Singapore Mobility Challenge 2022

Theme : More Efficient, Sustainable Operations

Augmented Automotive Maintenance Workforce

Challenge Statement Owner: SMRT Corporate Strides Mobility

Data Analytics & AIAutomation & RoboticsAugmented Reality

Find out more from the Info Session!

The automotive maintenance industry is labour intensive and demands a skilled workforce. The industry’s challenge is increased with difficulty in attracting new workers while the current workforce is ageing with many workers retiring soon. In order to sustain operations, there is an increasing need to automate routine tasks and augment the workforce with digital technologies to overcome skill gaps.

An example of a key activity done in automotive maintenance is spray painting. In order to restore the paint of damaged surfaces, the following are generally the steps taken:

Fix the damage and prepare the surface for painting;
Identify the colour to be painted based on the colour state of surrounding surfaces;
Mix the paint for the different coatings needed; and
Spray-paint several coatings until the colour is accurate and blended.

Even seasoned workers are prone to human errors performing these steps. Thus, there are opportunities to reinvent the process, leveraging new technologies, such as AI, wearables, and robotics.

We are interested in solutions that can simplify or automate the automotive maintenance tasks for both cars and buses, while maintaining the quality of work. Spray painting is one of the priority tasks to innovate but we are open to other areas within automotive maintenance . We are keen to explore robotics solutions that can potentially reduce manpower and lower safety risks.

How might we augment the workforce or introduce automation solutions for automotive maintenance tasks such as spray painting, in order to reduce the manpower and skills requirements while improving the quality of work?

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