Manufacturing Execution Software (MES)

Never before have the demands placed on those responsible for managing production (manufacturing and assembly) been so great. Cycle times must be shortened to compensate for the greater transport distances required to bring goods to market. Yields must be improved to reduce rework and scrap. Plant labor hours must be reduced. Machine life must be extended to reduce/postpone capital spending. Customers require on-line access to product genealogy data to support their own customer service initiatives. 

The solution? Exacta® Link™ Manufacturing Execution Software (MES). Cognizant of the fact that today’s operations managers need and want to fill the communication gap between their production planning system (e.g. ERP Manufacturing Module; MRP) and the machines on the shop floor, ASAP Automation’s industrial engineers and software developers designed a suite of modules that, together, integrate the most popular tools and methods used to effect production and provide up-to-the-minute data and information to plant employees in a format that is both useful and easy to understand. Then, they developed the methods and protocols necessary to connect these modules to a wide range of ERP/MRP packages and, through PLC or PC-based control technology, to an equally wide range of production and testing equipment.

Exacta® Link™ Manufacturing Execution Software (MES)

  • Planning System Interface:  real-time or near-real time connection/data and information transfer between Exacta Link ™ MES and your ERP or MRP via socket communications, shared tables or flat files.
  • Work Order Management:  the scheduling of all work orders in the system using client-approved scheduling algorithms or, in conjunction with our optional Broadcast Receiver, sequencing instructions supplied by our client’s customer(s).
  • Inventory Management:  develops, stores, and maintains the details of each lot or unit of inventory, including raw materials, purchased parts, WIP and finished goods.
  • Workstation Management:  based on the schedule and “recipe and time” information supplied by the client (through our Exacta® Manager™ administration) module, creates and reports each workstation’s schedule and provides the operators at those stations with set-up (e.g. tooling) information to control the run.
  • Data Collection Module: automatically (through PLC or PC-based controls) receives and stores the product genealogy data produces by production and audit and testing machines.
  • Exception Management: Reports unexpected events that affect the production plan to supervisors and managers via e-mail and/or alarms.
  • Statistical Process Control Reporting Module: Real-time reports available through our Exacta® Manager™  Administration Module
  • Time and Attendance Reporting Module: reporting on a per shift, daily, weekly and monthly basis and again made available though our Exacta® Manager™  Administration Module
  • Document Management Module:  controls/displays the drawings, photos and written instructions used by employees to accomplish production at individual workstations.
  • Maintenance Management Module: tracks machine use and, based on client supplied business rules, and directs the activities of the maintenance department to ensure equipment and tool availability (information passed to Workstation Management Module).
  • Labor Management Module: provides real-time status of personnel.
  • Performance Analysis: Real-time reporting of actual mfg operations results compared to history, goals etc.

Benefits from using Manufacturing Execution Software(MES):

  • Reduce manufacturing cycle time
  • Reduce or eliminate date entry time
  • Reduce work in process
  • Reduce or eliminate paperwork between shifts
  • Reduce overall lead times
  • Improve product quality
  • Eliminate lost paperwork
  • Empower plant operations personnel
  • Improve the planning process
  • Improve customer service