on the shop floor. AI assistants can help these workers make decisions faster and reduce production downtime by providing instant access to summarized facts relevant to a job or tasks, this could come from procedures, troubleshooting guides, captured tribal knowledge, or OEM manuals.
2. Personalized Training & Support
With GenAI assistants, manufacturers can instantly close skills and experience gaps with information personalized, context-aware to the individual worker. This could include: on the job training materials, one point lessons (OPLs), or peer/user generated content such as comments and conversations.
3. Leader Standard Work
With Generative AI assistants, operations leaders can assess and understand the effectiveness of standard work within their manufacturing environment, and identify where there are areas of risk or opportunities for improvement.
4. Converting Tribal Knowledge
One of the more pressing priorities that many manufacturers face is the task of capturing and converting tribal knowledge into digital corporate assets that can be shared across the organization. With connected worker technology that utilizes Generative AI, manufacturing companies can now summarize the exchange of tribal knowledge via collaboration and convert these to scalable, curated digital assets that can be shared instantly across your organization.
5. Continuous Improvement
AI and GenAI assistants can help us identify areas for content improvement, and make those improvements, measure training effectiveness, and measure and improve workforce effectiveness.
6. Operational Analysis
Generative AI assistants can also provide value when it comes to operational improvements. GenAI assistants can use employee attendance data to help shift managers or line leaders determine where the risks are, and potentially offset any resource issues before they become truly problematic. An organization’s skills matrix, presence data, and production schedules all can feed into a fit-for-purpose, pre-trained LLM – giving you information that manufacturing leaders need to keep their operations running.
Generative AI and other AI-powered solutions are leveling up manufacturing operations, analyzing data to predict equipment maintenance needs before issues arise, allowing for proactive maintenance scheduling, and minimizing unplanned disruptions. With these tools manufacturers can empower frontline workers with improved collaboration and provide real-time assistance with contextual information, ensuring relevant and timely support during critical decision-making processes.
Overall, generative AI is transforming a wide array of manufacturing and industrial activities, connecting workers in ways that were previously thought impossible, and making frontline tasks and processes safer and more efficient for workers everywhere.
Future-proofing Manufacturing Operations with Augie™
Augie™, Augmentir’s generative AI assistant for frontline work, represents the next generation of generative AI solutions, purpose-built to help manufacturing companies future-proof their operations. By harnessing the power of artificial intelligence and machine learning, Augie enables manufacturers to optimize production processes, improve quality control, and reduce maintenance costs—all while adapting to rapidly changing market demands.
With Augie, manufacturers can analyze vast amounts of data from diverse sources, including machine data, sensor data, and historical data, to identify patterns and make predictive, data-driven decisions. This advanced platform delivers real-time insights into production processes, allowing manufacturers to quickly respond to shifts in demand, supply chain disruptions, or operational anomalies. Augie also features sophisticated algorithms for demand forecasting, inventory management, and supply chain optimization, helping companies minimize environmental impact and maximize operational efficiency.
Augie pulls in skill capabilities, workforce development information, and training data in addition to MES and ERP data. It offers contextual, proactive insights and automated workflows to optimize production and prevent bottlenecks, contributing to manufacturing efficiency, uptime, quality, and decision-making.
Additionally, Augie ties together operational data, training and workforce management data, engineering data, and knowledge/information from various disparate enterprise systems to empower frontline workers, streamline workflows, and increase manufacturing performance.
By integrating Augie into their operations, manufacturers can boost productivity, reduce unplanned downtime, and achieve significant cost savings. The platform’s AI-driven quality control ensures improved product quality, while its customer service automation capabilities enhance responsiveness and satisfaction. Ultimately, Augie empowers manufacturing companies to stay ahead of the competition, adapt to evolving industry trends, and secure a sustainable, competitive advantage in the global marketplace.
Augmentir is trusted by manufacturing leaders as a digital transformation partner delivering measurable results across operations. Schedule a live demo today to learn more.
https://www.augmentir.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/generative-ai-in-manufacturing.webp6301200Chris Kuntzhttps://www.augmentir.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Augmentir_Logo_Sm-300x169.pngChris Kuntz2024-06-17 18:43:542025-06-09 15:26:36Generative AI in Manufacturing: Benefits, Risks, and Top Use Cases
Learn how to digitize your operations and build a paperless factory in this paperless manufacturing guide from Augmentir.
