How an AI strategy streamlined engineering
$400K
Estimated $400K in annual labor cost savings from AI-assisted custom product design
2-3%
Saving 2-3% in scrap from bill of materials design processes
4K+
Estimated annual savings of 4,100 hours from bill of materials generation
At a glance
Client
Electronics manufacturer
Industry
Manufacturing
Our role
AI strategy and implementation
Our solution
AI strategy with initial solution
An AI roadmap for measurable value
Scenario
An electronics manufacturer wanted a practical AI strategy with prioritized use cases and measurable business outcomes.
Approach
Grant Thornton created an AI framework, evaluated use cases and developed a production-ready AI solution.
Result
The company gained a scalable AI roadmap with an initial solution that has efficiency and growth benefits.
Scenario
AI interest that connects to strategy
A global manufacturer of custom capacitor products saw the opportunity to apply artificial intelligence capabilities across its business. Leaders wanted a structured approach to identify the use cases most likely to generate measurable value. They set clear expectations that use cases should demonstrate tangible business outcomes and investment returns within a defined time frame.
The company outlined that its AI strategy should include use case discovery, prioritization, proof-of-concept development, workforce enablement and an AI operating model.
Approach
A value-first AI roadmap
Grant Thornton established a practical framework for evaluating AI opportunities. Examining five business themes and multiple functions, the team evaluated more than 40 potential use cases to determine where AI could create the greatest impact. Then, the team worked closely with executive leaders to select the initiatives most aligned to the organization’s business priorities. Rather than applying a generic methodology, the team co-developed a governance and evaluation model tailored to the client’s definition of value, emphasizing measurable labor savings, operational efficiency and achievable ROI.
From the list of initiatives, leaders selected an engineering-focused use case to streamline custom product designs and pre-sale designs for bills of material (BOM) during the request for quote (RFQ) process. The company’s custom and pre-sale design process for RFQs was manual and time-consuming, requiring multiple engineers. That not only created inefficiency, but also led to inconsistency, slowed design validation, risked inaccurate quotes and ultimately limited the company’s ability to respond to RFQs and deliver custom products at scale.
The Grant Thornton team built an initial solution that used Microsoft Azure AI services to automate the custom RFQ bill-of-material creation process. The team simultaneously trained the company’s employees on Microsoft Copilot, Copilot Studio and Power Automate, helping the company establish long-term internal AI capabilities.
Result
AI positioned for measurable growth
The AI-driven design solution significantly reduces the effort required for engineers to create detailed BOM designs and respond to highly customized customer requests. Estimated benefits include annual savings of approximately 4,100 hours from bill-of-material generation, along with annual savings of $400,000 from AI-assisted design activities. The company will also realize two to three percent in scrap savings for BOM designs.
Beyond the savings, the new design process improves quote accuracy and accelerates quotes for better revenue and customer service. With more design work performed within the system, the new solution supports business continuity, mitigates risk and enables knowledge capture for the retiring engineering workforce.
Now, the client is positioned to process more RFQs and pursue additional growth opportunities without increasing headcount. The engagement also accelerated internal AI adoption through training and enablement programs, leading the organization’s IT team to begin developing additional AI-powered solutions independently. The result is a scalable foundation for future innovation, supported by both technology and organizational capability.
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This Grant Thornton Advisors LLC content provides information and comments on current issues and developments. It is not a comprehensive analysis of the subject matter covered. It is not, and should not be construed as, accounting, legal, tax, or professional advice provided by Grant Thornton Advisors LLC. All relevant facts and circumstances, including the pertinent authoritative literature, need to be considered to arrive at conclusions that comply with matters addressed in this content.
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