Loading
Utility Header Logo
Plex Community
Change Country Site SelectionChange RockwellAutomation.com site selection to a different country, region or language
US | EN
Plex, a Rockwell Automation Company logo
Products
Manufacturing Execution System (MES)
Manufacturing Execution Suite (MES) is a comprehensive manufacturing software solution that provides real-time, paperless production management to drive enterprise-wide compliance, quality, and efficiency.
Quality Management System (QMS)
Quality Management System (QMS) is a cloud-based digital quality solution for manufacturers that standardizes and automates quality documentation, processes, and measurements.
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) is a full-featured, scalable, cloudbased ERP that automates front- and back-office processes.
Supply Chain Planning (SCP)
Supply Chain Planning (SCP) combines data from your Plex ERP and multiple departments across your business to sync up demand and supply planning to improve inventory accuracy and production management.
Connected Worker
Connected Worker empowers frontline manufacturing teams with real-time digital tools to improve productivity, reduce errors, and enhance collaboration. It connects your people, to purpose, people, productivity, and processes to drive continuous improvement and workforce agility on the shop floor.
Production Monitoring
Production Monitoring provides seamless connectivity to machines on the plant floor, delivering transparent, real-time operational KPIs and dashboards to drive continuous improvements.
MES Automation & Orchestration
MES Automation & Orchestration connects your Plex MES to the plant edge to control information flow, processes, and workcenter setup adding efficiency, saving costs, and eliminating manual errors.
Asset Performance Management (APM)
Asset Performance Management (APM) combines process, operational, and machine-level data through highly visual dashboards to proactively monitor machine and plant health to ensure optimal uptime, throughput, and maintenance needs.
Finite Scheduler
Finite Scheduler is an advanced production scheduling tool that helps manufacturers optimize resources, reduce bottlenecks, and improve on-time delivery. It enables dynamic, constraint-based scheduling to align operations with real-world capacity and demand
Platform
Smart Manufacturing Platform Overview
Discover how our integrated platform connects, automates, tracks, and analyzes your operations.
Cloud Infrastructure & Security
Enterprise-grade cloud infrastructure with industry-leading security and compliance.
Mobile Application
Access critical manufacturing data and controls from anywhere with our mobile apps.
Availability & Performance
Industry-leading uptime and performance with 99.5% availability guarantee.
Manufacturing Automation
Seamless integration with Rockwell Automation and other manufacturing systems.
Industries
Aerospace Auto and Tire Food & Beverage Industrial Manufacturing Plastics & Rubber Precision Metalforming
Plex Generic Dark Background
INTERACTIVE DEMO
Plex MES for Automotive

Gain Real-Time Visibility and Control of Your Operations

Try Now
Resources
All Resources Success Stories Analyst Reports Knowledge Articles Demos Blog
Plex Generic Dark Background
Analyst Report
2025 Gartner® Market Guide for Manufacturing Execution Systems
Read More
TALK TO US
SEE A DEMO
Log In Plex Manufacturing Cloud Plex Classic
TALK TO US
SEE A DEMO
Blog
Recent ActivityRecent Activity

Think Strategically to Act Tactically

Share This:

LinkedInLinkedIn
XX
FacebookFacebook
PrintPrint
EmailEmail

Having a sound strategy can make all the difference in war, life, and business. With it, there are clear goals and directions on where you are going and how you will get there. Without it, you risk wandering, moving from band-aid to band-aid to fix problems.

Transforming your business and growing it into the future requires a clear smart manufacturing strategy backed by modern technology. With this strategy in hand, your team can make well-informed decisions that move from the “where” and “how” of deployment to equally well-informed tactical decisions that unlock the “what” that you can achieve.

Tactical Applications

Once a sound strategy for smart manufacturing adoption is in place, companies have a wide range of tools. They can begin to plan the tactical, concrete steps of putting the platform to work. This may include specific process improvements, efficiency goals, cost reduction, and more.

But getting to the point of action requires a deep dive into the nature of the operation and what is needed. It requires a commitment to transforming an enterprise to adopt smart manufacturing to change its business processes from top to bottom.

What Do You Need to Do?

A smart manufacturing strategy is equivalent to "walk before you run." And this strategy should include several key components.

Connectivity

Connectivity is a critical part of your smart manufacturing adoption strategy. Typically, a manufacturer will have a fleet of equipment from multiple OEMs.

Machines may also be widely different generations, even if the equipment is from the same OEM. And still, other machines may have model differences, size variances, and a mix of digital and analog outputs.

Your strategy should specify how much of your equipment will be connected. This detail will determine how much data will be collected and should also set out how connectivity differences will be overcome. For example, if equipment requires retrofitting sensors or cabling, will your implementation include full connection or only those most convenient?

