by I2DS | Aug 15, 2019 | Blogs
It is argued that Process Complexity is desirable in most manufacturing operations today because the more complex a process the more difficult it becomes to imitate and thereby gives a competitive advantage. However process complexity is a function of Site Competence. Site competence is the ability of any manufacturing site to handle complex processes and material flows in terms of qualified workforce and equipment. The higher the site competence the easier it is to adapt to a complex process flow.
To achieve a higher Site competence it is desirable to automate the process in terms of equipment and information systems. But as operation becomes more and more automated the material flow becomes synchronized yet complicated at the same time. Preventing and tracking an excursion become a bit of an issue as the level of inspection drops. This situation becomes even tougher for organizations that rely on postponement to achieve mass customization. Since complex operations involve a number of steps such as performing online split and merge, automatic lot routing, lot recipe management and customization at the last stage. There is a requirement of a system that can help track this complex material flow.
I2DS has been able to device a system that is capable of managing the complex material flow in HVM manufacturing and R&D environments. The idea is to integrate the entire process with the application of tailor made information systems such as an MES application. Since the systems are tailor made to the process in reckoning the management of material flow throughout the process becomes simpler to track and easier to control. Having a system like I2DS’ MES working on your factory floor you can forget about missing any excursion in the material flow, starting from Ware-house to your EOL or end of line.
If you have an operation that needs automation and integration, you need to have the best-in-class information systems that are made specifically for your process and functional needs. To achieve a transparent and efficient materials and production flow I2DS’ MES is the right choice for you. So don’t wait for a sign, just e-mail us at info@i2ds.com or hit the Request Live Demo tab on this page.
by I2DS | Jun 10, 2019 | Blogs
The importance of Quality can never be over emphasized. Quality is the most important competitive priority for every Organization, achieving better quality is imperative to stay in the race today. Cost and Quality were considered to be at two different ends of the same continuum i.e. to improve quality meant increasing cost, but over time this view has changed drastically. Improved Quality, achieved through continuous improvement of process has been able to reduce the total Cost function in the long run. Doing things right the first time, managing operations by facts and applying statistical process controls has led to better Quality for Organizations and have reduced costs such as rework, rejection, reverse logistics, labor costs, materials cost and many other costs that contribute to the overall cost function. Practices like Kaizen, Poka Yoke, TQM, Lean Management, JIT management etc. have contributed towards the Quality revolution and have become a part of day-to-day operations for firms world-wide. Information Technology plays a vital role in monitoring and maintaining Quality, doing things right the first time is possible only when the facility has the capability of analyzing quality in real time as the process is performed. I2DS realized this need to monitor and detect quality issues on the go and came up with a unique Manufacturing Excellence solution. This system has the ability to track Quality related issues in real time, assign priority to Quality issues etc. along with many other attributes that make it impossible to miss any Quality Issue. Experts at I2DS have the experience of managing Quality of Product and Process for many global giants, and they understand the importance of Quality, for you. According to Deming ‘85% Quality problems are related to the Process and 15% related to other issues’, our solution helps you monitor all key functional areas of your process and thus achieve better Quality control and improvement. I2DS’ Quality Management system gives you complete control of your entire process and will ensure that you not only improve Quality but you also reduce Costs effectively. If Quality is your number one priority get in touch with us at info@i2ds.com and we will help you achieve Quality Excellence.
by I2DS | Apr 5, 2019 | Blogs
The question stated above seems to be a very valid question, I mean what could be wrong with a factory that is making heaps of money and filling orders in the given lead time? This thought process is common in the minds of conservative managers and can be correct if the industry produces products or services that are labor or skill intensive and cannot be substituted by any kind of automation, one such trade is the Handicraft Industry. However the above perspective is a wrong way of looking at production and automation in general. What we need to look at is how is our industry shaping up, what are the best practices, is there mush room for innovation and automation in our sector? When we begin to ask such questions to ourselves and to our teams, we can gauge the gaps in our armor and thus establish the need for automation in operation of our production units.
