Innosuisse Project Launched

iDIP Launches a New Research Project in Collaboration with HSG and OST

How can artificial intelligence help production managers make better decisions faster? A new Innosuisse project launched by iDIP Solution in collaboration with the University of St. Gallen (HSG) and OST – University of Applied Sciences of Eastern Switzerland – is dedicated to addressing precisely this question.

At the heart of the project is the vision of an intelligent production coach: In the future, this coach will understand the current production situation and answer questions about it. It will also independently identify opportunities for optimization and provide concrete suggestions for improvement.

More time for decision-making instead of data analysis

The day-to-day work of production managers is becoming increasingly complex. At the same time, more and more data is available in modern production environments. However, interpreting this data efficiently, identifying correlations, and deriving the right measures from it requires a great deal of time and experience.

This is where the joint research project comes in. The intelligent coach is designed to continuously take relevant production data into account and maintain awareness of the current state of production. This enables it to provide analyses immediately, answer questions, and support production managers with concrete recommendations for action.

The goal: less time spent on analysis and more room for faster yet well-informed decisions.

Artificial Intelligence Meets Smart Factory Expertise

This innovative approach goes well beyond traditional process optimization. Artificial intelligence is to be used as a tool to tackle complex challenges in a parallel and targeted manner—ranging from day-to-day operations to sustainable solutions for fundamental production problems.

In doing so, the three project partners bring together different areas of expertise: The University of St. Gallen contributes its expertise in the field of smart factories through the Institute for Production and Supply Chain Management. OST complements the project through the Interdisciplinary Center for Artificial Intelligence and the Institute for Product Design, Development, and Engineering with expertise in artificial intelligence and smart factories. As an industry partner, iDIP Solution AG contributes product expertise and experience gained from specific digitalization projects in the manufacturing industry.

The teams work together in short, regular sprints. Research and practice are closely intertwined: insights from the project flow directly into the further development of the iDIP platform.

From Assistant to Intelligent Production Coach

The goal is to develop a solution by the end of the project that provides concrete support to manufacturing companies in their day-to-day operations. Potential applications range from the automated analysis of current production situations, through optimization suggestions and automation, to support with error analysis and troubleshooting.

The goal is not to use artificial intelligence as an isolated tool, but rather to have it provide direct support in daily production operations—specifically where complex decisions are made and improvements are implemented.

The launch of the functionalities resulting from the Innosuisse project is scheduled for summer 2027.

We are very much looking forward to working closely with our research partners and to jointly developing the next generation of intelligent smart factory solutions.