Process intelligence, OEE, and manufacturing digitization — written by practitioners.
The 2024-2025 wave of process intelligence adoption among Japanese mid-size factories is not about digital transformation buzzwords — it is about specific pressures: labor shortages, customer traceability demands, and the cost of unplanned downtime in high-yen cost environments.
When every OEE deviation triggers an alert, operators learn to ignore the system. Practical guidance on threshold tuning and escalation logic.
A 100-unit high-mix run calculated the same way as a 10,000-unit stamping run will produce misleading OEE numbers.
Published benchmarks cite world-class OEE as 85%. For mid-size discrete and batch facilities in Japan, the realistic baseline is different.
These three terms describe overlapping but distinct capabilities. A plant manager needs to understand the boundaries before buying.
Kaizen events without data before and after are anecdotes, not improvements. How to build a data loop for traceable before-after records.
How to structure a lot genealogy data model that survives a supplier audit, a customer recall request, and a regulatory inspection.
The andon cord is a 60-year-old concept. Digital andon can do more — but only if the alert logic is designed with the same discipline as TPS intent.
OPC-UA, Modbus, and direct polling — what works for mid-size Japanese factories, and what to avoid when connecting legacy PLCs.
Most factories know their OEE headline number. Fewer know which of the Six Big Losses is actually driving it. A guide using real-time PLC data.
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