Manually managing and tracking production in manufacturing has become a thing of the past. That’s because manufacturers are adopting a new digital approach: paperless manufacturing.
Paperless manufacturing uses software to manage shop floor execution, digitize work instructions, execute workflows, automate record-keeping and scheduling, and communicate with shop floor employees. More recently, this approach also digitizes skills tracking and performance assessments for shop floor workers to help optimize workforce onboarding, training, and ongoing management. This technology is made up of cloud-based software, mobile and wearable technology, artificial intelligence, machine learning algorithms, and advanced analytics.
More recently, your journey to paperless manufacturing is being accelerated through the availability of generative AI assistants and supporting import tools that can streamline the conversion of existing content into interactive, mobile-ready content for your frontline teams.
Paperless manufacturing software uses interactive screens, dashboards, data collection, sensors, and reporting filters to show real-time insights into your factory operations. If you want to learn more about paperless manufacturing processes, explore this guide to learn about the following:
A paperless factory uses AI-powered software to manage production, keep track of records, and optimize jobs being executed on the shop floor. Paperless manufacturing is intended to replace written record-keeping as well as paper-based work instructions, checklists, and SOPs, and keep track of records digitally.
For example, in most manufacturing operations, everything from quality inspections to operator rounds and planned and autonomous maintenance is done on a regular basis to make sure factory equipment is operating properly and quality and safety standards are met. In most manufacturing plants, these activities are done manually with paper-based instructions, checklists, or forms.
Operators and shop floor workers in paperless factories use software to execute work procedures and see production tasks in ordered sequences, which enables them to implement tasks accordingly. Workers are able to view operating procedures, or digital work instructions, using mobile devices (wearables, tablets, etc.) in real-time.
Furthermore, paperless manufacturing incorporates the digitization of shop floor training, skills tracking, certifications, and assessments. This digital approach uses skills management software helps optimize HR-based processes that were previously managed via paper or spreadsheets, and includes the ability to:
Create, track, and manage employee skills
Instantly visualize the skills gaps in your team
Schedule or assign jobs based on worker skill level and proficiency
Close skill gaps with continuous learning
Make data-driven drive operational decisions
What are the benefits of going paperless in manufacturing?
There are a number of reasons for factories to go paperless, from cost-effectiveness to increased productivity and sustainability. A paperless system can revolutionize production processes, workforce management, and business operations.
Here are the top benefits of going paperless:
Accelerate employee onboarding: By digitizing onboarding and moving training into the flow of work, manufacturers can reduce new hire onboarding time by 82%.
Increase productivity: Digitizing manufacturing operations means no more manual, paper-based data collection or record-keeping. Workers have more time to run their equipment, execute shop floor tasks, and find solutions to problems.
Boost data accuracy: People are prone to making mistakes, but shop floor data capture and validation can help offset human error and improve accuracy.
Improved workforce management: Digital skills tracking and AI-based workforce analytics can help optimize production operations and maximize worker output.
Manage real-time operations: Human-machine interface systems eliminate the need for paper, files, and job tickets. This means that workers can analyze inventory and other data in real-time.
Save money: Although going paperless means that the cost of paper is eliminated, the savings extend beyond that. With greater productivity, operations in real-time, and improved production optimization, costs can be reduced in many areas.
How do you go paperless in manufacturing?
Going paperless starts with digitizing activities across the factory floor to increase productivity, and extending that value through a digital connection between the shop floor and enterprise manufacturing systems. We lay out below the four basic steps for how to go paperless in manufacturing:
Step 1: Digitize your existing content with Gen AI and Connected Worker technology.
Paperless manufacturing starts with the use of modern, digital tools that can quickly and easily digitize and convert your existing paper-based content. Tools like Augmentir’s Augie™, a generative AI suite of technologies, helps you import and convert existing content regardless of format. Once converted, Connected Worker solutions that incorporate enhanced mobile capabilities and combine training and skills tracking with connected worker technology and on-the-job digital guidance can deliver significant additional value. A key requirement to start is to identify high-value use cases that can benefit from digitization, such as quality control or inspection procedures, lockout tagout procedures, safety reporting, layered process audits, or autonomous maintenance procedures.
