Can IFS digital workers really solve the labor crisis in industrial sectors?

IFS, a global industrial AI software leader, officially launched IFS Cloud 25R2 on November 27, 2025, with a clear focus on embedding applied intelligence and agentic AI directly into the operations layer of industries facing acute labor shortages and increasing infrastructure complexity. Rather than positioning artificial intelligence as an add-on, IFS has integrated agentic software agents, referred to as IFS Loops Digital Workers, across its ERP, enterprise asset management, and field service platforms. These autonomous agents are designed to think, decide, and act across systems in real time, helping companies scale workforce capacity and reduce the burden of repetitive work across mission-critical functions.

IFS used its flagship event, Industrial X Unleashed in New York, to spotlight the industrial workforce crisis. With over £17 trillion in capital flowing into AI factories and infrastructure renewal, labor availability has not kept pace. Millions of industrial jobs remain unfilled, and close to half of the current workforce is projected to retire within the next five years, risking a mass loss of institutional knowledge. The release of IFS Cloud 25R2 is positioned as a direct response to this problem, offering intelligent software agents that operate like human coworkers, but without downtime, fatigue, or risk of skill attrition.

Pedro Buhigas, Chief Information Officer at Kodiak Gas Services, emphasized the impact these agents are already having. He stated that if just half of their workforce interacts with an IFS Loops Digital Worker once a day, the organization could recover approximately three million dollars a year in ROI. Beyond the financial return, the productivity impact translates to 90,000 technician hours redirected toward core operations.

This push for operational-grade intelligence comes at a time when many industrial enterprises are evaluating whether general-purpose AI platforms can handle the scale, compliance, and specificity their environments demand. IFS argues that they cannot. According to Christian Pedersen, Chief Innovation Officer at IFS, the key lies in deep embedding—where AI is hardwired into the complex, regulated workflows that drive industry operations.

How do IFS Loops digital workers reshape the role of automation in enterprise operations?

IFS Loops Digital Workers stand apart from traditional automation tools by virtue of their domain-specific intelligence, embedded system access, and full enterprise auditability. Each digital worker is programmed with contextual awareness of operational constraints, maintenance protocols, and asset-specific logic. They do not merely trigger tasks; they interpret context, make real-time decisions, and execute multi-system workflows within secure boundaries.

These software agents are engineered for heavy industry environments where downtime is not acceptable and compliance is non-negotiable. The first cohort of digital workers includes agents that manage customer orders, coordinate supplier deliveries, replenish inventory, generate operations insights, and oversee material availability. Unlike off-the-shelf automation bots that execute narrowly scoped scripts, IFS digital workers are embedded co-workers that improve over time and deliver cumulative business value.

According to IFS executives, these agents are not designed to eliminate human roles. Instead, they amplify field and frontline capabilities at a time when hiring replacements for retiring industrial workers is becoming increasingly difficult. The argument is simple: the infrastructure to support global economic growth cannot be rebuilt with current workforce capacity. Digital workers offer a way to close that capacity gap without sacrificing quality or regulatory compliance.

What new embedded AI features are available across the IFS Cloud ecosystem?

IFS Cloud 25R2 introduces sweeping enhancements across multiple functional domains, with AI tools purpose-built for enterprise environments that demand traceability, security, and operational precision. In field service management, IFS.ai Copilot offers technicians instant access to task-critical information, with AI-generated work briefings helping crews prepare more effectively. Real-time summarization tools automatically generate post-service documentation, reducing the administrative burden on field technicians and speeding up customer approval workflows.

In enterprise asset management, artificial intelligence powers tools such as the Work Task Template Optimizer, which enhances maintenance accuracy using operational data patterns. A new feature for voice-to-text data entry allows technicians to record quick voice notes or short summaries, which are automatically parsed and entered into structured reporting formats. This eases the documentation process and supports better compliance reporting. The FMECA Data Enhancer accelerates failure mode analysis by using machine learning to recommend likely causes and corrective actions based on asset histories.

For enterprise resource planning functions, 25R2 introduces AI-backed MRP Simulation to help planners model multiple demand scenarios. Dynamic pricing intelligence through the Sales Price Elements feature ensures more accurate revenue forecasts. The update also improves invoice automation and enhances business planning with more reliable data baselines. These features are engineered to improve financial agility and manufacturing resilience in volatile operating environments.

