Sascha Fuchs

Integrative Production Technology for High-wage Countries

Manufacturing companies in high-wage countries are increasingly set under pressure in international competition due the lower production costs in low-wage countries. In order to counteract this development, many manufacturing companies respond to this issue by relocating their production facilities. Due to industrial production’s high dependence on other sectors such as the services sector, this trend threatens Europe’s medium and long term prosperity since outsourcing generally leads to subsequent relocation of services as well as of research and development activities (Lau 2005). With over 40% of German employees assigned to the manufacturing sector, production plays a key role in the national economy of Germany. Consequently, relocation of production poses huge risks for the country’s future economic development (Statistisches Bundesamt 2010).

Integrative Produktionstechnik für Hochlohnländer

Produzierende Unternehmen in Hochlohnlandern werden im internationalen Verdrangungswettbewerb immer starker durch die augenscheinlich im relativen Vergleich niedrigeren Produktionskosten in Niedriglohnlandern unter Druck gesetzt. Um dem entgegenzuwirken, reagiert eine grose Anzahl produzierender Unternehmen mit einer Verlagerung der Produktionsstatten. Auf Grund der starken Abhangigkeit weiterer Wirtschaftsbereiche (wie beispielsweise der Dienstleistungsbranche) von der industriellen Produktion, gefahrdet dieser Trend mittel- und langfristig den Wohlstand in Europa. (Lau 2005) Produktionsverlagerungen fuhren in der Regel auch zu nachfolgenden Verlagerungen von Dienstleistungs-, aber auch von Forschungs- und Entwicklungstatigkeiten. Da uber 40 % der sozialversicherungspflichtigen Erwerbstatigen in Deutschland dem produzierenden Gewerbe zugerechnet werden, nimmt die Produktion eine Schlusselrolle ein und ihre Abwanderung birgt immense Risiken fur die Entwicklung der Volkswirtschaft des Landes. (Statistisches Bundesamt 2010)

High resolution supply chain management: optimized processes based on self-optimizing control loops and real time data

The efficient dealing with the dynamic environment of production industries is one of the most challenging tasks of Supply Chain Management in high-wage countries. Relevant and current information are still not used sufficiently, to handle the influence of the dynamic environment on intra- and inter-company order processing adequately. Among other things, the problem is caused by missing or delayed feedback of relevant data. As a consequence of that, planning results differ from the actual situation of production. High Resolution Supply Chain Management describes an approach aiming on high information transparency in supply chains in combination with decentralized, self-optimizing control loops for Production Planning and Control. The final objective is to enable manufacturing companies to produce efficiently and to be able to react to order-variations at any time, requiring process structures to be most flexible.

Self-optimising Production Systems

One of the central success factors for production in high-wage countries is the solution of the conflict that can be described with the term “planning efficiency”. Planning efficiency describes the relationship between the expenditure of planning and the profit generated by these expenditures. From the viewpoint of a successful business management, the challenge is to dynamically find the optimum between detailed planning and the immediate arrangement of the value stream. Planning-oriented approaches try to model the production system with as many of its characteristics and parameters as possible in order to avoid uncertainties and to allow rational decisions based on these models. The success of a planning-oriented approach depends on the transparency of business and production processes and on the quality of the applied models. Even though planning-oriented approaches are supported by a multitude of systems in industrial practice, an effective realisation is very intricate, so these models with their inherent structures tend to be matched to a current stationary condition of an enterprise. Every change within this enterprise, whether inherently structural or driven by altered input parameters, thus requires continuous updating and adjustment. This process is very cost-intensive and time-consuming; a direct transfer onto other enterprises or even other processes within the same enterprise is often impossible. This is also a result of the fact that planning usually occurs a priori and not in real-time. Therefore it is hard for completely planning-oriented systems to react to spontaneous deviations because the knowledge about those naturally only comes a posteriori.

