Siemens aims to raise factory automation to 70%-80% from 30%-40% with AI, executive board member Cedrik Neike said at its Erlangen electronics plant on 19 October, Reuters reported.
Key points
- Neike said AI could lift factory automation to 70%-80% from 30%-40% currently.
- Siemens plans to spend €500 million ($561 million) expanding its Erlangen site by 2030.
- Siemens said technology developed with Nvidia could cut planning costs by up to 20%.
- Neike said manufacturers need annual productivity gains of 7%-9% to remain competitive.
Siemens commits €500 million to Erlangen
Siemens plans to invest €500 million ($561 million) to expand the Erlangen electronics plant by 2030 and wants the site to serve as a showcase for AI-powered manufacturing. The spending commitment sits alongside Neike’s automation target, which he described as something AI could help the company achieve.
Neike said AI could help preserve manufacturing jobs in high-wage countries such as Germany. His proposed rise in automation concerns factory manufacturing, where he put the current level at 30%-40%. He gave a range of 70%-80% for what Siemens aims to achieve with AI.
The Erlangen presentation concerned technology for planning production as well as the broader automation ambition. Siemens and Nvidia are working on what they call “physical AI”, in which digital twins and AI models are used to test and refine factory processes ahead of their application on the production floor.
Nvidia partnership targets factory-planning costs
Siemens and Nvidia have developed AI-driven autonomous manufacturing technology that could reduce planning costs by up to 20%, Dow Jones reported. The companies first outlined their partnership in January. The solutions presented at Erlangen combine AI with virtual replicas of factory systems to speed production ramp-up and improve planning.
One application lets Siemens test and optimise a manufacturing line digitally during a fully virtual production ramp-up. Siemens said the approach cuts by up to 85% the engineering work needed for new printed circuit board assemblies, and shortens time-to-market by up to 40%, according to Dow Jones.
A separate application uses AI agents to revise production schedules when shortages or changes in demand arise. Siemens said that approach allows planning cost savings of up to 20%. The figures describe different parts of the manufacturing process: engineering work and launch timing for a new assembly on one hand, and the cost of adapting production plans on the other.
Berlin summit centres on industrial AI
The Erlangen announcement came as Nvidia, the German government and German business leaders gathered for an investment summit in Berlin. The German government said a partnership to promote AI in German industry would be announced, Dow Jones reported.
AI Affairs previously reported plans for an Nvidia AI deal involving hundreds of millions of euros. At Erlangen, Siemens presented production-planning and virtual ramp-up applications developed with the chip company.
Neike put the competitive requirement facing manufacturers at annual productivity gains of 7%-9%, Reuters reported. He made that assessment while setting out Siemens’ ambition to increase factory automation through AI.
