If you’re a protein processor that has yet to take a significant step into the world of Industry 4.0, you're not alone. Globally, 90 percent of manufacturing companies are Digital Novices, Followers, or Innovators, and less than one-third are well-advanced on their digital journey. If you are just starting out, here are five practical steps to help meat and poultry processors improve manufacturing performance by digitizing their plant floor operations with Industry 4.0 technology.

The CAT Squared User Summit is designed to add value to food production operations by sharing best practices in the industry for adopting new technology to manufacturing processes.

For industrial-scale food producers, staying compliant with a patchwork of state, federal, and international regulations is challenging. The State of Alabama requires commercial manufacturing operations like Mar-Jac to maintain National Type Evaluation Program (NTEP) certification on their weighing and measuring instruments. Not only do the scales and other hardware devices themselves need to be certified, but the software reading data from these devices must also conform to the standards of the National Conference on Weights and Measures, ensuring the manufacturer’s data is accurate.

CAT Squared is working hard to bring our customers the best manufacturing operations management software available in the industry. We are committed to releasing new functionality to our customers three times each year. As a reminder to our customers, new releases are available in January, May, and September.

In last month's feature, we discussed various categories of data-management software systems used in manufacturing. This month, we’ll continue this conversation by more deeply defining the difference between ERP systems and MOM / MES systems and discussing how ERP integration with MES systems empowers manufacturers with real-time business intelligence to make better decisions.

In July, CAT Squared released an update to their SPC software that empowers plant-floor operators with real-time SPC trending data and charts. Production staff can now make adjustments to their plant-floor processes and immediately see how those adjustments impact the quality of the product.

Information technology has changed the face of traditional manufacturing. Every day, there seems to be a new buzzword defining another software category to help you manage your company’s data. But which kind of software system is best for your company? What software system will give you the best ROI? Do you need an ERP or an MES? Can an ERP function as an MES? What’s the difference? And while we’re asking these questions, can someone please define some of these acronyms?

To maximize profitability, companies must have a firm grasp of what it costs to manufacture and process each product. This becomes increasingly challenging for large companies with thousands of employees and long supply chains or multiple manufacturing plants. This study demonstrates a return on investment of less than just a few months of full integration of CAT Squared's costing system.