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Plant
Enterprise. Orchestrated.
Plant Operations encompass a diverse range of activities focused on maintaining efficient production, ensuring quality, and maximizing productivity. Key areas within the plant include Continuous Improvement, Data Monitoring and Analysis, Equipment and Machinery, Inventory Management, Maintenance and Repairs, Process Optimization, Quality Control, Resource Management, Safety, and Environmental Compliance.
From a factory manager's perspective, demand planning, CRM (Customer Relationship Management), ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), MES (Manufacturing Execution System), SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition), and meeting the production plan collectively form the backbone of a well-orchestrated manufacturing operation.
In summary, these components collectively empower a factory manager to navigate the complexities of modern manufacturing, from anticipating customer needs to optimizing production processes and ensuring the seamless execution of the production plan.
Alexicon specializes in providing consulting services for business and manufacturing applications and data. In various data domains, business and technical data often constitute a single Company process.
Human-Machine Interface (HMI) screens are used in Industrial Manufacturing, Water and Wastewater Treatment, Power, Gas Extraction, Oil Refinery, Chemical, Coal-powered, Nuclear Power and other industries to control industrial processes. Analytics provide Plant visibility across the entire production process and subprocesses.
Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) is a type of control system used to monitor and control industrial processes and critical infrastructure. SCADA systems combine hardware and software to collect and analyze real-time data from sensors and devices, enabling operators to monitor and control industrial processes from a central location.
SCADA and HMI systems serve as integral components in the integration of Smart Factories. These applications, from status review to control, operate in real-time. Here is a snapshot of an "Ignition" (Inductive Automation) HMI screen displayed on a smartphone.
We look across the enterprise business and manufacturing process considering upstream and downstream analytics and control to improve productivity, quality and lead times.
Below is an Ignition SCADA simple example for a Level 3 Production Control screen (easy-to-design), which does not directly control the process, but is concerned with monitoring production and targets. This level utilizes a computer management system known as MES or manufacturing execution system. MES monitors the entire manufacturing process in a plant or factory from the raw materials to the finished product.
Software Application Users
On the business-side, factories work on Manufacturing Work Orders which come from ERP Sales Orders (Make to Order) or from a Production Planning module for non-order specific finished goods inventory. Understanding data in factories is key to progressing towards being a smart factory. Unlike the centralized ERP, factories have many local critical software applications and machines running. In addition to SCADA efficiency and effectiveness, Smart Factories depend on quick turnaround times for engineering and production or manufacturing changes (Δ) affecting Production Order schedules.
Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) - OpenAI | ChatGPT
MES systems should collect machine data as it plays a crucial role in improving the efficiency and effectiveness of manufacturing processes. By collecting machine data, an MES system can provide real-time visibility into the performance of machines and identify any issues or deviations from the expected performance. This information can be used to optimize machine utilization, reduce downtime, improve quality, and increase overall productivity.
The machine data that an MES system collects can include information such as machine status, production rates, cycle times, downtime reasons, and quality metrics. This data can be collected automatically from machines through sensors, programmable logic controllers (PLCs), or other data collection devices. The MES system can then analyze this data to provide insights and actionable information to operators, supervisors, and managers.
Overall, collecting machine data is an essential function of an MES system, as it enables manufacturers to make data-driven decisions and continuously improve their manufacturing processes.
The networking of embedded production systems and dynamic business and engineering processes enables the profitable manufacture of products, even for individual customer requests, down to a batch size of 1. The technical basis is cyber-physical systems , which means that both physical production objects and their virtual image in a centralized system (see also digital twin). In the broader context, the Internet of Things is often mentioned. Part of this future scenario is still the communication between the product (e.g., workpiece) and the production plant. The product brings its own production information in machine-readable form, e.g., B. on a RFID chip. This data is used to control the product's path through the production facility and the individual production steps. Experiments are currently being carried out with other transmission technologies such as WLAN, Bluetooth, color coding or QR codes.
Smart Manufacturing Analytics
Smart manufacturing leverages big data analytics for refining complex processes and supply chain management. Big data analytics involves handling large datasets based on the three V's: velocity, variety, and volume. Velocity refers to the speed of data acquisition, which can be concurrent with applying previous data. Variety encompasses the diverse types of data handled, while volume represents the data amount. This approach enables enterprises to predict demand and anticipate design changes, shifting from reactive responses to proactive decision-making.
Factories work on Manufacturing Work Orders which come from ERP Sales Orders (Make to Order) or from a Production Planning module for non-order specific finished goods inventory. Understanding data in factories is key to progressing towards being a smart factory. Unlike the centralized ERP, factories have many local critical software applications and machines running. In addition to SCADA efficiency and effectiveness, Smart Factories depend on quick turnaround times for engineering and production or manufacturing changes (Δ) affecting Production Order schedules.
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