Overview:

The case study deals with one of our most challenging implementation projects, incorporating an Integrated Production Management System for a body shop. Any discrepancies at any stage/ part of the system can hamper overall production management. Despite obstacles and various constraints, our team accomplished the project with the precise and successful execution of the Integrated Production Management System (IPMS).

 

About The Client:

Tata Motors Group (Tata Motors) is a leading global automobile manufacturing company. Tata Motors is one of India’s largest OEMs offering an extensive range of integrated, smart and e-mobility solutions. Its diverse portfolio includes an extensive range of cars, sports utility vehicles, trucks, buses, and defense vehicles.

The Integrated Production Management System project was conducted for the TATA Motors manufacturing facility in Pune. The Pune facility is a full-range supplier of both commercial and passenger vehicles. The unit is equipped with state-of-the-art manufacturing capabilities, testing facilities, and sets standards for India’s automotive research and development.

 

Case Study Brief:

Integrated Production Management is a highly efficient system that enables shop-floor managers to receive real-time information, track and trace materials, and optimize production to improve output. It is an intelligent manufacturing system that manages different shops with complex setups for achieving flexible production, ensuring quality checks, events, and history data logs. The system executes stepwise inspection of products through a unique barcode-scanning system to track each part at different stages of production. It ascertains that the correct part is available at the required step of the process and effectively manages the entire process. The system essentially improves efficiency, facilitates optimization, dramatically reduces turnaround times, enhances the accuracy and quality of products, and improves the plant’s overall efficiency.

Tata Motors, Pune wanted to incorporate Integrated Production Management System (IPMS for its body shop division. ENWPS undertook the assignment as an Implementation and Development Partner for the project.

 

Our Work:

Our client, Tata Motors, was willing to install a similar flexible production system that can produce a unique model every minute while having no restrictions on model variations. Usually, such manufacturing units deploy a batch manufacturing production system, wherein the whole production line needs to be rebuilt whenever introducing a different model. However, Integrated Production Management aims to provide the right part at the right place for unique models without interfering with the whole manufacturing setup.

The IPMS was installed for the body shop of the consumer vehicles manufacturing division, where every next model can be different from another. Below are the steps and processes undertaken for successful integration.

o IPMS provides the production plan to SPC (Sequence PC).

o The programmable logic controller requests the next variant to SPC.

o SPC sends variant to PLC and prints barcode for the car (a unique Car ID).

o SPC periodically polls the status information from all the line PLCs.

o SPC displays the line status on each line on an Andon board.

o Flexible Production: Every next car can be different from another one.

o Provided RAID 5 disk protection.

A backup PC is also provided to back up all the line PLCs.

Key Challenges:

o Freedom of adding variants and models for new cars without restrictions

o Flexible production management by optimizing real-time data

 

The Solution:

Our team installed the Integrated Production System on-site along with rigorous testing and analysis of the whole production system. We installed in-built software that keeps track of the entire production process through barcode scanning. The software also provides real-time feedback and data about inventory levels, production plans, order tracking, and associated tasks.

The system developed efficiently manages the marriage stations and assembly lines with different components entering the process from various stations. Moreover, the system is intelligently designed to work efficiently even when any error occurs. It includes take-out stations, which remove all the aligned parts from the production line, without interrupting the production process. And whenever the issue is resolved all the parts are again placed in the previous order through take-in stations.

 

The Result:

The solution enabled the customer to achieve the following.

o A flexible production system that produces a different variant or model every 54 seconds.

o One million programmable variants were made available to introduce new features in the model or upgrade the existing ones.

o Unique barcode-scanning system for keeping a record of each part at different stages of assembly. It ensures that the correct part is available at the required step of the marriage line.

o It increased production output and efficiency.

o The system enables shop-floor managers to receive real-time information, track and trace materials, and optimize the production process to the availability of parts.

o Deployment of a flawless manufacturing process that can provide real-time feedback of the manufacturing process with necessary changes. This prevents the manufacturing of defective products.

o Reduced lead time and capability to introduce multiple customizations according to customers’ needs.

o Enhanced accuracy of the product by keeping a check on marriage stations.

o Effective planning and sequencing of the daily manufacturing process.

o Other utilities of the system involve data logging, fault detection, regular backup, and ample storage for keeping all the information secured.

o Also, hot-swappable drives were installed, which enabled the replacement of drives without turning off the production process. So, in case any dysfunctionality occurs, the data remains secure.

The system has been working efficiently since its installation in 2012, and our client has been able to optimize and enhance its manufacturing process to the fullest.

 

Our Achievements: 

Our team emerged with flying colors, overcoming all the criticalities and obstacles in integration.