In April, I had the pleasure of co-presenting the keynote address at the Fastenal Expo in Nashville. The topic was “Navigating the Future of Artificial Intelligence in Supply Chains,” and my co-presenter was Vic Miles, the Americas region business leader for Microsoft. (Microsoft is a key technology partner in Fastenal’s cloud computing and AI journey.) Vic also hosts the popular podcast Beyond the Tech and is an all-round keen observer of business technology trends.

If you had a chance to catch our presentation at the Expo, this article will be a refresher. For everyone else, we’re happy to share what we’re working on and thinking about in the AI space. Note: The primer on Generative AI in the following section is heavily based on thoughts Vic shared at the Expo. He is definitely the expert here.

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We are at the beginning of a fourth industrial revolution

This may be the most significant technological inflection point of our lifetimes – one that will help define not just the tech industry but how the world works for decades to come.

What we’ve learned and where we’re going next

Fastenal adopted Microsoft M365 Copilot early on. Our employees use it for tasks like digesting reports, summarizing meetings, creating content, translating languages, and coding. We’ve learned the importance of crafting effective prompts and discovered the two modes in Copilot: “web” and “work.”

Web mode uses internet-wide content, while work mode relies on curated sources, ensuring accuracy and trust. This curation is crucial for business use cases.

Now, how is Fastenal using AI to help you? By discussing one of the use cases we’ve already put into operation, then by looking at the long game – how we’re capturing the high-quality data needed to power future AI innovations.

Harnessing our collective knowledge

Over the past four years, Fastenal has built an internal knowledge base with pre-written responses from subject matter experts, accessed via the chatbot “BLUE.” With 23,000 employees, the content grew to 125,000 Q&A pairs. Connecting this knowledge base to Microsoft’s AI model has significantly improved response quality. The AI-powered tool generates expert responses based on vast content, providing links to source material. This ensures richer, more relevant answers and fewer non-responses.

Ask BLUE: what’s in it for you?

Around 70% of Fastenal’s employees interact with customers daily, answering questions and finding solutions. The new BLUE copilot enhances their ability to respond quickly and reliably, leveraging the collective knowledge of the Blue Team.

Building a strong data foundation

AI can uncover insights in the supply chain, but it needs relevant, comprehensive, and trusted data to be effective. Quality data is essential for AI to function properly. Fastenal is building a strong data foundation, leveraging its organic growth, global systems, and investment in supply chain and inventory technology. This allows Fastenal to capture and share detailed data, making it a reliable source for high-quality information.

AI can help rationalize spending, consolidate SKUs, set scheduled deliveries, and identify opportunities for managed inventory programs. Additionally, AI can answer big-picture questions about sourcing, staging, transporting, and supplying products, minimizing costs, risks, and productivity constraints. Fastenal’s unique position enables it to add significant value by simplifying pathways and acting on quality data.

“We always overestimate the change that will occur in the next two years and underestimate the change that will occur in the next ten.” – Bill Gates

Keep learning and moving forward

As with any new and disruptive technology, there can be a risk of moving too fast (without the proper processes and structures in place), but there’s also a risk of losing focus on the long-term opportunity. In his 1999 book Business at the Speed of Thought, Bill Gates famously wrote, “We always overestimate the change that will occur in the next two years and underestimate the change that will occur in the next ten.” … In other words, don’t get too caught up in the current hype, but as Mr. Gates phrased it, “Don’t let yourself be lulled into inaction.”
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The good news

You have a committed partner in Fastenal. Today, we’re using AI to augment the knowledge and service we bring to your business. We’re also building a solid data foundation to power tomorrow’s innovations, including several AI use cases currently being developed by our IT team. That said, we’ve always found that the best ideas are sparked by you, our customers. Share your vision with us, tell us the kinds of solutions you’d like to see, and challenge us to be a great partner in your AI journey.

Hopefully this article has provided some inspiration for the future we can build together. If you want to learn more, fill out the form below!