In aviation maintenance, IFS has added a Smart Part Finder tool that combines structured IPC data with artificial intelligence to improve part selection accuracy. This feature is designed to minimize aircraft downtime by helping technicians locate the right component faster, reducing errors and avoiding costly part mismatches.

Across all modules, the goal is consistent: embed industrial-grade AI directly into frontline workflows so that adoption is natural, impact is measurable, and governance is assured.

How are customers validating the business case for IFS Cloud and digital worker deployment?

Customer feedback presented during Industrial X Unleashed revealed that early adopters are seeing both hard and soft returns on their digital worker investments. Tony Alloway, Vice President of North American Operations at BGIS, explained how IFS helped his organization rethink core operational workflows. Through direct collaboration between IFS and BGIS staff—ranging from junior operators to senior managers—the company was able to re-engineer live processes in flight. The result was a 30 percent reduction in operating costs, achieved not by removing people, but by removing friction.

Alloway noted that the key differentiator for IFS was not just its software functionality, but its understanding of real-world industrial complexity. Rather than deploying yet another layer of tools, IFS helped BGIS consolidate and optimize existing workflows while embedding intelligence that was immediately usable by the teams doing the work. That level of operational relevance, he said, energizes teams and accelerates change adoption across all layers of the organization.

These customer narratives underscore the broader value proposition of IFS Cloud 25R2. In contrast to enterprise AI platforms that often remain trapped in proof-of-concept phases, IFS is delivering deployable, auditable, and financially defensible digital workforce solutions.

How does IFS address ESG compliance and sustainability integration through embedded AI?

In addition to its operational gains, IFS Cloud 25R2 makes environmental, social, and governance reporting more actionable and automated. Traditionally, ESG data was gathered at the end of a reporting cycle, often involving manual consolidation of metrics across disconnected systems. With the latest release, IFS has embedded AI-driven KPI generation and real-time emissions tracking directly into the daily workflows of technicians, planners, and analysts.

This shift ensures that ESG decisions are no longer isolated from operational performance. By integrating sustainability metrics into planning, procurement, and maintenance activities, organizations can reduce compliance costs and make climate-aligned decisions in real time. From a regulatory and investor standpoint, this adds credibility to sustainability claims and provides a structured framework for continuous improvement.

Executives at IFS believe this approach reinforces the principle that profitability and sustainability are not opposing goals. When sustainability data is made operational, rather than post-facto, it becomes a driver of efficiency rather than a cost center.

Why does IFS believe it is defining the next chapter in industrial software?

IFS maintains that the broader software industry has failed to fully address the operational realities of large-scale industrial enterprises. While consumer-grade AI tools offer general productivity enhancements, they often break down when introduced into complex, compliance-heavy, or safety-critical workflows. IFS sees its agentic architecture as the answer to this gap—a system built for the invisible labor of maintenance crews, supply chain analysts, and operations managers.

IFS Cloud 25R2 was launched with a strong commercial readiness message. The digital workers are available immediately and come with industry-specific configurations that allow rapid deployment. This distinguishes IFS from rivals that continue to pitch generalized AI modules requiring extended customization.

Looking ahead, institutional buyers and analysts will closely monitor whether digital worker adoption scales across sectors such as energy, manufacturing, aviation, and infrastructure. The speed at which IFS can convert proof-of-concept interest into full production deployments will likely determine its competitive edge in the AI-powered ERP and field service space.

What are the key takeaways from the IFS Cloud 25R2 launch?

• IFS has released IFS Cloud 25R2 with embedded industrial AI and agentic digital workers available across ERP, EAM, FSM, and aviation modules.

• IFS Loops Digital Workers are designed for industrial operations, featuring autonomous execution, embedded domain logic, and full auditability.

• Key operational benefits include automation of order processing, inventory management, field service reporting, and reliability engineering.

• The release embeds real-time ESG tracking and AI-generated KPI narratives, aligning profitability with sustainability goals.

• Customers such as Kodiak Gas Services and BGIS reported measurable ROI and productivity improvements tied to IFS AI features.

• Analysts view the 25R2 rollout as a sign of increasing maturity in enterprise-grade AI tools tailored for mission-critical industries.

• IFS Cloud 25R2 is commercially available from November 27, 2025.