Burlington, Ontario -- (SBWIRE) -- 12/02/2011 -- SixsigmaZ is an online resource for quality assurance and operational excellence in the workplace. Quality departments and Six Sigma Blackbelts in nearly every industry realize the value of a good Andon System. At its core, an Andon System consists of a group of visual products and systems that interact in order to communicate information to stakeholders on status and problems within a facility. By quickly delivering information through visual and audible cues, resource loss in the forms of equipment downtime and personal hours is minimized.
Ultimately, a successful Andon System Implementation carries a return on investment of a year or less and leads to greater overall profitability and morale.
According to John Rattray, of Memex Automation, “The term "Andon" is used to refer to a visual system designed to notify management, maintenance, or other workers of a quality or process problem. In essence an effective Andon System will quickly identify to the necessary stakeholders the location and nature of the problem. Leading companies around the world have successfully implemented Andon Systems as part of their Lean Manufacturing philosophies.
Many manufacturing sectors are represented in the Memex Automation customer roster, including:
Aerospace - Boeing, Goodrich, Dowty, Parker Hannefin, Héroux Devtek
Automotive - GM, Ford, Magna, Eaton, Linamar
Industrial - Caterpillar, John Deere, Westinghouse, Vickers, Case, Sanmina
Government - National Research Council, Jet Propulsion Laboratories,
The Royal Canadian Mint
Memex has become the leader in helping manufacturers transform every machine tool into a node on the corporate network in a real-time manner. Mills and lathes are monitored as they work, which helps with maintenance and inventory control. By monitoring production as it happens, companies can increase productivity by reducing downtime between jobs.
Rattray insists, “By monitoring assets such as tooling, raw materials, Work In Progress, computers, vehicles and any moveable assets, companies can know quickly, exactly, and securely where assets are located. We work hand in hand with OEE, Lean and Six Sigma principles. We have been providing innovative shop floor productivity solutions for almost twenty years.”
About Memex Automation Inc.
Memex Automation Inc., http://www.memex.ca, a unit of Astrix Networks Inc., was created to leverage the research and development of Memex Electronics, which was founded in 1992. Memex continues its tradition of serving the discrete manufacturing sector, supplying component hardware, memory upgrades, and visionary shop floor communication technology. Memex products allow a manufacturer to realize the impact of OEE Profitability.