Pro Tip
You can now import existing PDF, Word, or Excel documents (just like the PDF above) directly into Augmentir to create digital, interactive work procedures and checklists using Augie™, a Generative AI content creation tool from Augmentir. Learn more about Augie – your industrial Generative AI Assistant.
Step 2: Augment your workers with AI and Connected Worker technology.
AI-based connected worker solutions can help both digitize work instructions and deliver that guidance in a way that is personalized to the individual worker and their performance. AI Bots that leverage generative AI and GPT-like AI models can assist workers with language translation, feedback, on-demand answers, access to knowledge through natural language, and provide a comprehensive digital performance support tool.
As workers become more connected, companies have access to a rich source of job activity, execution, and tribal data, and with proper AI tools can gain insights into areas where the largest improvement opportunities exist.
Step 3: Set up IoT sensors for machine health monitoring.
The industrial Internet of Things (IoT) uses sensors to boost manufacturing processes. IoT sensors are connected through the web using wireless or 4G/5G networks to transmit data right from the shop floor. The use of machine health monitoring tools along with connected worker technology can provide a comprehensive shop floor solution.
Step 4: Connect your frontline to your enterprise.
Digitally connected frontline operations solutions not only enable industrial companies to digitize work instructions, checklists, and SOPs, but also allow them to create digital workflows and integrations that fully incorporate the frontline workers into the digital thread of their business.
The digital thread represents a connected data flow across a manufacturing enterprise – including people, systems, and machines. By incorporating the activities and data from these previously disconnected workers, business processes are accelerated, and this new source of data provides newfound opportunities for innovation and improvement.
Augmentir provides a unique Connected Worker solution that uses AI to help manufacturing companies intelligently onboard, train, guide, and support frontline workers so each worker can contribute at their individual best, helping achieve production goals in today’s era of workforce disruption.
Our solution is a SaaS-based suite of software tools that helps customers digitize and optimize all frontline processes including Autonomous and Preventive Maintenance, Quality, Safety, and Assembly.
Transform how your company runs its frontline operations. Request a live demo today!
https://www.augmentir.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/paperless-manufacturing-augmentir.webp6301200Chris Kuntzhttps://www.augmentir.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Augmentir_Logo_Sm-300x169.pngChris Kuntz2023-09-20 14:12:392025-06-04 13:02:43Paperless Manufacturing: Your Guide to Transitioning to a Paperless Factory
Learn how Digital Standard Work effectively transforms manufacturing production and enables operational excellence.
Manufacturing organizations are feeling the pressure of increased customer demands, skilled labor shortages, and intense shifts in their frontline workforces, however, they can effectively overcome these obstacles with digital standard work enabled by smart connected worker technology. Digital standard work promotes operational excellence in manufacturing through facilitated knowledge-sharing, enhanced process standardization, increased employee engagement, improved workforce agility, and overall optimization of workforce abilities.
Standardized work in manufacturing (centerlining, machine setup/maintenance, inspection checklists, workforce training, lubrication procedures, etc.) is effective for continuously improving the most efficient and safe methods for performing work to meet customer demand while minimizing waste. Digital Standard Work takes these processes one step further, enhancing them with digital technology to establish a true culture of continuous improvement where frontline workers and shop floor processes benefit from digital workflows, collaboration, AI-powered guidance, generative AI assistants, real-time access to centralized knowledge bases, and more.
By redefining standard work for the digital age, manufacturers can achieve operational excellence through increased efficiency, quality, flexibility, and innovation across their frontline workforces. Read more on Digital Standard Work and how it effectively transforms manufacturing production and enables success:
According to Forbes and McKinsey, through digital tools manufacturers can reduce machine downtime by 30% to 50% and quality-related costs can be reduced by 10% to 20%. Effectively digitizing manufacturing standard work through smart, AI-driven connected worker technology involves:
Interactive Digital Work Instructions Replace paper-based standard operating procedures (SOPs) with interactive digital work instructions that include multimedia elements like videos, images, and animations. These can be accessed by workers on tablets, wearables, and other mobile devices right on the shop floor.
Data Capture and Integration Leverage smart tools and sensors to automatically capture shop floor data from the manufacturing process, such as torque values, cycle times, and quality checks. This data can be integrated into the digital work instructions to provide real-time feedback and ensure adherence to standards.
