Computer Integrated Manufacturing for Fully Automated Manufacturing

Computer Integrated Manufacturing for Fully Automated Manufacturing S e p 2012

TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract... 3 Abbreviations... 4 Introduction... 5 Computer Integrated Manufacturing... 6 CIM Business Case... 7 CIM Technical Analysis... 10 Conclusion - Case Study... 16 Author Info... 17 2011, HCL Technologies. Reproduction Prohibited. This document is protected under Copyright by the Author, all rights reserved.

Abstract Manually operated manufacturing lines are giving way to fully automated lines with minimal manual intervention for the purpose of reduction in cycle times and to enhance quality, with the prime purpose of reducing variation in both. With the advent of automation lines and reduction in manual work, there has been a need to monitor and report the performance of these lines in terms of productivity, quality and allied information that could prove vital to establish the efficiency of the lines and the process. Since manual reporting is time consuming, erroneous, biased and slow, automatic reporting, and sometimes feedback, is the need of the day. The solution lies with the advent and incorporation of Computer Integrated Manufacturing systems (CIM). This paper describes the hardware details and the software framework that encompasses a CIM system. 3

Abbreviations Sl. No. Acronyms Full Form 1 CIM Computer Integrated Manufacturing 2 QC Quality Control 4

Introduction This paper shall elaborate the various aspects that go into implementing CIM, starting from the need for a CIM system all the way to deployment. In the process, details of the equipment, the software essentials, the development team, hardware requirements and effort shall be discussed. Features that could be a part of CIM, based on the product being manufactured, shall also be discussed. 5

CIM helps in understanding the state of a process or equipment, and in some cases, correcting the state through alarms or by feed-forward control. Computer Integrated Manufacturing In a simplistic sense, a computer integrated manufacturing system does one or both of the following tasks: A methodology for understanding the state of a process or equipment, and reporting the related equipment performance, quality delivered and the process parameters for real-time continuous monitoring and analysis. Correcting the current state of the equipment/process to rectify any performance degradation caused either in the product quality or the equipment productivity performance. Extending this concept forward, the domain of feed-forward control, which basically understands the quality of the product from a process, and modifies the subsequent process to nullify the bias caused in the previous. In short, the scope of CIM lies in a closed-loop control of the manufacturing process. This paper shall elaborate more on the data collection process of CIM, and hence, effectively portray CIM as an open loop system. With this introduction to CIM, it is imperative to understand the business impact of CIM. 6

> Over 40% time reduction in data collection and aggregation activity. > Downtime can be reduced by over 80% through continuous monitoring and predictive alarms. CIM Business Case The reasons why CIM is used in industries can be related to two major aspects: 1. Technical benefits 2. Financial benefits With the above two elaborated, any industry would be able to clearly state the need for such a system. Technical Benefits 1. Data, whether quality or productivity data, is available immediately. This can help in quick decision making, thereby reducing the risks involved in continuous manufacturing. 2. Each product s signature and quality traits are clearly observed and recorded, thus forming a basis in places where traceability is used 3. Equipment performance and similar data like downtime can be easily monitored 4. It is easy to correlate the performance of the product with the condition of the equipment at that particular time 5. Occurrence can be easily tracked to kick-start Six Sigma projects 6. Over 40% time reduction in data collection and aggregation activity Financial Benefits 1. Reduction in manpower of over one man per two assembly lines for fully automated lines with manual QC checking and reporting 2. Product data can be easily traced, thereby eliminating the cost of rework and reducing the cost of recall. Estimated recall cost reduction can be as high as 80% with some products. 3. Quality enhancement using CIM systems can go as far as 90% where traditional systems can reach 70% through quick correlation, thereby enhancing productivity results 4. Downtime can be reduced by over 80% through continuous monitoring and predictive alarms The technical benefits and financial benefits are summarized in the charts shown below. As a word of caution, the results are based on fully automated lines for high throughput (typically 30,000 7

The ratio of investment for a CIM installation as opposed to a typical electronics manufacturing set-up as considered above is 1:110 products/24 hours or more) employed with an open loop CIM structure. The results may vary in cases of semi-automatic lines and high speed equipment. Return on Investment (ROI) Based on the technical and financial benefits detailed above, the estimates for ROI can be determined. For this purpose, let me assume an electronic industry manufacturing high-precision, lowvalue goods on a scale of ~300,000 goods/day. The ROI chart for this scenario, based on a gradual ramp-up, would be as follows. The graph assumes investment cost for CIM implementation and the revenue that would be generated as a result of CIM. The ROI sheet assumes a constant revenue generation through quality enhancement of about 20% and a one-time saving through 8

traceable recall of 80%.The ratio of investment for a CIM installation as opposed to a typical electronics manufacturing set-up as considered above is 1:110. Having seen the benefits and the cost economics of CIM system, the technical details for establishing a CIM system are detailed next. 9

