Ultimate Guide to Manufacturing Execution Systems
In this article, I will take you, step by step through each of the stages required to set up and implement an MES in your manufacturing organisation. Overview Step 1 – Creating a Secure Networked Factory Step 2 – Communicating with Devices Step 3 – Connecting Manufacturing Processes Step 4 – Improving Your Business with Production Data Analytics Overview We are currently experiencing the 4th Industrial Revolution. Machines and manual operations are being connected, bringing the benefits of automation to entire production processes and factories. An overview of the 4 Industrial Revolutions (Source: Wikipedia) A MES is one way to […] Read more
Manufacturing Capacity Planning Tools
How To Do Manufacturing Capacity Planning An overview of the theory behind capacity planning, and tools that are available to help aid more effective manufacturing capacity planning. However, as the manufacturing process becomes more complicated, it can be time-consuming and frustrating to manually perform capacity planning calculations. This often leads to sub-optimal capacity planning which either disappoints customers or underutilises resources. Both of these results will have a negative effect on company sales and reputation. So, in this article, we’ll take a look at some of the tools available to help perform more effective capacity planning. Tool #1 – Excel […] Read more
7 Ways to Grow With an MES
Investing in new production processes is a major step for any business. It requires balancing of the costs in time and money versus the benefits the business will reap in the future. Using an MES helps you succeed by focusing on what your customer wants at every point on the shop floor. Here, I’ve summarised some of the key benefits our manufacturing clients have realised following their adoption of paperless manufacturing software. Business Growth By using an MES, the specific sequence of tasks required for reliable, repeatable production processes become defined for your business. As the business grows, this helps […] Read more
What Are Manufacturing Travelers in 2020?
There are still lots of traditional manufacturing travelers and paper work instructions causing problems in otherwise innovative and successful manufacturing businesses. So in this article, we’ll explore why they are used and what alternatives do manufacturing companies have? What Are Manufacturing Travelers? A traveler is a paper document pack that follows a product throughout the factory. It is used to record every manufacturing operation that has been completed. It is also used to record batch numbers, serial numbers and key numeric data from the manufacturing process. Recording this information is a critical step that must be completed in industries that […] Read more
Digitalising Manufacturing
I visited the Manufacturing Technology Centre in Coventry for a Digitalising Manufacturing Conference, where I had the chance to discuss the benefits that digital manufacturing can bring to manufacturing businesses, and also some of the roadblocks to its full adoption in the UK. Impact of Digital Manufacturing Carlos Lopez Gomez discussed the results of an Innovate UK funded study into the impacts of Digital Manufacturing globally. The study is aiming to collect and analyse evidence on the potential improvements from digital manufacturing. Most predictions of improved manufacturing productivity have focussed on expected, rather than observed impacts. So this Study is […] Read more
LabVIEW Web Vis
Modern Business Need Data Across the Organisation Web interfaces to engineering software applications is a key requirement of modern applications. Control, test and monitoring applications that perform specific tasks in an engineering business, used to focus on that task and store their data locally. The primary user of the application would benefit from the tasks performed and the data acquired. However, other stakeholders in the business would find it difficult to access this information. One of the main benefits of Industry 4.0 is the free availability of manufacturing data throughout an organisation, to aid decision making at all levels. For […] Read more
New MES Features to Improve Manufacturing Productivity and Quality
We’ve had a busy couple of months at Metis Automation developing new MES features for our flagship paperless manufacturing software product Tascus. In January, we began a series of customer interviews to get feedback on what features we could add that would bring value to manufacturers. As a result, we have recently added the following features: Display smart work instructions. These can populate with values taken from step measurements. This makes it easier for your production operators to follow complex work instructions and reduces the chance of errors. Display work instructions with CAD models. This means that you can cut out […] Read more
February 2018 LabVIEW User Group Review
Metis Automation hosted the North West LabVIEW User Group at sensor City Liverpool on February 5th, 2018. During this fun and educational event LabVIEW developers from all over the North West met to discuss their current challenges and learn from the sessions. Time Critical Communications for Industrial Robotics Peter Whiteley, Metis Automation presented a fascinating session about the progression of a project involving remote control of an industrial robot. He explained how the software had developed to meet harsh environmental challenges found when operating the robot in remote areas. He explained the solution that we finally implemented involved using UDP […] Read more
Metis Automation to Present at NI IIoT Roadshow
Metis Automation will present practical case studies and experiences of implementing IIoT and Industry 4.0 projects at this free one-day educational seminar hosted by National Instruments. The event will be on 28 March 2018 from 08:30 – 16:30 at Coventry Manufacturing Technology Centre. Event Details This event is for engineers and engineering managers with an interest in implementing an IIoT solution. Implementing the Industrial Internet of Things and achieving its benefits can’t be done alone. No single engineer has all the answers, and no one vendor has all the tools. But, through collaboration, the IIoT’s promises of increased uptime, enhanced […] Read more
Industry 4.0
Industry 4.0 (otherwise known as connected manufacturing)was developed in Germany as a proposed way for SME manufacturers to remain competitive and relevant in the future. German business leaders recognised that their factories could not compete with low-cost manufacturing abroad, so they decided to develop new and innovative techniques to stay competitive. Key Features of Industry 4.0: Digitally connected production systems Paperless factories with fewer overheads More responsive manufacturing businesses Process automation that speeds manufacturing processes Supply chain automation to integrate with customers and suppliers Key Results: Software, Hardware, Integration & Support Service 30% boost in productivity, as a result of increased […] Read more