A production control system coordinates workpiece flow, NC program distribution, and the allocation of resources in flexible manufacturing systems—fully automatically and independently of the manufacturer.
Shorter innovation cycles and the individualization of products are leading to smaller batch sizes and thus to a high variance of parts in production. The necessary machine capacities must flexibly and on short notice available, and the skilled workers required for production must be deployed efficiently. This requires increased organizational efforts and increasing automation in order to remain profitable and competitive.
The solution to these challenges lies in the use of production control systems.
What is a Production Control System?
A Production Control System for flexible manufacturing cells is an independent software unit that controls and organizes the workpiece throughput and the flow of resources in the flexible manufacturing system (FMS). The controls of processing machines, transport devices and special machines or other equipment of the production plant are connected to the production control system. It activates the individual processes of the plant components (NC machining, transport operations, etc.) and supplies their controls with the necessary information. In addition to the controlling tasks, planning functions and the acquisition of production and machine data are part of the scope of a production control system.
To summarize: a production control system manages and plans production orders, controls order throughput, and organizes the provision of operating resources. As an analogy, we could say that a Production Control System is the brain of a flexible manufacturing plant.
The objective of flexible manufacturing systems (according to the CNC Handbook 31 edition) is to profitably manufacture:
- different workpieces
- with different machining operations
- in any sequence
- in changing batch sizes
- fully automatic, without manual intervention.
In practice, a production control system also has a "human-machine interface" (HMI) component. This usually runs on an industrial PC with a standard operating system (e.g. Windows), also known as a "master computer", although this term is disputed in the technical literature.
Topics such as IT architecture and IT security are very important nowadays. Accordingly, the control systems must be operated on highly performant hardware to ensure the best availability for 24/7 production. Virtual servers or cloud-based solutions in production facilities are becoming more and more common.
On this topic SOFLEX has followed the trend from the consumer sector and thus developed a touch-based user interface that enjoys great acceptance in shop floors thanks to its intuitive operation.
When is a Production Control System used? (Application criteria)
In conventional plants, the parts or part variants to be produced are usually already known at the time of planning. The control system is precisely adjusted to the work steps required for production within the plant. The plant / cell control system concentrates on the automated production of the pre-planned product range with cyclically recurring processes.
Flexible production systems require more. The range of parts to be produced is only vaguely known and limited due to the mechanical framework conditions (machining space, weights, ...). The variance of the parts, the batch sizes as well as the work steps to be executed have no restrictions. The user has the requirement to be able to adapt the workflow independently to the changing part variants and to be supported in the organization of the operating resources to avoid unnecessary downtimes.
Production characteristics for the use of a production control system:
- free-run operation
- small to medium batch sizes (from 1 to a maximum of 1000)
- large and frequently changing parts spectrum
- no or multiple repetitions / year
- complex manufacturing processes (multi-stage machining, various numerous operations)
In these applications, the main advantages of a control system come into play. SOFLEX control systems, with their flexible work plan structures and dynamic calculation of resource requirements, offer the best prerequisites for maximum flexibility.
SOFLEX has been one of the leading suppliers of production control systems since 1984.
With over 40 years of experience in automation and digitalization, SOFLEX delivers manufacturer-independent, tailor-made solutions for modern production.
As a specialized system house, we plan, control and visualize flexible production systems - in over 2,000 installations worldwide.
Our software is designed to maximize the productivity of production systems with small batch sizes and high workpiece variance.
The main functions of a SOFLEX control system can be subdivided into:
- Organization of the production process (detailed planning, calculation of tool requirements, provision of NC programs and production documents, ...)
- Control of automated processes (automatic workpiece and resource supply, start of machining, ...)
- Recording of all relevant machine and operating data
A production control system is software for controlling, monitoring and optimizing production processes - especially in flexible production facilities. It connects machines with systems such as ERP, CAD/CAM and ensures a smooth flow of information and more efficient processes.
The system organizes workpiece throughput and the provision of operating resources. It controls processing machines, transport devices and other system components, activates individual process steps (e.g. NC processing, transports) and provides all the necessary information on the production process.
It also performs planning functions and records production and machine data.
A control system can be compared to the “brain” of a production plant - it thinks for itself and keeps everything running.
Ein SOFLEX-Leitsystem bietet zahlreiche Vorteile, die durch seine universelle und herstellerneutrale Ausrichtung ermöglicht werden:
- Maschinen, Automatisierungseinrichtungen und Anlagen verschiedenster Anbieter können mit einem SOFLEX-Leitsystem betrieben werden.
- Die einheitliche Bedienung und der standardisierte Betrieb bei unterschiedlichen Anlagen erlaubt einen flexiblen Personaleinsatz und optimiert den Bedarf an Fachkräften.
- Die Neutralität der SOFLEX Lösung schafft maximale Investitionssicherheit und ermöglicht es Unternehmen, auch in Zukunft technologisch flexibel zu bleiben, ohne sich an bestimmte Hersteller binden zu müssen.
Im Vergleich zu klassischen MES-Systemen (Manufacturing Execution Systems) geht SOFLEX deutlich tiefer in die
Steuerung und Automatisierung der Fertigung. Während MES-Anbieter meist standardisierte Funktionen wie Betriebsdatenerfassung, Auftragsverfolgung oder Qualitätsmanagement bereitstellen, übernimmt SOFLEX zusätzlich die direkte Ablaufsteuerung von Maschinen, Fertigungszellen und gesamten Anlagen – inklusive der Koordination von Transport- und Betriebsmitteln. Diese umfassende Integration ermöglicht eine noch präzisere und flexiblere Steuerung der gesamten Fertigung.
Der zentrale Unterschied liegt im Fokus der Systeme:
- ERP-Systeme sind primär auf die Verwaltung von Unternehmensressourcen wie Finanzen, Personal, Einkauf und Vertrieb ausgerichtet.
- SOFLEX hingegen konzentriert sich auf fertigungsnahe Abläufe – insbesondere auf die detaillierte Planung, Steuerung und Überwachung der Fertigungsprozesse sowie die direkte Anbindung von Maschinen und Automatisierungslösungen.
SOFLEX ergänzt somit bestehende ERP-Systeme und schließt die Lücke zwischen der betriebswirtschaftlichen Planung und den operativen Abläufen in der Produktion.