Smurfit Westrock enhances inventory with AI-driven solution

Smurfit Westrock has successfully leveraged an AI-driven solution from Celonis to optimise its inventory management in just two months.

Celonis, a company specialising in Process Mining and Process Intelligence, implemented its Process Intelligence Graph through its Platform to enhance AI capabilities for Smurfit Westrock. This move comes as the global paper and packaging firm navigates complexities related to data inconsistencies and procurement inefficiencies following recent acquisitions.

The issues at hand included duplicate materials, language inconsistencies, and synonym-based descriptions which led to inventory buildup and increased costs for Smurfit Westrock.

Celonis utilised its Process Intelligence Graph and large language model-based analysis to resolve these inconsistencies, laying the groundwork for AI-driven inventory management.

The results of implementing this technology were significant. After merely two months, Smurfit Westrock discovered instances of purchasing spare parts that were already available in their inventory and found several parts that had gone unused for over eight years. By employing the Celonis Process Intelligence platform, the company has begun cancelling unnecessary purchases and is now strategising to optimise stock utilisation.

A transformative element introduced by Celonis is the data harmonisation layer that supports an AI Copilot.

This Copilot streamlines the availability of spare parts for plant engineers by identifying required materials based on real-time data, plant location, and purchasing habits. It features a natural language interface allowing for simple inventory queries using common industry terms, eliminating the necessity for exact part numbers.

Brian Dodson, Business Process Improvement Manager and Celonis Centre of Excellence lead at Smurfit Westrock, shared an instance from August 2024 when a European plant faced a delayed replacement part supply.

He stated, "With Celonis, we were able to find a plant in the region with the part and schedule a transfer order in under a day. This enables us to unlock new levels of efficiency, deliver enhanced value to our maintenance teams, and drive sustainability."

Rupal Karia, Country Leader UKI & MEA at Celonis, commented on the collaboration: "The ability to harness AI effectively starts with understanding and optimising the processes that power a business."

"With Celonis, Smurfit Westrock has been able to tackle challenges like duplicate spare parts, unnecessary procurement and inventory inefficiencies, unlocking tremendous value along the way. We are proud to deepen our partnership and continue helping Smurfit Westrock leverage Process Intelligence and AI to drive measurable impact across its global operations."

This partnership has laid out a strategic roadmap for AI implementation at Smurfit Westrock, focusing on automation where it can yield the most value.

By assessing AI opportunities grounded in process efficiency and considering the need for human intervention, Smurfit Westrock aims to enhance the impact of AI on its functions.

Smurfit Westrock plans to expand its work with Celonis to further optimise procurement, maintenance, and production processes across its operations in Europe, Latin America, and North America. With a workforce exceeding 100,000 across 40 countries, the company manages more than 500 converting operations and 62 paper mills with an annual revenue of USD $34 billion.