Workflow Automation Automate non-value-added tasks like data entry, approvals, and documentation through connected worker platforms. This streamlines workflows, reduces errors, and frees workers to focus on value-adding activities aligned with standard work.
Knowledge Management Digitize and centralize tribal knowledge and tacit knowledge, best practices, and process documentation in a connected worker platform. This ensures standardized methods are easily accessible and updatable for consistent knowledge sharing across the workforce.
Using smart, connected worker platforms to digitize and optimize standard work in manufacturing drives improved productivity, ensures better and more consistent product quality, and fosters a safer work environment for enhanced operational success. Connected worker platforms that digitize standard work can also be used to support a company’s broader IWS (integrated work systems) strategy, which helps improve operational excellence in manufacturing.
Pro Tip
Using a low-code no-code workflow builder simplifies the creation of complex digital workflows for frontline work processes. Furthermore, integrating remote collaboration tools facilitates real-time guidance, knowledge sharing, and the ability to update standard work procedures based on captured tribal knowledge.
Engaging Frontline Workers with Digital Standard Work
As manufacturing workforces shift due to retirement and tribal knowledge loss, effective workforce training has become critical for continued success. Interactive digital interfaces, augmented and enhanced capabilities, and wearable technologies make standard work practices like workforce training more engaging and accessible, improving workforce adoption and adherence.
Digital tools facilitate information visibility and knowledge sharing among frontline workers, enabling them to learn from each other, share best practices, and contribute to a culture of continuous improvement. By tracking and analyzing performance data from digital systems, manufacturers can identify top performers, provide personalized feedback, and recognize achievements, fostering a sense of engagement and motivation among frontline workers.
Digital Standard Work empowers frontline workers by involving them in process improvements, recognizing their contributions, and providing opportunities for learning and growth, leading to increased job satisfaction and commitment. By leveraging digital technologies and interactive interfaces, manufacturers can transform Standard Work procedures into engaging and empowering experiences for their frontline workforce, driving productivity, quality, and a culture of continuous improvement.
Most importantly it gives manufacturing frontline and factory staff the tools they need to be successful and thus create a more satisfied environment where employees come to work and feel good about what they are doing and how they are doing it.
Driving More Effective Collaboration
Digital standard work also facilitates better collaboration across your frontline teams. Effective communication starts with digital tools, and by implementing digital standard work with connected worker technology, manufacturers can connect frontline team members across shifts, departments, locations, and languages, improving visibility into workforce planning, training, skills tracking, daily management, troubleshooting, and more.
From frontline workers to executives, a digital standard work strategy that leverages connected worker technology allows employees to collaborate seamlessly and easily access information. Connected worker solutions that include industrial collaboration tools allow workers to virtually connect to subject matter experts for remote guidance and assistance. These software tools are becoming commonplace in manufacturing and other industrial settings, where companies are faced with an increasingly distributed and remote workforce, yet still require team collaboration to help troubleshoot and resolve issues. In a nutshell, workers can get more done with greater accuracy in less time.
Interested in learning more?
If you’d like to learn more about how Augmentir and our AI-powered connected worker solution digitizes standard work, streamlines operations, improves communication, and empowers frontline workers with the tools and information they need, schedule a demo with one of our product experts.
https://www.augmentir.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/digital-standard-work-in-manufacturing.webp6301200Chris Kuntzhttps://www.augmentir.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Augmentir_Logo_Sm-300x169.pngChris Kuntz2024-07-04 11:33:422025-06-04 13:01:10How Digital Standard Work Promotes Operational Excellence in Manufacturing
Learn how continuous and workflow learning can help modernize employee training in the manufacturing industry.
Staying ahead of the curve in today’s manufacturing marketplace means that businesses need to innovate and adapt. To accomplish this, organizations must have a skilled workforce and ongoing training and workforce management processes to support continuous learning and development.
Modernizing training cultivates employee skillsets by implementing continuous learning in the flow of work.
Continuous learning is the process of attaining new skills on a constant basis. Workflow learning involves educating yourself on the job using resources and self-directed learning materials. Done together, this modern training approach can help streamline productivity.
