Machine Integration: Digitize Your Shop Floor

Countless interfaces in a fragmented system landscape pose a significant challenge for the processing industry. A clean machine connection, enabled by intelligently networked production, provides customized solutions for demonstrable successes. Comprehensive shop floor digitization can optimally unify communication between the shop floor, control level, and planning level. Real-time data offers you new levels of transparency within your company.

A good machine connection helps avoid issues related to machine maintenance and operation. Machine downtimes, production failures, quality, and safety issues are among the most common preventable problems.

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What Tasks does Machine Connectivity Perform?

Machine data acquisition gathers, stores, and shares information. Authentic information can only be generated when the correct data is captured. To do this, various controls and communication protocols must be connected. This is precisely where machine connectivity comes into play, operating across different machines and technologies.

Machine connectivity can be roughly divided into two areas

  • Simple and unidirectional communication: Through machine connectivity, signals are provided to the MES (Manufacturing Execution System).
  • Bidirectional communication: With interlocks, ID transfers, and the transmission of target values, there is an intervention in the production process.

These Issues can be Avoided with good Machine Connectivity

  1. Machine Downtimes: A good machine connection can help prevent unexpected machine failures by continuously monitoring the machine's condition and suggesting or performing maintenance as needed.
  2. Production Failures: If machines are not functioning correctly, there can be production stoppages, leading to significant losses. A robust machine connection can help prevent such failures by timely identifying and rectifying issues.
  3. Quality Issues: Poor machine connectivity can result in quality issues as machines might not be operating optimally or might be misconfigured. Good machine connectivity can help avoid such problems by monitoring the machines and making adjustments as necessary.
  4. Safety Issues: Insufficient machine connectivity can lead to safety concerns due to potential accidents or injuries. An effective machine connection can help prevent such problems by monitoring the machines and issuing warnings when safety risks emerge.

Overall, good machine connectivity can enhance machine performance, boost productivity, and reduce operational costs by timely detecting and addressing issues.

What Value does Machine Connectivity Offer?

Die Maschinenanbindung bietet Ihrem Unternehmen eine ganzheitliche, lückenlose Vernetzung. Mittels zukunftsweisender Digitalstrategie erhalten Sie einen effizienten Datenaustausch. So können dank Maschinenanbindung Optimierungspotenziale identifiziert und im Zuge dessen planerische und operative Prozesse laufend optimiert werden.

At a glance – these are the advantages of machine connectivity

  • Extensive Data Collection: Machine statuses and piece counts are automatically and comprehensively captured through machine connectivity.
  • Detailed Information: Companies receive detailed information about acceptable and rejected quantities, disturbances, downtimes, and plant runtimes.
  • Storage of Your Process Data: You can securely store bulk data, either cyclically or based on triggers, in time-series databases.
  • Immediate Communication: Direct communication is established between SAP and the plants.
  • Reduced Dependency: You become far less dependent on individual machine manufacturers, allowing for more flexibility in operations.
  • Standardization: The heterogeneous landscape of machines, interfaces, protocols, and network systems is structurally unified.

Prerequisites for Machine Integration

Firstly, it is crucial to define the individual purpose of machine connectivity. For instance, using unidirectional data exchange, you can store process values for the order. With bidirectional communication, you can transfer IDs or send target values. To establish clean machine connectivity, the first step involves connecting the plants to a network. If there's no existing Ethernet interface, especially in older control systems, a communication module can be added. Once all the plants are connected, the correct communication protocol is still required. Various capture options are available for machine connectivity, ensuring high data quality for deliveries and analyses.

Step-By-Step-Guide to Successful Machine Integration

Discover individually scalable solutions for your shopfloor digitization through efficient machine integration.
  • Machine types: Initially, it is essential to determine the machine types that are present in the machine park and the available communication interfaces.
  • Volume Framework: Next, the volume framework is connected. Crucially, decide whether you want to simply read out data and make it available to the MES system or control process sequences and provide them in a standardized manner to subsystems.
  • The right connection tool: Complex requirements can be realized if the right connection tool is selected individually for your application.
  • The Signal List: To finally implement machine connectivity, all parameters of the signals to be tapped, such as the type of communication, machine and control type, communication direction from the MDE perspective, or the signal category, are defined in the signal list.

Unrestricted Machine Integration with MK|Performance

For seamless and unrestricted machine integration in your company, our MK|Ware software, MK|Performance, is the ideal solution. Thanks to the clear dashboard, you always have an overview of the overall equipment effectiveness of your workplaces – vividly and in real-time. For better quality and efficiency in your production processes.

Do you have further questions about our products? Then contact us via our contact form. We look forward to your inquiry and will gladly advise you in detail about the possibilities of our MK|Ware products.