Case Study: Rafael Advanced Defense Systems
Case Study: Rafael Advanced Defense Systems
Precision in Defense R&D: How T. Norman Validated Critical Material Alternatives in Minutes
"We asked Leo and got all the information he needed to answer the question, backed by reliable sources from literature (MatWeb, etc). We checked the reference—it was great—accurate and relevant to our question... With Leo, the entire process took about 2 mins to make an informed, data-driven, and confident decision."
"We asked Leo and got all the information he needed to answer the question, backed by reliable sources from literature (MatWeb, etc). We checked the reference—it was great—accurate and relevant to our question... With Leo, the entire process took about 2 mins to make an informed, data-driven, and confident decision."
T. Norman
R&D Mechanical Engineer
About Rafael
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems is Israel's second-largest defense technology company, with over 70 years of pioneering advances in defense solutions for air, land, sea, space, and cyber domains. Founded in 1948 as part of Israel's Ministry of Defense and incorporated as a limited company in 2002, Rafael employs approximately 10,000 people and serves as the largest employer in Northern Israel. The company reported sales of $4.8 billion in 2024 and maintains partnerships with over 100 governmental and defense organizations worldwide. Rafael's innovations include the Iron Dome air defense system.
The Challenge:
High-Stakes Material Validation.
In the high-precision world of defense R&D, material selection is a foundational pillar of product reliability. T. Norman, an R&D Mechanical Engineer at Rafael, recently faced a critical decision: a vendor suggested a cheaper, more available alternative to 4340 steel, a high-strength metal widely used in the company’s products. While the vendor claimed the materials were functionally identical for the project’s specific needs, T. Norman required verified technical data to ensure mission success
High-Stakes Material Validation.
In the high-precision world of defense R&D, material selection is a foundational pillar of product reliability. T. Norman, an R&D Mechanical Engineer at Rafael, recently faced a critical decision: a vendor suggested a cheaper, more available alternative to 4340 steel, a high-strength metal widely used in the company’s products. While the vendor claimed the materials were functionally identical for the project’s specific needs, T. Norman required verified technical data to ensure mission success
High-Stakes Material Validation.
In the high-precision world of defense R&D, material selection is a foundational pillar of product reliability. T. Norman, an R&D Mechanical Engineer at Rafael, recently faced a critical decision: a vendor suggested a cheaper, more available alternative to 4340 steel, a high-strength metal widely used in the company’s products. While the vendor claimed the materials were functionally identical for the project’s specific needs, T. Norman required verified technical data to ensure mission success
High-Stakes Material Validation.
In the high-precision world of defense R&D, material selection is a foundational pillar of product reliability. T. Norman, an R&D Mechanical Engineer at Rafael, recently faced a critical decision: a vendor suggested a cheaper, more available alternative to 4340 steel, a high-strength metal widely used in the company’s products. While the vendor claimed the materials were functionally identical for the project’s specific needs, T. Norman required verified technical data to ensure mission success
High-Stakes Material Validation.
In the high-precision world of defense R&D, material selection is a foundational pillar of product reliability. T. Norman, an R&D Mechanical Engineer at Rafael, recently faced a critical decision: a vendor suggested a cheaper, more available alternative to 4340 steel, a high-strength metal widely used in the company’s products. While the vendor claimed the materials were functionally identical for the project’s specific needs, T. Norman required verified technical data to ensure mission success
The 48-Hour Research Stall
Before using Leo, the engineering team struggled to find a definitive answer using traditional methods:
The Manual Search: One engineer spent 30 minutes a day for two consecutive days scouring Google for a technical comparison
Ineffective Internal Inquiry: Despite asking peers within the department, the team could not find a "satisfying answer" or a direct data-side comparison
The Cost of Uncertainty: Every hour spent searching was an hour lost to design and development, creating a bottleneck in a high-priority workflow
The Solution:
"Have you Leo’ed it?"
Recognizing the stall, T. Norman prompted the engineer to use Leo. The shift from manual search to AI-assisted engineering intelligence transformed the process:
Verified Literature Access: Leo instantly pulled information from reliable technical databases like MatWeb .
Automated Comparison Tables: Rather than manually cross-referencing disparate data points, the team asked Leo to create a comprehensive comparison table between 4340 steel and the vendor’s suggested material .
Direct Reference Checking: The team was able to immediately verify the sources provided by Leo, confirming the data was both accurate and relevant to their specific query .
The implementation of Leo AI has fundamentally changed how HP Indigo approaches the development of its next-generation platforms:
Accelerated Development Cycles: By reducing the "search time" for technical information, the team can focus more on active innovation and testing for the V12.
Enhanced Team Productivity: With dozens of engineers empowered by AI, the collective "IQ" of the organization is amplified. New team members can contribute faster, and senior engineers can focus on high-level strategy rather than answering repetitive technical questions.
Strategic Advantage: The ability to synthesize decades of HP Indigo’s proprietary research allows the team to maintain its competitive edge in the high-speed digital printing market.
The implementation of Leo AI has fundamentally changed how HP Indigo approaches the development of its next-generation platforms:
Accelerated Development Cycles: By reducing the "search time" for technical information, the team can focus more on active innovation and testing for the V12.
