The gradual implementation of early factory automation technologies-now called computer-integrated manufacturing (CIM)-has been helping factory managers reduce organizational delays and increase the productivity of existing equipment for decades. Although these tried and true technologies continue to fulfill their original purposes, independently deploying computer-integrated machines on the factory floor is no longer a sufficient way to ensure optimal productivity and efficient allocation of enterprise resources. Today, overall process control and environmental conditioning can impact a factory's bottom line as much as the performance of the production line itself. To stay ahead of the competition, cutting-edge factories are now taking advantage of smart I/O condition monitoring solutions that provide real-time asset information to help optimize legacy CIM operations and automate process control and environmental conditioning.
Optimize and Enhance: Towards Smarter Factory Infrastructure
Deploying a smarter manufacturing infrastructure allows factory managers to maintain a wealth of knowledge of the company's asset performance. In particular, real-time access to plant-wide information provides factory managers with enhanced environmental condition monitoring capabilities. At the same time, readily available asset information can optimize factory production performance and process control to help managers gain a competitive edge in market production.
