Smart manufacturing for enterprises: Evolve continuously and focus on core concepts

Delta’s smart manufacturing begins with equipment as its base, and then creates an interconnected smart production site with cyber-physical integration and diagnosis consulting services to help customers with core improvements and installation. In "About DSM" in this issue, we will introduce Delta’s consulting services and implementation methods and look into the demand and business opportunities of MES / automatic robots, SCARA / machine equipment, and big data analysis. Additionally, Delta has begun designing the next generation of automated production lines, which will reduce line change time, provide analysis and improve yield. The new generation will aim to rapidly expand production lines and achieve more advanced smart anufacturing.

A solution to meet demand: Providing diagnosis consulting services

In response to market demand, the Delta Smart Manufacturing (DSM) established its Core Team at the end of last year. The team's main mission is to provide diagnosis consulting, and offer suggestions for improvement. This will create further business opportunities by helping customers examine their factory status and diagnose their existing hardware equipment, software management platform, energy and factory management, and process procedures. The team members of this comprehensive service system consist of staff from Delta business units and external departments, including: software development, production, energy management, factory management, project management, sales and marketing. The team is also divided into groups depending on individual duties, such as Customer Communications, Questions Database Design, Expert Interview, and Diagnosis Report, as follows: 

►Customer Communications: Communicate with customers to understand actual requirements, and plan for a diagnosis team to be stationed on-site.
►Questions Database Design: According to research on industry customers and status, select a 
suitable online evaluation module for the customer to conduct a self-evaluation.
►Expert Interview: Provide a diagnosis according to the customer's online self-evaluation results, an on-site interview, and a production line inspection.
►Diagnosis Report: Propose improvement suggestions in regards to planning for production line hardware, Internet facilities, data management, and others, that serve as a reference and assessment for 
optimization by customers. Follow up on subsequent business opportunities.

Through practices in processes and methods, the Delta Core Team redesigns factory sites based on requirements from corporate customers, while continuing to accumulate experience from continuous 
projects and improving its service skills.

Cyber-physical integration for an enterprise-wide upgrade with smart manufacturing

The key value of the diagnosis consulting service lies in ‘online evaluation’ and ‘expert diagnosis’. The online evaluation plays an important role at the beginning stage of the diagnosis. The evaluation can significantly improve efficiency of the investigation and quantify customer demands. The Delta Smart Manufacturing Diagnosis Model collects the practical experience of several Delta experts, and references maturity models for smart manufacturing in domestic and foreign markets. From the enterprise product life cycle (design, production, logistics, service) and fundamental essentials of a smart production line (equipment, information system, management, quality), it offers a comprehensive 2-dimensional examination for the quality of smart manufacturing. The model creates reports based on enterprise information management, user role management, an online questions module, an expert opinion module, a statistical analysis module, and other operations. It also provides a valuable reference for experts prior to onsite visits and interviews.

In summary, Delta’s diagnosis consulting includes early-stage contacts with the customer, information collection, and an online evaluation during actual execution, expert diagnostic interviews, and 
improvement suggestions. It is service-oriented, and originates from customer requirements to help customers with comprehensive or partial re-planning, thereby increasing production.

Staying ahead with the next-generation smart production line

In addition to the diagnosis services above, Delta has also begun to plan the next automated production line, using Equipment Network Integration (ENI) as its backbone and DIAlink for data exchange between the equipment to ensure productive operations and synchronized information and logistics. For the structure, ENI is the management-level software (DIAMMP, MES, MOM) that serves as a bridge between the equipment, and which reduces system and equipment response time, reduces the loading of systems computation, and satisfies small-volume large-variety production. The system features include:

►Improved development efficiency: The standard mechanism of ENI and its technology for the control of automated production lines achieves the rapid planning and integration of automated production lines, improves the efficiency of developments across teams, and realizes rapid duplication.

►Increased product traceability: The PLCs’ instant records ensure that the information flow and logistics of the production line are synchronized.

►Guaranteed normal operation for the production line: The handshake signals between instant monitoring equipment provide buffer control, separation control for defective products, and complex automatic sampling rules. It ensures normal production for the overall production line.

►Support for small-volume large-variety production: The data handshakes between PLCs provide communication between the equipment and deliver machine information, facilitating implementation of smart manufacturing scenarios with automatic line (product) changes.

With ENI as the foundation, combined with the Production Management & Visualization Platform DIAMMP, MES, the Advanced Manufacturing System MOM, and other management-level software, Delta has managed to accomplish its goal of automated integration for the whole factory. This includes implementation of production management, equipment management, quality management, and alarm management of the automated factory.

Illustration of System Structure for Delta Smart Production Line

Production on-demand helps expand market share for smart manufacturing

According to the 2018 - 2021 CAGR for global sales of electronic systems estimated by IC Insight, the top three are automobile electronic systems, industrial electronic systems, and smartphones. In line with this trend, Delta will ensure that we help customers achieve full upgrades in smart production with a layered, step-by-step development based on different manufacturing fields and companies. In addition, Delta will offer smart equipment (production equipment, inspection equipment), equipment (sensors, actuators, vision, robots, SCARA, PLC, controllers), production management systems (SCADA+MES), and data analysis (data analytics). Delta provides clients with customized solutions based on actual requirements and along with diagnosis consulting services.

Delta will collect feedback from the implementation process to improve our product competitiveness. Successful implementation cases will join other Delta smart manufacturing products to become exemplary 
applications, and help expand our future market share.