Manufacturing Executive - March/April 2009 - (Page 14) S VIS O n the outskirts of Kaiserslautern, Germany, along the road between Frankfurt and Paris, a modern factory is churning out bottles of liquid soap. As the factory agilely shifts production among a mix of colors and labels, it relies on the most progressive technologies and processes known to manufacturers. PLM software designs liquids and bottles, and simulates their manufacture. Enterprise ERP software sends data to the soap and labeling machines, informing them of changes in customers, orders, and supplies. MES software takes note of both PLM and ERP information, and alters production accordingly, quickly shifting from green soap to orange, as needed, and from a bold label to a serene one targeted at a different audience. The shop continuously loops all this information together into the so-called “digital In arc Se DN E R IO A H fa ho By Mark Halper UNWIELDY INTEGRATION REALITIES ARE BLURRING VISIONS OF THE “DIGITAL FACTORY,” WHERE DESIGN, PRODUCTION, THE ENTERPRISE, THE SUPPLY CHAIN, AND WIRELESS TRANSMISSION WILL ALL FEED CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT. 14 Manufacturing Executive MAR/APR-09
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