True Value of IoT-ERP Connectivity

Unplanned downtime, inefficient use of resource, and delays in responding to machine failures are common challenges for manufacturers. A powerful solution to these headaches is IoT.

While ERP provides business-wide transactional and operational visibility, IoT connectivity ensures real-time visibility of granular data on key performance indicators, which allows you to make immediate and informed decisions.

What is the real value of IoT-ERP Connectivity?

  • Process Monitoring
  • Interactivity with Physical Environments
  • Depth of Real-Time Data
  • Predictive Maintenance for Assets
  • Energy Efficiency
Manufacturing IoT Integration

Manufacturing Process Monitoring

To ensure production continues to flow without surprises, monitoring machines in real time minimizes breakdowns without human intervention. Advanced process monitoring software, such as Prophecy IoT, employs algorithms to track parameter ranges, including temperature, pressure, and production speed, across different areas within a facility and even across multiple geographical locations.

Identifying and Solving Bottlenecks in Manufacturing

ERP and MES systems use IoT data to analyze the overall efficiency of production lines and identify bottlenecks based on historical trends, real-time performance, and resource allocation. This integration also enables dynamic scheduling adjustments to reduce bottlenecks.

With real-time shop floor visibility and analytics, companies can identify performance trends and constraints, leading to operational excellence. Shop floor dashboards throughout the shop and/or tablets placed at machines provide operators with the data needed to make better, faster decisions.

Managers can view real-time visualizations of entire production lines and easily spot bottlenecks where data indicates slower processing or longer cycle times. By identifying patterns in the data, managers can take instant corrective action.

Tracking machine performance, material flow, workforce efficiency, and overall production speed, IoT allows manufacturers to pinpoint exactly where constraints occur. 

This level of insight helps:

  • Predict slowdowns in specific machines or workstations.
  • Signal when materials are delayed reaching a workstation on time.
  • Monitor worker productivity and resource utilization.
  • Provide predictive insights to prevent future bottlenecks.

Interactivity with Physical Environment

ERPs help optimize workflows and processes based on data inputs, but they do not have direct control over physical assets. IoT collects data about physical conditions (such as temperature, humidity, and machine performance) and even triggers physical actions (like stopping a machine, adjusting temperature, or signaling alerts). This interactivity makes IoT essential for industries where real-time responses to physical conditions are crucial.

Quality Control

IoT-powered product quality control systems can identify defects instantly, minimizing the output of defective products. Prophecy IoT examines products during the production process and promptly notifies operators of any quality concerns.

Predictive Asset Maintenance

Without additional input, ERPs cannot predict when a machine will fail or when maintenance is required. IoT enables predictive analytics by continuously collecting data from equipment, resulting in forecasts of maintenance needs, failures, or production inefficiencies. IoT can also offer prescriptive insights, meaning it can suggest actions based on the data, such as when to repair a machine or adjust production parameters.
Benefit Cost Ratio

Conclusion

ERP systems excel at managing business processes and providing insights into a business’s bigger picture. Moreover, IoT delivers real-time data from machines, equipment, inventory, and even workers, allowing factory managers to monitor, control, and optimize operations.

Together, IoT and ERP offer a complete end-to-end data solution addressing both the strategic and operational challenges of modern manufacturing environments.

Curious about how Prophecy IoT and Infor CloudSuite ERP integration can revolutionize your shop floor?


Join our webinar with Godlan on October 16, 2024, where we'll explore IoT-ERP connectivity and the advantages it brings to your operations. 

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Resources

Prophecy IoT. (2023, November). Prophecy Use Cases. Retrieved from Prophecy IoT: https://prophecyiot.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Prophecy_UseCases.pdf