A collaboration between the University of Huddersfield and local manufacturer Woodcock & Wilson aims to develop an innovative AI-powered system designed to revolutionize customer support and enhance staff training. This partnership is established through a 27-month Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) that combines academic expertise with industry needs.
Leading the project are Dr Emmanuel Papadakis and Dr George Bargiannis from the University’s Centre for Autonomous and Intelligent Systems (CAIS). The KTP associate for the initiative, Rohan Jadhav, has been appointed to facilitate knowledge transfer and is expected to continue his career with Woodcock & Wilson upon completion of the project.
Woodcock & Wilson, an industrial fan manufacturer situated in Huddersfield, is seeking to enhance both external customer support and internal staff training through advanced AI solutions. The forthcoming system will offer 24/7 global support availability for customers and improve knowledge access for less experienced employees, thereby increasing operational efficiency.
The collaboration will leverage the University’s CAIS expertise to implement AI-powered automation, focusing on advanced knowledge management, data-driven insights, and scalable support infrastructure. This initiative aims to transform customer support operations by integrating new capabilities into Woodcock & Wilson’s processes.
The KTP associate will play a crucial role in designing, developing, testing, and refining the intelligent system. This system is expected to feature multimodal and agentic AI, combining knowledge graphs with generative and conversational AI. The result will be an intelligent framework that utilizes a curated knowledge base, continuously improving its accuracy and conversational skills through human-in-the-loop training.
Dr Papadakis remarked on the project’s innovative potential, stating, “This project is an excellent opportunity to showcase the benefits of combining different types of AI within a sophisticated agent-based architecture, leveraging knowledge graphs as an adaptable and explainable resource.” Dr Bargiannis, Deputy Director of CAIS, added that the project’s complexity lies in processing various forms of data, including textual, numerical, and visual information.
According to Abd AlBasit, Chief Engineer at Woodcock & Wilson, this partnership represents a significant advance for the company. “The AI system developed through this partnership will help us enhance our customer experience, empower our staff, and position the company for significant growth in both UK and international markets,” he stated.
This KTP follows an earlier Accelerated Knowledge Transfer project where Dr Bargiannis and Dr Papadakis successfully developed a limited prototype of the intelligent system, confirming its feasibility. The continuity in collaboration is underscored by the fact that Abd-al Basit Chasti, who is supervising the KTP associate, once served in the same role during a previous partnership with the University.
Knowledge Transfer Partnerships are government-funded initiatives aimed at enhancing UK business competitiveness and productivity. Funded through Innovate UK, part of UK Research and Innovation, the program supports collaborations between organizations, universities, and graduate associates, creating a framework for lasting impact. The University of Huddersfield currently manages around 20 KTPs, attracting approximately £5 million in funding.
This partnership not only aims to elevate Woodcock & Wilson’s operational capabilities but also reflects a broader trend in the industrial sector towards the integration of AI technologies, positioning businesses for future growth and innovation in an increasingly competitive landscape.
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