How to Achieve IEC Standard
First, what is IEC standard?
The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is an international standards organisation that prepares and publishes international standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies. Recognised by the WTO (World Trade Organization), it is the international body that establishes agreed rules and oversees their enforcement. Manufacturers across the world that have achieved certification will be recognised as having systems and processes that can be trusted by customers, and are working in line with an industry recognised model for efficient manufacturing operations.
As mentioned in the first blog in this series, (What is MES?), the IEC 62264 “Enterprise-Control System Integration” set of standards, also known as DIN EN 62264, goes into detail about the definition of MES systems.
It defines the functional hierarchy of enterprise technology.
- Level 0 is the production process;
- Level 1 covers control of process or machinery and data acquisition;
- Level 2 covers automated monitoring and control of the production process, including batch control, continuous control and discrete control;
- Level 3 is MES –Manufacturing Execution Systems, covering manufacturing operations management and planning and scheduling
- Level 4 is business planning and logistics – the overarching ERP system.
A Level 3 MES system at IEC 62264 standards will undertake planning of the production processes, including:
- Order processing
- Resource planning
- Order processing
- Resource planning
- Quality requirements; management, in real-time, including:
- Ensuring availability of resources,
- Materials flow,
- Quality and
- Tracking
- Analysis and evaluation, including:
- Inventory control
- KPIs
- Continuous improvement practices and processes.
An IEC 62264 MES is the manufacturing company’s template for how the entire manufacturing process should be managed. It addresses the questions of:
- Specification management (How should this be done)
- Resource management (What, where and who)
- Detailed scheduling (When, where and who)
- Execution management (What is being done/what needs to be done, when, where and by whom)
- Data acquisition and tracking (When, where and by whom)
- Data analysis (How was it done)
IEC 62264 MES
Manufacturing Operations Management (MOM) is a software solution that can be used to achieve the operational standards set out in IEC 62264. MES (Manufacturing Execution Solution) combines both manufacturing operational management and advanced planning and scheduling into one solution to manage a company’s entire manufacturing outfit. Finding a software solution that has been designed with IEC standards in mind will enable manufacturers to work towards an established model for efficient manufacturing.
MOM, in turn, consists of four key functions:
- Production
- Operations
- Maintenance
- Quality operations management
Production resource management focuses on resources that are needed for production, as its name suggests. Those resources include:
- Machinery,
- Tools,
- Staff (and expertise),
- Materials
- Energy
Quality resources include and specify the necessary:
- Staff (and certified expertise) requirements
- Materials
- Equipment
Likewise, maintenance resource management specifies the resources required for its function.
Detailed scheduling functions cover the creation of time-related demands and sequences for optimised utilisation of local resources.
Detailed scheduling functions include:
- Detailed production
- Quality test
- Maintenance
- Inventory scheduling
Similarly, dispatching covers and manages:
- Quality test
- Maintenance
- Inventory dispatching.
Execution management optimises the production process, based on schedules, orders and compliance with standards. Machine data collection and employee tracking enables insight and analysis into where losses can be minimised and output maximised.
All of these activities can be done manually but that is time-consuming, very vulnerable to human error and is an exercise in fire-fighting and chasing the rabbit; events in real-time are always out of reach. It is also possible to have different, dedicated management software to perform each function but that will require a lot of management time to reconcile the different reports and activities.
The advantage of LYNQ MES
LYNQ MES covers all these functions, designed to fit IEC 62264 standards, in a single, plug-and-play solution. It makes manufacturing operations management simpler, faster and more transparent, in real-time, and thus improves control, quality and effectiveness. Designed, developed and deployed for a fraction of the typical cost of an MES solution, LYNQ accelerates digital transformation and automation initiatives to achieve delivery, quality and financial goals.
In the next piece, we will look in more detail at the importance of accurate data collection and resource tracking: How much detail do you really have of your manufacturing operations?
