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Plataine (Waltham, Mass., U.S.) has reported the delivery of immediate results for a leading aerospace manufacturer in the Middle East through the automation and streamlining of its cutting and kitting operations at the company’s main manufacturing facility.

The Middle Eastern company produces composite-based aerostructures and was keen to explore the latest AI technologies to further optimiz its manufacturing processes, increase production rates and reduce material waste. Plataine’s AI-based solution automatically provides optimized production plans based on incoming work orders, available inventory and production restrictions, empowering the aerospace manufacturer to better use its existing inventory. This includes using rolls to their full extent by cutting plies around defects as well as use of remnants and short material rolls.

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As a result, the manufacturer succeeded in significantly increasing its production capacity, reducing the material waste generated during recuts. Complete automation of the cutting and kitting process has made production more efficient and has prevented human errors in many processes, significantly increasing net profitability per product.

Plataine says its innovative, AI-based system automatically reads the work orders needed and considers the defects on each roll digitally. It then performs “smart material selection” using the right material for the job, and using up remnant materials, which often go to waste. The solution takes exposure time left (ETL) of time-sensitive freezer-stored raw material into account. In addition, the dynamic cut-planning solution provides full documentation of all material consumed, creating a Digital Thread, providing full traceability of the process while enabling improved quality control and audit readiness at all times. 

“We gained a significant increase in capacity, efficiency and material savings by optimizing and fully automating our cutting and kitting processes,” the aerospace company’s head of engineering notes. “Plataine has enabled us to achieve these and more. The high level of automation eliminated human errors, reduced scrap and gave us full digital traceability of the entire cutting process.” 

“We are excited to work with such a leader in advanced composite aerostructures,” Avner Ben-Bassat, president and CEO of Plataine, adds. “Today’s challenges, such as workforce and supply chain shortages lead companies to implement innovative solutions, to meet the increased demand and stay ahead of the competition. Plataine’s AI based solution helps our customers automate and streamline operations, efficiently utilizing existing materials and significantly reducing human errors and rework. We look forward to bringing more value with our Total Production Optimization Suite.”