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Production, OEE & Stoppage Systems

Turn machine history and operator reasons into usable downtime, production and OEE improvement information.

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Operational fit

Where Production, OEE & Stoppage Systems fits

This is the production-performance application built on top of machine and operator data. It classifies running and stopped time, captures reasons, validates operator responses, calculates agreed OEE measures and exposes loss patterns to production and continuous-improvement teams. It is not merely data acquisition: the core deliverable is a shared operational definition of downtime and performance. Choose this service when machine signals already exist, or can be captured, but management still cannot explain losses consistently.

The fastest scoping route is one line, its running signal, current stoppage sheet, reason codes and the production report used in meetings.

Buyer trigger

When this becomes worth fixing

The plant produces signals and operator knowledge, but the business still cannot reconstruct a trustworthy event history or agree on what actually happened.

1

Shift or daily meetings depend on manually reconstructed downtime information.

2

Machine states, operator reasons and management reports regularly disagree.

3

Communication failures or state transitions are not visible after the fact.

4

OEE or production figures exist, but nobody fully trusts the assumptions behind them.

5

The business recognises “Unexplained downtime” as a recurring operational problem, but ownership and root cause remain unclear.

6

The business recognises “Manual OEE sheets” as a recurring operational problem, but ownership and root cause remain unclear.

7

The business recognises “Operator reason gap” as a recurring operational problem, but ownership and root cause remain unclear.

8

The business recognises “Weak stoppage history” as a recurring operational problem, but ownership and root cause remain unclear.

Business case

Why companies usually fund this work

The business case is usually reduced downtime ambiguity, faster root-cause review, less manual reconstruction and a defensible record that engineering, production and management can use together.

Traceable stoppage records: measured against the current baseline, not treated as a vague promise.
Better downtime analysis: measured against the current baseline, not treated as a vague promise.
Operator reason capture: measured against the current baseline, not treated as a vague promise.
Management dashboards: measured against the current baseline, not treated as a vague promise.
Cleaner improvement data: measured against the current baseline, not treated as a vague promise.
Scope boundary

What is included — and what is not assumed

The scope defines the boundary between control-system ownership and business-side software. Safety-critical PLC logic is not silently absorbed into a reporting project.

Usually included

  • Signal and state interpretation with clear source ownership
  • SQL event history with timestamps, asset context and failure diagnostics
  • Operator reason capture, confirmation and exception handling
  • Business-side reports or dashboards built on the agreed event model
  • Delivery of machine-state model where it belongs inside the agreed phase.
  • Delivery of stoppage reason screens where it belongs inside the agreed phase.
  • Delivery of oee calculations where it belongs inside the agreed phase.
  • Delivery of sql event tables where it belongs inside the agreed phase.

Not included by default

  • Changes to safety PLC logic without the responsible automation owner
  • A plant-wide MES replacement unless separately scoped
  • Assuming raw tag values are already valid business events
  • Writing back to control systems without explicit responsibility and test boundaries
System shape

How the solution usually works

Signals are read or received, normalised into explicit states, combined with operator context, persisted into SQL and exposed through role-appropriate screens and reports.

1

A machine, PLC or SCADA source exposes a state, count or event.

2

A bridge service validates, debounces and timestamps the incoming information.

3

The system combines the technical state with line, job, operator or reason context.

4

SQL stores the event history and records communication or confirmation failures.

5

Operations screens show unresolved exceptions; reports summarise agreed production and loss measures.

Delivery approach

How the work is normally phased

1

Operational discovery: inspect the current machine signal, stoppage record or production report, users, hand-offs, exceptions and business consequences.

2

Boundary definition: agree what the first phase must control, what remains external and which assumptions need proof.

3

Technical design: define records, states, interfaces, permissions, failure handling and reporting before polishing screens.

4

Focused implementation: build the smallest supportable slice that creates real operational value and can be tested with actual users.

5

Live validation: run the system against real examples, edge cases and recovery scenarios rather than demo-only happy paths.

6

Handover and next phase: document support, unresolved risks, ownership and the evidence required before expanding scope.

Risk control

What a serious implementation must protect against

Incorrect state interpretation producing false production history
Duplicate, missing or out-of-order events
Operator inputs that overwrite rather than explain machine evidence
Hidden communication failures between SCADA, services and SQL
Unsafe assumptions about write-back responsibility
Unclear ownership when data, users or integrations disagree
A polished interface hiding unreliable source data or weak process rules
No practical recovery path when a scheduled job, device, API or user step fails
A first release that tries to replace too much before the core workflow is proven
Business outcomes

What this system should improve

1

Traceable stoppage records

2

Better downtime analysis

3

Operator reason capture

4

Management dashboards

5

Cleaner improvement data

Typical deliverables

What can be built

Machine-state model
Stoppage reason screens
OEE calculations
SQL event tables
Dashboards
Reports
Exception handling
Buyer preparation

What to bring into the first conversation

1

One real machine signal, stoppage record or production report that shows how the process currently works.

2

The people who perform the work and the manager accountable for the result.

3

A recent example where the process was delayed, incorrect, invisible or expensive.

4

Known source systems, databases, devices, files, reports or external platforms.

5

The decision, document, record or operational action the new system must make easier.

6

Constraints that cannot be ignored: security, plant ownership, hosting, legacy dependencies, devices, network or support capacity.

Practical questions

What buyers usually need clarified

Do we need a complete specification before speaking to INESSOFT?

No. A current machine signal, stoppage record or production report, a real failure example and access to the people closest to the work are more useful than a polished but speculative requirements document.

Will this require replacing the existing system?

Not automatically. The first responsibility is to establish whether the problem should be solved by stabilising, integrating, extending, replacing one component or building a separate support layer.

Can the first phase be small?

Yes. A strong first phase should control one meaningful workflow or risk end to end, while leaving a clear path for later modules. Small is useful when it is operationally complete, not when it is merely a visual prototype.

How is scope kept from expanding uncontrollably?

The system boundary, primary users, source records, exception paths, outputs and explicit exclusions are agreed before build work expands. New discoveries are separated into current-phase necessities and later opportunities.

What makes this different from generic app development?

The work starts from the operation: physical events, business records, failure modes, ownership, evidence and management decisions. Screens and technology choices follow that model rather than defining it.

Next step

Bring the real machine signal, stoppage record or production report, not a polished brief.

A useful first step is to show INESSOFT the current machine signal, stoppage record or production report, explain where it breaks down and identify the business consequence. From there, the work can be separated into diagnosis, first-phase scope and an implementation path without pretending every problem needs a giant replacement project.

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