How to make your factory more productive and achieve greater returns on capital invested in plant and people is explored in a new video from factory shop floor management experts Forcam. Featuring their pioneering Forcam Force shop floor software, it provides powerful insights into the benefits of Industry 4.0 to manufacturers. Achieving shop floor transparency through integrated digital manufacturing will make the smart factory a reality.

The five minute presentation shows how Forcam Force collects real-time data from heterogeneous machines using the global MT Connect standard and customised plug-ins. It then turns this big data into smart data that is actionable by every level from plant managers and operators to top floor management. Highly adaptable, the Forcam Force is able to seamlessly integrate existing and new IT eco-systems and also stream data into SAP and other ERP systems.

It shows how all users work simultaneously connected to their virtual shop floor and how the intelligent and intuitive Forcam Force user interface promotes accuracy. By harnessing the latest techniques of secure Cloud computing, role-relevant real-time key performance data is presented to users anywhere, anytime on any device. The software seamlessly takes account of differing time zones and languages. Timely decision making to ensure overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) is optimised at all times, even if key staff are frequently on the move – at airports, attending international events, meetings or working from home.

Commenting on the new video, Forcam UK managing director Andrew Steele said, “Companies deploying Forcam Force are already reporting typical productivity increases of 20 percent. Our US colleagues have coined the tag line ‘We Speak Machine’ – and they are right Forcam Force can connect all shop floor plant, including legacy machines, this means we work with real-time data, direct from the machine, processed, interpreted and displayed ready for action. There is no turning back and this video presents the concepts and benefits in an easy to understand way.”
   
“Productivity increases are not the only benefit for manufactures – flexibility comes with accurate real-time knowledge. Better planning for scheduling for maintenance is possible and adapting production schedules to fit in one-off’s or short runs is much more easily executed. For the UK particularly, these benefits can contribute greatly to the aim rebalancing the economy by making manufacturing fit for the twenty first century and beyond,” Andrew concluded.

The video is available to view on the company website at http://www.forcam.de/index.php?id=310&L=1 or can be easily found on YouTube searching for FORCAMMES.

More Information

United Kingdom
Andrew Steele, UK Managing Director Tel. 01606 833 837
E-mail: andrew.steele@forcam.com Web: www.forcam.com
FORCAM UK, 6.1 Verity Court, Pochin Way, Middlewich, Cheshire, CW12 0GW

Germany
Vincent Post, International Marketing & PR Manager, Tel. +49 (0)751/36669 – 826
E-mail: Vincent.post@forcam.com Web: www.forcam.com
FORCAM GmbH, An der Bleicherei 15, D-88214 Ravensburg, Germany

Images are on the web at www.ainsmag.co.uk/fo255/5433fo1a-forcam-force-video.htm


Breaking News
US trade magazine CIOReview has named Forcam as one of the most promising Tech Solution Providers for the Manufacturing Shop Floor in 2015. Harvi Sachar, publisher and founder, CIOReview, commented, “Forcam’s solutions continued to break new ground within the past year, benefiting its customers around the globe, and we’re excited to have them featured on our top companies list.”

Forcam's featured article in the CIO Review Manufacturing & Technology special edition can be downloaded from http://magazine.cioreview.com/June-2015/Manufacturing/