After a boost in automation, Ford is again relying more on human labor. Image: www.imago-images.de
Because AI couldn’t replace them, Ford is bringing back former engineers. This pays off for the company.
Due to ongoing quality problems, the car manufacturer Ford has hired 350 experienced engineers in the past three years, including many former employees. This is what the US media reports Bloomberg.
What is explosive is that the car manufacturer had previously relied on automation in the quality systems. Because the AI tools did not fulfill their task satisfactorily, the company incurred costs running into billions, for example through warranty services and recalls.
Ford has therefore brought back human technical specialists to train young specialists and train the AI systems to better recognize weak points. Ford is not making a U-turn on automation, but is trying to make its AI systems less error-prone.
AI is only as good as you train it
“Artificial intelligence is a fantastic tool, but it is only as good as the information you use to train it,” quotes “Bloomberg” Charles Poon, vice president of vehicle hardware development at Ford. The company did not give the engineers’ experience the attention they deserved, said Poon.
The human support brought back has paid off for Ford: business figures have improved since then. “We are seeing declining warranty service and recall costs,” says CEO Jim Farley to “Bloomberg TV.”
Ford also improved compared to last year in an annual automaker quality ranking by JD Power. While the company was considered to have below-average quality at the time, it slipped from tenth to third place within a year. Ford remains the US automaker with the most recalls. The company says Ford is now trying to reduce this number with the help of the specialists it has brought back.
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