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3-phase project for efficiency improvement and process optimization

Swiss electronic manufacturer implements an all-around process optimization
3-phase project for efficiency improvement and process optimization

In order to be able to secure medium to long term jobs in Switzerland, processes have to be constantly checked and further optimized and automated. A smart and innovative investment policy forms the basis for a successful growth. Process optimization is key for success, as is the case for the company, EPH Electronics AG from Diessenhofen. Since 2015, they have devoted their efforts to go towards Industry 4.0 and optimize their process by modernizing their production.

EPH Electronics AG was founded in 1980 in Feuerthalen. Today, the Swiss electronic production company is devoted to their customers with around 70 employees in 10,000 m2. By having the state-of-the-art machinery, combined with a qualified and motivated production and development team, enables the provision of services over the complete life cycle of a product. This starts with the creation of concepts, the development and prototyping, testing phase, production launch and the ramp-up, mass production, to the end-of-product life phase. As an EMS company, they go beyond just production services, from contract assembly to the production of complete assemblies and devices. In doing so, the company relies on long-term relationships with customers and suppliers. This is also the case with Mycronic, a company that develops solutions for the assembly of electronic components with its MY200 platform. Their product portfolio, including the unique jet and dispenser platform MY600, the automatic and intelligent material handling, and the latest generation SMT Tower 6150 series, provides a complete and powerful production solution.

The benchmark of productivity

As business started to increase, EPH recognized that not only was their tight space no longer practical, but also all systems in the SMT department were from different manufacturers, making them incompatible with one another. They knew they had to find a solution to these specific issues. It was also found that there wasn’t an efficient back-up method, the setup processes at the facility were not useful, and parts were missing which resulted in high loss of time. Early 2015, an analysis was started, in order to determine exactly where the performance gaps were located and figure out how to optimize the process.

EPH defined their goal as: “Maximum efficiency with the highest possible flexibility”. More specifically, this meant to:

  • increase efficiency
  • optimize the use of space
  • have compatibility within systems
  • have backup solution for machine failures
  • automate material handling
  • increase automation in the direction of Industry 4.0

The actual state had to be determined first, to then be able to define what it should be like, in order to make definite changes. “We immediately recognized,” says the Quality and Lean manager, Ulf Schmidt, “that the problem was not in the assembly house, but actually the setup changeover, so this is where we started out. We also discovered that it came from missing components at machine downtime, so the material flow was not optimal.”

Another issue that was found was the arrangement of the placement machines and the different level of hardware and software. With the aim of obtaining as much as possible from a single source, the company investigated the different possibilities at the SMT show in Nuremberg and productronica in 2015. This is where Mycronic was able to provide the required solutions.

The 6150er series Material Tower and the software MyPLan from Mycronic was exactly the missing link between the warehouse and production that was needed.

Together, both companies developed and implemented a concept, which was divided into 3 separate phases. In the first phase, the outdated system of the second manufacturer was removed. In its place, a Mycronic MY200-DX10 placement system was obtained, as well as, a plan to reconfigure the other existing systems. All units were brought under the same software and hardware system. The conversion was planned in such a way that never more than one third of the capacity was blocked at one time.

In the second phase, the Material Tower and the associated software for material management were installed and put into operation. Around the same time, the material flow was updated, meaning the automated external setup station was set up. This update included the Mycronic PRM 2.0 software, which enabled the monitoring of outgoing material on the equipment, and is displayed in real time on a large screen for all the lines to see.

During this time, a user meeting was organized, at the office of Mycronic in Unterhaching, Germany, to find out about new trends, participate in lectures on topics as in Industry 4.0, and have the opportunity for other users of Mycronic systems to interact with each other and share ideas.

Developers also took into account requests from the users for future developments. “For us as customers, the user meeting was a well-rounded win-win situation for all involved,” says Ulf Schmidt.

Through the close cooperation with Mycronic and the effect that, at the time, Mycronic had with their new software tools that aimed at optimizing production, the EPH team used a part of the Mycronic 360 ° approach.

