According to SCW.AI’s OEE benchmarking study for the pharmaceutical industry, the performance gap between fully digitized and traditional factories is striking. Digitized pharmaceutical plants operate at an average OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) of 60%, compared to just 37% for typical facilities. This efficiency delta represents a 20%–30% potential increase in productivity—an opportunity that remains largely untapped.
Despite this potential, only 2%–3% of pharmaceutical manufacturing sites can be considered fully digitized today. The vast majority remain in the early phases of digital transformation, as highlighted by Mike Walker, Executive Director of Global Healthcare and Life Sciences Digital Strategy at Microsoft.
To close this gap, pharma manufacturers need software built specifically for their industry—solutions that are not only compliant and robust but also quick to deploy and fast to generate returns.
SCW.AI’s pharmaceutical manufacturing software was designed to meet these exact demands. In this article, we will explore how SCW.AI supports pharmaceutical manufacturers with real-world use cases and proven results. We will show how companies can unlock over 20% productivity gains within just 12 months.
SCW.AI Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Software: An Introduction
SCW.AI’s pharmaceutical manufacturing software, known as the Digital Factory Platform, is an end-to-end solution designed specifically for the pharmaceutical industry. It addresses the full spectrum of digital transformation needs—from data acquisition and automation to intelligent decision-making and paperless quality compliance.
This modular, cloud-based platform is built for flexibility. Each component functions seamlessly with the others, enabling cross-departmental collaboration and unlocking a wide range of use cases. At the same time, manufacturers can choose to deploy modules individually, depending on the digital maturity and priorities of their shop floor.
Here is the modules of our pharmaceutical manufacturing software:
- Monitoring: Real-time visibility into machines, production lines, personnel, and assets—all in a unified interface.
- Execution: Streamlined issue tracking, digital task management, and real-time lean management boards for efficient daily operations.
- Compliance: Digitized, audit-ready records to meet FDA, EMA, and other GMP regulatory requirements—replacing paper-heavy processes.
- Planning: AI-powered production scheduling that enables planners to respond in real time with data-driven, agile plans.
- Sustainability: Enables effective monitoring and reduction of energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.
Powering these modules are advanced technologies including IoT, manufacturing analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning (ML). Together, they enable automated data collection, contextual visualization, and intelligent automation—critical capabilities for the next generation of pharma manufacturing.
Monitoring: Know What Happens in Your Factory
SCW.AI’s pharmaceutical manufacturing software delivers real-time visibility into production lines, equipment, and workforce operations. With this level of insight, manufacturers can quickly identify inefficiencies, track key performance indicators, and drive informed decision-making.
Historically, many of these tasks were managed using paper-based systems or Excel spreadsheets—methods that are prone to delay, inconsistency, and human error. SCW.AI replaces these outdated tools with intelligent digital solutions that bring precision, speed, and scalability.
The Monitoring pillar of SCW.AI’s Digital Factory Platform is built on three key components:
OEE Tracker
The OEE Tracker module is specifically engineered to empower pharmaceutical manufacturers in conducting scientific root cause analyses and implementing robust operational excellence initiatives. To this end, it delivers critical insights through a comprehensive suite of manufacturing analytics, focusing on manufacturing KPIs related to resource effectiveness, production quality, machine/environmental factors, and the real-time status of production lines, individual machines, as well as work orders.
The system offers the necessary data granularity to cater to the information needs of personnel across all levels, from shop floor operators and supervisors to senior executives and plant managers, accessible with intuitive ease. This is facilitated by a well designed data architecture, providing insights ranging from global facility overviews down to granular, single-machine level performance metrics, as demonstrated in the video below.
Beyond the provision of real-time operational intelligence, the OEE Tracker leverages embedded AI capabilities to generate personalized and proactive reports for relevant personnel. This includes automated anomaly detection, such as identifying machines operating below their expected cycle time, instances of unplanned downtime, or productivity losses within specific processes or production lines. Furthermore, the system supports scheduled reporting for designated lines or work orders. The AI-powered Production Insights ensure that critical information requiring immediate attention is automatically delivered to the appropriate stakeholders, enabling timely intervention and optimization.
Labor Tracker
Labor Tracker delivers a comprehensive view of workforce productivity by capturing and analyzing real-time labor performance data.
Use cases include:
- Comparison of actual working hours vs. paid time per employee
- Performance tracking for pre-run, run, and post-run tasks
- Historical trend analysis by worker, team, or shift
- Identification of training needs and opportunities
- Labor scheduling optimization based on task-specific strengths
Asset Tracker
Asset Tracker eliminates the time lost searching for movable equipment across the facility. With real-time location tracking and status monitoring, teams can instantly locate tools, carts, instruments, or any tagged assets on the shop floor.
Benefits include:
- Faster asset retrieval
- Improved utilization
- Reduced downtime due to missing equipment
- Real-time accountability
Execution: Solutions for Smart Lean Management
Managing day-to-day operations on a pharmaceutical shop floor with paper forms or spreadsheets is inherently inefficient. Issues arise constantly, yet without digital tools, assigning actions, tracking progress, and ensuring accountability becomes a fragmented process. Tasks are often skipped, completed incorrectly, or delayed—leading to repeated problem-solving cycles, time-consuming daily meetings, and a lack of institutional memory.
SCW.AI’s Execution modules are designed to solve these pain points by digitizing and structuring shop floor operations. They promote transparency, accountability, and continuous improvement across teams.
The Execution pillar includes the following components:
Action Tracker
Action Tracker provides a centralized digital interface for capturing shop floor issues and assigning follow-up actions in real time.
