The "He Said, She Said" Problem: 50% of downtime root cause meetings are wasted arguing about what actually happened. Was it a jam? Was the operator late?
Visual Data vs. Sensor Data: Sensors tell you when the machine stopped. Only video tells you why.
The 2026 Standard: The best tools don't just record 24/7 footage (like a security camera). They integrate with the PLC to automatically "clip and tag" the exact moments of downtime for instant review.
"I think the bottle fell over."
"No, I think the gripper failed."
How many morning meetings end with this debate?
In manufacturing, Root Cause Analysis (RCA) often relies on memory. But human memory is flawed, especially during a stressful 2 AM breakdown.
Legacy cameras (CCTV) are useless for process improvement because no one has time to scrub through 8 hours of footage to find a 2-minute stop.
In 2026, Manufacturing Video Analysis Software has changed the game. It connects the Camera to the Machine Controller (PLC).
Trigger: The machine faults (Error 505).
Action: The software instantly clips the last 60 seconds of video.
Result: You have an "Instant Replay" of the failure, ready to watch on your tablet.
Here are the 5 best tools to help you stop guessing and start seeing.
| Software | Best For... | Trigger Method | AI Analysis? | Maintenance Integration |
| 1. Fabrico | OEE + Video (Unified) | PLC / OEE Signal | Yes (Root Cause) | Direct (Work Orders) |
| 2. Drishti | Manual Assembly | AI Motion Tracking | High (Human Focus) | Low |
| 3. Poka | Training & Knowledge | Manual Recording | Tagging Only | Medium |
| 4. Spot.ai | Security / General | Motion / Continuous | Object Detection | None |
| 5. Sight Machine | Enterprise Data | Data Correlation | Limited Video | Low |
Verdict: The best choice for manufacturers who want to link Video Evidence directly to OEE and Maintenance.
Fabrico doesn't sell "cameras"; it sells Truth. Its "Inefficiencies Zoom-In" module is designed specifically for high-speed production. It buffers video continuously, but only saves the clips that matter—the stops, the slow cycles, and the jams.
The "Game Tape" Approach: Just like a sports coach watches game tape to fix a player's form, Fabrico lets you watch "Downtime Tape" to fix your line's performance.
AI Root Cause: The Fabrico Agent (AI) watches the clip with you. It can identify patterns (e.g., "The operator was missing during 80% of stops") that you might miss.
Closed Loop: You don't just watch the video. You click "Create Work Order" right from the video player to dispatch a technician to fix the loose rail you just saw.
Best For: Automated production lines (Bottling, Packaging, Converting) where speed makes visual inspection impossible.
Verdict: The world leader in analyzing human motion on manual assembly lines.
Drishti uses AI to digitize the old "Time and Motion" study. It watches an operator's hands to ensure they are following the Standard Work sequence.
Cycle Time Pacing: It tells you exactly how long each step (Pick, Place, Screw) took, down to the millisecond.
Error Proofing: If an operator misses a step (e.g., forgets to install a washer), Drishti can alert them instantly.
Human Focus: It is designed for manual stations, not for diagnosing high-speed machine jams inside a guard cage.
Privacy: Requires careful change management to ensure workers don't feel "spied on."
Best For: Automotive manual assembly and intricate electronics work.
Verdict: The best tool for capturing video knowledge, rather than analyzing live process video.
Poka is not an automated camera system; it is a tool for workers to use their iPads to film problems. "Hey guys, look at this belt, it's fraying."
Knowledge Sharing: Excellent for building a library of "How-To" videos for new hires.
Collaboration: Workers can comment on videos, tagging maintenance or engineering for help.
Manual Trigger: If the operator doesn't pull out the iPad and hit record, you have no video. It misses the sudden, unexpected breakdowns.
No OEE Sync: The video is not automatically time-stamped to the machine's performance data.
Best For: Training, shift handovers, and capturing tribal knowledge.
Verdict: Great for general facility visibility, but lacks manufacturing context.
Spot.ai is a modern "Video Intelligence" platform often used for security. It makes searching through footage incredibly fast.
Searchability: You can type "Forklift" or "Person in red vest" and find all clips instantly.
Ease of Install: Works with almost any IP camera you already have.
No PLC Link: It doesn't know that Line 1 just had an "Error 505." You have to manually search for the time of the breakdown.
Security Focus: Features are designed for theft prevention and safety, not OEE optimization.
Best For: Safety audits and facility security.
Verdict: A data platform that can ingest video streams to correlate with massive datasets.
Sight Machine is an enterprise analytics tool. It can take video data (like thermal imaging) and overlay it with process parameters.
Deep Science: Great for complex correlations (e.g., "When the thermal camera shows >100°C, yield drops 2%").
Enterprise Scale: Handles massive data lakes.
Not an Operational Tool: It is for data scientists, not for the shift supervisor trying to figure out why the packer is jammed.
Cost: High entry point.
Best For: Complex process industries (Glass, Steel) using thermal or spectral imaging.
You cannot improve what you cannot see.
If you need to analyze Manual Assembly, choose Drishti.
If you need Training Videos, choose Poka.
If you need to Automate Root Cause Analysis for your machines using OEE-triggered video, Fabrico is the unified solution for 2026.
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