COMMUNICATIONS & NETWORKS FEATURE TO INFINITY AND BEYOND


Process & Control asks Jason Chester, director of Global Channel Programs at Infinity QS, about SPC and the benefits it can bring to manufacturing


Q


. What is a SPC solution and what are the main benefits of adopting it in


the manufacturing/processing industries? A. Statistical Process Control (SPC) is a


methodology for measuring and controlling quality during the manufacturing process. The benefits of SPC are many but, put simply; it helps manufacturers make the best quality products at the lowest possible price. This is by allowing manufacturers to move from reactive, where manufacturers are constantly fire-fighting problems that produce high volumes of waste to being proactive, where those problems are detected and corrected in advance to prevent waste occurring in the first place. When we talk about waste, it does not


just mean the discarded product that fails to meet customer requirements, but any waste, including downtime, unproductive labour, unnecessary costs, redundant raw materials, defective products and so on. Thus, SPC is highly relevant and has great appeal across the entire manufacturing and process industry. Q. Data analysis - how can a SPC


solution turn such high volumes of data into something meaningful and useful? A. Effective data analysis is about being


able to sort the wheat from the chaff. A manufacturing environment can produce extremely high volumes of data, much of which will indicate that everything is in order, processes are running within ‘control’ and that product is being produced to the correct specification or within acceptable tolerances. The problem arises when ‘signals’ or trends in that data indicate a problem is occurring or about to occur at some point in the future. Waiting until we inspect, or sample


finished products at the end of the production process is too late as a lot of waste has already occurred and a lot more waste will occur while rectifying the problem. It is simply impractical, if not impossible, to monitor this data in its raw form and try to spot these events manually. With a powerful SPC solution, this data is processed automatically in real-time and turned into meaningful insight that is presented in an easy to interpret visual displays like dashboards. Alarms and notifications are issued to


the right people at the right time when trends in the data indicate a potential or an actual issue, and aggregated data analysis can help to pinpoint any areas


where performance, variability or reliability issues are prevalent. This means manufacturers can direct their resources and efforts where they are likely to have the most positive impact. Q. How easy is it to adopt and use? A. Traditionally, SPC software is often


complex to set up, unintuitive to use and can be difficult to interpret the data. While the principles and mathematics behind Statistical Process Control can be daunting to the uninitiated, InfinityQS has developed Enact, a powerful cloud-based SPC and Quality Intelligence solution that embeds this complexity ‘behind-the- scenes’. This enables manufacturers to gain all the benefits of advanced SPC, delivered via a highly intuitive and easy to use web-based solution – whether you are a lineside operator, quality manager or senior supply chain executive. Enact is a native cloud-based solution


and is accessed simply using a modern web browser, with no software or server installation required. Therefore, all a manufacturer needs to start gaining the benefits of using Enact is a web browser and an internet connection. The Enact is charged on a subscription basis, where a client pays a low monthly fee for each user with no long-term contracts or tie-ins, you simply ‘pay-as-you-go’. It should also be noted that Enact is set up and configured using an intuitive user experience (UX) that requires no bespoke development or customisation and therefore, it is very straightforward to use and low risk for manufacturers to adopt. This reduces the friction of users having to learn new and complex user interfaces. Q. What about cybersecurity? What


measures are in place to maintain system security? A. The security, reliability and availability


of digital technology being integrated into any part of the commercial infrastructure, from the shop-floor to the supply chain is a top priority for any manufacturer. As we progress through the fourth industrial revolution and businesses embark on large-scale digitalisation projects, serious issues around privacy, reliability and security are having to be taken into consideration. When a business is selecting the latest IT solutions, digital devices and systems, security should be carefully considered to ensure it meets all standard security requirements and compliance. This will ensure the entire organisation is


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Jason Chester is responsible for the implementation and overall success of the InfinityQS Global Enact Channel Partner Program. Enact is a native-cloud Quality Intelligence platform powered by real-time Statistical Process Control (SPC) and designed with a modern dashboard-based interface that is both accessible and highly intuitive. Chester says Enact is the solution of choice for any size manufacturing operation. Unlike some traditional industrial IT solutions that often require a large upfront investment, Enact can deliver measurable benefits from day one. He believes Enact is the best Quality Intelligence and SPC solution on the market


protected against any internal or external threat. Enact is hosted on the Microsoft Azure platform, one of the world’s most secure cloud-computing platforms, and is delivered from Microsoft’s network of secure global data centres. Q. What are the costs involved and how


can the system reduce ongoing costs/risk? A. In the past, for manufacturers to


adopt an SPC solution, there would usually have been a large upfront investment cost which would typically have required them to buy many licences up front and spend many hours on design, training and configuration services, often from expensive third-party service providers. Also, ongoing delivery, maintenance and upgrade costs meant that total cost of ownership (TCO) was expensive. Enact, is billed on a monthly usage-


based subscription basis which means that manufacturers can start with a small proof-of-concept trial, pilot, or small- scale implementation and expand deployment in stages, as their experience and confidence grows, and the benefits are realised. This scalable deployment model also allows them to minimise any risk or disruption to their day-to-day manufacturing operations. Once the Enact solution has been set up,


the data that is being recorded, analysed and stored can be used to give detailed insights into each area of the shop floor and production line, highlighting key areas for improvement. This can lead to significant reductions in waste and a better-quality end-product that costs less to produce. Put simply, it helps manufacturers reduce their costs, increase the value of their operations and to mitigate operational risks.


Infinity QS www.infinityqs.co.uk/ products/enact#features PROCESS & CONTROL | FEBRUARY 2019 13


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