rodrigo pitarch
Rodrigo Pitarch is SAP Supply Chain Manager at Holcim EMEA Digital Center and an industrial engineer specialized in manufacturing processes. In this article, Rodrigo shares how digital solutions, data and SAP technologies are helping plant teams optimize operations, improve decision-making and drive the transformation towards smarter and more efficient manufacturing.
Manufacturing is evolving rapidly. What once relied heavily on manual monitoring and reactive decision-making is now becoming a smart collaboration between people and technology. This transformation is part of our Plants of Tomorrow journey, where digital solutions, data and AI help our teams operate plants more efficiently, safely and sustainably.
Rodrigo shares how these digital innovations are working hand in hand with the business to turn technology into real operational value.
Tech for Manufacturing: empowering people, optimizing plants
From reactive processes to data-driven operations
In recent years, we have seen a fundamental shift in manufacturing, moving from reactive, manual processes to a sophisticated, data-driven partnership between human expertise and technology acting as a force multiplier for human decision-making.
By leveraging real-time analytics to handle the 'heavy lifting' of data processing and pattern detection, we empower operators and engineers to apply their judgment where it matters most: in optimization and sustainability.
This transition, from manual monitoring to digital visibility, allows plant teams to act with foresight rather than hindsight. Ultimately, by automating routine and hazardous tasks, we are creating a safer, more strategic environment where technology serves as a shield and a tool for empowerment, ensuring our operations are both high-performing and future-ready.
How AI and automation support our teams
When we talk about AI and automation we are talking about giving our teams 'digital superpowers.' In simple terms, these technologies make manufacturing easier by removing the guesswork and safer by removing the risk.
I like to think of AI as a highly experienced assistant that never sleeps. It handles the 'data heavy lifting' through five key pillars:
- Predictive Intelligence: AI monitors critical assets such as kilns and conveyors, anticipating failures before they happen and enabling proactive maintenance.
- Process Optimization: AI models recommend optimal operating parameters in real time, improving efficiency, energy use and product quality.
- Digital Visibility: Remote monitoring allows specialists to support multiple plants at once, making expertise instantly accessible across locations.
- Proactive Safety: Automated alerts and monitoring help detect hazards early, shifting from reacting to incidents to preventing them.
- Intelligent Knowledge Management: AI analyzes technical manuals and maintenance logs, summarizing key insights and highlighting risks so technicians get the right information exactly when they need it.
Turning technology into real impact
Innovation truly matters when it delivers tangible results. That is why many of these technologies are already being deployed across our operations.
One example is M-Predict, our predictive maintenance ecosystem. By analyzing real-time sensor data from equipment such as kilns and mills, the system can anticipate potential failures before they occur, enabling proactive maintenance and increasing plant reliability.
Another powerful solution is the use of Digital Twins in some plants in Switzerland. These virtual replicas of physical assets allow teams to simulate operational scenarios and optimize processes such as thermal efficiency before implementing changes in the real plant.
AI is also transforming how technical knowledge is accessed. Through Documentation AI, technical drawings and maintenance manuals can be automatically translated and analyzed, extracting key insights and highlighting risks so technicians anywhere in the world can benefit from global expertise.
Technology that empowers people
The future of manufacturing is not just about smarter machines — it is about smarter collaboration between people, data and technology.
By combining deep operational knowledge with digital expertise, we contribute to building safer, more efficient and more sustainable operations for the future of construction.
