Recently, I read yet another article discussing AI, specifically Agentic AI. By the time I
finished reading it, I found myself feeling something I hadn’t experienced in quite a while:
Overwhelmed.
After more than 40 years of managing modular manufacturing operations, I started wondering
if I was getting left behind. Was my experience still relevant in a world of ERP systems, MES
platforms, AI forecasting, digital dashboards, and technologies that seem to evolve faster
than I can understand them?
I spent several days trying to learn more about Agentic AI. The harder I tried, the more
confused I became. Eventually, I stopped trying to understand every technical detail and
started asking a different question.
What if I was focusing on the wrong thing? Did I really need to understand all the nuances
or simply just be aware of technology as a tool?
That question led me back several decades to a time when another innovation was making
waves throughout manufacturing. It was called Total Quality Management, and at the time, it
felt every bit as revolutionary as AI feels today.
WHAT ARE WE REALLY TRYING TO SOLVE?
Many developers and entrepreneurs looking at offsite construction today are being
bombarded with technology. AI. Automation. Digital twins. Predictive analytics. Smart
factories, robotics, and the like, the latest and greatest.
The promise is always compelling. Better decisions. Better productivity. Better results.
The danger is assuming the tool is the solution.
I have watched several waves of innovation move through manufacturing over the years.
Some delivered enormous value. Others delivered far less than promised. The common
denominator was never the technology itself. The common denominator was how
effectively management used the technology as a tool with the end result being a better
managed team.
WHEN TQM WAS THE NEW AI
When I joined a larger multi-plant organization years ago, I was introduced to TQM. At first,
I didn’t understand much of it. The terminology was new. The processes were unfamiliar.
Frankly, it felt overwhelming.
Unlike AI, however, I didn’t have the option of ignoring it. TQM was expected it was literally
mandated. It became part of how we operated.
Over time, I discovered something important. TQM wasn’t magic. It wasn’t a silver bullet. It was a framework that forced us to focus on the basics.
Communication between departments improved. Data became more meaningful.
Accountability became clearer. Problems were measured rather than debated. Decisions
became less emotional and more fact-based. The tool mattered, but the discipline mattered
more. The culture it helped me create was one that developed a management team that
was truly engaged, not to mention a team of over 300 production employees that
became involved, not simply bystanders collecting a paycheck.
THE BLOCKING AND TACKLING STILL MATTERS
The longer I worked with TQM, the more I realized that most improvements came from
executing fundamentals better. The fundamentals like inventory accuracy, vendor
relationships, supervisor accountability/ training, communications, plant cleanliness, and
customer satisfaction remained at the forefront of a profitable enterprise.
None of those issues were new. TQM as a tool simply gave us a better way to address them.
The results were undeniable. Productivity improved. Warranty performance improved.
Employee turnover improved. Profitability improved. Our operation was eventually
recognized as one of the most improved in a large corporate organization.
The lesson wasn’t that TQM solved our problems. The lesson was that it helped us solve our
problems.
WHAT AI AND OTHER TECHNOLOGY CAN AND CANNOT DO
Today, I suspect AI will create opportunities we can barely imagine.
It will likely help engineering teams work faster. It may improve scheduling, forecasting,
purchasing decisions, and project management. Companies that learn to use these tools
effectively will almost certainly gain advantages.
AI cannot create accountability or build trust between departments. Importantly, it alone
cannot create a culture. It cannot develop leaders or make people care about quality—
These responsibilities remain with management.
For developers evaluating offsite opportunities, that distinction matters. A factory can have
every modern technology available and still struggle if leadership, culture, and operational
discipline are missing. This significant aspect of the feasibility aspect of determining if
offsite construction is for you is very often overlooked. Equally important, “Is this
manufacturer what I need to meet my needs”?
THE RISK OF CHASING SILVER BULLETS
One of the advantages of experience is that you begin to recognize patterns.
Every generation believes it has found the breakthrough that will finally solve the industry’s
problems. Sometimes those breakthroughs are genuinely transformative, but the
organizations that benefit most are the ones that already have strong fundamentals in place.
Technology tends to amplify good management. It rarely replaces it.
THE REAL LESSON
Neither you nor I may ever fully understand every aspect of Agentic AI. That’s okay.
What I have come to understand is that my discomfort with the topic led me to a valuable
reminder. The tools have changed dramatically. The fundamentals have not.
For those evaluating factories, investing in offsite construction, or considering vertical
integration, that may be the most important lesson of all.
Before you ask what technology a factory is using, ask yourself a simpler question:
Are the fundamentals in place?
Because no innovation, no matter how impressive, can compensate for the absence of sound
management, accountability, communication, and execution.
What do you think? Are we sometimes too focused on the newest tools and not focused
enough on the fundamentals that determine whether those tools actually create value?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Bill Murray is a modular manufacturing veteran with more than 40 years of leadership
experience in offsite construction. Through Offsite Innovators, he advises developers,
entrepreneurs, and investors evaluating manufacturing opportunities, factory acquisitions,
and offsite business strategies.
If you’re evaluating an offsite manufacturing opportunity and would like an experienced
operator’s perspective, contact Offsite Innovators