Key features:
- Managers can assign tasks with clear descriptions, deadlines, and digital SOPs
- Actions can be linked to specific equipment, lines, or processes
- Built-in tracking ensures accountability from assignment to resolution
- All issues and corrective actions are logged, creating a searchable corporate knowledge base
As this historical data grows, manufacturers can leverage it to train AI models for automated task assignment, transforming reactive management into proactive decision-making.
Process Tracker
Pharmaceutical operations often involve complex, multi-step tasks that must be executed precisely to maintain GMP compliance. Process Tracker ensures consistency through digital work instructions that standardize execution across shifts and teams.
Benefits include:
- Step-by-step digital instructions enriched with videos, images, documents, and checklists
- Improved training for new workers with intuitive, multimedia SOPs
- Task-specific guidance—for example:
- Visual aids for calibration steps
- Instructional videos for machine setup
- Reduced risk of errors and enhanced audit readiness
Digital Boards
Tiered daily meetings are a cornerstone of lean management in pharma environments. But traditional tools—whiteboards, sticky notes, T-cards—consume time and offer little real-time insight. SCW.AI’s Digital SQCDP and Kamishibai Boards bring these rituals into the digital era.
Digital SQCDP Boards
Pull real-time data from factory systems to highlight deviations in safety, quality, cost, delivery, and people metrics—helping teams focus where it matters most.
Kamishibai Boards
- Clearly display task assignments, responsible personnel, and due dates in a user-friendly interface.
- Through integration with Action Tracker and Process Tracker, workers can immediately access task instructions when beginning their shift.
Compliance: From Paper Overload to Good Manufacturing Practices
In the highly regulated pharmaceutical industry, maintaining compliance with FDA and EMA standards is non-negotiable. Batch records, logbooks, and other documentation must follow ALCOA+ data integrity principles to ensure every entry is attributable, legible, contemporaneous, original, and accurate.
Traditional paper-based systems struggle to keep up with these demands—introducing delays, increasing error rates, and leaving manufacturers exposed to compliance risks. SCW.AI’s pharmaceutical manufacturing software addresses this gap with GMP-compliant digital quality solutions that simplify documentation, improve data reliability, and increase efficiency.
Key Benefits of SCW.AI’s Paperless Quality Solutions:
- Accelerated Log Entry: Reduce log entry time by up to 85% using smart forms, conditional workflows, and automated calculations.
- Fewer Data Entry Errors: Lower error rates by 85% with automated data capture, mandatory input fields, and built-in validation rules.
- ALCOA+ Compliance by Design: Ensure regulatory adherence through features like e-signatures, secure access control, audit trails, and document versioning.
- Smart Rule-Based Quality Automation: Configure rules that reflect real-time equipment and room states—for example, auto-transition equipment from clean to dirty after a defined period—creating critical checkpoints that prevent non-compliant actions.
Planning: Generate, Agile and Cost Effective Production Schedules
For pharmaceutical manufacturers, job shop scheduling is a complex balancing act—juggling tight deadlines, resource constraints, changeovers, and compliance requirements. Traditional planning tools often fall short, especially in dynamic manufacturing environments where manufacturing agility is critical.
SCW.AI’s Scheduler module empowers planners with AI-driven Advanced Planning and Scheduling (APS) tools designed specifically for pharmaceutical operations. This module enables manufacturers to generate optimized schedules aligned with real-world constraints and shifting business priorities.
Key Capabilities of the Scheduler Module
- AI-Powered Optimization: Generate production schedules with one click based on different business goals, including:
- Minimizing changeovers
- Maximizing OTIF (On-Time In-Full) performance
- Enabling just-in-time production
- Reducing production costs and more
- Scenario-Based Planning: Planners can select the objective that best fits current operational needs and instantly view its impact on KPIs.
- Interactive Schedule Tuning: A digital interface allows for fine-tuning and real-time adjustments based on capacity, resource availability, and labor availability—eliminating the guesswork from daily scheduling.
Sustainability: Track Your GHG Emissions
Sustainability is no longer optional in pharmaceutical manufacturing. According to WEF, the pharmaceutical sector emits more greenhouse gases per dollar of revenue than the automotive industry. With tightening global regulations, carbon emissions now translate directly into financial impact through carbon taxes and mandatory reporting requirements.
SCW.AI’s Digital Factory Platform enables pharmaceutical manufacturers to actively track and manage their carbon footprint. The platform provides real-time visibility into emissions generated across equipment, lines, and processes. In parallel, it automatically calculates the estimated carbon tax based on current output, helping companies understand the direct cost of emissions as they happen.
Beyond real-time tracking, the system maintains a complete historical record of emissions data, allowing sustainability teams to analyze trends, identify inefficiencies, and measure progress over time. With this level of insight, manufacturers can make targeted interventions to reduce energy use and emissions at the source—turning environmental responsibility into operational advantage.
Embrace the Future of Pharmaceutical Manufacturing with SCW.AI
For over a decade, SCW.AI has helped pharmaceutical manufacturers across five continents transform their operations through digital innovation. From the beginning, our mission has been clear: to shape the future of pharmaceutical manufacturing with purpose-built, scalable technology.
Our team combines deep pharmaceutical industry expertise with cutting-edge digital engineering to deliver solutions tailored to the specific challenges of pharma shop floors. Whether you are just beginning your digital transformation or scaling up an existing initiative, SCW.AI’s modular platform is designed for fast deployment and measurable impact—often delivering visible results in under 100 days.
Learn more about how our pharmaceutical manufacturing software can support your goals by reaching out to our team.
Want to experience the Digital Factory firsthand? Book a demo today and see what the future of pharma manufacturing looks like in action.
