HanesBrands Leveraging Gen AI in Supply Chain Optimization Efforts
Apparel company Hanesbrands is tapping generative AI technology in order to optimize its supply chain.
The company has sought out the intelligent tool in order to answer “complex supply chain questions,” then making the information accessible to all HanesBrands associates. The Gen AI assistant, powered by OpsVeda, integrates with messaging tools like Microsoft Teams, Slack, or Whatsapp, and allows users to gather information through natural language exchanges.
The information can be communicated via email, storyboards, or data snippets. According to the tech company, the tool has been engineered to use algorithms in order to interpret users’ free-form questions, applying “appropriate parameters” around the specific user’s questioning.
It is a “pivotal solution for HanesBrands' supply planning, PO prioritization, and inventory utilization,” said Hemant Ramaswami, VP of global supply chain planning at HanesBrands, adding that it is “enabling them to provide better service to our customers.”
The information exchange is protected through encryption and anonymization processes, ensuring that any customer-identifying information is removed. Following this process, any submitted prompts are included in the assistant’s database, where data technologists build the training data set for machine learning models, which help to refine future prompts.
More Use Cases
The technology is also being used by other brands and manufacturers, including Grace Foods Canada and Royce Too, which designs and develops socks for brands like Eddie Bauer and Dickies.
Nimal Amitirigala, president of Grace Foods Canada, said the company has been using the initial supply chain tool to improve its tracking of fulfillment and overall customer service, and is looking for ways to implement the new Gen AI features.
“We could further boost our productivity if we were able to increase the speed with which we are able to access critical information. Enabling the AskJUNI interface within our messaging tool – Teams – presents one such opportunity,” said Amitirigala. “The ability to check the inventory availability of a product or the likelihood of fulfillment of a customer order through a simple message would be a powerful addition to the way we work."
[Also read: Adidas and Traeger Grills Power Data Visualization With Gen AI]
According to Lee Steffensen, head of IT and business process at Royce Too, "generative AI has the tremendous potential to bring the co-pilot framework and its efficiency to everyday work in our enterprise.”
The company is leveraging the technology due to its scalability, user authentication, data anonymization, and predictive accuracy.
HanesBrands’ Overhaul
This is the latest development in a series of transformative changes happening within HanesBrands. The company has been implementing enterprise-wide digital transformation, including supply chain automation, elevated payment architectures, new ERP and trade promotion strategies, and more.
The company said it is looking to become more data-driven and customer-centric, embedding its consumers and optimizing efforts within its global ecosystem.