MES is an application that has the capability of automating even the most industrialized production facility. MES application integrates your operation and provides you an end-to-end view of your production plant. So we need to analyze our process keeping in mind two very important considerations, present industry benchmarks and future trend towards automation. Even is the future inclination of the industry does not support automation in information processing, we should always remember that every industry has a pioneer and this might be your chance to be a pioneer in your industry.
Let’s try and understand why is an MES application so desirable, does it affect the bottom line, what sort of competitive advantage can you achieve by an MES application? MES applications are closely related to factory operations management, today we will look at these questions from an Operations Management perspective, Operations management is a pillar on which organizations build their competitive advantage. Operations management encompasses the entire organization, expertise in operations management can ensure that the process used by a particular organization remains the best in the industry. Operations Management in manufacturing industry revolves around the idea of managing the process by facts and doing things right the first time. Operations managers have moved from a fire fighting role to a planning role. QBD-Quality By Design, QFD-Quality Function Deployment, SPC-Statistical Process Control and Taguchi’s Quality Function are some of the theories and practices that advocate the involvement of Operations professionals in product planning, product design and process control.
Successful Organizations have realized the importance of Operations Management and Technology. These are the two factors that can make an ordinary operation a very efficient and successful one. An MES application combines both these facets of Operation; it is a combination of Information Technology and Operations Management. Manufacturing Organizations can benefit immensely by the application of MES application, as it provides both automation but also Integration of their entire production process under one comprehensive system. But choosing just any MES application can be very risky and lead to massive losses and develop a negative attitude in the workforce.
To be able to design the perfect MES application, expertise in both Technology and Ops Management are prerequisites. As I mentioned earlier, every manufacturing process has some unique attributes, an MES provider should be able to assess these unique feature and use them in the MES application so as to further benefit the customer’s Organization. I2DS is one such company that can boast of expertise in both Information Technology and Operations Management. The team of experts at I2DS has worked for few of the top organizations world wide and is renowned for its skills in Factory Automation, Information Technology, Data Management and Operation Management. This means that the team does not take any manufacturing process for granted, each process is carefully analyzed to determine the scope and functionality of an MES application.
I2DS brings more to the table than any other MES application provider in the industry. Every MES solution provided is tailor made to suit the present and future technology of the client, with the main aim of making Operation Management more efficient and decision making more concrete. If you also value Technology and Operations Management and believe that your MES application should facilitate these factors, I2DS is the best partner for you. To know more about our solution or to get your process analyzed by our panel of experts, e-mail us at info@i2ds.com or hit the Request Live Demo tab on this webpage and we will get back to you
by I2DS | Feb 23, 2019 | Blogs
Operational Excellence, a lot comes to mind when this term is mentioned, it is what all organizations wish to achieve, and they strive for and are in constant pursuit of. The ends of such a pursuit are pretty clear, which would be becoming the Best-In-Class operation, Profit Maximization, Elevated levels of throughput, Cost minimization and Quality excellence. However, the means of achieving the same are process specific and need to be handled with a great degree of individuality and extreme caution. Management practices like Benchmarking, TQM, Lean etc. will only lead to improved competence, but to achieve operational excellence, the approach cannot be generic, it has to be tailor made to suit your operational set-up and should be as per your internal capabilities and external environment.
Achieving process excellence needs an Organization wide commitment, starting from the very top. When the pursuit of excellence becomes a main focus area of the top management, achieving excellence will become a lot easier. The top management should understand the reasons for having an excellent operation and truly believe that through sustained and coordinated efforts achieving operational excellence is well within reach. Top management should remain pro-technology and understand that one of the key contributors to achieve increasingly better performance is through the application of end-to-end information systems, which have the capability of monitoring, controlling and executing the entire process on a single platform. Information solutions help operations gain clarity and makes coordinated efforts possible. Achieving operational excellence becomes less challenging when the process functions as a single entity, this integration is possible only through information solutions that have the capability of integrating the process right from, receipt of raw materials to dispatch of ready to ship products.