Automation

A smart manufacturing platform includes powerful automation options. This automation is often a replacement for manual data collection. Or it may include automating machinery to make autonomous or semi-autonomous decisions. Yet still, automation can consist of alarms and alerts to notify operators and maintenance of critical operating issues.

Your buy-in and the resources available for deployment will limit the amount of automation you leverage. But the more you automate, the more your smart manufacturing platform will collect data, analyze it, and deliver actionable insights for the best performance.

Tracking

Once the level of automation is determined, you can focus on what to track. Smart manufacturing connects systems across the enterprise, including interoperability with legacy software systems, and it also connects people from operators and techs through managers and execs.

These staff members will consume the data tracked and the analysis rendered within reports, charts, dynamic HMI displays and dashboards, and other visibility tools. A smart manufacturing strategy doesn’t just unlock data; it also must determine what should be tracked and what systems will be included in the ecosystem.

Analysis

Analysis lies at the core of a smart manufacturing platform. Real-time data powers a cloud-based analytics engine that delivers actionable insights to improve decision-making, drive automation parameters, take autonomous action, alert staff, and more.

The analysis also uncovers hidden production, quality, waste, and performance trends that would otherwise go undetected. If the strategy includes plans for a deeply connected and automated system, the quality of the data and insights significantly increases.

Required KPIs

The tablets, PCs, and HMIs on a smart factory's floor display the platform's visibility. Here, operators and staff utilize KPIs in customizable dashboards to see what is happening and determine how to respond accordingly.

Your strategy should include what KPIs will deliver the greatest value to the operators and staff accessing the production equipment across the shop floor.

Acting Tactically

When you have set your smart manufacturing strategy at the company level and implemented a system that fits your operation, tactical performance is unlocked to let you drive change and improvement throughout the operation. These tactical actions may include improved training, continuous improvement programs that are themselves automated, quality monitoring, and even new inventory and supply chain actions.

This Smart Manufacturing Software Buyer's Guide is a resource for understanding the elements of developing a strategy for adoption. It also contains critical trends, technology forces, and implementation recommendations that help you find the right software for your needs.

Click here to discover the latest insights in the full guide.


Plex Team
Plex Team
Plex, by Rockwell Automation, is the leader in cloud-delivered smart manufacturing solutions, empowering the world’s manufacturers to make awesome products. Our platform gives manufacturers the ability to connect, automate, track and analyze every aspect of their business to drive transformation. The Plex Smart Manufacturing Platform includes solutions for manufacturing execution (MES), ERP, quality, supply chain planning and management, Industrial IoT and analytics to connect people, systems, machines, and supply chains, enabling them to lead with precision, efficiency and agility.

Related Articles

Loading
Loading
  1. Chevron LeftChevron Left Homepage Chevron RightChevron Right
  2. Chevron LeftChevron Left Blog Chevron RightChevron Right
  3. Chevron LeftChevron Left Think Strategically to Act Tactically Chevron RightChevron Right
Products
Manufacturing Execution System (MES) Quality Management System (QMS) Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Supply Chain Planning (SCP) Connected Worker Production Monitoring MES Automation & Orchestration Asset Performance Management (APM) Finite Scheduler
Platform
Smart Manufacturing Platform Cloud Infrastructure & Security Mobile Application Availability & Performance Manufacturing Automation
Resources
All Resources Case Studies Analyst Reports Knowledge Articles Demos Blog
Industries
All Industries Aerospace Auto and Tire Food & Beverage/CPG Industrial Manufacturing Plastics & Rubber Precision Metalforming & Fabrication
Services & Support
Customer Success & Advocacy Support Services Educational Services Professional Services Plex Community
Get Started
Request a Demo Download Resources Read Success Stories Webinars Contact Support
Company
About Us Why Plex Recognition Newsroom Careers Contact Us
Knowledge Articles
Types of Quality Management Systems The MES Beginner Guide A Guide to Production Part Approval Process What is Industry 4.0? A Guide to Advanced Product Quality Planning Supply Chain Planning: A Guide to Strategic Planning and Operations MES and the Future of Robotics Automation Cloud Based MES Basics Food Manufacturing Software: Why MES Is Critical for Food and Beverage Manufacturers Guide to Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) Cloud-Based MES Solutions A Guide to Monitoring Machine Performance What is Connected Manufacturing and Why Should You Care About It?
Privacy & Cookie Policy
Terms & Conditions
Cookie Preferences
Accessibility Settings
Trust Center
© YYYY Plex, by Rockwell Automation. All rights reserved.
© YYYY Rockwell Automation, Inc.