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November 15, 2024

7 steps to choose the best Floor Control System (digital plant transformation)

Gone are the days when having a Floor Control System was only for world-class companies, thanks to the growth of in-plant connectivity and digital transformation, customised developments to the size required and the wide range of options available.

The difficulty now is choosing which system will deliver the best results from the range of options on the market. For your peace of mind, we have summarised seven elements to look out for in order to make the best decision.

1. Do a realistic self-analysis
The first thing is to assess your current production level, how many shifts (or hours) your machines are working, define what you think your bottleneck is, how your storage or distribution capacity is when you increase your production, what infrastructure and personnel you have available to install a Floor Control System and define the budget you have to do it.

2. Identify market standards
By this we mean the measurement indicators (OEE, Downtime, NOEE) that are used in your industry. In our experience, more than 90% of companies measure Total Machine Effectiveness (OEE), including world-class companies. That's why we recommend you look for software that already has such measurement built in and has experience in proposing improvements.

(Click here to learn all about OEE)

3. Choose an experiencia company
Applying formulas to measure these indicators can be done by anyone with basic systems knowledge. But understanding what the numbers say, bringing to the table solutions that have worked in other companies, detecting early and preventing a future loss, based on experiential knowledge, will make a huge difference in time and money. Check what experiences you have with other customers, with a simple list and you will know if you can support them in this issue.

(Click here to find out what we have learnt from manufacturing in Colombia)

4. Look for a tool that you can customise to your needs
Some tools allow you to start with a basic module that can be adjusted to measure and control particular needs. Some software comes with modules that can approximate your company's current reporting, but they often get in the way of organising the information in the way that is best for you. That's why finding software that can be customised to your specific needs will be more efficient. You need to understand the difference between flexible software and customised software. Customised software requires years of development and implementation, flexible software allows you to build on the best practices of the market for your organisation.

5. Work with multidisciplinary teams
It is not difficult to get to know how the team that will provide you with the Floor Control System is made up, and the ideal is to know which talent is going to lead you to increase your productivity and to know to what extent they will be able to guide you. That is why we recommend that you look for suppliers that have the following people: Systems Engineers, Developers, Electrical Engineers and Account Executives with manufacturing experience.

6. Do not make the initial adaptations traumatic and costly.
To avoid setting up a whole infrastructure dedicated to intercommunicating the language of different brands of PLCs and machines, setting up interconnection licenses and extra servers for the connectivity of different brands, choose a supplier that can work with any brand and that can process the information itself, so that you do not have to limit yourself in the purchase of unnecessary equipment and licenses as your company grows.

7. Make sure the supplier does research and development.
The manufacturing industry is advancing hand in hand with the internet and robotics and it is essential that your Floor Control supplier is up to speed and is taking care of research and development. This will ensure you always have a cutting edge product and can open doors to early stage equipment that will give you an advantage over your competitors.

(Click here if you want to know how to succeed in the digital transformation of factories)

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By following these seven steps, you will be able to identify the ally that will take you further on the path to increased productivity and performance, based on the interpretation of captured data and production control.

 

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