Automation engineers are under increasing pressure to keep production running while managing ever more complex systems. Every minute of downtime counts, but critical technical information is often spread across multiple tools, manuals and data sources, slowing down troubleshooting and impacting productivity. Festo has introduced its new AI-powered Virtual Assistant to give engineers and maintenance teams immediate access to reliable technical answers, helping them resolve issues faster and keep operations moving.
The Festo Virtual Assistant is an AI-powered online tool developed specifically for industrial automation applications. It delivers context-related answers to technical queries in seconds, enabling users to move more quickly from problem identification to resolution without the need to manually search multiple data sources.
Unlike general-purpose AI systems, the Virtual Assistant operates exclusively on verified Festo data sources, including datasheets, manuals, technical documentation and engineering tools. It ensures that all outputs are based on reliable, application-relevant information. The Virtual Assistant is designed to interpret technical context, allowing it to respond to engineering queries with a high degree of accuracy.
By consolidating information typically spread across multiple systems into a single interface, the Virtual Assistant simplifies access to engineering knowledge for users in automation, electrical, maintenance and industrial IT roles. It supports a broad range of applications, including fault diagnosis, component selection, access to technical standards and retrieval of product data. Besides offering best practice solutions, it provides direct links to Festo engineering tools for sizing or simulation and helps with machine troubleshooting.
Available 24/7, the Virtual Assistant is ideal for continuous production environments, providing support across shifts, including nights and weekends. This enables engineers to access technical guidance at the point of need, without delay.
Users can describe technical issues in their own words, as though they were talking to a colleague. The more precise the question, the more specific the answer will be. No additional training is required, making it simple to adopt this AI tool within existing workflows.
User queries remain within Festo’s secure infrastructure. The Virtual Assistant complies with data privacy legislation and relevant regulatory requirements, including the EU AI Act.
Commenting on the launch, Javier Güell, Festo Sales AI Solutions, said: “Engineers’ time is best used to solve problems, not to spend hours searching for information. However, increasing system complexity and fragmented data sources often make that unavoidable. The Festo Virtual Assistant helps redress that balance by searching multiple sources in seconds, enabling engineers to focus on their core role of designing new solutions, keeping systems running and optimising performance.”
The Festo Virtual Assistant is available via the Festo website. It is free to use and can be accessed using an existing Festo login or through a simple registration process.