Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings Corporation (MCHC; Head office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Hitoshi Ochi) today announced the establishment of the Image Analysis Center of Excellence (CoE*) within the Digital Transformation (DX) Group of the Emerging Technology & Business Development Office (ETBDO) to further the use of image analysis. The CoE operates groupwide, leveraging deep learning to assist decision making and better understand tasks requiring image data-based assessments.
Deep learning has evolved greatly in recent years, particularly on the image analysis front, fueling expectations for objectivizing and automating image-based decision making. It is against this backdrop that the MCHC Group has undertaken numerous tasks to date to evaluate images, notably from inspecting product quality and manufacturing facilities and understanding materials.
The new CoE will consolidate the MCHC Group’s image analysis technique expertise, develop image data acquisition and annotation methodologies, and accelerate image analysis initiatives. It will help the Group create solutions and best practices through projects that apply data-driven image analysis techniques and then employ these solutions and practices across the entire Group.
The CoE will:
• Standardize product and facility inspections and reduce visual inspection workload
• Better understand materials and facilities and more effectively automate feature extraction
• Generate new value by providing empirical quality standards for products and services
MCHC has undertaken various collaborative digital projects groupwide that leverage image analysis since creating the DX Group within the ETBDO in 2017. The MCHC Group will continue to harness internal and external DX resources to strengthen its business.
* CoE refers to an entity that focuses on specific fields and develops advanced research and development activities, while serving as a stimulus for human resource development and business creation. The Image Analysis Center of Excellence is the fourth one following the Text Mining, Materials Informatics, and Mathematical Optimization centers of excellence. MCHC draws on artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things in various aspects of its operations to innovate and streamline businesses groupwide.