Manufacturing automation and digital integrations are a must in today’s industrial revolution. Streamlining production to become more efficient while ensuring safety and quality has never been more important, especially in the medical and life science industries. Hitachi is on the cutting edge of streamlining medical device assembly with JR Automation and Flexware Innovation. As part of the Fusion For Industry family, these two companies create end-to-end digital solutions for greater production output while meeting quality and safety standards.

Seamless Digital Solution for Medical Device Assembly

The medical and life science manufacturing landscapes are ever-evolving. The demand for life-enriching products is at an all-time high, and new competition is pouring into the market. With increased consumer demand, aggressive overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) numbers, and the ability to pull real-time machine data analytics to assist with business intelligence decisions, manufacturers factor in many things when operating. In addition to driving down unit costs to stay one step ahead, medical manufacturing companies must comply with FDA and organization safety standards, break down siloes within operations, and connect machines to enhance product and patient outcomes.

Time is not a luxury in manufacturing; it is the ultimate challenger. Medical product and device manufacturers consistently assemble products safely for patients and consumers. At the same time, they are trying to keep their unit costs low and their production high to increase profitability. How can you solve this problem and compete for more business? One solution is to increase digital integrations within the four walls of your factory to extract real-time data, driving insights at the shop-floor and top-floor levels. A second is to enhance production processes with plug-and-play automation, which can reduce worker fatigue and labor hours while increasing productivity and OEE levels. JR Automation and Flexware Innovation, part of Hitachi’s Fusion For Industry family, can help solve your digital integration and lackluster OEE woes.

Automation and Digital Integration for Manufacturing

JR Automation and Flexware Innovation, both Hitachi Group companies, have been around since the inception of digital in the manufacturing world. Working with 85% of the top Fortune 100 medical and life science companies, they know a thing or two about integrating software and digitally connecting machines into legacy systems and factory ecosystems. Whether it be producing medical devices, reagents, or consumables, their end-to-end solutions-based processes connect every phase of production, from machine controls to enterprise software integration. With a deep understanding of FDA regulations and machine compliance, engineering experts understand the pain points and opportunities in the medical and life science spaces.

The joint partnership of these entities represents Hitachi’s Connective Industry business model, which aims to link production, supply, and distribution with software and digital solutions. It is the emerging new world of manufacturing, and to ignore going digital and automation means risking not producing fast enough for consumers and having your competitors outpace you.

Top-Notch High-Speed Assembly Manufacturing Equipment

JR Automation, a trailblazer in machine automation and the robotic system integrator space, provides reliable custom engineering and line building based on the client’s needs, backed by a robust team of experts familiar with the medical and life science industries. The team at JR Automation knows what matters most to medical device manufacturers:

• Consistent production of medical devices and products
• Integration to established ecosystems
• Processes and machine verifications that are FDA-compliant
• Optimized machine efficiency (i.e., OEE)
• Increasing productivity while driving down the cost per unit

As personalized healthcare increases and the demand for medical products rises, so does the pressure to integrate automation processes into legacy systems. JR Automation’s implementation of machinery with advanced sensors, robotics, cameras, and calibrations results in more efficient high-speed product assembly, increased output, and improved product and patient outcomes (i.e., greater manufacturing consistency and enhanced safety compliance).

There is no time for machine downtime. JR Automation builds reliable and effective machinery, specializing in high-volume production, and will customize automated machine solutions that are FDA-compliant. Whether it be high-speed syringe manufacturing, intravenous devices, or consumables, JR Automation machinery will help produce medical nondurable goods quickly.

FlexChassis – Next-Level Modular Automation Platform

With the launch of JR Automation’s FlexChassis™ Modular Automation Platform, a highly configurable platform that enables faster time to market with less production and business risk, customers can take advantage of the following benefits to their organization:

• This solution accelerates the assembly process by reducing the upfront tasks of conception, design, and build time. The predesigned modules are flexible to meet whatever manufacturing objective, from assembly to production, in a fraction of the time.
• This new automated platform, created with the medical and life sciences in mind, has a wide range of processing and assembly optimization capabilities. It is adaptable to many platforms, from continuous motion to power to indexing and more.
• It provides turnkey solutions to manufacturing challenges without the upfront design time.

Digital Integration for Production Line

If JR Automation connects the shop floors, Flexware Innovation connects the top floor to data and digital technologies. Flexware is a different kind of technology innovator focused on helping forward-thinkers in manufacturing industries build comprehensive and long-lasting solutions. Flexware Innovation provides solutions for:

• Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Integration
• Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES)
• Enterprise Solutions
• Human-Machine Interface/Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (HMI/SCADA) Platforms
• Automation

The team at Flexware will advise and consult on which technologies will drive ROI and optimize business performance. Data integrity is at the forefront of all Flexware Innovation, so your manufacturing plant is audit-ready at a moment’s notice.

Spark MES: Out-of-the-Box Digital Software for Manufacturing

Spark MES, Flexware’s newest out-of-the-box platform, provides a cost-effective solution to gathering valuable insights into your production. Spark MES will provide you with the raw business data you need to determine where your focus should be to make sound business decisions. The MES platform features a modernized user interface with rapid application development, is configurable (so you are reviewing the data points relevant to your production line), and is nimbly scalable to account for any business or operational changes.

Need to connect your MES or replace it? Flexware has a team of digital engineers who understand the medical and life science space to assist with building software to improve OEE, gather the crucial business insights necessary to make informed and data-driven decisions about your production, and work with you to ensure a smooth technical integration into existing technology ecosystems. Expedite your production process, yield high results, and lower cost per unit, all while having the ability, at any moment, to get a real-time snapshot into production analytics, historical, and forecasts.

Looking for a Seamless Solution?

The capabilities of both JR Automation and Flexware Innovation in medical and life science production facilities speak for themselves. Used cohesively, they provide turnkey and seamless solutions in manufacturing that increase efficiency, boost accuracy, and enhance your bottom line, all while upgrading your ability to produce safely, consistently, and timely. Our team of engineering and manufacturing experts is waiting to talk to you. Please fill out our contact form to discuss your digital and automation needs today!  

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