If you want to learn how to improve manufacturing training with continuous learning and workflow learning, explore this article that answers the following:
Continuous learning in manufacturing involves enabling workers to learn new skills regularly. It’s a great way to improve employee performance and innovation. According to Forbes, embracing a culture of continuous learning can help organizations adapt to market demands, foster innovation, as well as attract and retain top talent.
Learning can come in different forms, from formal course training to hands-on experience. Employees are encouraged to be self-starters who want to evolve their skills on an on-going basis. A good example of a continuous learning model is everboarding; everboarding is a modern approach toward employee onboarding and training that shifts away from the traditional “one-and-done” onboarding model and recognizes learning as an ongoing process.
How can continuous learning be used in manufacturing?
When businesses don’t support continuous learning, manufacturing processes stagnate. This contributes to a lack of innovation and hinders potential opportunities for success that a company may experience.
In a nutshell, the more workers know and the more they can accomplish, the more they can contribute to business growth. This may consist of employees taking an online course or learning a new technique hands-on, no matter what department they’re in.
For example, assembly line workers may learn new manufacturing processes to ensure everything is functioning properly. Meanwhile, operators may study the latest machinery to learn new tricks of the trade.
What is workflow learning?
Workflow training in manufacturing involves learning while doing. This means that workers pick up new skills while on the job through hands-on experience.
The key to workflow learning is that it happens while employees perform their everyday tasks.
Many workers in the manufacturing industry work in shift-based environments, making it difficult for them to attend traditional classroom-based training sessions. With workflow learning, organizations can incorporate more learning processes into the everyday workday of frontline workers – essentially bridging the gap between knowing and doing. This “active learning” aligns with the Pyramid of Learning visual model that illustrates the different stages of learning and their relative effectiveness.
Active learning involves the learner actively engaging with the material, often through problem-solving, discussion, or application of the knowledge while they are on the job.
In general, active learning is considered more effective than passive learning in promoting deep understanding and retention of information. Therefore, learning leaders often strive to design learning experiences that involve higher levels of active learning, moving beyond the lower levels of the pyramid and promoting critical thinking, creativity, and problem-solving skills.
How can workflow learning be used in manufacturing?
Workflow learning consists of using resources at your disposal to complete tasks. This strategy is sometimes referred to as performance support.
For example, workers can look up answers to questions, steps of a process, or new services while performing their jobs instead of interrupting their workflow to go to a class or training session.
Pro Tip
Active, or workflow learning can be implemented with mobile learning solutions that leverage connected worker technology and AI to provide workers with bite-sized, on-demand training modules that they can access on smartphones or tablets. These modules can be developed with customized learning paths that are focused on the type of tasks and work employees are doing on the factory floor.
How can technology improve manufacturing training?
The nature of manufacturing training is changing in the age of artificial intelligence. Today, many training processes can be streamlined and optimized using digital and smart, connected worker technologies.
For instance, data collected from everyday manufacturing processes can polish training programs online. Experienced workers can share best practices on customized dashboards for other employees to access. These can be updated in real-time and show changes highlighted to better optimize manufacturing processes.
Digital training tools can also help improve learning speed and retention. For example, workers who need visuals or real-world scenarios can assess them using AI-powered software to maximize their training.
Augmentir is the world’s leading AI-powered connected worker solution that helps industrial companies optimize the safety, quality, and productivity of the industrial frontline workforce. Contact us for a live demo, and learn why leading manufacturers are choosing us to elevate their manufacturing operations to the next level.
https://www.augmentir.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/modernize-manufacturing-training.webp6301200Chris Kuntzhttps://www.augmentir.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Augmentir_Logo_Sm-300x169.pngChris Kuntz2023-10-21 01:51:242025-05-28 15:24:44Modernizing Manufacturing Training with Continuous and Workflow Learning
Empower your workforce with real-time, on-the-job performance support. Learn how Augmentir delivers AI-powered tools to boost productivity, reduce errors, and improve training efficiency.
What Is Performance Support?
Performance support refers to tools and systems that deliver real-time, on-the-job guidance—helping workers complete tasks more efficiently and accurately. Unlike traditional training, which relies on employees retaining information for future use, performance support provides just-in-time knowledge exactly when and where it’s needed.
This approach addresses a critical challenge: information retention. According to a recent study by the Learning Guild, employees forget an average of 50% of classroom training within an hour. That figure rises to 70% within 24 hours, and up to 90% of the content is lost after just one week.
