Manufacturing execution systems (MES) solutions are a fundamental aspect of a successful manufacturing enterprise. But MES are not alone in this; the increasing impact of digitization and AI solutions within product realization are strengthening the ties to PLM and product development.
So, what's happening in the MES world, and how do the most well-known PLM vendors stack up against the technology trends in this space? What does it look like in terms of getting seamless connections between PLM and MES? There are several answers to these questions, but some of the most interesting aspects of the development can be gleaned by looking into the analysis from Gartner’s April 2023 MES Magic Quadrant. In this article, I take a look at what they have to say, and then discuss the matter from the perspective of how the three dominant PLM developers handle MES and manufacturing operations management (MOM) tools. This article will focus on the positioning the analyst gave Siemens in the latest Magic Quadrant evaluation, with future stories focusing on Dassault Systèmes and PTC/Rockwell.
Siemens Digital Industries Opcenter solution in action. (Image courtesy of Siemens.)
In summary, Gartner believes that technological changes are behind the fundamental shifts affecting the status quo of the MES space. The result is the MES market being "in a state of flux as the existing vendor community pivots to newer technologies to keep pace with startups." These technological developments force PLM developers to be on their toes—but what precisely are these challenging trends? According to Gartner, the major trends in the MES area are:
- Vendors are increasing their use of Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) architectures and low-code, or no-code, app development.
- Cloud-based systems that offer availability anywhere and anytime are growing in importance, with suppliers who embraced this trend having a head start.
- IIoT and “edge” capabilities blurring into traditional MES applications. This is in relation to how IIoT use cases are scaling and expanding beyond equipment health monitoring.
Strongest Among the Big Three on the PLM Side
If we then look at Gartner’s latest “Magic Quadrant” the positioning of the different players looks similar to last year's May lineup. Specialist solution Critical Manufacturing still holds a strong leading position. It is followed by GE Digital with their Proficy Smart Factory product, and Körber’s Werum PAS-X.
Among the three major PLM developers, in the “Leader” quadrant you will find Siemens Digital Industries Software's Opcenter Execution MES solution and, in a sense PTC, as Rockwell Automation’s FactoryTalk software is tied to PTC’s technology. In my opinion, you can count PTC here based on the fact that since 2017 it has had a deep collaboration on production-related PLM connections with Rockwell Automation, which is among the leaders in terms of its FactoryTalk products. Moreover, Rockwell has strengthened its MES capability with the 2021 acquisition of Plex, Gartner notes.
Finally, iTAC Software’s Solumnia product rounds out the “Leader” quadrant. But other strong PLM players such as Dassault Systèmes with its DELMIA Apriso solution for MES, and SAP Manufacturing Suite, fall outside the Leader quadrant into the “Challenger” and the “Visionary” quadrants, respectively.
Notably, AVEVA MES slipped out of the leader quadrant compared to last year's evaluation. AVEVA was positioned as number two last year, in terms of capacity to deliver executive sharp solutions.
Gartner's Definitions of MES and MOM
To better understand these rankings, it’s good to know that Gartner defines MES as, “a specialist class of production-oriented software that manages, monitors and synchronizes the execution of real-time physical processes involved in transforming raw materials into intermediate and/or finished goods.”
“These systems must coordinate this execution of work orders with production scheduling and enterprise-level systems like ERP and product life cycle management (PLM). MES applications also provide feedback on process performance, and support component and material-level traceability, genealogy and integration with process history, where required.”
Under this definition, it is easy to see MES solutions as foundational building blocks of digital manufacturing. What are then included in MES/MOM functions? Gartner notes it typically includes:
- Resource management. This includes the management of all resources required for manufacturing, such as equipment (computerized maintenance management systems, or CMMS and enterprise asset management, EAM), workforce (labor management, certification/training management) and materials (warehouse management).
- Manufacturing process management/model-based manufacturing. This includes BOM/recipe management, process planning/work instructions and model-based manufacturing (for products and processes).
- Analytics. For example, a suite of software tools to monitor, alert and support interactive decisions with data computed insights on current conditions.
- Quality management. Manages quality policies and standard operating procedures (SOPs) like customer requirements, quality documents, ISO requirements, manufacturing capacity, audit procedures and protocols.
- Planning/scheduling. This includes detailed production scheduling and supply chain scheduling for suppliers, contract manufacturers and remanufacturers.
A Blueprint on Gartner's Trending Criteria
When compared to the MES development trends Gartner listed above, it is my opinion Siemens Digital Industries' solution is following the blueprint almost to the letter. The German PLM developer has put in a lot of effort, particularly in the latest version of Opcenter Execution Discrete 2301.
This solution is part of the Siemens Xcelerator portfolio. Therefore, it is seamlessly connected to product development solutions like CAD, PDM, simulation, the low-code software Mendix and the hardware pieces on the manufacturing equipment side. It is all fully integrated, specifically when macro areas are dedicated to performing sequential discrete manufacturing functions to produce the desired product.
As always, when Siemens acts in PLM and automation spaces, the overall vision is important. To this point, it enables manufacturers to implement strategies for the complete digitization of product manufacturing operations. The solution is also available for both discrete and process industrial manufacturing areas.
Siemens’ Strengths in the MES Area
How does Siemens’ MES technology compare to the competition? Good, you might say. According to Gartner's 2023 Magic Quadrant positioning, Siemens Digital Industries Software's Opcenter Execution sees broad use across multiple manufacturing disciplines, but “electronics, semiconductor and life sciences account for about 50 percent of its MES customer base.” It should also be noted that Siemens’ operations are geographically diversified.
Regarding the product strategies, it is pointed out that Opcenter Execution provides MES capability across multiple discrete, process and hybrid industries. The report states that “Siemens' vision includes a roadmap of cloud-ready, easy-to-configure/extend solutions made up of modules able to run stand-alone or interconnected, and which can be configured or extended to meet customer requirements.”
Another noteworthy point is that Siemens users give the system's UI, flexibility and stability top scores during customer reviews. The company has worked hard to harmonize and standardize its UI. This has happened in the light of a series of acquisitions over time that must be integrated.
The supply chain management strategy is a third piece that analysts rate highly. Siemens has worked hard to broaden coverage in this area, and has enabled “continuous material replenishment flows in the production facility, orchestrating commissioning, material transport and yard/warehouse operations.”
Customized MOM Solutions by Industry Segment
As to cautions about Siemens’ offerings, Gartner points out that when it comes to the MOM side, Siemens' strategy is to provide tailored MOM solutions per industry to reduce implementation and support complexity. According to Gartner's research, “this strategy has been applied to solutions for semiconductors, electronics, medical device and diagnostics, and pharmaceuticals/biotech. All other industries are served by MES offerings for discrete manufacturing or process manufacturing, with industry-specific functionality provided by a combination of Siemens implementation tools (Xcelerator/Mendix), plus Siemens and third-party implementation provider expertise.”
They also note that a common criticism is the time-consuming upgrade process and the lack of communications for implementation and documentation. The tool is also moving clients from perpetual licenses into subscription-based services.
However, Siemens continues to invest across the Opcenter portfolio in UX harmonization, cloud, data analytics, low-code/no-code extensions and closed-loop functionality. The latter revolves around automated solutions where, for example, the control of a machine is handled via data feedback and predefined values, such as those produced via simulation.
The Gartner analysts also state that Siemens continues to simplify implementation and post-implementation support across the portfolio, including modular MOM with flexible deployment options.
Stay tuned to engineering.com where, I will continue this conversation and look at Dassault Systèmes’ Apriso solution, followed by Rockwell Automation's PTC-connected FactoryTalk and its acquisition of Plex.