why use a Manufacturing Execution System?

"I already use an ERP system. Why do I need an MES?"

Virtually all discrete manufacturing companies in every industrial sector manage their business process information within an integrated ERP system or a patchwork of multiple IT systems, including spreadsheets.

The typical areas addressed within these systems are:

• Sales
• Customer Relationship Management
• Finance
• Purchasing/Procurement
• Warehouse/Inventory
• Human Resources
• Quality Management
• Production Planning

Manufacturing companies today face intense economic and competitive pressures -- margins are getting slimmer, customer delivery-time expectations are becoming ever more challenging, and products are becoming more complex while product life cycles are getting shorter.

In many firms, however, detailed and traceable data about key cost drivers in their manufacturing environment is unavailable. Moreover, many production target values that are usually maintained in the ERP system or in spreadsheets are based only on assumptions or past experiences.

Without MES the questions are always the same:

• How accurate and reliable is the actual data feedback from the shop floor (up-times, down-times, yield, scrap, reasons for scrap, utilization, efficiency, effectiveness, etc.)?
• What is the time lag between the actual occurence of shop floor data and its recognition in the ERP-system at the management level?
• What is the actual cost of time and effort required to capture all the data manually, process it, and ultimately provide it to the the upper management level (ERP-system)?
• What causes delivery time problems, when we are not running at full capacity?
• Why doesn´t our profit margin reflect our production output?

The reason: At the shop floor level, there are only limited IT systems, often technically oriented towards machine-control(s) and automation. In some cases, there are no integrated IT systems at all. This creates the need for additional administrative staff and time spent on unnecessary communications, interfacing, telephone enquiries, added paperwork, time delays, and a great deal of walking around and searching. This gap between the management level (ERP systems, APS systems, spreadsheets, etc.) and the shop floor environment creates huge inefficiencies and additional costs in your company´s overall internal performance.

This gap can be closed! The solution is the Manufacturing Execution System, HYDRA!

A standardized and modular MES between the shop floor and the ERP level. The MES HYDRA provides detailed traceable data that ERP systems generally cannot provide. HYDRA is based on mature and modular standard software functionality that has proven itself in a broad range of industrial manufacturing environments. ERP Connectivity: The MES HYDRA provides flexible and reliable data interfaces with the upper management system (such as ERP) and the lower shop floor area (operator terminals and/or machine connectivity). Shop Floor Connectivity (Operators): HYDRA excels in its acceptance by the operators on the shop floor. Its terminal screens are designed to be operated with very little effort. A worker´s experience-level, educational and cultural backgrounds are no longer factors. Shop Floor Connectivity (Machines): Virtually any machine can easily be connected with standardized solutions - from ultramodern works-center or robots, to antiquated manual machines using outdated control technology.

What can we do with it? What benefit does HYDRA bring to us?

PROCESS TRANSPARENCY! The traditional cost accounting model at the management level measures production performance in terms of unit-cost or per-piece-cost. These unit costs contain more than 90% of general overhead costs (material costs not considered!). Further improvements in unit-costs are therefore difficult to achieve regardless of measures taken: new technology in a specific process, reduction in wages, etc. Often, this phenomenon is referred to as "Unit Cost Trap" or the "Per-Piece-Cost Trap".

The process potential along the complete internal value-adding supply chain is extremely huge but, to date, still unexplored by many manufacturing firms. The MES HYDRA now enables you to easily and reliably explore your process potential:

• Where and what are your most common reasons for scrap?
• Where and what are your most common reasons fpr machine downtimes?
• Where do your most common material idle times occur (WIP that is not moving)?
• Who? What? When? Where? How? Why? ... The list could go on with inter-related questions about machines, tools, workplaces, groups, cost centers, production orders, project orders, material (WIP), material batches, processes, QA-issues, staff/personnel, qualifications, etc.

The following graphic shows some typical questions on real life examples that are answered with HYDRA - just a mouseclick away!

AUTOMOTIVE VENDORS, FOOD & BEVERAGE PRODUCERS, PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRIES:

Comply with all your production documentation and material traceability requirements (Automotive: ISO/TS 16949; Food & Beverages / Pharmaceuticals: FDA requirements)

ROLL & COIL MANUFACTURERS:

Trace your rolls and coils, including additional material batches such as those in:
(1) Base paper rolls in printing & packaging
(2) Master coils in metal slitting or carpet rolls, etc.

SUMMARY: HYDRA becomes a strategic tool that you rely on to ensure and enhance your production excellence. It makes your operational areas of PRODUCTION, PERSONNEL and QUALITY extremely transparent and uncovers the most prevalent systematic process disturbances in your environment. By eliminating these unwanted negative process influences, and permanently monitoring the results, the complete process will be improved to the maximum possible, which then translates into improved utilization, effectiveness, efficiency ... and in reduced production costs and eventually in higher turnover and, finally, into higher profits!