Operational Automation
We automate repetitive operational decisions and processes to free human capacity for higher-value tasks. We start from connected operational data to identify which steps can run on their own and under what level of supervision.
Operational automation: from data to action without manual steps
AI process automation starts with an operational question: how many repetitive decisions does the plant team execute every day that could run on their own? Each one follows the same pattern: someone looks at a data point, applies a criterion and executes an action. Our operational automation service covers that full path, from data to action, working always on operational data that is already connected (when connectivity is missing, Captia’s Connect unit provides it first).
We work with three automation levels: inform, where the system detects the situation and presents it with context; recommend, where it proposes the action and a person validates it; and act, where it executes within agreed limits and reports what it did. Decisions usually progress through these levels as trust builds. Whether a decision should be automated at all depends on four criteria: frequency, an expressible criterion, bounded and reversible consequences, and reliable data availability. Decisions that fail these tests stay at the inform level, with people deciding.
Under this umbrella, known and stable criteria are implemented as automatic rules, multi-step actions are orchestrated as automatic workflows, and AI models learn the criteria that fixed conditions cannot capture. Projects start with one low-risk decision run in parallel with the team, then expand incrementally. The full solution set is described on the Captia AI page.
How it connects to the system
Captia AI is a capability of Captia Technology. This solution relies on data Connect integrates and priorities Consulting defines.
Key concepts
Other solutions
- Operational Dashboards
Real-time visualisation of the operational data that matters, designed for decision-making, not contemplation. We build dashboards on top of connected plant data, with the views each role needs to run day-to-day operations.
- Intelligent Reporting
Automatic reports that synthesise what is relevant in the operation without manual intervention. Connected plant data becomes periodic, comparable reports that are generated and distributed automatically to the people who need them.
- Automatic Workflows
Automatic workflows that execute actions when defined conditions are met in the operation. Each workflow is designed on real plant data, chaining the notifications, records and tasks that today depend on manual steps.
Frequently asked questions
- What is AI process automation in an industrial plant?
- It means letting repetitive operational decisions run on their own from operational data: reassigning an order when a line stops, adjusting a setpoint when a condition changes, or opening a maintenance ticket when equipment drifts from normal behaviour. People stop executing the routine step and instead supervise the criteria it runs on.
- What is the difference between automating with rules and with AI?
- A rule encodes a known, stable criterion: if temperature exceeds a threshold, alert. An AI model learns the criterion from historical data and covers situations a fixed threshold cannot, such as spotting a degradation pattern. In practice both are combined: rules handle the simple and traceable cases, models handle what depends on many factors at once.
- Can or should every operational decision be automated?
- No. We automate decisions that are frequent, whose criteria can be expressed, and whose consequences are bounded and reversible. Infrequent decisions, fuzzy judgement calls or anything with safety impact stays with people, even if the system prepares the information for them. Each project defines what is automated, at which level and under what human supervision.
- What does my plant need to start automating decisions?
- The starting point is connected, reliable operational data: machine signals, production records, incident history. Captia’s AI unit works on that base; when connectivity does not exist yet, the Connect unit provides it. Then a specific decision is chosen, its logic agreed with the plant team, and it goes live under supervision.