AI Inventory: Printing Firm Cuts Overstock by 8.5%

A I • Apr 27,2024

A printing company faced challenges due to inaccurate client forecasts leading to overstock and missed deliveries. They implemented an AI solution with machine learning to predict future demand for materials. This resulted in an 8.5% reduction in excess inventory and an 11% increase in on-time deliveries.

Client:

The API Group is a prominent printing company that is operates in both the US and the UK. They cater to a range of customers and offer a comprehensive suite of printing solutions.
With facilities in both countries, The API Group is excellently positioned to deliver premium printing solutions to businesses of all sizes.

Problem Statement:

Inaccurate client forecasts were causing major issues for The API Group. Meeting unpredictable demand meant keeping high inventory levels, but this often resulted in overstock and missed delivery times. The company sought a more advanced method for inventory control.

Results:

Reduced overstock by 8.5%, saving costs on holding unnecessary inventory.

Increased on-time deliveries by 11%, boosting customer satisfaction and reducing missed deadlines.

AI Solutions:

To address these issues, the API Group turned to Kortical, an AI development company. Kortical proposed using their AI platform to build a ML model that would predict future demand for printing materials.

Kortical’s AI platform utilizes time-series machine learning algorithms. These algorithms can identify a range of patterns in historical data—sales volumes, inventory levels, or website traffic— and use this information to forecast future trends.

By encoding factors like storage capacity, current inventory, seasonal trends, planned marketing campaigns into the AI model, the API Group ensured it considered all crucial aspects of inventory management for optimal outcomes.

The API Group deliberately chose a balanced approach that aimed to not only reduce excess inventory but also enhance on-time deliveries. This strategic approach demonstrably improved both areas for the company.