APS & MES: What does each offer?

We are living in a time when the manufacturing market is becoming more competitive and dynamic every day, causing companies to look for solutions that allow them to better control their production, increase their production efficiency and reduce losses. From this need arises the desire to find technologies that help us produce more quickly, cheaply, efficiently and effectively.

When looking for specialist tools to help with the management, planning, scheduling and control of their production, many companies end up in doubt as to which type of solution is best suited to meeting their needs and actually solving their problems. When they start researching, different options start to appear, and we often fail to translate the role of each tool into practice and how they can help us.

In this context, two types of tool stand out as being able to help companies improve their monitoring of the production process and seek to gain a competitive advantage through PCP: MES software and APS software.

MES (Manufacturing Execution Systems) software are tools focused on the execution and control of production. The main objective of MES software is to enable effective execution of production orders and to monitor equipment and production notes. Some of the benefits you can expect from MES software are: reduced scrap and rework, reduced maintenance costs, improved machine efficiency, reduced material losses and better quality production information.

The main functionalities of an MES include:

• Automation of production data collection;
• Online production management;
• Analysis of equipment performance(OEE - Overall Equipment Effectiveness);
• Automation of materials and stock control;
• Help with quality control;
• Capturing actual cost data;
• Online maintenance control.

APS (Advanced Planning and Scheduling) software is a tool widely used in production planning and scheduling. It focuses on sequencing and planning with finite capacity, i.e. taking into account various constraints on the shop floor such as resources, manpower, production calendars, tooling and others. Among the benefits that APS software can bring are: reduced lead time, reduced inventories, reduced setups, better use of resources and improved delivery times.

The main features of the APS are listed below:

• Production planning generating the master production schedule;
• Planning stock policies;
• Generation of production orders;
• Sequencing production orders with finite capacity;
• Simulation of different sequencing scenarios;
• Materials management.

Generally speaking, we can say that the MES is used at the operational level, being responsible for monitoring work in progress and ensuring its execution, while generating a complete diagnosis of its production situation historically, an important input for the company's tactical decisions. On the other hand, APS works at the operational and tactical levels, drawing up plans with a vision of the future in the short and medium term to meet the industry's objectives and in the long term to help with strategic decisions relating to production capacity and resource sizing. Both systems will work together with the company's ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), maintaining constant communication and providing decision-makers with the information they need to be more assertive.

In the image below, we have tried to illustrate the scope of each solution over time:

MES and APS: Different scopes that complement each other.

It's worth noting that, despite having very different scopes, the distinction between MES and APS is not always so clear-cut. Each software has its own peculiarities and range of functions, but you may find some overlap in the functionalities proposed. Some MES software is able to provide functions that are generally within the scope of APS, and vice versa.

But the question remains: which one do I need? Well, we're sorry to say that there's no ready answer to that question. Each tool's list of features can be very attractive, but the answer will depend on your company's needs and short- and long-term objectives. Often the answer is both, because far from being competing systems, they are actually complementary systems. And it is the combination of both that will give us complete control of production, i.e. planning, scheduling and control.