Exterior Material Manufacturer Asahi Sangyo Co., Ltd. Launches AI Demand Forecasting and Operations Service "Deep Predictor"

AI CROSS Inc. (Minato-ku, Tokyo, Representative Director & CEO: Noriko Harada, hereinafter "AI CROSS") has provided its AI demand forecasting service "Deep Predictor" to Asahi Sangyo Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Toda-shi, Saitama, hereinafter "Asahi Sangyo"). Through this implementation via sales agent Ricoh Japan Co., Ltd., Asahi Sangyo began operations in May 2026 at its headquarters and its Osaka location. This implementation aims to support the sophistication of demand forecasting and ordering operations, eliminate reliance on individual expertise, and achieve both "prevention of stockouts" and "reduction of excess inventory."

Background of Implementation: Sophisticating "Ordering Decisions" and Eliminating Reliance on Individual Expertise at a Building Material Manufacturer Handling Diverse Products

Since its founding in 1976, Asahi Sangyo has been a specialized manufacturer that manufactures and sells protective covers for insulation materials and decorative exterior materials used in piping and air conditioning systems, supporting everything from housing to large buildings, plants, and major projects. In addition to its four domestic locations, including its headquarters, Osaka branch/factory, Fukuoka sales office, and Sapporo sales office/factory, it also has a manufacturing base in Thailand (ASAHI HASEGAWA CO., LTD.), ensuring a stable supply of a wide variety of exterior materials.

Across the industry, "balancing the prevention of stockouts with the reduction of excess inventory" and "eliminating reliance on individual expertise for ordering decisions" are becoming common management themes for manufacturing companies. The "2025 Monozukuri White Paper" (Note 1) by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, among others, indicates the need to shift manufacturing industry planning operations from relying on the experience of personnel to data-driven decision-making. However, according to a survey by PwC Consulting LLC (Note 2), only 25% of Japanese companies are utilizing AI in their supply chain domain, and even in the sales and demand planning domain, where adoption is most advanced, the figure remains at 18%, indicating that the application of AI to operations that tend to be individualized is still in its early stages.

In light of this situation, Asahi Sangyo made the management decision to rebuild its individualized ordering operations with AI demand forecasting and decided to implement AI CROSS's "Deep Predictor," commencing full-scale operations in the demand forecasting domain at its headquarters and Osaka locations.

Comment from Asahi Sangyo Co., Ltd.

Regarding this implementation, Mr. Sato, Managing Director of Asahi Sangyo Co., Ltd., provided the following comment:

Challenges Before Implementation - Reliance on Individual Expertise and Stockouts Occurring for Approximately 20 Items Monthly

"Our ordering operations are currently managed by one person, and the ordering process takes about 3 hours per instance. The approach to ordering was heavily influenced by the thinking of the person in charge at the time, and I felt it was becoming overly reliant on individual expertise. While the ordering quantity is calculated using the logic of 'monthly average calculated from multi-year data x lead time from order to arrival + alpha x monthly coefficient,' even with a slight buffer in inventory, we were experiencing stockouts for about 20 items each month out of approximately 1,055 items handled, and I didn't feel we were accurately forecasting demand."

Reason for Selecting "Deep Predictor"

"I was strongly interested in Deep Predictor's ability to select relevant external factors, potentially around 7,000 types, and incorporate them into demand forecasting for our business. It felt like a truly effective approach to demand forecasting. When we shared the demand forecasting and operational challenges we faced, the AI CROSS representative showed a high level of understanding, and I felt they were a reliable partner to consult with compared to other companies. As our discussions progressed, I realized the flexibility of both the service and their support system."

Expected Effects and Future Outlook

"Through this implementation, we first expect a reduction in stockouts and a shortening of ordering operation time. Concurrently, we will work on advancing inventory management for internally manufactured products, discerning external information that impacts the industry, and standardizing the individualized ordering approach within the company."

Features of "Deep Predictor"

"Deep Predictor" is an AI demand forecasting and operations service provided by AI CROSS. By learning past shipment, order, and inventory data, it continuously forecasts demand for each item, supporting decision-making for optimizing orders and inventory.