In contrast, delivering assistance and support at the moment of need, organizations can incorporate more learning processes into the everyday workday of frontline workers—essentially bridging the gap between knowing and doing. This “active learning” aligns with the Pyramid of Learning visual model that illustrates the different stages of learning and their relative effectiveness.
By delivering timely assistance at the moment of need, performance support closes the gap between learning and doing—boosting productivity, reducing errors, and increasing employee confidence.
Why Performance Support Matters
In today’s fast-paced world, businesses can’t afford downtime or mistakes due to forgotten procedures or unclear processes. That’s where performance support shines:
Reduces training time by enabling learning in the flow of work
Minimizes human error with guided workflows and checklists
Improves productivity with instant access to instructions, diagrams, or expert assistance
Boosts employee confidence and retention by removing the fear of making mistakes
Adapts to changing processes without retraining entire teams
Types of Performance Support Tools
Modern performance support systems come in a variety of forms:
1. Digital Work Instructions
Digital work instructions and step-by-step guides delivered on tablets, smartphones, or AR-enabled wearables that ensure workers follow best practices.
2. Smart Forms and Checklists
Interactive smart forms and checklists that adapt based on context, role, or equipment—reducing the risk of skipped steps or safety violations.
3. Knowledge Bases & Microlearning
Searchable libraries with short how-to videos, job aids, and FAQs, accessible at any moment of need.
4. AI-Based Guidance
Context-aware suggestions powered by AI that anticipate the user’s next move and offer proactive support.
Benefits of a Performance Support System
Implementing a performance support platform leads to measurable improvements:
Faster onboarding: New employees become productive in days, not weeks. In one example, a global packaging company reduced onboarding time by 72% using connected worker technology
Improved operational efficiency: Real-time support eliminates bottlenecks
Error reduction: Guided execution ensures compliance and safety
Continuous improvement: Insights from usage data help refine SOPs and training
Performance Support with Augmentir
Augmentir is the only AI-powered connected worker platform that delivers personalized, real-time performance support at scale.
How Augmentir Enhances Performance Support
Smart Digital Workflows: Augmentir allows you to create and deploy intelligent digital work instructions that adapt based on worker proficiency, context, and task complexity.
AI-Based Recommendations: Unlike static systems, Augmentir uses artificial intelligence to optimize each user’s experience—delivering dynamic guidance and identifying where additional support is needed.
Integrated Collaboration: Augmentir’s built-in manufacturing collaboration software tools connect frontline workers with subject matter experts instantly—ensuring issues are resolved in real time.
Personalized Learning in the Flow of Work: Using workforce data, Augmentir delivers workflow learning—targeted microlearning and upskilling opportunities during task execution—accelerating growth and minimizing disruption.
Connected Insights for Continuous Improvement: Data captured during task execution feeds into dashboards and analytics, helping you identify performance gaps, improve SOPs, and drive operational excellence.
Augmentir in Action
Manufacturers and industrial companies across the globe trust Augmentir to:
Cut training time by up to 60%
Reduce errors and rework by 40%
Increase first-time quality and throughput
Drive continuous workforce improvement with AI-driven insights
Implementing a robust performance support system isn’t just about efficiency—it’s about creating a culture of empowerment and agility. Workers feel supported, supervisors gain visibility, and businesses stay competitive.
Schedule a demo today to learn how Augmentir can elevate your performance support strategy.
Discover how a digital knowledge sharing platform helps frontline manufacturing teams reduce errors, preserve tribal knowledge, and improve productivity. Learn how Augmentir leads the way.
In today’s fast-paced manufacturing environment, access to real-time knowledge can be the difference between downtime and delivery. A dedicated knowledge sharing platform designed for frontline operations ensures your teams are always informed, aligned, and equipped to solve problems efficiently.
Read this article to learn more about Knowledge Sharing in Manufacturing:
A Knowledge Sharing Platform in Manufacturing is a digital system designed to capture, manage, and distribute operational knowledge across frontline teams to ensure consistency, productivity, and continuous improvement. These platforms provide a centralized hub for essential information such as work instructions, standard operating procedures (SOPs), and troubleshooting guides, enabling consistent execution across shifts, teams, and locations.
