Oracle Manufacturing Execution System set to improve shopfloor integration

It’s part of Oracle E-Business Suite Release 12 ERP system, and Oracle says that users with low-to-medium complexity environments can expect increased shopfloor visibility, and the ability to reduce manual activities and lower the total cost of ownership. The software giant says that plant supervisors will get, for example, a single interface to view their KPIs as well as detailed shopfloor status – and be able to monitor aspects like resource loads and adjust production schedules. This latest release also features new operator workbench capabilities that allow shopfloor users to efficiently execute, record and monitor activities. Operators get menu-driven prioritising capabilities, while configurable work content and sequential displays allow manufacturers to go paperless throughout. Then at the management level, the Supervisor Workbench enables users to ‘see’ activities in real time, and resolve issues much more quickly. Oracle gives examples like exception resolution, allowing supervisors to assign alternative resources and anticipate capacity shortages via a supervisor dashboard. Beta users and analysts seem to like what they see. “We already use Oracle directly on the shopfloor and are very excited about the new capabilities available in the Oracle MES for Discrete Manufacturing module,” says Hologic CIO David Rudzinsky. Meanwhile, Hanover Compressor CIO Stephen York says: “Our motivation to deploy Oracle’s Manufacturing Execution System for Discrete Manufacturing is two-fold: to improve shop efficiencies through improved visibility and to enhance the user’s experience through increased functionality.” And AMR Research’s Colin Masson says: “Activating Oracle MES on EBS Release 12 functionality will be a compelling alternative to tackling the integration and governance complexity – and incurring the high total cost of ownership associated with the integration of best-of-breed MES products.”