Ford Motor Company has revealed that it brought back hundreds of experienced engineers after artificial intelligence systems failed to deliver the level of expertise and judgement needed for vehicle quality control.
According to a Bloomberg report, the American automaker rehired more than 300 veteran quality inspectors and engineers in recent years after discovering that automated systems could not fully replicate the skills developed through decades of hands-on experience.
Speaking to reporters, Ford’s Vice President of Vehicle Hardware Engineering, Charles Poon, described AI as a powerful tool but stressed that its effectiveness depends on the quality of the data and knowledge used to train it.
“Artificial intelligence is a fantastic tool, but it’s only as good as the information you use to train it,” Poon said.
He admitted that the company had previously underestimated the value of its most experienced engineers, many of whom had worked through multiple vehicle development cycles and possessed critical institutional knowledge.
Ford has been among the major companies embracing AI technology in recent years, deploying it across several operations in an effort to improve efficiency, reduce costs and strengthen quality assurance processes.
The company’s Chief Operating Officer, Kumar Galhotra, told investors during an October earnings call that Ford was introducing AI throughout its manufacturing network, including the installation of about 900 AI-powered cameras at production plants to identify quality issues and reduce supply chain disruptions.
However, Poon acknowledged that the technology did not produce the expected results.
He said Ford initially believed that feeding design requirements into AI systems would automatically lead to improved product quality, but the outcome fell short of expectations.
According to him, the automated tools lacked the practical knowledge and judgement possessed by seasoned technicians.
He noted that many experienced workers had left the company before their expertise could be captured and incorporated into the AI systems.
To address the problem, Ford brought back veteran engineers and inspectors to help train the technology and mentor younger employees.
“We recognised that for us to enhance some of our automation and machine learning and artificial intelligence tools we needed to ensure that they were trained by the most experienced individuals,” Poon said.
The comments came as Ford celebrated a major quality achievement. The company recently regained the top spot among mainstream automakers in the United States in the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study, an industry benchmark for vehicle quality.
It marked the first time Ford had led the ranking since 2010.
In a statement announcing the accomplishment, Ford said achieving best-in-class quality required a significant overhaul of its talent base.
The company said it replaced senior leaders in engineering, manufacturing and supply chain operations while also recruiting hundreds of experienced engineers whose decades of expertise have helped strengthen product development and quality standards.
