Role Of Artificial Intelligence In The Logistics Industry

Mudit
4 min readMar 22, 2021

Artificial Intelligence has emerged as a boon for the modern era. Its applications are diverse, and the impact is praiseworthy. Babel is dedicated to bringing AI to the field of Logistics. There are several interesting facets to this. Logistics with AI can help in increasing the quality as well as quantity manifold. The significant aspects of Artificial Intelligence in the Logistics Industry are as below.

Supply Chain Optimization

Predictive Analysis lies at the heart of Supply Chain Optimization. Predicting items which are in greater demand can help in reducing overheads. Understanding the customer requirements and working to fulfil them can help in making your mark. Supply chains are cyclical by nature. They may be affected by changes in seasons and related factors. Intelligent decision making can be adaptive to changing customer needs. After the outbreak of Covid-19, things have become more dynamic.

People have got occupied with a lot more activities than before. In such a situation AI comes to the rescue. Deploying IoT sensors at distinct phases of the supply chain enables the workforce to focus on more important things. We can get a real-time estimate of different touchpoints. All these things can assist in gaining a competitive edge.

Risk Assessment

The logistics business can be stressful. It requires careful mitigation of real-time efforts. The more complex a thing is, the riskier it is. Similarly, the risk quotient associated with Logistics is quite high. There are a lot of things to handle. Customer satisfaction plays a key role in the success of any business. AI can help in analyzing the wants and aspirations of the customer. Stock-maintenance can be integrated with AI to ensure readiness at all times. The timeliness of delivery is a major addition to brand value. Assessing the risk-factor involved before making commitments can prove to be really useful in the long run. Automated Inventory Control also adds safety to the workers and the materials. This has become even more crucial in the management of hazardous goods.

Inventory Control and Visibility

Artificial Intelligence, intertwined with the Internet of Things (IoT) can do wonders for the supply chain. Stock maintenance can be a tedious task. It is both time-consuming and error-prone. Recording the inflow of different items, ordering the deficient items, maintaining the records of finished and dispatched goods can easily be automated. There can be sensors fitted all around the warehouse. These sensors have the capability to gauge the availability of different items.

The deficient items can be ordered by the AI system. All the logs and details become transparent. The owners need not operate via a hierarchy of line and staff workers. Complete end–to–end visibility can be achieved. This ensures not only efficiency but effectiveness also.

Trend and Forecasting

There is a need to understand the trends and spikes in material availability. Timelines must be adhered to. Keeping track of all the adversities and challenges that could come in that way can be daunting. These days, people have become highly reliant on technology. Apps like Google maps and weather have become part and parcel of our life. Using the functionality of these apps to achieve accurate forecasts and predictions can be enticing. AI can be employed to predict the future, and accordingly, decide the Estimated Time of Arrivals (ETAs) by choosing the most optimal route.

The application of Machine Learning, like Recommendation Systems, can predict trends and features of customer demands. Serving the customers aptly as per their preferences lets you stand out.

Real-Time Consolidated Data View

This is the most sought-after reason for the popularity of AI. The reason AI is gaining inclusion in several industries is because it gives a real-time view of the situation. It is well accepted that a considerable amount of information is lost during transmission. People are fighting an unending battle against the clock. They want everything on their fingertips. In such a situation, everyone needs to be on the same page. The slightest delay can turn the tables.

AI helps in overcoming such hurdles by giving access to real-time data. Barriers fade when people get the correct data, facts for all. Real-Time monitoring of data removes ambiguities & discrepancies that could have otherwise arisen. Modulating things in the right direction through AI can be the match-winner.

The benefits of amalgamating Artificial Intelligence and Logistics are tremendous. With the world undergoing a paradigm shift from traditional to New-age technology, AI has become the need of the hour. This is the period when ‘Survival of the fittest’ theory will play out in its true sense. Get upgraded and shine brighter!

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