Monday, July 10, 2006

There is still scope for production improvement

The inability to access reliable and timely plant information and knowledge that only exists in peoples' heads are among reasons why production can be improved, reports Citect.
There is still more scope for production improvement The inability to access reliable and timely plant information and knowledge that only exists in peoples' heads are among reasons why production can be improved, reports Citect. Even with the major advances achieved in productivity and efficiency over the last decade, it is clear that a majority of production facilities still have enormous potential for improvement in their performance. The question is: why so many: and why have these enterprises not invested in technology to make their existing assets more productive?

Well, some of the general reasons given are the inability to access reliable and timely plant information; ad hoc approaches to production improvement; knowledge that only exists in peoples' heads; and the lack of a well-defined method of measuring plant performance.

Perhaps this situation is now all about to change with the latest consolidated approach to performance improvement, which offers commonality across a diverse range of industries.

The consolidated approach is based upon the use of a KPI (key performance indicator) known as Overall Equipment Effectiveness (or OEE).

While not a new concept, OEE is only now being recognised in industries far removed from its historical roots in automotive and pure manufacturing.

What is significant about this development is that now, for the first time, there is a well-defined method of measuring plant performance that has both universal understanding and acceptance.

Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) is a key measurement of efficiency in manufacturing processes at machine, manufacturing cell or assembly line levels.

The concept had its roots in the Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) concept first conceived and used in the Japanese automotive industry in the 1960s and 70s.

In its simplest form OEE is the cumulation of three factors - availability, performance and quality.

These can be defined as follows: * Availability = Actual Production time / Planned Production time.

* Performance = Current Run rate / Ideal Run rate.

* Quality = Good Product / Total Product.

* OEE = Availability x Performance x Quality.

The essence of OEE is improvement: it provides data that enables improvement opportunities to be recognised; but the business still has to act upon the data for the OEE solution to be effective.

There should be no question of this, because by using OEE as an analysis tool, businesses can benchmark their operations against world-class performance in their operating sectors.

However, a simplistic comparison can be misleading if the sector specific variations (based on industry, type of equipment, level of customer demand (etc) are not factored in.

As an aid in this area, the following OEE benchmarks are widely quoted as being 'best practice' scores for a continuous manufacturing process.

OEE Factor - World-Class score.

Availability - 90%.

Performance - 95%.

Quality - 99.9%.

OEE - 85%.

While the above scores are best practice, experience shows that most production operations typically operate with OEE scores in the range of 60-70%, indicating that most organisations have significant scope for improvement in the way that their manufacturing operations are run.

The key to achieving effective OEE is capturing and analysing data in real-time (or close to real-time) from production equipment, and presenting the data to plant operators and manufacturing management in a format that enables the data to be understood.

These operations are generally performed by MES (manufacturing execution software) packages provided by companies such as Citect.

MES packages such as Citect's Ampla, generally interface with existing SCADA/HMI, other process control and automation systems and business systems.

They provide information and insight to all relevant stakeholders - corporate level executives, plant managers, shop floor maintenance engineers, process engineers, QA, IT (etc) - using a variety of graphs and charts that can be personalised based on the stakeholder's information needs and preferences.

Typically the implementation of an OEE package takes between one to three months depending on the level and scale of adoption.

Most of this time is devoted to planning rather than actual implementation.

The planning process attempts to address the key needs and concerns of the business within the context of its actual operations.

It asks key questions such as: what 'causes' impact on production the most?

What cause-based data points need to be measured?

What definitions need input from the shop floor?

What is the time-usage model adopted?

What outputs does the business require at shop floor level, at corporate level and by department?

What KPIs need to be displayed?

At all stages of the planning and implementation phases, OEE solutions should be regarded as an investment, not as a cost, Why?

Because they bring significant benefits to organisations through improved profitability, better asset utilisation and virtually immediate ROI: For example, a Citect Ampla Downtime module implemented at BHP Billiton's Cannington mine, in Queensland, Australia delivered initial savings of A$1 million and continuous improvement in operations, maintenance and throughput.

Similarly, using Citect Ampla's integrated suite of modules, Impala Platinum's Base Metal Refineries (BMR) near Johannesburg, South Africa achieved its 2005 throughput target of 2 million ounces of platinum well ahead of schedule.

Both systems achieved full payback in a matter of months.

The OEE solution provides these economic benefits in a number of ways: * It identifies 'lost production' - the hidden potential in a machine or a cell that can deliver additional throughput to improve overall plant performance.

* It provides fast identification of the actual causes of problems that have a detrimental effect on production; whether through human input (process/operator issues) or machine/material issues.

* It facilitates more predictable production, allowing for better planning, quicker decision making and execution and lower time to market for new products.

* It provides the key to improvements in product quality, leading to lower product costs and higher customer satisfaction.

* It delivers cost savings through increased production consistency and reduced waste.

* It allows organisations to move from reactive approach repair and maintenance to a more proactive approach.

What the above benefits demonstrate is that once a system that captures data in real time is implemented, then the power of analysis can be unleased, revealing real 'cause based' issues that can be resolved through a variety of improvement initiatives.

Moreover the process should not stop there.

Improvement gains need to be both sustainable and consistent.

A good OEE will improve the production of the operation but consistent application of OEE will go further by rewarding the bottom line of a business.

* About Citect - Citect is the leading, global provider of industrial automation, real-time intelligence, and next generation manufacturing execution systems (MES).

Leveraging open technologies, CitectHMI/SCADA and Ampla connect to multiple plant and business systems.