CIM Technical Analysis The technical details, requirements and design of the entire CIM system is described below. A CIM system consists of the following subsystems. 1. Equipment 2. Hardware Sensors Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) Server/Computers Room Requirement 3. Software Essential Features 4. Manpower Requirements Equipment The equipment dealt with is either a semi-automatic machine or a fully automatic machine. A level of intelligence is expected to be addressed during machine design such as installation of sensors for safety mechanisms, equipment status signaling encoders, etc., which can feed back to a central intelligence system regarding the status of the equipment. a. Sensors Sensors form an integral part of any CIM system. They are the primary source of feedback to any CIM system. There are different kinds of sensors used and selected depending upon the precision, usage scenario and cost. Some sensors use light as a medium of communication, such as through beam sensors, diffuse sensors, laser beam sensors and other photoelectric sensors. If a situation demands the detection of a magnetic material such as iron, reed sensors are used. In places where safety is a concern, proximity switches are used. Proximity sensors are also used in places where positional detection is necessary. Let us analyze a case where a particular sensor is used and how this would be of use to CIM. A machine has a high-speed robot, and to ensure safety, a door switch is installed. At times the door is opened for specific purposes such as maintenance. Opening the door causes a reduction in equipment productivity. At a review meeting, the detailed cause of loss in productivity cannot be explained. With a system like CIM, the exact cause of the productivity loss can be tabulated and a 5 Why analysis can be completed. The methodology involves the sensor communicating with the PLC, which takes note of how long the 10

sensor is off and the time involved. The data is sent to a server which decodes the data and presents it in the CIM format. b. PLC Programmable Logic Controllers form the electrical heart of the machine, and are sometimes referred to as the brain of an automatic machine. They control different mechanisms in a machine like pneumatic parts, heaters, weld controllers, vision systems, motors, etc. Apart from controlling, they also collect data from different sensors like encoders, cam positioners, photoelectric sensors, and ultrasonic sensors as well as take note of the time, the occurrence frequency, and in some cases quality parameters. Apart from the ladder program, PLCs also take input from the touch screen, joystick controllers and hand-held consoles. Depending on the program logic, PLCs can act as an activate/de-activate controller for the entire machinery. In addition, the PLCs also communicate with the next machine to know their status for acceptance of the completed product. In short, the PLC is a device that is an interface between the machine and the server for a CIM system. Hardware Once the PLC is ready to transmit data, suitable wiring needs to be done to transmit the data to a server or a computer. The server or computer shall store the data in a suitable format to be accessed by computer throughout the network in a suitable format as defined by the software structure. The server, being a precious store of data, needs to be stored at ideal room conditions so it can work free from crashes. a. Server/Computers The server shall store data sent from the equipment and shall be sized to store and capable of handling huge amounts of data. Since CIM is also a feature for traceability, care needs to be taken for sizing the memory of the server. The server should be well isolated from the development environment which will handle smaller computers. b. Room Requirements The development area shall house computers which might range from 6-10 for a mid-sized company from an electronics industry perspective. The room temperature needs to be controlled at 11

22±2 C. The server room requires tighter control since it houses the UPS which is comprised of lead acid batteries, which are themselves heat generating. The server room needs to be controlled at 21±1 C. Because the server stores data critical to the sustainability of the organization, measures should be taken to protect it from accidental fire. A good example would be to have a smoke alarm which could activate an inert gas like Argon so combustion could be deterred due to the absence of oxygen. Care should be taken before purging the entire room with argon, as a lack of oxygen can asphyxiate personnel in the room. From a security standpoint, the facility should be monitored by a Closed Circuit Television Camera (CCTV). The development area and server room should be accessible only by authorized personnel. Software Essential Features The software essentially should have the following features: 1. Quality Data 2. Production Data 3. Equipment Data 4. Material Movement and Inventory Data 5. Parts Traceability Data 6. Library Defects/Source Quality Data Under each of these categories, further drill-down can be enabled. The various parameters for drill-down are: a. Quality Type (Multiple) b. Model c. Process d. Equipment Name e. Type of Report Xbar R/Xbar - µ/histogram f. From Date/Time To Date/Time g. Defect Type h. Pareto Analysis i. SPC Moving Average Charts 12

