One of the items decision makers may have been mulling over as 2017 nears its end is investing in machine monitoring software for the shop floor. You have likely heard about how monitoring machine utilizations will help improve productivity. The truth is, there are three other benefits to machine monitoring that aren’t so obvious.
Reason 1: Machine monitoring is flexible – it’s not just for CNC machines and it’s not limited to the shop floor. Monitors can work with manual machines, autoclaves, paint lines, PLC-driven machines, and more. Shop Floor Automations prides itself on unconventional machine monitoring, and also the mobility of machine monitoring. Monitor machines away from the shop floor with notifications sent via email or text. Employees can also monitor from a mobile device, such as a smart phone or a tablet.
Reason 2: This software can integrate with a CMMS system to provide customers with a more accurate PM schedule. If you are currently using a calendar-based system to schedule PMs, you might be performing maintenance too soon, or too late. Shop Floor can monitor actual run times on machines and feed that information to CMMS to create a PM schedule.
Reason 3: Machinists have a voice, via machine monitoring. The men and women running the machines have valuable feedback that is not easily communicated to upper management. They are the ones in the trenches and they usually know why a machine is not running. Data entry screens and tablets on the shop floor give machinists the ability to add notes and let those in the back office know the reasons machines are down. This will allow for trends to be seen and corrections to be made.
FOR MORE INFORMATION: www.shopfloorautomations.com
