Production monitoring
Production monitoring software: see output as it happens
Production monitoring software records what every line produces, against which order, as it happens. It pulls counts and states from machines, scans from operators and orders from the ERP, and turns them into live boards, shift reports and management MIS. The goal is to stop reconstructing yesterday from registers and start correcting today.
Free scoping call. We start with one line, never change your machine logic, and you own the code and the data.
- material movements tracked a day, integrated steel plant
- 720,000+
- fewer dispatch errors with RFID and barcode dispatch
- 90%
- items an hour through RFID warehouse automation
- 16,800
Company reported project figures, not independently audited, not a promise for another plant. Samsung Business Insights: our RFID warehouse automation story (opens in a new tab). Forbes India Brand Connect (sponsored): founder profile (opens in a new tab).
Sound familiar?
- Yesterday’s output reaches management the next morning, after the shift that could have fixed it has gone home.
- Production, stores and accounts each bring a different number to the morning meeting.
- Someone spends days every month consolidating registers into the MIS.
- A customer asks where their order is, and the answer needs three phone calls.
Each of these is output, margin or time you have already paid for and are not getting back.
What you get
Live line boards
Running or stopped, count against target and current order, where supervisors look.
Your shift report, automatic
In the format you already use, so adoption is immediate.
MIS from the same data
Daily and monthly reports with drill down to the shift and event.
Order level tracking
WIP and late orders by customer, linked to your ERP.
What we have built
In an integrated steel plant in India, our material tracking covers warehouses, central stores and vendor yards: more than 720,000 material movements tracked per day, and a 90 percent reduction in dispatch errors after RFID and barcode based dispatch.
Figures are company reported from past projects. They are not independently audited benchmarks and are not a promise for another plant. Read the case studies.
How we work
What we build
We build production monitoring as the first module of an MES or as a standalone system: machine connectivity, operator scan stations, live line boards, shift reports and management MIS, integrated with SAP, Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics, Tally or a custom ERP. The same data model later carries OEE, traceability and quality, so nothing is rebuilt when you extend.
A practical first phase
- 1Choose the line. The line whose output decides dispatch.
- 2Replace one report. Generate the current shift report automatically and run it beside the paper one.
- 3Add live boards and alerts. Put the line status where supervisors look.
- 4Generate the MIS. Move the daily and monthly MIS onto the same data and retire the spreadsheets.
How it works
How the data is captured
Counts and states come from the machine: the PLC over OPC UA or Modbus, or a sensor where the controller is closed or absent. Context comes from people: an operator scans the order or batch barcode when starting a job, and enters a reason when a stop exceeds a set time. Orders and routings come from the ERP. The software joins these three streams so every unit is counted against the right order, machine and shift.
For process plants the equivalent inputs are flow, weight and batch records from the control system. For assembly lines they are station completions and test results.
What to look for
- Automatic counts wherever a machine can provide them; manual entry only where it cannot.
- Order level tracking, so WIP and delays are visible per customer order, not only per machine.
- Shift reports and the MIS generated from the same records, with drill down to the event.
- Alerts for a stopped line or a line behind target, sent to the person who can act.
- Integration with ERP for orders in and confirmations out, so nobody retypes quantities.
- Screens that work on a shop floor TV and a supervisor phone, in the languages your operators read.
Background
What production monitoring covers
Production monitoring software gives three views of the same data. The line view shows each machine: running or stopped, count against target, current order. The order view shows work in progress: which orders are on which line, what is complete and what is late. The management view is the MIS: output, efficiency, scrap and downtime by plant, shift and product, generated automatically.
| Term | What it usually means |
|---|---|
| Production monitoring | Live machine and line status against target |
| Production tracking | Following orders, batches and WIP through the process |
| Manufacturing dashboard or factory dashboard | Screens on the floor and in the office showing the above |
| Manufacturing MIS or factory MIS | Daily and monthly management reports from production data |
| Shop floor monitoring | Monitoring focused on machines and operators at the line |
Why plants outgrow registers and spreadsheets
- Numbers arrive the next morning, after the shift that could have fixed the problem has left.
- Each department keeps its own count, and meetings start by arguing about which is right.
- Delays are explained after the fact, with no record of when a stop started or why.
- Preparing the monthly MIS takes days of someone consolidating sheets.
When we are not the right choice
- Your volumes are small enough that one supervisor already knows everything in real time.
- You need a full MES with routings and genealogy from day one. We will scope that instead.
Common concerns, answered
Will this disrupt production?
No. We connect read only first, install during planned stops, and edge devices buffer data so a network problem never stops a machine. Nothing writes to a PLC without your controls team and a test.
Our machines are old. Do we need to replace them?
No. Old machines are the usual case. A running signal, a cycle signal or a current sensor on the motor is enough to start, without touching the machine program.
We tried a system before and nobody used it.
That is the most common failure, so we design with the operators and supervisors who will use it, start with one report they already fill in by hand, and only extend once they rely on it.
What about IT security?
Read only by default, a segmented OT network, and a review with your IT team before anything connects, following the ISA/IEC 62443 zone approach.
We will not replace SAP or Oracle. Do we have to?
No. We connect to the ERP you already run through its standard interfaces and add what the shop floor is missing. Your ERP stays the system of record.
Do your engineers understand a heavy industrial floor?
Our systems run in steel plants, warehouses and process lines. We start every project by walking the line with your operators and supervisors, and the first release is tested by them, not only by IT.
Are we locked in?
No. You own the source code and the data, documented, in your own repository. Another team can maintain it.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between production monitoring and MES?
Production monitoring shows output, status and delays. An MES also directs production: it releases work orders, enforces routings and quality checks, manages material and records genealogy. Monitoring is a common first step into MES.
Can production monitoring work without connecting machines?
Yes, using operator scans and entries, but accuracy depends on discipline. Connecting at least the bottleneck machines gives automatic counts and exact stop times, which is where most of the value comes from.
Can it generate our management MIS?
Yes. Daily and monthly MIS reports can be generated from the same production records, with the same definitions, and drilled down to the shift and event. That removes manual consolidation.
Does it work for process industries as well as discrete?
Yes. In process plants the inputs are flows, weights, temperatures and batch records from the control system rather than part counts, but the monitoring and reporting logic is the same.
Which ERPs can it connect to?
We have integrated shop floor systems with SAP, and we connect to Oracle, Microsoft Dynamics, Tally and custom ERPs through their standard interfaces or a database or API layer agreed with your IT team.
Related reading
References
Start with one line and one number
We scope one line, agree the number that should move, and show it moving before anything is scaled. You keep the code and the data.
Step 1
An engineer reads it
Not a sales bot. Our team replies within 24 hours with questions or times for a call.
Step 2
30 minute call
Your process, machines, systems and the number you want to move. We tell you honestly if we are a fit.
Step 3
A written scope for one line
What we would connect, what you would see, how long it takes. You decide; nothing starts without your approval.
Reviewed by Amey Kadle, Founder, Ajinkya Technologies. Last reviewed: .