High Resolution Supply Chain Management – Resolution of the Polylemma of Production by Information Transparency and Organizational Integration

High Resolution Supply Chain Management (HRSCM) aims to stop the trend of continuously increasing planning complexity. Today, companies in high-wage countries mostly strive for further optimization of their processes with sophisticated, capital-intensive planning approaches [3]. The capability to adapt flexibly to dynamically changing conditions is limited by the inflexible and centralized planning logic. Thus, flexibility is reached currently by expensive inventory stocks and overcapacities in order to cope with rescheduling of supply or delivery. HRSCM describes the establishment of a complete information transparency in supply chains with the goal of assuring the availability of goods through decentralized, self-optimizing control loops for Production Planning and Control (PPC). By this HRSCM pursues the idea of enabling organizational structures and processes to adapt to dynamic conditions. The basis for this new PPC Model are stable processes, consistent customer orientation, increased capacity flexibility and the understanding of production systems as viable, socio-technical systems [1, 2].

Self-Optimizing Decision-Making in Production Control

This paper deals with the concept for self-optimizing decision-making in production planning and control. The concept is based on a value stream that provides real-time production data. This data enables a qualified decision regarding production planning and control. Practice has shown that production systems with a high production process complexity—such as job shop production with low volume production—are difficult to control automatically. Therefore, employees have an important role to play but need to be supported regarding their decision-making. The goal is to highlight relevant decisions and put them into the correct context. An unconventional and interactive illustration that abandons classic numerical key performance indicators helps to derive the correct decisions. Varying levels of detail regarding the depicted data allow the user to “zoom” in or out of the state of his production system. By support of simulation and visualization tools, the aim of this paper is to present a concept for self-optimizing decision-making in production control in order to help user making the right decision.

Shifting Bottlenecks in Production Control

Since Goldratt’s novel “The Goal” in 1984 the importance of bottlenecks has first been published, it is the subject of several research activities in the field of production control. Depending on the industry sector and their organizational structure in production, the consideration of bottlenecks within the production control concept can be very difficult. Particularly shifting bottlenecks are causing many problems as no sufficient concept for production structures with complex material flows has been developed so far. Therefore the latest research activities at the Laboratory of Machine Tools and Production Engineering of Aachen University focus on this kind of productions. Based on these several industrial case studies have been carried out for validation. The challenges and results will be described in the following.

High Resolution Information Management Decentralized and Self Optimizing Manufacturing Control in a Multi Machine Operating Environment

Absorbing the dynamics in production and to stabilize the production processes requires high efforts in order control. Today’s IT-systems such as Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) are specialized in planning technical resources and optimizing deterministic sequences. Inconsistencies in planning have to be compensated by the operational staff at the latest. The vision of High Resolution Information Management (HRIM) is to build upon decentralized and adaptive control mechanisms for the workers in contrast to the traditional centralized control paradigm. In using context information, creating transparency through information and evaluating alternatives in the decision making process, the workers can better be enabled in handling the dynamic inherent in the system. The centralized structure of the companywide planning and control system will therefore not be abolished on the operational area but completed by decentralized self controlling structures.

Analyzing the Effects of Production Control on Logistic Targets with Web-Based Simulation Model

Manufacturing companies are facing the challenge to cope with individualized process chains in spite of high market dynamics. In order to achieve high process efficiency by realizing logistic targets, two main leverages can be identified: adjustment of production structure and configuration of production control. The production structure represents the layout and arrangement of machines, the organization of production processes as well as the information and material flow. Once installed, it is often set for a long period of time and therefore represents the basis for further elements in a production environment such as production control. The dilemma of production planning and control is to achieve high process efficiency, low throughput times and good planning confidence while customers demand short product-lifecycles, an increasing product variety and a growing individualization of products. Within this paper, a simulation-based study about the effects of production structure and production control to logistical targets is introduced.

Integrative Business and Technology Cases

In order to strengthen the relevance and integrativity of research in the Cluster of Excellence, current best practice “business and technology cases” were selected. Hereby the theories, hypotheses, predictions and technology projects developed in the Cluster of Excellence are evaluated and advanced in close collaboration with leading production companies in Germany and Europe. To make the work more transparent, different application scenarios will be developed.