j. Input to Operator for Manual Data Entry k. Password Enablement for Operator Data Entry l. Quality Summary and Report of Loss This report generated should be downloadable as an Excel file for data scrutiny. In addition, each report should show the existing control limits set on the machine, based on which the machine makes a judgment. Production Data The various drill-down parameters for this sub-set would be: a. Model b. Process c. Equipment Name d. Type of Report Histogram e. From Date/Time To Date/Time f. Defect Type (Quality and Equipment) g. Pareto Analysis h. Frequency of Reporting i. Spare Name/Part No. j. Spare Places of Usage k. MSDS Input l. Password Enablement for Operator Data Entry Equipment Data The various drill-down parameters for this sub-set would be: a. Alarm Selection b. Process c. Equipment Name d. From Date/Time To Date/Time 13

e. Alarm Status on Diagram f. Maintenance Criteria g. Data Monitor for Specific Equipment Set-ups Material Movement and Inventory Data This feature would enable ordering and monitoring inventory based on scheduling. At any point in time, the quantity of raw material available for a specific process is known. Parts Traceability Data This forms a very key and integral part of a CIM system. For instance, if a product delivered in the market is defective and the entire batch needs to be recalled, this feature can help to identify the serial number of the remaining products in the market with ease. Going forward, the traceability system will help in drilling down into the specifics of the raw material used, the manufacturing conditions, etc., which can help in correlation analysis of the defect. Library Defects/Source The library is a source of past information and learning which can quickly help identify and troubleshoot errors by locating the source of the problem. In manufacturing, the transfer of knowledge is often ineffective. Such a library can be a quick means of solving the issue. This is the essence of software essentials for a CIM framework. The last issue to be detailed is the manpower and skills requirement for developing this system. 14

Manpower Requirements S. No Skill Subset Requirements Manpower Needed 1 Software Engineers Development of Software System 7 2 Wiring and Interfacing Interface to m/c, Server Issues 2 3 Electrical Engineers PLC Programming and Interfacing 1/mc 4 Mechanical Engineers Sensor Selection, Mounting Design 1/mc 5 Hard Wiring Vendor Wire from Server to mc 1 Vendor 6 Project Lead Envision the entire setup, estimate 1 The resources above are needed for a minimum of eight months to a maximum of ten months. The ideal starting point to have the resources available would be one month ahead of new equipment installation. This concludes the analysis of CIM implementation from a business point of view and from a technical standpoint. 15

Conclusion - Case Study As detailed earlier, CIM has a significant role in predictive maintenance of machinery. This shall be explained with the help of a simple case study: Let us consider a mechanical coupling whose failure is the subject of concern. The mechanical coupling on one side is connected to a rotary encoder, and on the other side, is connected to a drive shaft. In short, for every one rotation of the drive shaft, the rotary encoder turns one rotation, and based on various angles from 0 to 360, the encoder activates different controls like valves, solenoids, vacuum switches, etc., through the cam-positioner/plc which takes note of different angle values. An incorrect input from the encoder can activate the controls out of sequence, which can cause damage to the machinery and the product, and often lead to long downtime. Now, let us consider a case where the coupling tends to fail. A scenario where a part tends to fail but hasn t failed is more challenging for engineers to troubleshoot. This is where CIM, with the help from sensors, can significantly reduce engineering analysis and troubleshooting time. Once the coupling tends to fail, for every rotation of the shaft the encoder might rotate more or less depending on the side on which the coupling fails. This will activate different controls in an incorrect sequence and cause machine damage. And above all, it is very hard for engineers to understand this phenomenon. With the use of sensors for checking the mechanical timing of the machinery, and cross-verifying it with the encoder s value with a given tolerance, CIM can quickly provide data to engineers on the deterioration in the coupling s performance through alerts. And each piece of this data is actually available on the engineer s computer, rather than having to connect to the PLC to understand this. 16

Author Info Sandeep Venkatraman Sandeep has over eight years of experience, five of which have been in manufacturing, vendor quality, new plant set-up, automation equipment design/development, Lean implementation, Six Sigma and Plant Kaizen. The remaining three years were with factory automation design, and his current role involves creating solutions for the industrial and sustainability divisions. 17

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