Smart Manufacturing / OEE Monitoring

Benefits of a SMART Factory

With IoE, people and equipment work cooperatively. Thanks to this, a new factory-wide free flow of data can now identify weak points in the manufacturing process that previously eluded us. With new technology combining and collecting data in a way that can be better understood, we can move away from assumptions and educated guesses to more quickly and confidently find solutions that improve not only the efficiency of the line but simultaneously empower the workforce to make smarter and faster decisions.

Efficient Skilled Labor Organization

It is not new news that the manufacturing industry is currently experience a significant skills gap and labor shortage. In order to maximize human productivity in a line where skilled and unskilled labor coexist, "visualization" and organization of all of the worker’s abilities is the first step. With a smart factory, skills such as "work you can do" and "work you can not do" are mapped out for each individual worker. This mapping is then incorporated within the "home position" system, and each worker returns to this home position whenever a task is finished. By accumulating the task history of each worker, it becomes possible to see the entire workflow, identify skill gaps, and then formulate a training schedule, accordingly.

Connecting New & Old Equipment

By connecting all equipment, despite its age, JTEKT has the ability to sync the whole line with no data gaps. Implementing IoE technology into new and existing machines improves the manufacturing process by gathering as much information as possible from all equipment - identifying weaknesses that before were unable to be tracked.

Increasing Productivity

Unlike large companies, smaller shops typically lack tool management rooms and production engineering department – leaving few resources to study and maximize the efficiency of the line’s production process. A connected factory allows smaller shops to now be able to see a machine’s status – making proactive changes towards shorter cycle times and better facility productivity. By collecting accurate operation information for the facility, it is possible to establish an optimal production plan.

Keeping the Machine Running

It is important to check preventive maintenance before the equipment stops abnormally. JTEKT's edge-type analysis module "TOYOPUC-AAA" collects, accumulates, and analyzes data on the operation status of facilities. Since we can now analytically manage the operation status of each facility, we can now identify the weaknesses of the facility and improve cycle times. Once we know the deterioration and the service life, we can proactively plan for replacements in advance so we do not have to stop the machine.