Why Knowledge Sharing Matters in Manufacturing
Frontline workers are the backbone of production. Yet, many manufacturing organizations still rely on outdated methods—paper manuals, tribal knowledge, and siloed expertise—that lead to:
Inconsistent work execution
Longer training times
Increased errors and rework
Loss of critical expertise due to retirements or turnover
According to a study from the Manufacturing Institute, one-quarter of the manufacturing workforce is over 55 years old, and 97% of respondents reported that they fear losing tribal knowledge when these workers retire. With a digital knowledge sharing platform, you unlock the full potential of your workforce and preserve critical operational know-how.
Knowledge Sharing Platform Built for Frontline Workers
Unlike traditional enterprise platforms, a modern frontline knowledge sharing platform is:
Mobile-first: Accessible on tablets, phones, and wearable devices on the factory floor
User-friendly: Designed for non-desk workers with intuitive navigation and voice/image capture
Connected: Integrated with your existing MES, ERP, and quality systems
Real-time: Delivering updates, alerts, and best practices where and when they’re needed
Key Features of a Frontline Knowledge Sharing Platform
Standard Work Instructions
Digitize and manage standardized work procedures across all sites. Frontline workers can access step-by-step instructions with visuals, videos, and interactive guidance via mobile or wearable devices.
Ensure consistent execution
Reduce variation across shifts and teams
Support regulatory compliance with version-controlled documentation
Tribal Knowledge Capture
Enable seasoned workers to share their expertise directly from the floor using voice notes, images, and short video clips. All contributions are stored and searchable within the platform.
Preserve operational know-how from retiring workers
Promote peer-to-peer learning
Build a growing, living knowledge base
Continuous Feedback Loop
Workers can annotate procedures, suggest improvements, and flag issues in real-time, creating a two-way flow of information between the floor and management.
Accelerate process improvements
Increase worker engagement and ownership
Keep documentation accurate and up-to-date
Training & Onboarding Support
Embed microlearning and task-based training directly into workflows, allowing new hires to learn on the job with contextual guidance.
Shorten time-to-competency
Reduce dependency on in-person trainers
Improve retention through hands-on learning
Insights & Analytics
Track how knowledge is created, accessed, and applied. Understand which procedures are most used, where bottlenecks occur, and how workers are performing across roles and locations.
Identify training gaps and high-performing teams
Optimize procedures based on usage data
Support data-driven workforce development
Multi-Device Accessibility
The platform should support a range of devices—smartphones, tablets, AR glasses, or ruggedized terminals—ensuring knowledge is always available at the point of need.
Meet workers where they are
Enable flexibility across roles and environments
Support hands-free use in hazardous or hands-on scenarios
Secure, Scalable, and Cloud-Based
Built with enterprise-grade security, role-based access control, and scalability for global operations.
Protect sensitive operational data
Control who can view, edit, and share content
Scale across facilities and languages
Augmentir’s Connected Knowledge Platform for Frontline Operations
Augmentir delivers a purpose-built knowledge sharing platform for manufacturers, combining AI-powered insights with a modern, connected worker experience.
Here’s how Augmentir transforms knowledge for frontline teams:
AI-Driven Knowledge Curation
Augmentir automatically surfaces the most relevant content and best practices based on real-world usage and performance—ensuring workers always have access to the right knowledge at the right time.
Connected Worker Experience
Whether it’s accessing a digital work instruction, contributing a video tutorial, or flagging a problem, Augmentir makes frontline knowledge sharing seamless across devices and shifts.
Integrated Learning and Guidance
Train workers in the flow of work with embedded microlearning, just-in-time instructions, and step-by-step guided workflows—reducing training time and improving retention.
Operational Intelligence
Gain real-time visibility into how knowledge is used, where gaps exist, and which areas need improvement. Augmentir’s analytics help drive continuous improvement and workforce development.
Capture and Retain Tribal Knowledge
Turn your most experienced workers into knowledge contributors. Augmentir enables frontline employees to create and share insights from the floor—preserving critical know-how before it’s lost.
A knowledge sharing platform connects your people, processes, and data in real time—without disrupting your current operations. Empower your frontline workforce with a platform built for the way they work.
Schedule a live demo or contact us to learn how Augmentir’s AI-powered knowledge sharing platform can elevate your manufacturing operations.
