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Innovation and Technology
Plex Manufacturing Blog
Edge Computing: Preprocessing Data for Efficient Integration with ERP & MES Systems – Part 2
With the advent of Industry 4.0, modern manufacturing facilities generate an enormous amount of data, predominantly through sensors, automation and control system, HMI/SCADA systems, and IIoT devices. This data, rich in insights, is invaluable to ERP and MES systems that drive business and production decisions. However, transmitting this voluminous raw data to central systems can lead to latency…
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Key Takeaways from the 9th Annual State of Smart Manufacturing Report
What’s new. What’s now. And what’s happening next. The 2024 State of Smart Manufacturing Report offers a comprehensive look at where 1,500+ manufacturers see challenges and opportunities both today and in the future. From the expanding use of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) to the ongoing need for a skilled, adaptive workforce, here’s a rundown of the report’s biggest takeaways that…
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Laying the Groundwork: Current State Analysis & Understanding the Data Communications Landscape – Part 1
In the modern manufacturing landscape, the synergy between plant floor operations and enterprise systems is the linchpin of a truly connected, intelligent production environment. At the foundation of this ecosystem, automation and control systems gather the vital signs of the manufacturing processes, but their true potential is harnessed only when this data informs the broader organizational…
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Overcoming Challenges to Becoming a Quality Leader
"Quality is everyone's responsibility."This decades-old quote from quality researcher and educator W. Edwards Deming has stood the test of time for good reason: essential to both products and processes, quality can be influenced by every role up and down the manufacturing process. Everyone shares the burden of maintaining and improving quality — and therefore can also share in the success of…
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Success with Suppliers: How to Ensure Your Partner & Supplier Network Meets Your Quality Standards
In most industries, product quality is a primary factor determining whether businesses are successful or not. Of course, there are many things that impact product quality, from quality leadership to employee talent to company culture. All of those apply in the manufacturing sector, but manufacturers also depend heavily on their partner and supplier networks to build good products that their…
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Digital Building Blocks for Leadership
Manufacturers inevitably begin with operational efficiency, cost reduction, and process improvement during the foundational stages of a digital journey. Beyond that, the tendency is to retain vestiges of traditional thinking that “wall off” other functional areas as separate from the production focus....
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Great Leadership Builds Great Culture. Great Culture Creates Great Products.
In every business – no matter the industry – quality is a two-way street. The way a company is managed directly impacts the products and services they develop. Every business wants to deliver a quality product. But an organization can only deliver that great product if executives are great at managing and leading the company. Culture, in particular, is an essential part of this equation. To…
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Digital Building Blocks for Operational Efficiency
As Industry 4.0 continues to shape industries across the globe, one of the most significant beneficiaries of the power of these technologies is operational efficiency within manufacturing.This is particularly true with the rise of the role of robots in manufacturing industries and the supply chain....
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Digital Building Blocks for Sustainability: Part 1
Sustainability. It has such a simple definition, yet it has become diluted and obscured in many ways when companies try to implement it as part of their business model.The definition of sustainability for business and development is well established by the UN World Commission on Environment and Development. This definition states: “Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of…
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Automation Fair – From Chaos to Control Maximizing Efficiency With Plex DemandCaster Supply Chain Planning
Continuing with our discussion of how Plex Systems products will play a role in Rockwell Automation's Automation Fair 2023 in Boston, MA, November 6-9th, 2023: Ara Surenian, Vice President of Product Management – Rockwell Automation, sat down to discuss how Plex DemandCaster Supply Chain Planning software can help maximize efficiency by bringing control to chaos....
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