Production efficiency system to take on world
1 min read
An innovative Lancashire engineering firm is targeting exports, with a system aimed at helping manufacturers to become leaner and smarter in production.
Blackburn-based InfoServe365, the brainchild of local engineers Michael Hill and fellow managing director Adrian West, was established five years ago after the pair spotted "a gap in the market for a straightforward, yet powerful and low cost production efficiency monitoring and reporting system".
They started Optima Control Solutions, InfoServe365's parent company, in 1995 and developed a reputation for designing, building and commissioning drive control systems. Infoserve365 evolved from that experience, they say, and now specialises in managed data collection and analysis.
Hill concedes that, due to the recession, the last couple of years have been tough, but order levels are now picking up, he says, and he can see a wider market.
Says Hill: "Our aim has always been to establish strong UK technical and commercial models, then to export those models around the globe. There are tremendous prospects out there, as countries with established infrastructure and newcomers to the world manufacturing stage both find the need to address production inefficiencies."
Top of the company's offerings is a system that delivers automated OEE reporting for manufacturers. These reports, says Hill, can identify potential improvements to users' plant productivity that can uplift efficiencies "by around 15%", regardless of location or industry.
InfoServe365's latest offering – AssetManager – is an out-of-the-box business management tool, comprising a touch screen interface that can be wired to operating machinery and run through an Internet connection, without installing on-site servers.
Information typically gleaned includes productivity and downtime reporting, real time status and aggregated trend analyses. System prices start at around £5,000.
