Connecting a sanding line to a Manufacturing Execution System (MES) or Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system doesn’t mean you simply transfer every available PLC signal. The objective should be to create reliable information that answers production questions, rather than collecting every piece of machine data.
To fulfill that objective, you must first understand the distinction between machine data, production information, business information, and quality records:
- Machine data: provides information about machine usage, health, and performance for a condition-based program.
- Production information: tracks the quality and the progress of the products for more informed decision-making.
- Business information: ERP can provide business information that can contribute to inventory planning, finance, procurement, and order management.
- Quality records: continuous monitoring of production process stability and real-time data, ensuring processes, materials, and machine parameters remain within predefined control limits.
Reliable information depends on agreed meanings, clearly defined responsibilities, and consistent data rules. That way, information is interpreted and used consistently throughout the process. The same principle applies to controlled production recipes, where consistent definitions and governance help ensure the production setting remains reliable.
Define what the line, MES and ERP should each manage
Successful integration begins by defining the role of each system involved in the project. The exact architecture will depend on the customer’s existing production and business systems. So, these responsibilities should be evaluated as a part of the integration process.
| System level | Main responsibility | Typical information |
|---|---|---|
| Sanding-line control (Imeas’ FCS) | Execute and monitor the process | Machine status, settings, recipes, alarms, working-unit values, and operating events |
| MES or production-management layer | Manage production execution | Orders, batches, material identity, quantities, downtime, quality, and traceability |
| ERP | Manage business planning and costs | Customer orders, material codes, scheduling, inventory, and accounting information |
Information must also be considered in both directions of communication. From the MES or ERP, the production line may receive the information for project execution. Meanwhile, the line can provide information back to MES or ERP.
The information above should be treated as the project data set to be evaluated rather than as a predefined exchange between systems. Not all integration projects have the same information requirements. Each integration project should decide which information is required, how it supports the production process, and where it should be managed.
Build a data set that supports traceability and quality
The first step in an MES/ERP integration is to decide which information must be connected throughout the process. Defining this data set at the start of a project helps define the relationships needed to support traceability, quality management, and production analysis.
To achieve reliable results, the data should follow a constant set of quality rules:
- Every event needs a consistent timestamp to ensure production activities remain aligned in the correct sequence.
- Units of measurement must be defined to help recorded values remain consistent throughout the process.
- The source system for each value must be agreed to avoid uncertainty about where the information comes from.
- Recipe versions must remain distinguishable to support records, ensuring they can be associated with the right operating conditions.
- Missing or invalid values must not be treated as valid production data to avoid affecting subsequent analysis.
These rules help production information remain reliable from the beginning of the process until it reaches the final assessment. A quality deviation can’t be investigated reliably if the order number, recipe version, machine event, and inspection result can’t be aligned. Without consistent data, traceability can be challenging throughout the production process as information can’t be connected with confidence.
Use line data to calculate OEE and production cost correctly
OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) provides meaningful production information only when the underlying production events are defined consistently. OEE is based on three related areas:
- Availability: evaluates when the line was expected to operate and why it was stopped.
- Performance: compares actual output with an agreed reference production rate.
- Quality: measures acceptable output against total output.
Together, these areas provide a structured view of production performance. This can become a solid foundation for production cost analysis by connecting operational information with the amount of acceptable output produced during normal operation.
To avoid misleading KPIs, manufacturers should:
- Avoid classifying every stop as a machine failure
- Distinguish planned production time from unplanned downtime
- Calculate performance against an agreed reference rate rather than an unrealistic maximum speed
- Avoid counting reworked material as good output more than once
- Compare production lines only when they use consistent units of measurement and the same downtime rules
The same principle applies to consumables used throughout the finishing process. Recording abrasive usage and planned replacement as part of the overall production data set supports more consistent performance analysis. It also helps place production costs in the context of real operating conditions.
Integration checklist: what to confirm before commissioning
Before commissioning an MES/ERP integration, your team should confirm that both the technical connection and the production information have clearly been defined. The following checklist can help verify that the integration is ready to support your production requirements.
Implementation checklist
- Which production problem must the integration solve?
- Which system owns orders, recipes, material codes, and quality results?
- Which information flows towards the machine, and which flows back?
- How will production stops, rejects, and changeovers be classified?
- Which IDs connect the order, material, recipe, and quality record?
- Which interface and communication protocol will the project use?
- What happens during a network or server interruption?
- Will data be buffered and recovered without duplication?
- Which users have access to send or modify production information?
- Which test cases must be passed before acceptance?
Completing this checklist helps confirm that the integration has been defined in a way that supports consistent production and reliable information exchange. Integration should also be validated alongside the machine process, production recipes, operator activities, and quality criteria. A successful data connection won’t be sufficient if the information can’t support production decisions.
Planning for restoring production after maintenance is also an important part of long-term system reliability, as it helps ensure production can resume consistently.