MES systems provide real-time data to control manufacturing processes more effectively, according to ITS (Industrial Technology Systems), which offers MES systems for both the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. They gather data from the sales/ordering process, provide instructions to the operators and equipment and communicate the production status, material consumption, quality control and maintenance data to the management team. The real-time data allows companies to monitor plant conditions and respond quickly, to drive increases in productivity and improvements in product quality so that management teams can identify areas for improvement.
An MES system is often used alongside an ERP (enterprise resource planning) system, which IT service provider Pyramid Solutions describes as software used to manage operational activity such as plant scheduling, order processing and inventory management. While an ERP system is mostly focused on scheduling and quantitative analysis, MES manages the actual shop-floor process and operations of the production line in real–time.
In preparing for an MES system, Mark Taylor, business development director (energy), says ITS assesses whether a new corporate IT infrastructure is required to support it. The process also entails developing an understanding where the data needs to be saved and stored in the long-term, and as well establish how it could be used in a reporting process like continuous improvement.
DATA SPEC
“We would seek to understand how to get the data from the control systems, and the frequency with which we should be gathering the elements of data. It’s about developing an understanding those sorts of things from the beginning of the process flow from the raw materials and stock order coming in, right the way through to the finished goods going out the door.”
Once an MES system has been set up, it can lower costs for these smaller businesses, claims Alex Smith, MES business consultant - Europe at Cimlogic. “A lot of companies are capacity-locked in their machines for a variety of reasons like labour, so if you remove that issue and increase throughput and capacity, you are making more in that same time frame. If you have gone from 20,000 to 50,000 units a week, you are getting more out of those assets than you were before, which is driving down costs.”
Another benefit is visibility, as it allows a company to receive an alert somewhere down the production line.
However, Smith advises that the benefits of the technology are different for each situation. For example, a company struggling with machine downtime could use a small-scale MES system performance module to identify the recurring issues and prioritise the most severe ones. The user could then solve the challenges according to their priority, which in turn would lead to an increase in throughput.
Elaborating further on the benefits of the technology, Taylor adds that MES systems can help businesses understand the location of bottlenecks within the process – and therefore where they might benefit from extra capacity. “A company may find that adding a second piece of equipment to an existing job could lead to twice the throughput without affecting anything else in the business. You can look at your production throughputs and history of faults or rejects to help enhance the business.”
With these benefits in mind, are small-scale MES systems less complex than their large-scale counterparts? Smith says: “They can be, but we aim to make all our projects as simple as possible. With the small-scale subscription model, we could have a Cimbox, a wireless data collection device, in a matter of weeks, and then we could deploy it similarly.”
Taylor concurs. He refers to track and trace as an essential component for an unnamed manufacturer whose blocks of cheese had to be cut down, packaged and sent to supermarkets. “Each of the bags can be traced back to the main block, because if there were ever a product recall, you would need to know what other bags went out from that main block that may have some level of contamination,” Taylor continues. “Not all MES systems need this track and trace capability, but it is certainly good practice in the regulated industries.”
STARTING SMALL
The large upfront costs associated with MES (manufacturing execution systems) have deterred some smaller companies from using the technology, but Cimlogic offers a more affordable alternative via subscription.
According to Smith, the upfront cost to an installation will depend on the number of production line or assets and the type of functionality that the client is looking for, whether that be OEE (overall equipment effectiveness) or maintenance, for example.
“For a relatively small installation you’re looking at anywhere between £50,000 to £100,000. It’s possible that for a single site wanting a fully-integrated MES with full functionality, the costs would be north of seven figures,” he adds.
Also, Cimlogic offers a platform developed by Parsec Automation called TrakSYS that helps simplify the management of manufacturing operations. It allows users to utilise pre-configured solutions or create their own using web-based configuration tools. Users can create a traceability solution that manages the flow of materials through the value chain by date and supplier, while a separate batch process lets them manage tasks and assets. TrakSYS also helps manage maintenance activities and intervals by creating an overview of equipment faults, their frequencies and root causes.
Another essential aspect of a small-scale MES system is the IT infrastructure. Smith states that a company looking to obtain OEE data would need to make sure they get the information back. This process can be carried out using programmable logic controllers, but some smaller companies do not have their manufacturing network linked to them.
STEPPING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION
While the technology includes a range of cost and production benefits, both companies offer long-term support to help customers fully transition to an MES system.
Cimlogic uses return-on-investment metrics for projects to develop a roadmap that identifies the steps that a company may need to take to integrate the technology. Smith explains that customers often want to look at performance and OEE data initially because it gives visibility of what is happening between an ERP system sending an order through to completion.
“A food and beverage or pharmaceutical company may be looking to move away from a paper quality-based system to an electronic one because there are a lot of benefits around auditing. However, no two journeys are the same, and we tell our customers that there are a lot of opportunities, so it is about working with them to uncover those.”
Similarly, Taylor explains that ITS provides workshops to help clients understand the finer elements of the whole process and the cost of integrating an MES system. “We provide the best solution for the client, not the one that is best for us to integrate, because we also want to look into the future of where they may want to take that product. The business may want to deploy the MES system at all sites and have several production lines or it could be rolled out to all other production facilities in the country or the world.”