Case Study
Manufacturer Digitally Transforms Operations in Only 3 Months, During Pandemic Restrictions
The Challenge
The manufacturer’s product had 50 base models and 400 feature options that were assembled ‘to order’ using a unique method. Over 100,000 part numbers had to be controlled in a manufacturing process that required between three to twenty machining, assembly and test steps. Seventy pieces of machining equipment were required to make the product, including computer numerical control (CNC) lathes and milling machines. Many of the machining steps could be processed on any one of multiple machines. Over 7,000 combinations of machine routings, base models and feature options were possible. This resulted in complex route determination. Uniquely, the assemble-to-order process required an exclusive part number assigned to each work order. Due to restrictions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, the MES system had to be deployed remotely without anyone physically visiting the factory.
Why 42Q
The 42Q MES platform was selected because of its ability to digitally transform the management of manufacturing operations and its variable cost model. It’s cloud-based architecture enabled remote deployment and meant that an on-premise installation was not required, allowing for a rapid implementation cycle, while lowering the total cost of ownership (TCO). Additionally, 42Q could seamlessly integrate with the existing SAP ERP system.
Results
- 42Q was fully deployed and integrated with the customer’s ERP system in only 3 months during the pandemic, without any interruption to production.
- The manufacturing operation was transformed from a paper-based system to a digital MES, without incurring any fixed cost.
- The customer gained real-time access to full traceability, work-in-process, yield and traceability data and reported improvement in key metrics with a quarter of the go-live date.
See How Our Customers are
Transforming Their Businesses
Weir Minerals Reduces Manufacturing Lead Times by up to 30%
Weir Minerals, a part of the Weir Group plc, is a global market leader in the supply of engineered solutions and aftermarket products to the mining industry. Their customers require fast order fulfillment lead times, which are met by manufacturing products as quickly as possible within their 12 core manufacturing plants.
42Q Enables Production Readiness to Double the Volume at Comet’s Penang Facility
Comet’s facility in Penang, Malaysia needed to double the production volume of matching networks within a period of six months. While the manufacturing process itself could support the increase, the manual data collection process had reached the limits of its capability. The company needed to increase efficiency, improve quality, enhance traceability and wanted a single source of truth for all manufacturing data. They decided to implement a Manufacturing Execution System (MES) and eliminate all spreadsheet and paper based processes. They also wanted the system to seamlessly integrate with their ERP system and a variety of manufacturing equipment.
Cloud MES Supports Sophisticated Automation in a High Speed, Highly-Regulated Manufacturing Environment
A global medical device manufacturer had been producing complex Class II medical devices for years, using 42Q as their MES. Now they faced the challenge of manufacturing high-volume Class III medical devices with complex, fully automated production lines. They feared that implementing advanced, high-volume automation using 42Q MES would require significant factory downtime. The new production lines required a high level of sophisticated automation and a manufacturing execution system that supported and seamlessly integrated with such systems.
Digital Factory Transformation with 35,000 Pieces of Manufacturing Equipment Connected in the Cloud
Sanmina manufactures 250 million products per year. More of a challenge is that there are over 200,000 different top-level assemblies produced each year for 700 different OEM customers with up to 20,000 forecast changes per week. The OEMs operate in diverse industries including telecommunications, enterprise computing & storage, industrial and clean technology. A significant amount of production is for medical, aerospace and automotive products with strict regulatory requirements. The existing on-premise MES required significant maintenance and upgrade effort from the IT and operations teams. It was also limited in its ability to manage supply chains beyond the walls of each factory, and was not well suited for factory automation and other IIoT initiatives.
Values & Capabilities
Delivered by Manufacturing Experts
Cloud-Based Technology
Subscription-Based Pricing
Rapid Implementation
Flexible Configuration
Multi-Plant Visibility
Traceability & Genealogy
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