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Whether you want to increase your existing level of productivity, identify production bottlenecks or streamline workflow Cimco MDC-max is the solution of choice
Production is not flowing as it should. You have problems keeping up with demand, too much waste, too much machine downtime, tooling costs are too high and you have no real idea what to change or where to start.
Problems like these can be complicated and there are often many attributing factors. You may be forced to analyze your entire production process in order to know what causes a specific problem. Even then, you will have a snapshot of your production that takes hours or even days of work to create.
With CIMCO MDC-Max you get a full representation of your production. You will have real-time monitoring of your entire production operation and every second is recorded so you can easily examine the data and pinpoint bottlenecks. MDC-Max will provide information on the entire shop floor every second of the day allowing you to clearly identify and prioritize the changes needed.
CIMCO MDC-Max is a complete MDC solution that benefits the one-man operation with a few machines and the corporate enterprise with multiple factories. The MDC-Max software is highly flexible and easily customized to fit your current and future data collection needs.
CIMCO MDC-Max analyzes the data it collects and presents a variety of statistics and reports. This information can be directed to smartphones, tablets and TV screens for real-time monitoring of your production. Since MDC-Max is a networked solution that stores data on a central server you can monitor production from multiple locations and access the data from anywhere.
CIMCO MDC-Max was recently installed at a customer site that had tooling cost issues. The production director had only recently taken over the management of the shop floor and felt that the tooling costs were too high.
CIMCO MDC-Max was installed and collecting data before the night shift arrived. The next morning the production director checked the monitoring data collected from the machines and immediately had his answer. The night shift cycle times for 4 machines were 30% less than the cycle times during the day and the same machines were stopped for over an hour at the end of the shift. The operators had turned up the feed rates, but the increased feed rates resulted in poor tool tip life and increased tooling costs. The customer now has reduced tooling costs while still achieving the same production schedules and said that the system will pay for itself in a matter of months.
A large aerospace contractor was concerned that their production was not keeping up with demand and had made the decision to buy several additional machines. It was suggested that they check the runtime clocks on the machines for a week to see how much production time was being achieved. They were astonished to find that their machine utilization was below 50% but could not get an accurate picture of why this was happening.
CIMCO MDC-Max was installed to monitor the machines along with bar code readers for the operators to swipe downtime codes. MDC highlighted several problems in production, two of which were poor maintenance response and failure to replace tooling quickly enough to get the machine back in production.
Following the MDC-Max installation, the customer implemented several measures including a priority system for maintenance and the availability of new pre-set tools. They now achieve overall machine utilization of over 68% and meet their production targets which have increased profitability so they can now invest in a new plant.
When we talk about data what we actually mean is events. The first task when installing CIMCO MDC-Max is to consider what machine and operator events you want to collect information about.
Machine events can be collected automatically by CIMCO MDC-Max and most installations will include events such as Cycle Start, Cycle Stop, and Part Complete as a minimum. When these events occur at a machine CIMCO MDC-Max is automatically notified and data about the event is stored.
Operator event data is sent manually by machine operators. Using a smartphone, tablet, barcode scanner or PC an operator at a machine can send status information to CIMCO MDC-Max indicating specific events. Usually, you want to collect downtime reasons such as Waiting for Setup, Waiting for Maintenance, Scrapped Parts, Inspection, etc. CIMCO MDC-Max can be customized to collect specific information on any event.
The majority of companies only want to know if a particular machine is running and producing parts or if it is stopped. With a basic data collection setup MDC-Max can show the amount of time the machine has been in production and the amount of time allocated to downtime.
With the advanced data collection option MDC-Max can provide accurate reporting of machine tool efficiency on any job. MDC-Max can show the total percentage of downtime for each type of machine stoppage such as Tooling, Setup, Machine Maintenance, etc. This additional information is provided by the operator using a tablet or a barcode scanner. The operator uses the tablet or simply scans a barcode to indicate the downtime reason. This information can then be used to pinpoint exactly what is causing a loss of production.
In CIMCO MDC-Max data is structured and visualized as reports. You can setup MDC-Max to generate both real-time and historic reports based on the data collected. MDC-Max features a modern tabbed interface where each open report is shown in a separate tap. This maximizes screen space for each report while allowing many reports to be open and updating in the background.
MDC-Max comes with built-in reports, but the true power lies in its ability to create customized reports. Visualize data as tables, pie or bar charts, add in production targets, work shifts, calculate key performance indicators such as OEE, MTBF, MTTR, and more. You can also generate event logs chronologically by operator, machine, and job to know exactly how each machine and operator is performing.
MDC-Max supports dynamic reporting where data is updated in real-time. Machine status can be visualized as timelines or Gantt charts with status changes shown with different bar colors so you can see at a glance what is going on.
One of the unique features of CIMCO MDC-Max is our Live Screen which provide a great status overview for every machine and can be displayed on large plasma or LCD screens. This Live Screen can be configured to show a list of all machines and their current status. Further, data such as machine name, job name, part count, running time, downtime, etc. can be associated with each machine to provide a complete overview. The Live Screen is normally displayed on large screens that are installed in convenient locations so that all personnel can easily see the status of each machine. However, it can also be displayed on smartphones, tablets, and touch screens using the MDC-Max Web Client and can thereby be viewed from anywhere there is an internet connection.
If machines are running unattended MDC-Max can even be configured to send an email and a text message to a stand-by operator’s or supervisor’s smartphone if a machine stops.
With the MDC-Max Web Client we have taken operator events to the next level. The web client can display your live screens and be customized to send any operator event you can think of. Machine status and operator events can be accessed directly in the web client interface making it extremely easy for operators to send downtime reasons for a specific machine.
The web client is optimized for even the smallest displays using responsive design techniques. This means you can access the same interface on smartphones, tablets, and PCs. Thereby the traditional operator screen at the machine has become mobile and can fit in every operator’s pocket. This is not only convenient for the operator, but also a cost-efficient alternative to having client PCs or bar code readers installed at each machine.
CIMCO’s innovative DNC software includes a new web client that can be accessed from any mobile device or PC.
The DNC-Max Web Client can display the current program transfer progress and state of all your machines. You can send, receive, and preview CNC programs using a built-in file browser showing your files on the DNC-Max Server – just like with our regular DNC-Max PC client. It is even possible to stop transmission of programs, restart ports, and also remove programs from the transmission queue directly from the web interface.
Please contact us for more information about how CIMCO DNC-Max can seamlessly integrate with your MDC-Max solution.
CIMCO MDC-Max comes with full support for Microsoft Excel spreadsheets. Reports can be exported easily for further analysis in Excel. MDC-Max can even update your Excel spreadsheet automatically, so the latest data is always available.
CIMCO MDC-Max can also be integrated with most ERP/MPS systems on the market. This means you can have a completely integrated solution that can significantly reduce administrative tasks.
CIMCO MDC-Max can be fully integrated with CIMCO DNC-Max, CIMCO NC-Base and CIMCO MDM giving you a complete DNC, manufacturing data management, and machine data collection system from one supplier.
CIMCO DNC-Max controls CNC program transfer to all of your machines. Programs can be requested directly from the machine control – operators do not need to leave the control to download programs. A program that is changed and uploaded by the operator can automatically become the active version of the program while storing the previous version as a backup copy of the file or the uploaded file can be stored in a quarantine area. This offers the ability to track changes and revert to any previous version if necessary.
CIMCO NC-Base and CIMCO MDM are both full featured manufacturing data management systems that help you manage, control and securely store your manufacturing related data. While CIMCO NC-Base is ideal for handling your NC-programs and related documents.