This service is characterized by the following:

End-to-End Support for Demand Forecasting and Ordering: It goes beyond simply providing a demand forecasting model, supporting the entire process from calculating order quantities to post-processing according to business rules.

Balancing "Stockout Prevention" and "Excess Inventory Reduction": It quantitatively evaluates the balance between stockout risk and inventory burden, supporting the consideration of optimal order quantities tailored to item characteristics.

Explainable Ordering Rationale: It visualizes the data that forms the basis for forecast results and order quantities, standardizing individualized ordering decisions to be data-driven.

Fit for Business Operations: Designed with integration into existing business flows and core systems in mind, it allows for a gradual expansion of its application scope while minimizing the operational burden on the field.

Future Outlook

Through this implementation, AI CROSS will support Asahi Sangyo in achieving efficiency in ordering operations and eliminating reliance on individual expertise. Specifically, as "Deep Predictor" is utilized in actual ordering operations, AI CROSS will continuously enhance the resolution of the rationale for order quantities and, by deepening its understanding of Asahi Sangyo's ordering operations, will provide support alongside the sales agent to propose more efficient order quantities.

Starting with its use in demand forecasting and ordering operations at the headquarters and Osaka locations, AI CROSS will continuously discuss the possibility of expanding the scope of target operations, items, and locations with Asahi Sangyo while verifying the effects. Furthermore, by providing "Deep Predictor," AI CROSS aims to evolve decision-making in fields such as manufacturing, which tends to rely on "experience and intuition," into something more transparent and reproducible through AI, thereby contributing to the strengthening of companies' sustainable competitiveness.

【What is Deep Predictor】

The AI demand forecasting and operations service "Deep Predictor" is based on the concept of "Any Prediction, Easily for Anyone," and is designed to support high-precision forecasting and decision-making by enabling on-site personnel without specialized knowledge to utilize their existing data.

Its feature is that it generates outputs directly applicable to business operations, not just predictions, and is designed as an "AI that can be used immediately in the field."

View Details

*1: Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology "2025 Monozukuri White Paper" (May 2025)

https://www.meti.go.jp/report/whitepaper/mono/2025/index.html

*2: PwC Consulting LLC "2025 Survey on AI Utilization in Supply Chains" (November 2025)

https://www.pwc.com/jp/ja/knowledge/thoughtleadership/ai-in-supply-chains-survey2025.html

【Company Profile of AI CROSS Inc.】

Company Name: AI CROSS Inc. (Securities Code: 4476)

Location: Toranomon 4-3-1, Minato-ku, Tokyo, Toranomon Trust Tower 20F

Representative: Noriko Harada, Representative Director & CEO

Established: March 2015

Business Activities: With the philosophy of "Smart Work, Smart Life," the company supports business efficiency and productivity improvement through technologies such as SMS/RCS distribution and AI predictive analysis, and generative AI implementation support. Listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Growth Market in 2019.

Corporate Site: https://aicross.co.jp/

【Company Profile of Asahi Sangyo Co., Ltd.】

Company Name: Asahi Sangyo Co., Ltd.

Location: Niizominami 4-1-5, Toda-shi, Saitama (Headquarters)

Representative: Masato Hasegawa, Representative Director and President

Founded: August 1976 (Showa 51)

Business Activities: Manufacturing and sales of various insulation material protective covers, air conditioning pipe protective covers, decorative exterior materials, etc. A specialized manufacturer of exterior materials that meets diverse exterior needs with advanced technical capabilities, from housing to buildings, plants, and major projects.

Corporate Site: https://www.asahi-sangyou.co.jp/

Inquiries Regarding This Matter

Company Name: AI CROSS Inc.

Contact: Public Relations Abdul

TEL: 050-1745-3057

E-mail: pr@aicross.co.jp

AI CROSS Inc.

AI CROSS Inc. is a company that provides messaging services for corporations and AI-powered solutions. Its main services include the SMS distribution service "Zettai Reach! SMS," the RCS distribution platform "Zettai Reach! RCS," and various AI-powered data analysis services such as "Deep Predictor," supporting business efficiency and smooth customer communication for companies.