PRODUCTION MONITORING SYSTEM
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08
Oct

Evolution of the “Andon” system in your factory with the help of M-Box

October 8, 2019
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Andon is a Lean Manufacturing tool that reports problems in the work area to take measures to solve the issue and prevent them from happening again.

What is Andon? | How It Works? | Activate Andon with Monitor-Box

What Is Andon?

Andon refers to the visual tool that indicates the status of equipment or workstations in a production area, in order to immediately alert to issues that slow down output.

Andon is a principle element of the JIDOKA Lean Manufacturing approach. Operators have the responsibility to stop production immediately when a problem occurs and seek assistance to handle the problem at its root-cause. 

USE VISUAL SCREENS TO MINIMIZE DOWNTIME

The screens placed at strategic positions make sure that everyone is aware of the status on the shop-floor.

M-Box allows the creation of unlimited Andon views (per department, machine group, or type).

Create unlimited number of Andon boards using M-Box

The origin of Andon

Andon, as a Lean tool, has its origin in Japan in the 1970s in the Toyota production system. Through a set of lights: personnel was alerting to (evolving) production problems, whether Maintenance, Quality, Safety, Production, Logistics, etc.

How Andon works

Andon activation triggers a (visual) signal to communicate that support is needed. The signals are triggered by the operator or equipment (automatically at atypical running or production stop) and are supposed to facilitate quick decision-making and action by the staff.

Human factor

The human factor is essential for the success of this tool and team participation is crucial. Wrong decisions by operators, made in good faith, should trigger training to improve and have no personal consequences.

Minimal Response Time

Timely activation and good visibility allow for Minimal response time and thus help avoid economic losses related to machine downtime and product quality.

Support Team

It increases the effectiveness of support teams for them to be at the right time, the right place. Atypical situations in the flow of a process are best analyzed as early as possible, to increases the effectiveness of preventive measures.

Andon helps to highlight relevant information and to standardize communication. This benefits the feeling of empowerment and motivation of staff.

Defining an Andon system

  • Which processes to control
  • Indicators to be monitored
  • Locations of related equipment
  • Error characterization
  • Information processing
  • Subsequent actions

The systems’ main objectives are to generate a reaction to an atypical situation in all kinds of processes. Obviously we think about manufacturing processes (covering machinery and equipment, quality, production, maintenance, safety) but it can also be applied in logistics processes, office areas, etc.

Activate Andon with Monitor-Box

Alert Buttons

When any machine has (or expects) a production interruption, the operator indicates this through preset buttons on the M-Box. The supervisor is alerted via a notification on his mobile device or portal and can take action to address the root cause.

Manufacturing Data Collection System Core Component: the M-Box

Instant Notifications

M-Box also provides instant notifications related to waste of electricity, auxiliary equipment status, production levels, efficiency indicators, quality checks, etc. Additionally, these can also be sent to different factory managers, officers, supervisors as configured.

More About Instant Notifications

Real-Time Monitoring Board

M-Box monitors your production processes in real-time and makes the use of Andon systems a reality, helping you to run your operation at top performance. 

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