Process and plant simulation

Profile

A powerful tool for designing or optimising production of logistics facilities is computer simulation (stochastic discrete event plus continuous models) in which a computer model can perform and visualise solutions for detailed analyses and optimisations.

MCI uses different tools, but the major one is the Siemens PLM (Product Life Cycle Management) software from product design to production planning. Here, we work with NX CAD for component/assembly designs, Line designer to design the factory layout. The tools in PLM use Teamcenter as data backbone to integrate software tools and to ensure the workflow from design to operations.

By Mechatronics concept designer, we can design new manufacturing equipment. Computer simulation enables us to simulate the entire plant or a production cell consisting of robots, human operators, feeding systems etc.

In the plant simulation models, we can perform experiments with the production system at a low cost and minimum risk, and afterwards analyse performance measurements like capacity utilisations and lead times, as well as locate bottle necks etc.

By process simulation, we can analyse the detailed operation task of the human operators in collaboration with machinery to develop the optimal cell layout, where collision detections are made, the robot programmes are generated and tested directly etc.

We can couple simulation tools with VR, meaning that you can enter the virtual not yet built factory or you can try to work at your future workplace.
The simulation models can be used as digital twins by integration to the physical product or production, meaning that you can do new experiments and optimisations in the virtual environment with minimum risk at any time.

Services

Design and develop equipment and the factory of the future.

• Design and simulate new automation solutions
• Design and challenge your factory of the future
• Lean automation – automation with a human touch
• Simulate factory layouts
• Collaborative factory design with industrial partners
• Optimise material flow
• Design, visualise and test collaborative robot cells
• Develop digital twins that couple simulation to the real product or production system.

Labs and equipment

The Innovation lab - Smart Learning Factory and VR/AR lab

In the labs, we have state-of-the-art simulation tools with different purposes. The Smart Learning Factory, as part of the Innovation lab, is a playground for research, where we can present simulation and the physical small-scale production that we use to demonstrate and test DT solutions.
The collaborative table, also called the DTM module, can make simulation available to non-simulation experts because experiments with the factory layout are done interactively and in collaboration at the simulation table with tangible models of machines, robots and other manufacturing equipment.