intelligence applications today and are looking for ways to fit AI and machine learning tools into their existing data structures. Among other things, AI algorithms and modeling applications hold promises for better and faster customer service, fewer errors, improved speed of tasks and operations, new business capabilities, higher efficiency and productivity, and improved analytics. Although the conversation around AI has centered on ethics and the various risks that business should be aware of when implementing such technologies, Wegner stresses that, at its core, AI is dependent on the data it draws from. “If the data or information is incorrect, this will be reflected though the AI applications.”
Data Consistency The promises of exciting and
potentially business-changing advancements such as AI require reliable data, which is why Wegner believes an industry-wide education on the importance of data consistency and ownership is crucial. “It is very important for manufactures to own their data on a number of levels,” she explains, “The manufacturer should be the one source of truth for their data. When they lose that control then the data could be out of date in many mediums. Incorrect
“It is very important for manufacturers to own their data on a number of levels. The manufacturer should be the one source of truth for their data. When they lose that control then the data could be out of date in many mediums. Incorrect data can cause confusion, poor specification, loss of business, and mistrust in the manufacturer.”
— Christina Wegner Vice President of Marketing The Vollrath Company
data can cause confusion, poor specification, loss of business, and mistrust in the manufacturer.” The issues Wegner describes are the same ones FEDA set out to solve when it introduced the FEDA Data Portal at the end of 2021. Product data uploaded to the portal must adhere to universal standards developed alongside dealers and manufacturers. This ensures critical product data is maintained in a set format that fits the industry’s needs, enabling businesses to expand their data capabilities and empowering new technology providers to develop solutions specific to the industry. FEDA is already partnering with technology companies that can provide configure, price, quote (CPQ) programs using the standardized data in the portal. Coupled with PIMS and GDSN (Global Data Syndication Network)
data sets to allow for easier data syndication, the FEDA Data Portal is only going to fuel further innovation and industry progress.
While technology needs and solutions may be unique to every business, industry- wide data standardization and data ownership that remains in the industry can lift all companies toward a more profitable future. “Virtually every major industry on the planet uses standards for data, for example UPC product codes. The foodservice equipment industry is perhaps decades behind in the standardization of data,” Pierce observes. “For too long we’ve been nearly forgotten in the technology realm aside from a very small handful of players.”
The potential for the FEDA Data Portal to initiate a sea change in how the industry capitalizes on its own data is limitless — and
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necessary. “I believe with data standardization and accessibility we will see companies offering leading- edge technology solutions to automate many business processes ranging from the customer acquisition to manufacturer interactions to complete order fulfillment,” Pierce says.
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