Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/921680
38 SMT007 MAGAZINE I JANUARY 2018 ble final assembly production line, the concept and challenge applies equally to any factory where the factory output is controlled by the customer and needs to be flexible, including by the way, all the suppliers of sub-assemblies that support the automotive line. The better the communication between manufacturing and the supply-chain, the "Leaner" the whole process of assembly with a high degree of variants, and high mix, will be. At the core, in engineering, is the product definition as described in the BOM. A config- ure to order BOM looks much the same as a regular BOM, except that certain part numbers refer to a choice of actual materials, represent- ing options. These can be individual mate- rial choices or the choice of a set of material dependent features, or a combination of the two. Rather than having to create and select a unique BOM from literally thousands of poten- tial variations, a single configure to order BOM will represent all feature and option combina- tions. The configure to order BOM has all the vari- ous options defined through the use of the part number key-word, which is set up just once. It can then be simply used when plan- ning and creating any and all of the differ- ent specific product configurations that are required, whether for a set group of prod- ucts or even a single unit. As the configure to order BOM is processed during, for example, the creation of a work-order, the choices are offered to select the material, set of materials or sub-assemblies to reflect the specific vari- ant need. This selection is stored as part of the work-order, ensuring that the correct engineer- ing information is available at all work-stations and processes throughout manufacturing, and as a look-ahead for material preparation and supply-chain. All aspects of the MES software that works with configure to order BOMs will automatically follow the designated selected options without further manual overhead. The whole process of MES with the configure to order BOM is therefore several orders of magni- tude simpler and more secure than handling multiple unique BOMs. Systems supporting the configure to order BOM as an integral part of a singular MES solution provide the most efficient way to plan and execute in the high mix and volatile envi- ronments associated with the extreme flexibil- ity that Industry 4.0 requires. No matter how the operation is planned, how work-orders are created, or how flexible production has to be moving products between configurations, the ability of the engineering team to remain in control of the product data across all of the vari- ants is critical. The management of visual aids and documentation throughout the process is imperative. For those operations that are yet to see significant numbers of variants, it should be remembered that as the number of prod- uct options and variants increases, the number of unique BOM combinations increases expo- nentially. With the configure to order BOM this is not the case, each additional variant is simple to introduce. Any assembly factory that is aiming to become an Industry 4.0 operation, with flexibility to make products according to the real demand, without the use of expen- sive stock in the distribution chain should seri- ously consider the adoption of an MES solution hat includes built-in configure to order capa- bilities. SMT007 Michael Ford is the European marketing director for Aegis Software. The configure to order BOM has all the various options defined through the use of the part number key-word, which is set up just once.