Project 477: Pilot implementation of a production activity control (PAC) system In an electronics assembly environment

Production activity control (PAC) is concerned with the short-term planning and execution of manufacturing orders in the production process. The aims of ESPRIT project 477, entitled 'Control Systems for Integrated Manufacturing', were to develop a generic PAC architecture and software tools to support tile design and implementation of PAC systems. This paper outlines the PAC architecture and development principles, and describes the first pilot implementation of a PAC system in the Digital electronics assembly facility at Clonmel , Ireland. The paper introduces the PAC architecture and highlights the importance of PAC in a computer integrated manufacturing environment. The development cycle for PAC systems is described, and reference made to the PAC simulation model which was used for validating the architecture. The main emphasis of this paper is on the pilot implementation of PAC in a live manufacturjng environment. The rationale for a PAC pilot implcmcnrauon is explained, and the pilot project at Digital Clonmel is described in detail. Finally, the results of this pilot study arc discussed, and the insights gained on the technical and social impacts of PAC are highlighted.