A global home appliance manufacturer installs IoT enabled Andon System in its plant….
An American multinational manufacturer of home appliances has drastically improved the accountability of its labor and enhanced departmental performance by installing IIoT enabled Digital Andon System at its plants in India.
The Challenge
The client has an assembly line with 15 stations for one of its products and one unit of the product is manufactured in 6 seconds. This leaves the operator with very less time to communicate any issue at his/her station without disrupting the running line. Also, the communication process is very cumbersome as the operator informs the line supervisor who in turn informs the concerned department and then, the department informs to the technician to solve the issue. Sometimes, there is a critical issue due to which the line has to be stopped and because of lack of proper communication means, the technician is not reachable. This results in loss of production time and a substantial loss of revenue to the company. Furthermore, the production team is not able to properly track all the ongoing issues in the plant. The lack of data points and accountability at different levels make it difficult for the team to improve the process.
Lack of effective communication means between different level & departments of production
Lack of accountability and data points at different level
The Solution
To solve the above challenges, there was a need of an effective communication solution that does not disrupt the assembly process. It was determined that in order for the solution to be effective, it needed to immediately communicate the need for support from the station directly to the technician who would resolve the issue while keeping the personnel from different level in loop. It was also identified that the solution needs to be IoT enabled to keep track of all the data points for performance review and further improvement.
What is ANDON?
Andon is a Lean Manufacturing tool which is used to present the working state of the station on an assembly line. It is a visual presentation of ongoing operations and indicates where any action is needed. It is the most effective intercommunication tool as it allows the process to run smoothly with fast action on any impediment or obstruction.
Benefits
Faster Communication between Operators, Engineers & Management combined with Digital Signage, SMS, Email & Mobile Notifications
Reduce Downtime to boost OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) and Quality improvements with faster Turn Around Time
Real-Time visual monitoring of production status from all the stations on mobile and display screens with a central dashboard for the entire plant
Features
Data Analytics: Built in reporting system with interactive reports & graphs
Mobile Application: Faster access to the system via role based mobile notifications & alerts
Production Count: Real time production count & loss on Digital Signage, Mobile & Web
PLC/Machine Integration: Feed input directly from the PLC & machinery
Email/SMS: Trigger Email/SMS based on escalation matrix
API Integration: Integrate the existing ERP & MES with API Integration
Cloud Hosting (optional): Access the system from anywhere inside/outside intranet
The Conclusion
Emuron successfully implemented the Digital Andon System at the client’s plant. Initially it was implemented for only 1 assembly line but seeing its benefits, the client installed the system at 3 more lines across 2 plants. The reports generated by Andon system are used in weekly departmental meetings to track the performance. Following are the real time output attained:
Immediate communication of issues from the shop floor to all the appropriate personnel with an escalation matrix if the issue is not addressed on time
Mobile notification enabled 40% reduction in response time of support personnel to the issues
Recovered 10% of downtime as production time thereby boosting production
Full production status visibility with central dashboard, departmental displays, mobile application and admin panels for 70 stations across 4 assembly line in 2 plants.