Press Release - 12 May 2017
Moving into the future with self-determination without forgetting the roots – this is the recipe of success that made GUARDUS Solutions belong to the most important providers of Manufacturing Execution Systems. For 15 years now, the software development of holistic shop floor concepts has turned into a mission for the software house in Ulm. A plan which promises sustainable yields: In the last three financial years, the organic growth of the MES master was in the double-digit range in each year. In 2017, the company strives for 20 per cent. For many customers, GUARDUS MES has become a central Industry 4.0 fundament in the meanwhile; the management team presides over the most varied standardisation committees and working groups and actively participates in the formation of market trends spanning various sectors of the economy. However, in the first years, the way which promised a brilliant future to the MES specialist was not lacking stumbling blocks.
No fear of paradox
When trying to classify the landscape of the MES providers, the market researchers quickly encounter two categories: the organically growing sustainers and disruptive renovators. The difference between the two consists in the way in which they react to market and process mutations. Due to its criticality, an MES with many years of development and work experience should fill with enthusiasm, and at the same, time to match with the spirit of emerging technologies. Only those providers who have mastered the art of evolution for decades can cope with this paradox and GUARDUS Solutions is one of them. “Our standard software is based upon 15 years of experience. At the foundation of our stock company, we expressed, with a decent amount of idealism, our target of developing the shop floor IT – a discipline which nowadays is called MES and represents the fundament of Industry 4.0. With the same spirit of innovation, we are looking towards the future dealing with new topics and technologies – be it human centred design, cloud & app technology or self-learning systems”, says Simone Cronjäger, member of the Executive Board of GUARDUS Solutions AG. Pursuant to the principle “use your knowledge”, the data models, basic functions and causal models of GUARDUS MES serve as a fundament to which market relevant upgrades and new technologies are added. The existing investment is protected, the software knowledge is preserved and the interaction with the surrounding IT landscape is process safe.
Quality is immanent in all manufacturing
Do not test quality, produce it – this is the fundamental idea of GUARDUS MES. In order for this attitude to be a part of the everyday life, an integrative data management is indispensable. It is only when product and process data are united in a homogeneous database that the responsible persons will able to identify the deviations regarding the process stability, safety and quality as well as to intervene in order to eliminate them. What seems efficient and effective at the same time, was not very popular when GUARDUS entered the market. Andreas Kirsch, also a member of the executive board of the software manufacturer in Ulm remembers: “There was a time when the quality manager shook hands with the production manager for the first time in our presence. Thus, the philosophy of an integrated data management was absolutely revolutionary in 2002.” Consequently, the software was making its first steps at the customer as a pure CAQ system being upgraded later towards production management or vice versa.
For three years now, a new development has been gaining ground: Quality and production management are clearly moving towards an interlocked way of thinking and acting throughout the entire manufacturing process. “If we consider the effects of digitalisation from the point of views of automation, process control and mobility, all the modifications of the shop floor will also concern the quality areas. All sit in the same Industry 4.0 boat”, says Simone Cronjäger.
Moving forward together
Technological progress only makes sense if the solution is oriented towards the needs – this should be the dictum of each R&D department. In this context, GUARDUS focuses on the method of the “Open Innovation.” The target: Away from the ivory towers of laboratories, straight towards a collective method. Therefore, the management team is strongly involved in the national and international standardisation landscape. “Our work in committees and working groups allows us to foresee trends and to actively participate in their formation – for example in the area of performance indicators. This expertise makes our customers confident that our software system meets all the market demands and complies with the norms out of the box”, says Andreas Kirsch. He became the leader of the DIN working group MES which was founded in April 2007 and whose target was to promote an international standardisation for the MES topic. As a leader of the DIN working group MES in the German Mechanical Engineering Industry Association (VDMA), he conducted the elaboration and publication of the VDMA standard sheets 66412 about the MES. Moreover, he also conducted the international study group in the ISO for manufacturing operation management which is also involved in smart manufacturing and Industry 4.0, among others. A result is also the elaboration of the ISO 22400 which became effective as of January 2014.
Another important member of the GUARDUS Open Innovation is the customer. After all, a great part of all the demands is the result of the daily interaction with the products. The team obtains this input in the so-called “GUARDUS Talks”. However, the regular meetings with the customers and partners do not only serve to collect the requirements and implement them, but they also represent the benchmark for new software concepts. “Regardless of whether we speak about IATF, connected traceability, app & co or self-learning systems, our way of thinking allows us to identify trends early and to then develop the possible solution scenarios. These will be then tested in order to find out what exactly is required and which approaches will create effective added value today and tomorrow”, continues Cronjäger to explain. Therefore, it will further be exciting to see which software concept the MES professional will bring to the market in the next 15 years.
