There comes a time when those responsible for a factory (managers, production or operations directors, etc.) are beginning to wonder if the time has come to automate their manual production process. They are experiencing an increase in orders received, they perceive that the number of incidents due to manufacturing errors is increasing, they need too many human resources to meet the demand...
At that moment, when the stress of everyday life spreads throughout the organization due to the increase in Workload, the decision is made to automate the process without carefully analyzing all the variables that intervene in the product life. Process automation is a great advance and has many advantages (and also disadvantages), but we must analyze a fundamental detail before launching ourselves to invest: is our current process everything Management it can be?
In most cases, due to the fact of studying the conversion of the process into automation, we thoroughly analyze all the variables, direct and indirect, that intervene. It is here that we realize that our manual manufacturing processes are not all that efficient that it could be. The surprise comes when the data shows that the main cause of this lack of efficiency is not the manual process itself, but the degeneration of the process itself (lack of maintenance, acquired vices, poorly thought out solutions and questionable execution, etc.).
When we face process automation projects, the first thing we do is try to correct the process inefficiencies current manual. The results of time reduction e incidences they are such that on many occasions automation is not achieved.
With this it may seem that we throw stones at our own roof, nothing is further from reality. In the search for excellence The phases of manufacturing are inexhaustible, and there is no doubt that there will come a time when manual processes, performing at full capacity, do not meet the needs of our activity and it is appropriate to automate. But falling into the error of automating without analyze the process it can multiply the problem instead of reducing it.
Regarding DCS systems or Distributed Control systems, I met all the manufacturers from Toronto to Arizona where Honeywell is, Fisher Control Foxboro Fisher and Porter, Taylor in Rochester, Foxboro and others, the differences are marginal, they are all good It is important to know the process that you want to automate, to know the reason Integration vs. Distribution, redundancy, communications there are other parameters and support in place.