This 360 ° standard approach is used worldwide to analyze the efficiency and performance of a SMT manufacturing process. By implementing this approach, further optimization could be discovered. Due to a lag in the housing databases of the placement systems, which has grown over the years, Mycronic explored what benefits could come just from revising the database. Maik Karras, the Service Engineer and Process Optimization Expert of Mycronic, immediately knew where to start.

Focusing on process optimization

Process optimization is used to improve efficiency and effectiveness of existing processes, as well as, the use of necessary resources that need to be continuously updated. It is based on a process oriented approach to the entire operational systems. When a Lean Manager is not specifically set in place, the system supplier and its 360 ° standard approach will help in this regard.

With the conversion to external setup, EPH has already seen a significant benefit of almost 25 %. By investing in an additional placement machine and a new line configuration, an optimization was achieved by a total of 42 %. With a combination of the comprehensive data optimization, a further 20 % was achieved. According to the team, “The percentages and figures were easily detectable for us, as we had previously well tracked our data.” The new equipment and the SMT tower was put into place in Diessenhofen in the beginning of 2016. Using the software tools, MYPlan (which generates reports indicating which component type is in which feeder load) and MYCenter, for the organization of the carrier database, a comprehensive functional material flow could be ensured. The carriers are matched with the component types specified by MYPlan from the warehouse, so that the external set-up is now fully automated and secure. An important aspect to think about is the frequent changeovers of service providers with batch sizes from 1 to 15,000. The typical size is 500 to 5,000.

The conversion and optimization not only brought an increase in efficiency, but the backup solution is now secure, in the event of a complete failure. All systems in the three SMT lines are now compatible with each other. Redundancy is also available, which means that one product can be produced on all three lines. Two of the lines are designed for extra-large PCBs, while the third line is for smaller circuit boards with a higher component density. Although the Material Tower from Mycronic stands separately, it is planned to be relocated in the near future, bringing the tower directly into the lines. This will not only create an even higher material stability, but it will also avoid long distances of going back and forth, and therefore save time.

All targets for the optimization values that were calculated before the start of the project were almost exactly reached. The program continually screens to make sure whether or not the goal has been reached and notices which direction trends are going. Since the beginning of this year, the Shop Floor Management implemented daily targets to constantly monitor the process. However, transitioning towards Lean Management is a constant checking process, as Ulf Schmidt emphasized, “We can clearly see differences in our evaluation curves when our attention is focused on other projects. But in terms of potential for optimization, we are on the right track.” The third phase is currently being implemented. This includes an expansion of capacity with a Mycronic MY200-HX 10 that will complement an existing line, with the hopes of accomplishing further potential of almost 20 %. (dj)

productronica, Booth A3.341

www.mycronic.com; www.eph.ch


+++ Video-Interview +++

Within 3 phases, the Swiss company successfully optimized their process. Readers can find the video here, http://epp-online.de/applicationvideos/prozessoptimierung-mycronic-eph.

Source: Doris Jetter

Zusammenfassung Résumé Резюме

Eine kluge und innovative Investitionspolitik bildet die Grundlage für eine erfolgreiche Wachstumspolitik. So ist Prozessoptimierung eines der Schlüsselworte zum Erfolg, wie sich deutlich am Beispiel der EPH Electronics aus Diessenhofen zeigt, die sich seit 2015 intensiv gemeinsam mit Mycronic der Prozessoptimierung und Modernisierung ihrer Fertigung in Richtung Industrie 4.0 widmet.

Une stratégie d’investissement intelligente et innovante est la base d’une stratégie de croissance efficace. L‘optimisation des processus est l‘un des mots clés du succès, comme on le voit avec l‘EPH Electronics de Diessenhofen, qui travaille intensément avec Mycronic depuis 2015 sur l‘optimisation des processus et la modernisation de leur fabrication dans la direction de l‘Industrie 4.0.

Разумная и инновационная инвестиционная политика является основой успешного роста предприятия. Поэтому оптимизация процессов является одним из ключевых элементов успеха, что наглядно можно проследить на примере компании EPH Electronics из г. Диссенхофен, которая с 2015 г. в активном сотрудничестве с компанией Mycronic посвятила свою деятельность оптимизации процессов и модернизации своего производства в соответствии со стандартами Индустрии 4.0.

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Titelbild EPP EUROPE Electronics Production and Test 11
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