Fujitsu Japan and Kobe City Waterworks Bureau have jointly developed an AI design audit system for the construction of water supply facilities
Switching from manual audit to AI design checks streamlines and automates the process by detecting water supply facility symbols and other relevant information on construction designs, Fujitsu said.
The system, known as AI Audit Application, is the first of its kind in Japan and will be available from 1 July.
Improving convenience for contractors, reducing staff workload
Kobe City Waterworks Bureau has been actively working on initiatives to improve convenience for its construction contractors. This includes introducing electronic applications and remote auditing for simple water supply facility construction projects for households.
However, the large volume of applications, approximately 6,000 annually, has placed a significant strain on human resources dedicated to manual design audit.
The AI Audit Application utilizes AI-powered image analysis technology to automatically detect approximately 30 types of water supply facility symbols, including information such as pipe diameter, type and installation year, from construction designs.
The detected information is then displayed on the design, along with a list.
Staff members perform a final audit based on the water supply facility construction implementation standards set by Kobe City.
This system is expected to significantly reduce the workload for staff, shorten the time spent for auditing, and improve the accuracy of construction designs through consistent correction instructions to construction contractors.
With a population of around 1.5m, Kobe is Japan’s seventh largest city and third largest port, after Tokyo and Yokohama.
Future plans
Fujitsu Japan said it intends to continue to contribute to solving various social issues through the utilization of AI and digital technologies.
Fujitsu is the top digital services company in Japan by market share. It works in over 100 countries and employs 124,000 staff worldwide.
Its digital transformation services focus on computing, networks, AI, data and security, and converging technologies.
The company recorded revenues of 3.7bn yen (US$26bn) in the fiscal year ending 31 March 2024.
