The Forklift Data Problem – Extracting Maximum Value using AI
For as prolific as the term “AI” (artificial intelligence) is these days, there’s a world of tangible benefit masked beneath the hype that is often misunderstood. Or worse, completely overlooked. For those of us in supply chain management, data solutions are driving the largest technological leap forward that our industry has experienced in decades. Some might be led to believe this is purely a result of AI development, but AI is only one piece of a larger puzzle.
Frankly, the overuse of the AI moniker has generated considerable confusion in the marketplace, which brings us to a few questions we’d like to address in this article:
- What exactly is AI, as it relates to material handling technologies?
- How is AI leveraged to optimize forklift fleet operations?
- What should you keep in mind in evaluating AI forklift fleet solutions?
As software used in warehouses has evolved over time, its main goal has largely been to improve how collected data is analyzed and actioned. The current AI boom can be simply described as the next step in analyzing and interpreting this data, with the commercial goal of extracting maximum value out of the pile of data already being collected by traditional telematics.
What Exactly is AI in Material Handling Technologies?
This might come as a surprise: AI isn’t really new. In fact, there’s a very high chance that you’ve been using AI tools integrated into your existing warehouse and fleet software packages for many years, even if that software is just now starting to advertise AI capabilities. These days, AI is more of a label than a magical overnight invention. Here’s what AI really is:
- Artificial Intelligence is a branch of computer science that strives to develop tools which can complete tasks at least as successfully as human intelligence.
- These tasks include learning, reasoning, problem-solving, perception, and decision-making.
- Since computer programs are computational in nature, all artificial intelligence applications are essentially mathematical tools that calculate a statistical outcome and risk factor.
- In general, AI is not the software program that you launch from your computer’s desktop itself. Instead, AI is a smaller tool built into the software that serves a specific function, typically one of many running concurrently.
- For example, using your favorite web search engine is interfacing directly with an AI tool. You enter a search phrase, and the search engine calculates the results with the highest probability of matching your search at the least risk of being incorrect.
- In material handling software, any program function that crunches data to arrive at a conclusion, return a result, provide an interpretation, advise on an action, or present a visual representation is AI by this definition.
Today, AI is the current label replacing previous marketing phrases such as Data Analytics, Real-Time Intervention, Pattern Analysis, Risk Minimization, and Telematics Processing.
While AI isn’t new, what is most important to know about its current hype is just how far these tools have come in recent years and how fast they’re scaling. Many new methods of solving data-centric problems were born of the Generative AI boom circa 2022. In addition, developers using Generative AI techniques have reached the point where their latest toolsets can be deployed commercially with relative reliability, which is fueling the mad rush to integrate new versions of these tools into the material handling technology ecosystem (and far beyond).
How is AI Leveraged to Optimize Forklift Fleet Operations?
Next, let’s run through specific examples of AI-driven capabilities and their real-world benefits:
- Operator Task Management – where traditional forklift telematics systems would present a forklift operator with static checklists and heads-up information, AI-integrated telematics now make these interactions much more dynamic. AI tools can prioritize tasks based on sensor feedback (such as lift location and idle time), swap missions between lifts, and adjust tasks using data from external systems (such as inventory levels).
- Mission Planning – AI tools built into Warehouse Management Systems (WMS) can now generate entire mission plans based on external data (such as equipment suitability, individual operator performance, predicted route congestion, and dock schedules).
- Fuel / Energy Efficiency – calculating forklift energy efficiency is a relatively easy process for AI tools. AI-integrated WMS and Fleet Management tools can compile data about forklift energy demands, operator driving behaviors, varying energy rates, environmental factors, and even maintenance histories to derive ideal energy profiles.
- Operator Behavior – speaking of operator behavior, AI tools are excellent at profiling operator behaviors and extracting actionable conclusions. For example, operators frequently impacting racks and driving above speed limits can be flagged for in-situ training, which AI-based interfaces in the forklift cab can queue up and communicate to the operator in natural sounding language.
- Safety – in many ways, AI is most beneficial in bolstering warehouse forklift safety. Traditional safety systems, like forklift operator assist systems that improve warehouse safety, are greatly enhanced by AI tools, such as using multi-source analytics to dynamically increase traffic rules during high-traffic periods (for example, reducing speed limits, increasing traffic spacing, and rerouting lifts around foot traffic areas).
- Predictive Maintenance – where traditional telematics systems use run hours and sensor warning conditions to generate maintenance schedules, AI-assisted tools can combine forklift sensor, operator behavior, route tracking, and mission time tracking together to predict imminent service. For example, if a lift is steadily increasing in mission times and decreasing in fuel efficiency, AI tools can catch the variation and schedule maintenance automatically.
What Should You Keep in Mind in Evaluating AI Forklift Fleet Solutions?
Now that you’ve seen how AI-labeled tools are being used in real applications, you might be compelled to look into solutions for your warehouse next. As you do, here are a few tips to keep in mind:
- AI is a Tool – always remember that AI is a tool in your toolkit, not a be-all solution. AI will not change your warehouse’s overall performance profile overnight. Further, AI will not replace Warehouse Managers and their ability to lead teams using human intuition, insight, experience, or judgement. Overall, AI helps interpret data and interact with you to make decisions using that data.
- AI is a Risk Mitigation Strategy – further to the above point, AI’s ability to interpret data in multiple ways can directly tie into your organization’s overall risk mitigation strategy. When evaluating software packages, look for specific examples of how the software can present risk-based data (i.e., safety, performance, financial profit/loss, uptime, and compliance).
- AI is a Personal Assistant – in the same way that popular public AI chatbots help personal users (such as ChatGPT and Copilot), look for AI tools that can support your forklift fleet management work in ways like a personal assistant. For example, preparing documents and reports, consolidating results, providing quick assessments and visuals, summarizing findings, and interacting via natural language.
- AI is Fallible – always remember that AI is not perfect. AI can “hallucinate” where it fabricates incorrect results, reports inaccurate conclusions, and presents bad advice. No matter how capable AI-integrated tools are marketed to be, they are not 100% reliable in practice. Evaluate tools for their transparency, raw data archiving, and logging capabilities, so that you can drill down into results to confirm validity.
- AI is an Emerging Category – McKinsey & Co outlines that most generative AI companies are under 3 years old, and end users are equally new in their adoption. Many AI businesses will soon consolidate or fail. Many applications are launched in beta form, moving quality testing to user’s live environments. For these reasons, AI does not currently have universally established regulatory, contractual, liability, or legal frameworks that protect users and their data. New users must proceed with caution and vet their vendors with extreme scrutiny.
We hope that this discussion has been helpful for your commercial material handling and operational needs. Fairchild Equipment is the Upper Midwest’s premier Material Handling Equipment and Service resource, with headquarters in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and numerous locations ready 24/7 to serve your needs throughout Wisconsin, Minnesota, North Dakota, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and Northern Illinois. For more information or to discuss which equipment solution might be best for you, please call us at (844) 432-4724 or send us a message.
