Episode 12 of The Downtime, a weekly manufacturing podcast from WTWH Media, was published on July 10, 2025. This episode features Webster Industries’ digital transformation with Epicor software, Antares Vision Group’s artificial visual inspection platform, AI-GO, and its use in packaging.
About The Downtime’s co-hosts
The Downtime is a weekly manufacturing podcast from WTWH Media that features insights from its automation and controls publications. It’s co-hosted by Wynn, who serves as the senior editor (digital) for Packaging OEM, and Kasprzak, who is the managing editor for Plant Engineering, Control Engineering, and Consulting-Specifying Engineer.
You can find new episodes every Thursday on this website, along with SoundCloud, Spotify, and YouTube.
Digital transformation and AI inspection in manufacturing: Episode 12 highlights
On today’s show, the co-hosts spoke with Deb Anderson, chief information officer at Webster Industries, about the company’s technology modernization.
Based in Tiffin, Ohio, Webster specializes in engineered conveying and processing equipment. The team moved from an on-premises ERP system to cloud-based Epicor software in 2017, a switch driven by improved internet reliability and evolving technology needs.
“Moving to the cloud when you’re on premises can be a little bit frightening,” said Anderson. “But I would highly recommend making that change, because it has saved us a significant amount of time and money.”
The company now automates EDI processes and digitizes accounts payable and customer purchase orders, eliminating the need for paper filing and freeing up funds. Cloud software has also streamlined acquisition integration, including the recent onboarding of a business in Michigan.
“Our go-forward spend on capital equipment for servers has drastically decreased,” Anderson explained. “Our time can now be spent on things that can help us as a company move forward.”
The episode also touches on Antares Vision Group’s new inspection platform, AI-GO. Developed with Oròbix, the system uses artificial intelligence to detect defects like glass fragments, cosmetic flaws, and foreign bodies.
The system includes built-in learning technologies, making it adaptable for various formats and products. Read more about AI-GO here.
Show lineup for The Downtime Episode 12: Digital Transformation
00:17 – The co-hosts introduce the episode
00:45 – Kasprzak introduces the topic of digital transformation with Deb Anderson, CIO at Webster Industries, a 150-year-old manufacturer
03:57 – The co-hosts speak with Deb Anderson about Webster’s move from an on-premises ERP system to a cloud-based platform
18:16 – The co-hosts thank Deb for sharing Webster Industries’ digital modernization
18:40 – Wynn recaps Antares Vision Group’s AI-GO system, an AI-powered vision inspection platform for quality control
21:25 – Kasprzak discusses the role of augmented and virtual reality technologies in modern manufacturing environments
24:15 – The co-hosts chat about whether they could train using VR headsets
26:17 – The duo wrap-ups and sign off
Check out The Downtime’s archive!
Episode 1: Packaging + Robots + Tariffs, Oh, My!
Episode 5: Thinking Inside the Box
Episode 6: Conveyance, Copilots & College Grads
Episode 7: Running on AI and Coffee
Episode 10: Manufacturing Fun!
