Siemens and Procter & Gamble (P&G) are rolling out their joint AI-based quality inspection system, the Visual Inspection Cockpit (VIC), across P&G manufacturing sites globally. The initiative aims to improve product quality on high-speed production lines and reduce scrap.
Capabilities of the VIC
The VIC was developed for production lines that can produce several thousand items per minute. Traditional machine vision systems often struggle with flexible or patterned materials — such as packaging and hygiene products — because of their natural movement and variability. The VIC, by contrast, can identify and reject defective items in real time, detecting issues such as deformed packaging, creasing and subtle surface defects.
The solution combines P&G’s deep‑learning models with the Siemens Industrial Edge platform and industrial PCs equipped with Nvidia GPUs. Plant engineers can configure the system themselves, removing the need for specialist teams for every change; the VIC adapts to changes in packaging and products without requiring reprogramming.
Paul Thomas, a P&G specialist, said the VIC was developed specifically to address manufacturing challenges that traditional inspection systems have difficulty—or fail—to handle.
Faster deployment and measurable results
A key advantage is that the VIC is available as a reusable Industrial Edge application. This enables deployment on new production lines five to ten times faster than bespoke inspection systems. The solution can be extended to further factories, products and inspection tasks with relative ease.
Early results show that for some products scrap rates improved by 10–20% after implementing the VIC. The system also continuously collects and analyzes production data, helping manufacturing teams identify longer‑term trends and further optimize processes.
Potential for broader industrial adoption
According to Siemens, the VIC is part of the company’s broader industrial AI portfolio, offered as standardized applications on the Industrial Edge platform. That approach could simplify adoption of similar AI-based quality inspection solutions by other manufacturers and industries in the future.
The rollout therefore not only aims to raise P&G’s production quality, but also to leverage production data for ongoing process improvement.