Besides management commitment and technology, there are other key contributors to the pursuit of excellence; they are- employee training/participation, Quality means 0 defects philosophy and management by common sense. These factors are equally important and can mean the difference between success and failure of the entire endeavor. However, for this article my major area of concern remains the importance of technology and even more so the role of IT in the pursuit of Operational Excellence. So coming back to the area of focus, I believe information solutions can help reduce cycle time, operational expense, inventory and operational errors greatly. IT should be considered the foundation for building a strong and profitable process. Top management should consider developing either in-house IT capabilities or if they want to concentrate on core competencies they should consider outsourcing IT, but only to a capable and well equipped partner, with relevant industrial experience and expertise. The major benefit of employing an IT expert is that the resources of the organization could be used to improve issues related to the core competency and an expert can design a process specific solution and provide change management and employee training as well.
Your pursuit for operational excellence can benefit from just one word, which is MES. Yes, MES applications are those information technology applications that provide an integrated platform, which allows the execution of the entire production and QC process on a single system. The MES automates the entire facility and prevents the formation of bottlenecks. An MES application allows for real-time decision making and allows the operations manager to stay ahead of bottlenecks.MES applications are being employed by the best-in-class organizations to increase their throughput and ultimately their profitability. However the level of throughput you are able to attain for your plant depends on the partner you choose for the design and application of MES at your facility. At this point I would recommend that you consider I2DS as your MES design and application partner continue reading and you will know why.
I2DS has the most respected, Factory automation and MES implementation team in the industry. Our experts specialize in MES, Factory Automation, PLC, APC, SPC, Data Tapping, Database Management and RFID Implementation. Our approach to automation is highly professional and customer centric. We believe that every process is unique and the level of automation required varies for each organization. Our experts provide automation solution that is not only leading edge but also highly efficient, there by assisting your team to make your process the Best-In-Class process in your industry. I2DS’ customers have experienced a higher throughput, better flexibility and greater profitability ever since they chose I2DS as their automation partner. Our goal is to provide process specific automation and manage the resultant change; this makes us a preferred partner in the industry today. So if you are in need of Leading Edge automation for your production plant, look no further, I2DS is here to assist you in this endeavor. For getting a better idea of how automation can improve your process and achieve a greater profitability, e-mail us right away at info@i2ds.com or just drop your inquiry in the comment box and we will get back to you.
by I2DS | Jan 31, 2019 | Blogs
Prahlad and Hamel stated in their studies that Data mining is a key attribute, which is essential for applying strategic leverage. The data generated from your process is extremely crucial and helps you develop deeper cognition of the process. If the data generated from the process is carefully analyzed, it could contribute to the overall knowledge base and in-turn lead to a higher competency level. Every process and every organization generates huge volumes of data every day, but is hardly ever put to use, the reason for this is the inability to extract and analyze process data. This can be a fatal error on any organization’s part; in today’s cut-throat competition it is essential to have a deep and profound knowledge about the process and its performance.
Data generated from process equipment and tools is extremely important and needs to be provided to the management for decision making and competency recognition. Tools and equipment provide data that can help you realize the chinks in your process’ armor. This data is highly significant if there is high level of competition in the market or you are looking to become the best-in-class operation. So ask yourself this question- Is my automation application capable of extracting data from my process equipment? If the answer is no, which is the most likely answer, you should reconsider the application in place.
Gurus of performance excellence have always said that any phenomenon that can be measured can be controlled; any measurement produces data, data when collected and processed becomes information, this information when analyzed becomes learning, learning over time leads to knowledge. This process knowledge is what makes an ordinary operation an excellent one. If you fail to collect and manipulate data, then according to the above analogy your process knowledge is incomplete, thus you can never attain your true potential.
Having established the importance of information, now let us consider the ways to harness it and consider how this harnessed information can lead to process knowledge and help achieve the hidden potential. First we need to establish the parameters that are vital to the performance of the Organization from a customer and market perspective. Then we need to collect this data and analyze it for better performance. But data collection and analysis can be cumbersome and time taking when performed manually. This accentuates the need for an automated and integrated system for data collection and analysis, that collects the process data in real time, analyzes it and presents it in the form of information that can aid decision making. The choice of the right technology partner is crucial if you are to achieve the true potential of your process operation.
