- Jul 14, 2021
- 6 minutes
Written By
- Unit8
We specialize in the application of analytics and artificial intelligence in the chemical industry.
Advanced analytics and artificial intelligence (AI) have had a profound impact on the chemical sector. In the past, large companies had to make investment and manufacturing decisions without the proper inputs. Today, advanced analytics and AI help companies cut costs, reduce lead times, and improve the quality of their products. From research and development to manufacturing, and from supply chains to sales, the ability to use data to inform key decisions separates industry leaders from their competitors.
At Unit8, we’ve helped leading chemical companies use data to streamline operations across their companies. Here’s how:
MANUFACTURING
When factory operations aren’t monitored in real time, production issues go undiscovered until it’s too late. Unit8 keeps manufacturers one step ahead by helping them implement data engineering, data science, and AI capabilities in the manufacturing process. At one large chemical manufacturer, our work improved factory throughput by 15%. Similarly, at a large pharmaceutical company, our improvements to a drug production line resulted in productivity improvements equal to 50M CHF.
FINANCE/ SUPPLY CHAIN
The accurate forecasting of key parameters in the supply chain enables more accurate planning, and ultimately higher profit. At one global chemical producer, the Unit8 team designed and implemented accurate, AI-driven forecasting models that helped the producer predict and manage its stock of raw materials more effectively. This work saved the company over 2M CHF.
CREATION
For centuries, fragrance producers have created new fragrances through trial and error. That process is neither cost-effective nor easy to predict. Unit8 helped an international fragrance producer create new perfumes with the help of AI. These perfumes simplify the development process and allow the company to produce new fragrances faster and less expensively. Even creativity, it turns out, can be helped along by AI.
R&D
At one international flavour producer, the worldwide shortage of a key ingredient drove up the price of inputs and led to reduced sales margins. Unit8 collaborated with that company’s internal R&D team to create an AI-based tool for product reformulation. The tool helped identify different formulations of the company’s products that could preserve their desired properties while decreasing the amount of the scarce ingredient. By using this reformulation tool, the company was able to reduce costs by 40% on a product line.
DATA DISCOVERY
Sometimes the key to solving a difficult problem is bringing the right data, to the right person, at the right time. Unit8 helped a global chemical producer augment the capabilities of its in- -house personnel by implementing a powerful global search tool at that company. The tool made assets that were previously undiscoverable easy to find. The result? Tasks that used to take hours now take seconds, and hundreds of employees have access to resources that they previously lacked. IT A global chemical producer struggled to manage their data assets, which made it difficult for them to combine datasets or conduct data analysis. Working with Unit8, the producer was able to implement a cutting-edge, cloud-based data lake that centralised all of its datasets. Now, the company can easily maintain its information and leverage all of its data for data analysis and visualisation.
PORTFOLIO RATIONALIZATION
Selling many different products with similar properties can be costly and inefficient, especially if some of those products are redundant. Unit8 applied a mix of AI and optimisation algorithms at a global flavour producer to reduce the number of products that it manufactured, while still providing the same flavour coverage for that producer’s buyers. As a result, the company was able to maintain full coverage for its customers while reducing portfolio maintenance costs by 20%.
IT
A global chemical producer struggled to manage their data assets, which made it difficult for them to combine datasets or conduct data analysis. Working with Unit8, the producer was able to implement a cutting-edge, cloud-based data lake that centralised all of its datasets. Now, the company can easily maintain its information and leverage all of its data for data analysis and visualisation.
