There's no doubt that the manufacturing sector is leading the way in the application of artificial intelligence technology. From significant cuts in unplanned downtime to better designed products, manufacturers are applying AI-powered analytics to data to improve efficiency, product quality and the safety of employees. In manufacturing, ongoing maintenance of production line machinery and equipment represents a major expense, having a crucial impact on the bottom line of any asset-reliant production operation. Moreover, studies show that unplanned downtime costs manufacturers an estimated $50 billion annually, and that asset failure is the cause of 42 percent of this unplanned downtime. For this reason, predictive maintenance has become a must-have solution for manufacturers who have much to gain from being able to predict the next failure of a part, machine or system.