Kontron AIS GmbH has introduced its latest MES, FabEagleMES, developed for GW-scale PV ingot, wafer, cell, or module production
This software routes multiple production orders in real-time to optimize production processes
It also features defect analytics and quality reporting function to keep track of quality control in real time
Germany-based Kontron AIS GmbH, a subsidiary of Kontron and a provider of Internet of Things (IoT) and Embedded Computing Technology (ECT), has introduced the FabEagleMES, a Manufacturing Execution System (MES) developed for ingot, wafer, and high-volume PV cell & module production.
This software tool, when integrated with a factory’s enterprise planning systems (such as SAP or ERP) and production tools across different stages, offers a layer of automation that maintains process stability, traceability, and product quality under rapidly changing production conditions. A gigawatt (GW) scale PV fabrication unit processes multiple purchase orders (POs) with different approved bill-of-materials (BOMs) and work orders (WOs), assigned by the Production Planning & Control (PPC) department. Given the complexity of routing different WOs across a complex matrix of production lines (e.g., line 1, 2, 3, and more) in real time, the MES uses its configurable material flow and active transport control function. The company says it dynamically controls the routing of WOs based on the type of product and status. In addition, as we discuss below, it accounts for quality trends with options for bypassing or unloading to optimize production processes.
In terms of quality control, it features defect analytics and real-time quality reporting for production lots. For example, operators or engineers in the inspection or rework station can monitor and identify common non-conformance types at the cell and string levels by heatmaps, defect codes, and frequency of occurrences. It helps make informed decisions for improvement steps at the early stages of production.
On the visualization and evaluation side, this MES, with its web client, analyzes and converts types of data, such as production, equipment, material, and quality, into trend charts, heatmaps, histograms, XY plots, or material flow diagrams in a browser. These help in inferring insights and informed decision-making by detecting deviations at an early stage of production and provide opportunities for continuous improvements, Kontron AIS GmbH says. Besides, these data are filtered out and configured in dashboards according to the user types, such as operators, process engineers, and production managers.
It is equipped with a REST API that simplifies machine integration, addressing complex communication with multiple machine interfaces (third-party tools). Manufacturers can easily use this function to fetch equipment status, alarm data, track processes and materials, and calculate and analyze key performance indicators (KPIs) such as OEE, MTBF, and MTTR. Taken together, these inputs help implement process and quality improvement functions like alarm Pareto analysis and SPC-based process evaluation, among others, Kontron AIS GmbH adds.