Supply chain management is the process of managing the flow of goods and services from the point of production to the point of use. The process includes sourcing raw materials, manufacturing, and distribution. The role of artificial intelligence (AI) in supply chain management is to make it more efficient, reduce costs, and improve customer satisfaction while keeping track of inventory levels.
AI will be able to provide supply chain management with a better understanding of the business’s needs and, therefore, be able to make more accurate predictions. AI will also allow for more accurate projections of demand and inventory levels.
Logistics companies are already using AI to improve their supply chain management. AI can help logistics companies use AI to improve their supply chain management. AI can help logistics companies track freight forwarding at scale and predict future shipments. AI in supply chain management has increased visibility into the whole process, allowing for better decision-making and improved customer service.
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Misconceptions About AI
Even the oldest science fiction stories about robots replacing humans in the workforce understood that there needed to be an emotional component alongside the intelligence component for this to be possible. A robot doesn’t have the life experience of a human—we as humans make informed decisions based on our experience, but a robot doesn’t have that ability. Such things have to be programmed for a robot to function well.
AI is a set of algorithms that can be enhanced over time. By putting it to use in our business, we teach it about specific business decisions, processes, and questions that we need help with, adding more data all along the way to expand how many different aspects the AI can handle at once.
AI in Supply Chain
AI can change supply chain management in a few different ways. Short-term AI advancements can start by identifying optimization opportunities within the business. It won’t take action but will identify and put together a picture of the company that we can then optimize.
AI will suggest actions at the midterm level based on the data it has received and then let the human approve those actions. In the long-term, as the AI has learned more about the business, the AI can then make these decisions on its own, then report back on those decisions to a human to see how well it’s working.
When AI arrives at this point, it will significantly impact our supply chain process. The human factor is still involved, but as the AI collects data, it will automate specific processes and allow people to focus on other things that can’t be automated.
AI is significant to the supply chain because it helps us elevate the impact of our team. If we have a teammate repeatedly make the same decision with the same type of problem, we’re wasting that person’s time because they’re doing something that a machine could do for them.
For us, that’s the first place where it has helped our business. It takes that load off our very talented freight forwarding specialists and allows them to make tough decisions an AI can’t make since it doesn’t have their human experience. The more we offload from the everyday workload to AI, the better off our customer is, giving them more personalized solutions from our team.
The Importance of Data
If we built an algorithm today and didn’t add any new data, that algorithm wouldn’t be very effective over time. New data is key to the future of an algorithm. Data can solve so many problems before they happen—and that’s where innovation comes in. We want to look at our customer’s concerns and find new ways to use data to solve problems before they happen.
As a logistics provider, we try to get ahead of that curve with our customers. When they can’t see the problem, we help them identify it before it becomes an issue and solve it. And we aren’t just going to deliver these opportunities for ourselves; we want to help our partners’ customers as well, providing solutions for everyone in the unstable supply chain world that is constantly evolving.
Since the speed of change in the supply chain is continuously increasing, we do our best to help our customers find certainty within this uncertain field. We solve problems faster than other people, in a more customized fashion than other businesses, using technology to make us stand out from our competitors.
How Pegasus Uses AI Technology
By implementing GPS tracking technology with our Container Visibility Tool, we’ve found that our clients can see when a vessel will arrive with information that goes above and beyond what the carrier tells them.
Your business will no longer need to guess when a shipment will arrive. Instead, you can fully estimate its arrival, the time it will spend in customs, and when it will finally arrive at its destination.
Fill out this form to learn more about our Container Visibility Tool from our Solution Architect Jake Flory.
