The broad spectrum of production digitisation
Requirements for MES solutions and the role of manufacturing platforms
Digitalisation in manufacturing presents companies with a wide range of challenges. The pace of change is rapid and the requirements are as heterogeneous as the production landscapes themselves.
Terms such as IIoT, no code, AI and security characterise the discussion – but what does this mean in concrete terms for companies and how can MES solutions (Manufacturing Execution Systems) and manufacturing platforms provide support?
Read the article to find out which strategies and technologies are paving the way to the smart factory.
The complexity of manufacturing digitalisation
Manufacturing has always been a colourful world with a wide variety of requirements. Technical and business heterogeneity as well as proprietary interfaces are not new issues, but have become more important due to the increasing use of digitalisation.
Recently, further far-reaching trends have been added to which manufacturing companies – especially in the DACH region – must react:
- Digitalisation and smart factory: The intelligent networking of machines and systems creates completely new opportunities for automation and increased efficiency.
- Sustainability and CO₂ reduction: Production processes must become more energy-efficient, resource-saving and environmentally friendly.
- Artificial intelligence and data analysis: AI-supported systems optimise planning, maintenance and quality control in real time.
- Shortage of skilled labour and automation: Cobots (collaborative robots) and robot-assisted production processes are possible building blocks for compensating for staff shortages and securing production capacities.
- Resilient supply chains: Global uncertainties make a transparent, digitally supported supply chain indispensable.
- Mass customisation: It must be possible to manufacture customised products in batch sizes of 1 efficiently and without errors.
- Cybersecurity & regulation: Securing IT and OT infrastructures and complying with new legal requirements are becoming increasingly important.
Production environments must become smarter, more networked and more resilient step by step in order to meet these challenges.
Requirements for modern MES solutions
A future-proof MES solution or production platform must meet these requirements and fulfil the following core tasks in addition to proven functionalities relating to detailed production planning, traceability, operational and machine data acquisition, personnel planning, etc:
The role of the cronetworld manufacturing platform
Interoperability is a central cross-cutting issue in the context of these requirements: For sophisticated, comprehensive solution scenarios, it is necessary to expose information and functions from a wide range of data sources such as sensors, ERP, SCADA or PLM systems using established standards from standard applications and then network these with suitable technologies to create new customised, cross-system functions and processes.
By supporting common standards such as OPC UA, REST-API or MQTT, the 360° manufacturing platform cronetworld offers a future-proof integration platform that breaks down data silos and enables networked value creation.
Industrie Informatik’s cronetworld thus extends the classic MES with its tried-and-tested standard functionalities, sophisticated data structures and proven stability to include additional functions and interfaces that enable the required seamless integration into the production landscape.
It offers:
- Technologies for customised workflows and interfaces as well as extensive customisation options in the standard
- Maximum interoperability thanks to an open interface and communication level to implement comprehensive solutions ‘from a single source’
- Extensions through add-ons that address specific requirements without compromising the core functionality of the MES
The combination of a proven MES solution such as cronetwork, the flexibility of cronetworld and strong technology partners for a digital ecosystem creates the basis for future-proof production digitalisation.
“In the end, cronetwork MES from Industrie Informatik impressed us above all with its extreme system openness. This openness in combination with Orchestra as a service bus enables us to set up a distributed shop floor landscape in which we can supplement the MES standard by using third-party products that we have selected according to the principle of the best-of-breed approach.”
Marco Kugel, Team Lead – Smart Factory Solutions, Festool
Think & act across systems
In line with the best-of-breed approach, Industrie Informatik users can combine the best of all worlds in an integrative, high-performance manufacturing platform and thus orchestrate different systems, technologies and applications in ONE system landscape.
To this end, Industrie Informatik relies on carefully selected technology partners in the areas of machine connectivity, Manufacturing Service Bus (MSB), low-code development, time-series & time-series analytics, BI & big data, SCADA/HMI, DNC, tool management, process mining, action management, enterprise expertise and energy management.
These unique best-of-breed solutions enable customised applications for users.
Solution Store
A decisive advantage in this context is the Industrie Informatik Solution Store. Similar to an app store or online shop, it offers direct access to a large number of tried-and-tested and optimised best-practice solutions. These can be installed and used immediately with just a few clicks. This allows companies to benefit from tried-and-tested solutions without having to undertake time-consuming and cost-intensive new developments.
For example, the Solution Store includes digital production modules in the following areas:
Production planning and control (detailed planning & APS):
The use of ready-made solutions from the Solution Store enables immediate optimisation of planning processes, resulting in greater efficiency and better resource utilisation. In addition, analysis tools are available to verify the possible applications of the cronetwork Optimiser and identify potential even before implementation.
Production data acquisition (PDA):
Standardised PDA solutions ensure comprehensive acquisition and analysis of production data, enabling precise monitoring of production. The hybrid terminal, for example, ensures plug & play implementation of data collection on the shop floor. The solution can be used immediately or easily customised to individual requirements using no-code extensions in the standard reporting process.
With the FQA solutions available in the Solution Store (production-related quality assurance), quality controls can be standardised and optimised, leading to a significant reduction in production errors and making the integration of inspection plans on the shop floor easier than ever before.
“The cronetwork Solution Store represents a significant innovation for the manufacturing industry by simplifying and accelerating the implementation and customisability of cronetwork as an MES.
With access to proven best-practice solutions, companies can significantly reduce project planning time, save costs and optimise their production processes in a standardised way.
With the Solution Store from Industrie Informatik, manufacturing companies can achieve a decisive competitive advantage and sustainably increase their efficiency and quality”
Wolfgang Haginger, Head of Sales
The intelligent connection of data, systems and processes is no longer a topic for the future – it is the key to today’s competitiveness in manufacturing.
With an open architecture approach and the best-of-breed principle, Industrie Informatik’s smart factory solutions create the basis for a networked, high-performance and adaptable production world that provides support for current and future challenges – without a vendor lock-in effect.
Anita Peherstorfer
