42Q, a provider of cloud manufacturing execution systems (MES), has introduced Semiconductor Equipment Communications Standard, Generic Equipment Model (SECS/GEM) protocol capability.
SECS/GEM is an industry standard factory equipment interface protocol for equipment-to-host data communications.
In securing SECS/GEM capability, 42Q says it greatly simplifies the implementation of factory automation, machine to machine (M2M) communication, real time in process data collection and data analytics, all key elements of Industry 4.0 and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT).
Several factories using 42Q have already deployed this new protocol in their operations, sasy the company.
For many manufacturers, change brings risk. Disrupting their production lines to implement IIoT, or any other smart factory initiatives, can cost millions of dollars and consume significant resources.
As such, many manufacturers have been unwilling to embrace far-reaching changes to their industrial infrastructure and processes.
42Q says its cloud-based approach helps manufacturers more easily cross traditional boundaries of automation, engineering, operations, and IT.
42Q delivers a comprehensive and proven cloud MES solution which operates between an Enterprise Resource Planning system and the manufacturing equipment in a factory, enabling a factory to easily, and more cost effectively implement the key elements of a smart factory and Industry 4.0.
Srivats Ramaswami, CTO at 42Q, says: “With the introduction of SECS/GEM capability to 42Q, our customers can now more easily transform their operations into a smart factory with M2M communication, automation, as well as automated test and data collection for data analytics.
“This significant enhancement builds on 42Q’s foundation of data security, global operations visibility and process control, with the ease of implementation that a cloud solution provides.”
As a cloud based solution, 42Q says it provides several immediate benefits compared with traditional on premise solutions. These benefits include faster implementation and lower up-front costs.
According to LNS Research, only 20 percent of manufacturing facilities currently have an integrated MES solution installed and, in the past, the thought of implementing a large scale MES solution has been daunting. An easy to deploy, cloud-based solution, with the right applications and shop floor connectivity for discrete manufacturing, can help many to overcome the difficulties of getting started.
Ramaswami adds: “In developing a fully cloud-based MES, 42Q makes it easier for businesses of all sizes to scale up or down, adding new levels of flexibility.
“42Q meets the competing demands of operational efficiency and deep functionality across all plant operations while maintaining a high level of agility and cost efficiency. Today, using the SECS/GEM standard, the 42Q solution currently manages ‘no touch’ fully automated production lines with highly optimized machine to machine and human machine interfaces.”
Currently deployed in more than 50 factories worldwide, 42Q solves some of the key challenges that organizations are faced with these days including transaction volume and velocity. 42Q is a proven and secure solution, operating with millions of real-time transactions each month.
