By Brian Gold, managing director, Jotika.
With years of experience in high-efficiency, high-volume, precision manufacturing, Regency Glass is in a prime position to bring ultra-thin glass triple glazing to the UK.
For their new production facility, with state-of-the-art manufacturing and automation equipment, they recognised that a whole new approach to the software was needed, so the operation would be run highly efficiently, with the flexibility to adapt and scale.
Smart factory management
The UK glass market demands bespoke products and size mix in high volume. Every day, the output changes, so a different production schedule is required. This is very different to the standardised production runs in other markets and industries, which have shaped traditional factory automation systems.
Because Regency was already using Gtrak software in the rest of the business, their management team approached us at Jotika, as the company’s software partner, to create a new, smart factory management system.
Intelligent production control
The new Gtrak GlassHub has been developed as an integral part of our market-leading glass software. It monitors and controls every resource in the factory, from machines and furnaces to sorters and slot carts. It also tracks each individual piece of glass from start to finish.
It uses multiple threads to constantly track each resource, evaluating the situation in the factory and maintaining the best sequence of operations. It sends automated instructions to machinery, optimises the layouts for glass cutting and furnace loading, and tells staff what to do next.
It works with the customer orders, delivery deadlines and product specifications that are already captured by Gtrak. If rework is required, or if a machine goes offline for unplanned maintenance, Gtrak GlassHub will dynamically re-optimise to ensure all the distinct pieces of glass come together with perfect timing to assemble each finished unit.
Managing manual operations
For Regency Glass, flexibility and scalability were key requirements for their factory and the software that controls it. Rather than fully automated lines, they use slot carts at the start and end of each process, which can be moved to wherever the current batch of glass needs to go next.
The Gtrak GlassHub manages these slot carts as an integral part of its intelligent optimisation. It tracks the state of each cart, monitoring how quickly they are filling up or emptying, so it can give staff plenty of notice of which carts need to be moved where.
It tells the automated handling machines which piece of glass to put into which slot and ensures that the right cart is in position before instructing the next machine to take pieces in the correct sequence for assembly.
A flexible app
The Jotika GlassApp provides managers and factory staff with a personalised or station-specific view of everything needed to monitor progress, identify exceptions, and perform their jobs effectively. It allows them to see what’s coming next and to get more details where needed.
It also alerts individuals to upcoming tasks, gives supervisors advance warning of problems and keeps managers informed, with options to override or re-prioritise.
The app runs on standard ruggedised iPads, which can be centrally managed and swapped out instantly in case of issues.
Partners for innovation
With this project, Jotika has built on many years’ strong partnership, supporting customer innovation and developing visionary software that meets new market needs. We are proud that our software is trusted to manage one of the most advanced glass factories in the world, and to be taking the UK glass industry into its next chapter.
