The skills of the Alpha-3i and IMCO teams allow us to move forward easily, even during very strategic projects.

In order to monitor the efficiency of our machine and carry out manufacturing advancements, we have deployed IMCO-CIMAG Production. The IMCO-CIMAG solution is flexible and allows for simple interfacing with our ERP through various means, whether direct links between databases or file exchanges. Through an interface developed specifically for DIXI Polytool, we are able to know where our production orders are in real-time. Thanks to the declared production times, we are able to update our production times easily, which allows us to be as accurate as possible in our daily scheduling, and therefore give better deadlines to our customers. Through the operator interface, operators are able to declare waste quantities at the end of production, which is also able to be categorized accordingly. This data is then automatically restored and analyzed by the quality department. We have also integrated tool management, which shows operators the correct tools to use during production. Tool management also allows us to have a standard in our manufacturing process. This, therefore, reduces the variability of production. Finally, IMCO-CIMAG allowed us to set up performance monitoring indicators for our machines. With this and the IMCO-CIMAG software, we are able to instantly supervise all machines with a clear view of machine status(es) as well as the production rates per machine.

The GUI is decent, but the IMCO-CIMAG team is constantly working on improvements.

Overall, we are very satisfied with IMCO-CIMAG MES. The field team took charge of the solution and quickly allowed for significant gains with the first project alone. This allowed us to extend the solution to other equipment, resulting in the same benefits. The ROI allows us to continue our deployment of the tool in other sectors, including quality (traceability and quality control) or the planning department (reliability planning).

The solution is very easy to use, especially the operator panel. The handling of operators is fast and efficient. The supervision performance indicators are very visual and allow real-time quality control of productivity and team members. The possibility of developing specific widgets according to our needs is a real plus that helps us stick to our needs for piloting the workforce. Responsiveness of the support service in the event of bugs is fast and efficient. In terms of associated gains, we have great precision in our production costs due to the OEE monitoring functionality. The ability to make precise analyses of our performance within a specific range is great. The OEE analysis is also updated automatically on a regular basis. Overall, we have reduced downtime by 10%. Detailed data on machine downtime facilitates the management of our continuous improvement actions and helps justify our investment requests.

The implementation of IMCO-CIMAG requires the availability of a project manager to support the transition (for operator and team manager support). Reshaping the OEE calculation method can be complicated to set up at first, because it changes the benchmarks of management, workshop managers, and team members. Implementing an MES is a bit costly, but worth the price. Finally, there is also a need to mobilize our resources to deal with the improvement actions identified via the MES.

One of the best things is the traceability module that can allow you to keep a specific kind of traceability for your production. Good and stable interaction with the ERP.

Scheduling module: for our specific way of manufacturing is difficult to use and it takes quite a lot of time to be updated.

Alpha-3i and IMCO have been able to adapt to our constraints and needs despite very specific requests.

From the management of work in progress through specific portable terminals, to the planning and scheduling of production orders, to the generation of barcode labels to the dispatch and the addition of a slip delivery, the IMCO-CIMAG solution has enabled us to automate our entire packaging process, which was previously managed in paper format. No more time is wasted on jotting down information on paper, re-entering it in Excel or taking it from one workshop to another. Interfacing with the ERP and PLCs allow us to exchange real-time production and maintenance data with the various departments and increase our responsiveness and productivity. Barcode management has enabled us to improve the traceability of our products and make our shipments more reliable, thanks to the portable terminals that were developed specifically for (and communicate with) the IMCO-CIMAG solution. We now have production and maintenance indicators that allow us to instantly monitor our packaging productivity.

Nothing. Everything it’s okay

The MES was implemented in packages. The tool installed at Mecafi required specific developments. The elements of development by Alpha-3i and IMCO were tested offline, then integrated into an operation. Once the first operating loop was developed, deployment to all machining operations took place in one or two weeks. Alpha-3i and IMCO were proactive in their approach.

With IMCO - Cimag Production, traceability of the WO (Work Order) is maximized with computerization. The operator scans a paper document which will be transmitted directly to his control screen. We remove all risks of manual entry. All production records and all machine processes are made available to employees and are archived. We went from a WO of about twenty sheets to a simple A4 sheet. This represents a savings of a 500 foot high ream of paper! The MES solution has made it possible to optimize the work of our employees. Information is captured in real time and immediately transferred. The workshop managers have visibility, at all times, of the entire shop floor.

our demand was a little bit specific, so we used long time between development and testing and the very starting in production. it was frustrating not to be able to go on after first tests. otherwise nothing more !

We are satisfied with the IMCO-CIMAG solution, which is in the process of being deployed across all of our factories.

We have chosen to integrate with an MES solution such as CIMAG published by the company Alpha-3i and IMCO to make our time and production monitoring secure and reliable. We had an in-house MES developed, but the developers departed soon after, and so any maintenance/updates became near impossible. To avoid any major malfunctions, it became imperative to put in an MES from the market. Our choice came to rest on IMCO-CIMAG MES, which we are very satisfied with today. We were able to resume production with our specific management rules that deal with medical devices (knee and hip prostheses). The ease of use for entering operating times and production details is a real asset. We were able to swiftly train all our operators as well as give them more autonomy. Integration with our existing ERP system (Sage X3) was not a constraint at all.

The reporting tools provided are geared more toward machine reports than labor reports. The creation of “customizable reporting” tools should be simplified for the uninformed user.

