Shop-Floor Software for Industry 4 Launched by Forcam at Hanover Trade Fair

MIDDLEWICH, ENGLAND, March 28, 2014 (Press-News.org) Forcam, developers of Factory Framework, the shop-floor productivity software that has boosted output by 25 percent for leading international auto manufacturers, launched Release 5, at the 2014 Hanover trade show. This latest innovation embraces big data, using complex event processing, in-memory technology and the power of the cloud to gather and process information in real-time to accelerate shop-floor performance. This is the first workshop level software to meet all the technical requirements for Industry 4 and with connectivity, using standardised protocols Factory Framework has become a world class shop-floor management system.

Forcam founder and CEO Franz Gruber explained, "We have created a software system that is more than just a management tool. It is a system and a philosophy that the whole team, from shop-floor workers and supervisors to senior managers, can employ to create a more productive, competitive, secure and profitable business. This is a rational response to the challenges from globalised manufacturing that can create a sustainable competitive advantage for manufacturing in advanced economies."

Multinational manufacturers, seeking to optimise performance by integration of plants around the globe, will find the development particularly attractive. The user-friendly human-machine-interface (HMI) enables information to be gathered and presented on a variety of devices from touch screens to mobiles and tablets.

As account manager for the UK Charlie Walker explained, "We should think of this as the fourth phase of the industrial revolution, Industry 4. By gathering, interpreting and representing intelligently the key performance information we enable and motivate people to be more productive, creating manufacturing environments that are at the same time more flexible and responsive. Using the power of the cloud we stream data internationally to different plants to create connected and highly transparent manufacturing processes."

Franz Gruber concluded, "In the 21st Century successful manufacturing businesses need to embrace a manufacturing execution system (MES) that has big data at its core and uses this via the web to give real time transparency and response. This is the route to achieving a continual improvement process (CIP) and sustainable productivity increases."

More Information

United Kingdom
Charles Walker, UK Account Manager, Tel. 01606 833 837
E-mail: charles.walker@forcam.co.uk Web: http://www.forcam.co.uk
FORCAM UK, 6.1 Verity Court, Pochin Way, Middlewich, Cheshire, CW12 0GW

Germany
Vincent Post, Manager International Marketing & PR, Tel. +49 (0)7541/39908 - 826
E-mail: Vincent.post@forcam.com Web: http://www.forcam.com
FORCAM GmbH, Bahnhofplatz 1, D-88045 - Friedrichshafen, Germany

High resolution images are on the web at http://www.ainsmag.co.uk/fo255/5248fo1a-smart-factory.htm

Forcam's pioneering work in shop floor management software is being heralded has the fourth industrial revolution taking productivity, lean production and return on investment to the next level. Increases in output of 20 per cent are achievable. The impact is both immediate and sustained. Now, world-wide, more than 50,000 machine tools and processes are monitored by Forcam software.

Companies such as Daimler, Audi, Borg Warner, BMW, MTA Aero Engines and Weir Minerals depend on Factory Framework software. Forcam products and expertise promotes overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) in capital intensive manufacturing operations and ensuring more effective production planning and control.