Highlight
PORTO, Portugal – April 13, 2016 – The business community in Portugal gathered on Tuesday 12 April to discuss what roles Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES) will play in factories of the future.
The theme of this event, in just its second year, was MES & Industry 4.0. The discussion centered on the importance of software to support manufacturing industries and increase the industrial competitiveness of Portugal, and approaches to invest wisely for future success.
The event brought together government, industry, and academia in a lively and collaborative half-day session. In addition to discussions of what technology and funding mechanisms are available, the presentations included a vision of how things might be, as well as case studies of actual selection (IKEA) and implementation (INDASA) of MES to support manufacturing into the future.
Discussion highlights included: What is Industry 4.0? What is the role of information systems in Industry 4.0? What will the impact of Industry 4.0 be on the automotive industry? How can manufacturing companies in Portugal prepare for these new technologies and ways of working? What funding mechanisms exist to support these activities? Clearly, these are topics of interest; over 300 people attended the event, filling the auditorium at TecMaia (Porto). Over 400 people requested registration, resulting in a waiting list.
The speakers were José Carlos Caldeira, President of Agência Nacional de Inovação (ANI); Francisco Almada Lobo, CEO of Critical Manufacturing; Filip Banica, Production Process Development Leader of furniture maker IKEA Industry; Jorge Silva, IT Manager and SCO of auto parts suppliers HUF Portuguesa, Rui Valente, Supply Chain Manager of consumer goods packaging and contract manufacturer COLEP; António Mira Fonseca, Executive Director ITof Abrasives manufacturer INDASA; and a debate moderated by Américo Azevedo Associate Professor on the Engineering Faculty at University of Porto (FEUP).
The event also included an exhibits and networking area. Exhibitors who supported this event all bring great knowledge and background to the manufacturing technology arena in Portugal:
Altronix, Critical Manufacturing, IEEE Portugal Section, INESCTEC, Pragmasoft, Prodsmart, Produtech and Real Games.
With the growth and success of this second annual event, the planning is already beginning for 2017. For more information, visit the event page or contact the organizers.
ABOUT CRITICAL MANUFACTURINGCritical Manufacturing empowers high performance operations for some of the most advanced manufacturers worldwide with innovative software technology and advanced services. Its new generation Manufacturing Execution System (MES) is an Industry 4.0 centerpiece, incorporating all necessary integration, mobile, connectivity and logical decentralization features. This deep, unified system increases performance, control and quality for complex manufacturing operations. The company is part of the Critical Group, a private group of companies founded in 1998 to provide solutions for mission and business critical information systems.
For more information, visit criticalmanufacturing.avitamina.pt
Editorial Contact:
Anna Zieba, +351 229 446 927 or anna.zieba@criticalmanufacturing.avitamina.pt
