Milling Data Transformation Case Study – Summary

OnPing was leveraged to increase productivity at the milling plant through Digital Transformation. This project involved bringing a non-digitized operation into the OnPing platform from the ground up. OnPing team members participated throughout the system Design/Build – consulting on planning, equipment spec recommendations, and the overall vision for the plant digitization. The focus of the project was to utilize modern data practices in support of an existing on-site production team with automated data collection, management and reporting. 

Project Overview

A milling company saw OnPing as a way to digitally transform the operating floor. The OnPing platform’s wide expanse of available tools for digitization and easy to use interface made it an excellent starting point for a company stepping into automation. Digital Transformation experts with OnPing and leaders in the milling organization worked together to find key areas automation could make an immediate impact in.

Reporting

All operational reports for the facility were handwritten and manually delivered. This process was slow, prone to human error, and limited in scope.

Interconnectivity

Plants without device interconnectivity operate in the dark needlessly. Disconnected devices burden the resource pool and create bloat.

Efficiency

Efficiency metrics create visible targets for improvement. Measuring KPI’s can turn ideas for improvement into real goals. Manual measurements can be imprecise, making metrics difficult to trust.

OnPing Benefits

Execution and Results

Real-time Information Snapshots

Information tells a story. This company used OnPing to create adaptive, custom HMI’s  – increasing device visibility and reducing complexity in using the equipment. Visibility extended to management as well. No more waiting on critical information – OnPing provided real time vision to the entire organization. 

Equipment → Lumberjack → OnPing

The Lumberjack is an edge computing device operating as the bridge between on-site operations and a cloud infrastructure such as OnPing. This project was a perfect place for the unique Device and Protocol Agnostic relationship between the Lumberjack and OnPing – seamlessly connecting every device to the data system. 

Metrics

OnPing provided the flexibility to develop, test, and implement Key Performance Indicators quickly. Instant access to data through a single information ecosystem created the visibility to ensure the best metrics were being used for the job – increasing awareness of plant realities and providing the vision  required to improve operating performance.