I2DS can be the right partner for you, it is our mission to provide data in real time from all vital areas of the process, analyze this information and aid speedy decision making, leading to process excellence and better profitability. I2DS can provide you the data that otherwise would have remained hidden in your equipment or process and this helps you get a better more comprehensive view of your process. Our automation team specializes in factory automation, data tapping, EDC and SPC. An automated factory has a comprehensive SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition) application that enables effective HMI or Human Machine Interface. Our wide range of amazingly flexible products is what you require for applications like Tool Integration, Data Tap, SCADA, RFID implementation, SPC and EDC applications. So if you think enhancing your process knowledge can lead to a more profitable operation, I2DS is the best choice. Get in touch with us right away and we will help you realize your true potential, e-mail us at info@i2ds.com or just hit the Request Live Demo tab on this page.
by I2DS | Jan 30, 2019 | Blogs
TQM, Lean, Lean-Six-Sigma and Six Sigma are various theories of Operations Management or management on the whole that are helping organizations become more efficient and profitable around the world. I believe that these theories or management philosophies have a lot in common and should be pursued in spirit. We should try and understand the end goal of these theories rather than trying to implement them blindly without proper consideration. These theories should be treated more like guidelines rather than a set of rules or do’s and don’ts. What all these theories tend to stress on is the reduction of operational costs, increase of throughput, attention to Quality, better relationships and involvement of customers, employees and suppliers and above all the pursuit of sustainable profitability.
These theories lay emphasis on understanding the external environment and internal capabilities and achieving a dynamic equilibrium between the two. The approach to achieving this end goal is different in different theories, but the goal is the same. One major pointer that is emphasized in all modern management theories is that management should be fact based, that management decisions must be based on hard evidence and not managerial whims and fancies. The fact based approach brings me to the topic of my blog, which is implementation of management practices through IT applications.
IT applications can prove to be an effective way to apply and practice management theories. The beauty of such IT applications is that they can be tailor made for your process, which makes it easier for the staff to implement and can help improve the operations in the future. Depending upon the industry, IT applications can be programmed to monitor all vital process metrics, analyze the process performance, impart training, aid communication, facilitate supply chain integration, control production, improve safety, achieve quality excellence and the list can practically go on for ever. We need to understand that IT applications are not and elixir to our problems but are tools that can help us better resolve existing problems that we face on a day-to-day basis.
The idea is to implement IT applications in such a way that they facilitate real-time, fact based and potent decision making at all three levels of decision making i.e. at the Strategic level, Tactical level and at the Operational level. The design of the IT application should be such that it can suffice the decision making needs at all three levels and yet be comprehensive in its reach throughout the Organization. IT can help any organization and at any desired level of management, the need and scope of IT applications remain debatable and are best analyzed when considered for a particular process. My agenda here is to highlight that IT is a great tool because of its speed, agility and accuracy and should be given a consideration by all Organizations who are in pursuit of Operational Excellence and Profitability. I do not believe in following any management theory blindly without understanding its possible outcomes and neither do I promote blind faith in IT as an ultimate cure for all management problems.
I believe it is important to understand what your business needs to achieve the goal it has set for itself, besides the obvious goal of profit maximization. I strongly advocate fact based management and believe the IT applications can help achieve better results in a faster more organized manner. However, it is very important that before jumping to a so called IT solution we analyze our needs both external and internal, we understand the problem areas or pain points and then decide how and to what extent an IT platform can help appease our needs. I would like to conclude by reemphasizing a few pointers that I believe should be a part of any endeavor made towards improving management and improving profitability, they are, never choose a management practice blindly, use management practices as guidelines, try and improve profitability and quality and above all consider IT as a vital tool available to achieve your goals. If you have any questions or comments about this blog feel free to write to us at info@i2ds.com or just leave a comment in the comment box and I will get back to you.
