The Role of Manufacturing Execution Systems in Supporting Lean Manufacturing
In order to deal with global competition and increased customers expectation, companies must improve the efficiency of their manufacturing processes. Mainly, two approaches are available: the implementation of lean manufacturing practices and the deployment of information tools for data analysis. For a long time, these two strategies have been considered mutually exclusive; recently, it was understood that information concerning the manufacturing process is mandatory for the effective implementation of lean practices. This work aims at showing how Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) can support the lean manufacturing paradigm into a medium size enterprise. The case study of a company in the supply chain of automotive components is presented to provide evidence about the role of MES and to highlight possible criticalities occurring during its implementation.
PLM