---
title: You can now ask AI how your factory ran yesterday
description: TrackMyMachines now has an MCP server, so Claude, ChatGPT and Copilot can answer from your machine data. Plus custom dashboards, new TV boards and the Explorer.
---

<https://trackmymachines.com/resources>

# [You can now ask AI how your factory ran yesterday](https://trackmymachines.com/resources/blog/you-can-now-ask-ai-how-your-factory-ran-yesterday)

 Written by [Rowan Easter-Robinson](https://trackmymachines.com/resources/author/rowan-easter-robinson) | Oct 19, 2026, 8:08:33 AM

"Why was our OEE so low yesterday?"

Until now, answering that meant opening a few reports, working out which machines dragged it down and why, and piecing it together before the morning meeting.

From this month, TrackMyMachines customers can type the question into Claude, ChatGPT or Copilot and get an answer from their own machine data.

I'm Rowan, I started TrackMyMachines, and this is the part of our October update I've been most looking forward to telling you about.

## Your machine data, in the AI assistant you already use

We've built an MCP server for TrackMyMachines. MCP (Model Context Protocol) is the standard way AI assistants connect to other systems. Connect it once, and your assistant can read your machine data: utilisation, downtime, performance and OEE, shift by shift.

So you can ask things like:

- How did the lathes run last week?
- How does day shift compare with nights?
- Where is our unexplained downtime coming from?
- Can you write a summary of last week for Monday's meeting?

You can ask about the whole site, one cell or a single machine, going back years. And it's included in TrackMyMachines. There's no AI tier, no credits and no add-on.

I want to be straight about what it is. The assistant isn't guessing from the internet. It reads the same data you see in TrackMyMachines and answers from that. As with any new starter, check anything important against the dashboard. In my experience, though, it's quicker at digging than most of us.

[Find out what you can ask it →](https://trackmymachines.com/mcp)

## Get more of your data into TrackMyMachines

Machine data is only part of the picture. To bring in the rest, TrackMyMachines has an open REST API, which we've been building out, and a good set of connectors for your ERP, MES and other systems. That means work orders and other data can flow into TrackMyMachines automatically, with no retyping. Once it's there, you can ask your AI assistant about it alongside your machine data, or see it all in TrackMyMachines. Data can flow back out to your other systems too.

We're also working on native connectors for the leading ERPs. The aim is one-click integration with the systems you already use, and what we build next depends on what you're running. So if you'd like TrackMyMachines to talk to your ERP, email [hello@trackmymachines.com](mailto:hello@trackmymachines.com) and tell us which one you use. Every native integration we build for one customer is there for the next, so you'd be helping to shape it for everyone.

## What else is in the update

AI gets the headline. But some of my favourite changes are the ones you'll use every day without thinking about it.

### Build your own dashboards

No two factories watch the same numbers. One lives by spindle hours, another by why the machines stopped. So now you build your own dashboard. Pick the report cards you care about, from utilisation and spindle hours to downtime by reason and daily trends, and lay them out on one screen. The numbers you check every shift are waiting for you, not the other way round. This update adds more report types and KPI cards, and you arrange them by dragging and dropping. Dashboards work on your phone too, so the numbers come with you when you're out on the floor.

*A note on the older reports: they're still in the main navigation for now, but we've started moving them out of the way. Over time, we'll replace them with newer reports you can add to your dashboards.*

### TV dashboards, rebuilt for the shop floor

We've also rebuilt the TV dashboards from the ground up, so anyone walking past the screen knows how the floor is doing without asking.

Every machine gets its own tile, showing whether it's running, what job it's on and its utilisation. When a machine stops, its tile turns red and shows how long it's been down and why, whether that's a changeover or a machine fault. You can spot a problem from across the floor and know what you're walking over to.

They're easy to set up and manage, too. Make a board, choose which machines go on it and open it on any screen. When something changes on the floor, change the board yourself. There's no need to call us.

### The Explorer, now for everyone

When a number drops, you know something's wrong but not what. The Explorer is how you find out, and honestly, I don't think there's anything else quite like it. It has tabs for OEE and downtime (with utilisation coming soon), and a breadcrumb trail that takes you down through your sites, areas and machines, right to individual work orders. Wherever you are in that trail, you can switch tabs to see the same selection from another angle, and chart whatever you've picked.

Here's how that plays out. Say OEE dipped last week. On the OEE tab, you can see straight away which machine was lowest. Click into it, and its work orders are ranked, so you know which jobs dragged it down.

Then switch to the downtime tab, still on that machine, and see what ate into its availability. A few clicks take you from "OEE was low" to the reason why. The Explorer is now available to everyone on version 2, and we'll be adding utilisation in the coming weeks and energy a little later.

### A new and improved timeline

The timeline is the heart of TrackMyMachines, so we've given it a proper going-over. Every machine's day sits in one view: the parts it made, its cycles and the reasons it stopped.

The change you'll notice first is part counts. They used to be a row of chevrons, one per part. They were good for seeing when each part came off (automatically tracked), and not so good for answering "how many have we done?"

Now they climb in steps across the run, so total output is obvious at a glance.

### Clearer screens, easier settings

Better contrast and colour make every screen easier to read, and we've reworked the settings pages and navigation so you find what you need faster. We've also been talking to customers who are colour blind, and there are more improvements for them on the way in the coming weeks.

## When you'll get it

**On the version 2 beta?** The October update arrives automatically at the end of Friday 23 October. There's nothing to install. Want it sooner? Email [support@trackmymachines.com](mailto:support@trackmymachines.com) and ask for early access.

**Still on the old version?** We'll move you to version 2 over the next couple of months, and we'll be in touch with you personally before we do. Nothing changes without warning.

**Not using TrackMyMachines yet?** This is a good time to take a look, and I'd be happy to show you around myself. [Book a demo →](https://trackmymachines.com/book-a-demo)

Thank you to everyone on the beta who has lived with our early versions and told us honestly what wasn't working. A lot of this update is down to you.

Rowan

[View full post](https://trackmymachines.com/resources/blog/you-can-now-ask-ai-how-your-factory-ran-yesterday)

```json
{
  "@context" : "http://schema.org",
  "@type" : "BlogPosting",
  "author" : {
    "@type" : "Person",
    "name" : "Rowan Easter-Robinson"
  },
  "dateModified" : "2026-10-19T08:08:33.650Z",
  "datePublished" : "2026-10-19T08:08:33Z",
  "headline" : "You can now ask AI how your factory ran yesterday",
  "image" : {
    "@type" : "ImageObject",
    "height" : 1350,
    "url" : "https://144736776.fs1.hubspotusercontent-eu1.net/hubfs/144736776/p4-2400x1350.png",
    "width" : 2400
  },
  "mainEntityOfPage" : "https://trackmymachines.com/resources/blog/you-can-now-ask-ai-how-your-factory-ran-yesterday",
  "publisher" : {
    "@type" : "Organization",
    "logo" : {
      "@type" : "ImageObject",
      "height" : 60,
      "url" : "/hs/hsstatic/content_shared_assets/static-1.4092/img/default-amp-logo.png",
      "width" : 60
    },
    "name" : "TrackMyMachines - Resources & Insights"
  }
}
```