We found in Alpha-3i and IMCO partners who listen to us, are a force for proposals and advice, as well as have been able to make IT available to our needs, and not the other way around as is often the case. And this, without any kind of special developments, was possible with simply the base solution

In our Custom Performance Colors (CPC) activity, we had a great need to automate the entry of weight data and stop recording weights on paper. With the implementation of CIMAG Production, we quickly had reliable indicators. With CIMAG Production, we have saved more than 4,000 to 5,000 sheets of paper a day and, above all, we have saved time that was spent collecting and restoring data, organizing schedules, monitoring our inventory, etc. The entire team thus has the same information, at the same time, in real time. The software was able to be deployed on the group’s other sites in 10 different countries and the processes were able to be adapted fully thanks to the support of Alpha-3i and IMCO

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Our Quality and Production departments expressed a strong desire to digitize workshop management, in order to meet control, traceability, and reliability needs and requirements. We decided to work with ALPHA-3I and IMCO because the features corresponded to our expectations and the feedback from their customers was highly positive. Alpha-3i and IMCO’s teams were highly reactive and successfully satisfied all our requirements by creating several specific developments.

On-site deployment was performed swiftly. Advantages quickly emerged as well. As a matter of fact, it led to significant timesaving: in the event of a breakdown on the production line, the operator enters the corresponding data in the MES software which automatically generates an intervention request in the CMMS software. The deployment of CIMAG Production also enabled us to better monitor our production: when we receive a claim, we can more easily and quickly retrieve the work order (WO) and all data concerning the production. Before, we always had to look for the documents, which could take up to a day. Today, we can access the required information in less than an hour.

The only negative point of the software is that the configuration requires IT skills

We integrated IMCO-CIMAG MES because we wanted to provide our ERP system with accurate production data without manual entry. The expertise, support, and responsiveness of IMCO and Alpha-3i allowed us to see further and wider than our initial project scope. They provided a team that was very receptive to our suggestions and requests.

IMCO-CIMAG is integrated as a central element, and is present at each station in our facility. It allows us to significantly reduce data entry time by automatically carrying out production data acquisitions, allowing staff to focus on higher value operations. Work tasks are digitized, standardized, and operators are supported at every step. IMCO-CIMAG provides the applications and interfaces specific to our needs, and it is all assimilated by the MES solution. Integrated document management provides clarity and control over documents and procedures.

As a fundamental project for our company, the deployment of IMCO-CIMAG required the creation of a dedicated team and a lot of freedom allocated to them. The complexity lies in assessing the maturity of the business and the ability to integrate new tools and concepts.

Initially, we deployed CIMAG-Production to achieve better traceability of our products, however, today we are using all the features available to us! We have initiated a visual management approach in the workshop to ensure that operators have access to the progress of the various projects and their schedule as soon as they get on a machine. Furthermore, we can more easily anticipate peak activity and the availability of resources. Our ERP is connected with our MES solution, and work orders are automatically available to production managers, which prevents errors during manual data entry. In a few words, our production is now proactive and reliable.

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It was essential for us to connect our ERP to our MES solution in order to recover the maximum amount of information and avoid any re-entry. The Alpha-3i and IMCO teams were responsive and available throughout the project. Our solution was ergonomic and visual. We have indicators that concern our production: rate of return, time allocation on a machine, quantity balance, WO balance, etc. In addition, our operators can now quickly and efficiently log production hazards (breakdowns, lack of raw material, etc.) directly on the machine. Each operator has a personal view of their activity and production monitoring (WO advancement, rate of return, rate of scrap, etc.), so everyone knows where it is.

The abundance of information available requires a recent database, otherwise the response time may be a bit slow. Updating indicators is done fairly quickly via customer service, but it would be nice to be able to modify those parameters directly.

The Alpha-3i and IMCO teams are dynamic and proactive in continuing to optimize our MES. This software is very easy to understand and allows for better communication between different departments.

We have chosen to implement IMCO-CIMAG Production and its scheduling module in order to stabilize our production and monitor it reliably. Thanks to IMCO-CIMAG Production, we can easily consult all of our indicators to know, in real time, the progress of our production. We can rely on reliable data to help make our decisions. In addition, our production schedule is now optimized and we have a more accurate view of production and delivery times. The software is easy to use and easy to learn. The Alpha-3i and IMCO support teams are responsive

Due to the interfacing with our ERP system, we have certain data that is stored in both the ERP and the MES.

IMCO-CIMAG is a flexible and intuitive software. The Alpha-3i and IMCO teams fully understood our issues and were able to offer us solutions that were tailored to our needs.

IMCO-CIMAG MES has enabled us to reduce documents printed by 95%. Production data is collected in real-time and is transferred daily to our ERP. The reliability of production data allows us to constantly improve our planning and respond effectively to our customers’ deadline requirements. The IMCO-CIMAG planning tool has undergone specific development for us in order to automate a large part of our production planning.

We plan to implement some productivity and results indicators

Decreasing our WIP of 40% Decreasing the production stop connect with missing half product ( production Just in time with priority define by level of stock of half products cel by cell) Better communication with all workers of the production priority (visualisation by Cimag interface on the shop floor)

Visualisation of production plan on the shopfloor (tac time/lates/efficiency/scrap level) More precise following production (priority/work load) The system is flexible and adapted to our specific needs Realy easy to extract data and export in other computing systems

should be emprove the documentation associated (a lot of options are available on the soft and we don't know how to use it)

- Customers are really impressed of our process control and traceability. - Better quality, leading to a serious improvement in first pass production - Customizable and easy to interface with other systems

- User documentation is not always up to date - Reporting capabilities are limited - Scheduling tool might need an upgrade

We are able to trace raw materials, sub-assemblies, operators, machines, tools. The system helped increase our uptime by 24%. It helped us reduce scrap and rework by 32% and helped us increase inventory accuracy to 99%.

Super powerful scheduling capability. Very user friendly to the operators on the floor. Flow of real time information.

It has a link to IMCO's Energy Management System but it is not a direct link. It requires connecting with Power BI through the Internet.