Enhanced Team Productivity: With dozens of engineers empowered by AI, the collective "IQ" of the organization is amplified. New team members can contribute faster, and senior engineers can focus on high-level strategy rather than answering repetitive technical questions.
Strategic Advantage: The ability to synthesize decades of HP Indigo’s proprietary research allows the team to maintain its competitive edge in the high-speed digital printing market.
The implementation of Leo AI has fundamentally changed how HP Indigo approaches the development of its next-generation platforms:
Accelerated Development Cycles: By reducing the "search time" for technical information, the team can focus more on active innovation and testing for the V12.
Enhanced Team Productivity: With dozens of engineers empowered by AI, the collective "IQ" of the organization is amplified. New team members can contribute faster, and senior engineers can focus on high-level strategy rather than answering repetitive technical questions.
Strategic Advantage: The ability to synthesize decades of HP Indigo’s proprietary research allows the team to maintain its competitive edge in the high-speed digital printing market.
The implementation of Leo AI has fundamentally changed how HP Indigo approaches the development of its next-generation platforms:
Accelerated Development Cycles: By reducing the "search time" for technical information, the team can focus more on active innovation and testing for the V12.
Enhanced Team Productivity: With dozens of engineers empowered by AI, the collective "IQ" of the organization is amplified. New team members can contribute faster, and senior engineers can focus on high-level strategy rather than answering repetitive technical questions.
Strategic Advantage: The ability to synthesize decades of HP Indigo’s proprietary research allows the team to maintain its competitive edge in the high-speed digital printing market.
The Impact
2 Minutes vs. 2 Days
The integration of Leo into the R&D workflow delivered a radical improvement in efficiency and decision-making confidence:
Rapid Resolution: A research task that had remained unresolved for two days was completed in just two minutes
Informed Decisions: The team could make an "informed, data-driven, and confident decision" based on verified engineering logic rather than vendor claims
Team Excitement: T. Norman noted the experience was "awesome" and that the team was "so excited" to have a tool that eliminated the friction of manual data retrieval
The implementation of Leo AI has fundamentally changed how HP Indigo approaches the development of its next-generation platforms:
Accelerated Development Cycles: By reducing the "search time" for technical information, the team can focus more on active innovation and testing for the V12.
Enhanced Team Productivity: With dozens of engineers empowered by AI, the collective "IQ" of the organization is amplified. New team members can contribute faster, and senior engineers can focus on high-level strategy rather than answering repetitive technical questions.
Strategic Advantage: The ability to synthesize decades of HP Indigo’s proprietary research allows the team to maintain its competitive edge in the high-speed digital printing market.
The implementation of Leo AI has fundamentally changed how HP Indigo approaches the development of its next-generation platforms:
Accelerated Development Cycles: By reducing the "search time" for technical information, the team can focus more on active innovation and testing for the V12.
Enhanced Team Productivity: With dozens of engineers empowered by AI, the collective "IQ" of the organization is amplified. New team members can contribute faster, and senior engineers can focus on high-level strategy rather than answering repetitive technical questions.
Strategic Advantage: The ability to synthesize decades of HP Indigo’s proprietary research allows the team to maintain its competitive edge in the high-speed digital printing market.
The implementation of Leo AI has fundamentally changed how HP Indigo approaches the development of its next-generation platforms:
Accelerated Development Cycles: By reducing the "search time" for technical information, the team can focus more on active innovation and testing for the V12.
Enhanced Team Productivity: With dozens of engineers empowered by AI, the collective "IQ" of the organization is amplified. New team members can contribute faster, and senior engineers can focus on high-level strategy rather than answering repetitive technical questions.
Strategic Advantage: The ability to synthesize decades of HP Indigo’s proprietary research allows the team to maintain its competitive edge in the high-speed digital printing market.
The implementation of Leo AI has fundamentally changed how HP Indigo approaches the development of its next-generation platforms:
Accelerated Development Cycles: By reducing the "search time" for technical information, the team can focus more on active innovation and testing for the V12.
Enhanced Team Productivity: With dozens of engineers empowered by AI, the collective "IQ" of the organization is amplified. New team members can contribute faster, and senior engineers can focus on high-level strategy rather than answering repetitive technical questions.
Strategic Advantage: The ability to synthesize decades of HP Indigo’s proprietary research allows the team to maintain its competitive edge in the high-speed digital printing market.
Conclusion
For T. Norman and the team at Rafael, Leo serves as a critical bridge between raw technical data and actionable engineering decisions. By replacing days of manual research with minutes of verified analysis, Leo ensures that specialized engineering talent remains focused on innovation rather than information retrieval.
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© 2025 Leo AI, Inc.
Subscribe to our engineering newsletter
Be the first to know about Leo's newest capabilities and get practical tips to boost your engineering.
Need help? Join the Leo AI Community
Connect with other engineers, get answers from our team, and request features.
© 2025 Leo AI, Inc.
Subscribe to our engineering newsletter
Be the first to know about Leo's newest capabilities and get practical tips to boost your engineering.
Need help? Join the Leo AI Community
Connect with other engineers, get answers from our team, and request features.
© 2025 Leo AI, Inc.
Subscribe to our engineering newsletter
Be the first to know about Leo's newest capabilities and get practical tips to boost your engineering.
Need help? Join the Leo AI Community
Connect with other engineers, get answers from our team, and request features.
© 2025 Leo AI, Inc.
