The monitor in production activity control systems

Abstract

Effective control of manufacturing processes depends on accurate, timely recording of data from the shop floor. Data collected as result of this is translated into information which may be the basis for real-time control or later management decisions. Thus there is a need for a data capture and analysis mechanism which operates reliably, quickly and accurately. This mechanism is called the monitoring function.

The monitoring function comprises of three distinct elements, namely: data capture; data analysis and decision support. The data capture system collects all the relevant information from the shop floor and then this is ‘massaged’ by the data analysis mechanism to produce real-time and historical reports which aid the decision making process in the manufacturing system.

This paper outlines the development of a software tool for the control of the manufacturing operation at the operational level (i.e. quasi real-time) and describes in detail the development and use of software modules to support the monitoring activities within a simulation environment.

Notes

PAUL HIGGINS graduated in Industrial Engineering in 1986 at University College Galway, Ireland. He then worked on ESPRIT project 477 ‘Control Systems for Integrated Manufacturing’ (COSIMA). In this project he was involved in the development of PAC systems for electronics assembly manufacturing and also spent six months with COMAU in Italy working on the development of a PAC system for an FMS. He is currently registered for the degree of Ph.D. while working on an ESPRIT II project entitled ‘Integrated Planning and Control Systems’ (IMPACS) and some other work related to the factory of the future. His research interests include production and inventory management, simulation, scheduling and AI applications in manufacturing.

JIM BROWNE is Director of the Computer Integrated Manufacturing Research Unit at University College Galway. He received his Ph.D. degree from the University of Manchester, England in 1980. His research interests include production planning and control systems. He is a member of IFIP Technical Committee 5 and Working Group 5.7. and Chairman of CIM EUROPE Special Interest Group. He has recently co-authored a book entitled Production Management Systems—A CIM Perspective, published by Addison-Wesley.