The COVID-19 pandemic has struck the global economy and most companies are unprepared. Within hours, industrial managers have to come up with solutions to keep operations going. In doing so, they face unforeseen restrictions. Challenges include quarantined staff, supply bottlenecks, or compromised liquidity (UK Government, 2020). This can put the monitoring and maintaining of critical assets, and thus the whole business model, at risk.

How could a single technology potentially help under these unprecedented circumstances? Most of all, Augmented Reality (AR) can hardly be framed as a single technology. Even though the core concept is ‘overlaying digital information over the real world’, AR can serve a variety of purposes. AR is versatile. This article presents four exemplary functionalities how AR can potentially foster operational resilience in a state of emergency:

• Rapid upskilling,
• Advanced remote communication,
• Decision-making support, and
• Knowledge management.

Rapid Upskilling

The situation can get out of hand quickly: one assembly line needs to ramp up production fast before the government mandates a shut-down. Another line requires a changeover to produce goods with higher margins. Unfortunately, there are not enough qualified operators around. The trainee, however, has recently digitised the paper manuals for changeovers. She can now put on an AR-capable head-mounted display to follow the step-by-step instructions. Even though she has never done it before, the instructions advise her which tools to use and how to correctly adjust machine parameters. In the end of the operation, she opens the 3D CAD file of the new machine-setup, points the headset camera towards the machine and gets feedback from the device about critical deviations (PTC, 2020). 

Advanced Remote Communication

What if the supervisor and other key staff are already quarantined? Even if digital guidance is available, things can still go wrong. In that case, the local technicians can work hands-free with his head-mounted display while their remote advisor communicates information via (a) audio, (b) onscreen markups and/or (c) a shared desktop (UtilityAR, 2020). Onscreen markups in particular have been proven to be a simple but effective tool to address technical details which might be difficult to explain otherwise.

Decision-Making Support 

But what if the local operator cannot get hold of remote advisors? In this state of emergency, he has to make quick but effective decisions. In complex industrial systems, however, decisions rely on high-quality real-time data and analytics capabilities. AR software can be linked to databases that log machine and business data. This data can be processed in the cloud or on-premise servers to alert workers if critical thresholds are exceeded. Based on historical data and related troubleshooting approaches, the operator receives tailored recommendations.

Knowledge Management 

In reality, there are rarely sufficient data analytics capabilities available to support decisions. This is where digital knowledge management pays off. An experienced colleague has recently started video recording and databasing tips for the complicated and tricky procedures on his assembly station. He could do that during idle times and even added commentaries. The recordings together with other information from previous projects, can now be accessed at any time via the AR system. This new explicit knowledge can help colleagues effectively navigate through complex environments. 

It goes without saying that it is difficult to roll out new technologies during emergency situations. AR can also not replace agile, diligent, and informed operations management. Technological limitations such as interoperability, power supply, processing power, and network coverage are further slowing down adoption. Nevertheless, AR and manufacturing industries are increasingly focusing on distributing quick-to-implement packages, especially for remote communication (UtilityAR, 2020). For companies that still have limited resources to tackle industrial digitalisation now, it is essential to strengthen risk management and redundant digital capabilities early on in the future. In conclusion, AR combined with cloud and analytics technologies is a powerful approach to strengthen a company’s resilience. Now more than ever, AR in manufacturing is here to stay.