Measuring Up

Manufacturing Automation – October 2014

Case study on i-Mech of Edmonton, AB.

To see the full article, please click here, and go to page 20.

Memex showcases benefits of Merlin manufacturing tool together with client Mazak Optonics at FabTech

Proactive Investors – October 17 – 2014 – Memex Automation (CVE:OEE), the maker of a tool that works to improve manufacturing efficiencies, says that Mazak Optonics has invited the company to jointly demonstrate its product’s ability to connect all manufacturing machines to management and increase income from operations in real time.

Mazak’s laser-cutting systems and Memex’s product Merlin will be demonstrated at FabTech in Atlanta, Georgia, from November 11 to 13.

Memex’s Merlin is a hardware and software tool that tracks a large number of data inputs that measure OEE [overall equipment effectiveness] in real-time, machine by machine, as well as other operational machine information.

It enables customers to address production bottlenecks as they happen, converting idle time back into production and ultimately improving throughput and increasing income from plant operations.

“We are very pleased to continue our collaboration with Mazak and to demonstrate our combined capabilities to their extensive customer base and distribution channels,” said chief executive officer, David McPhail.

“MERLIN, as a forward and backward compatible MTConnect-based solution, universally connects all machines to management in real-time, measures plant-wide capacity utilization and shows manufacturers how to make more production, generating IRRs of up to 400%.”

Mazak Optonics is the laser-cutting systems division of Yamazaki Mazak Corp, which designs and manufactures productive machine tools and automation systems.

Memex’s Merlin was also showcased by Mazak at the International Manufacturing Technology Show (IMTS) in Chicago in September, as well as at EMO in Hannover, Germany last year.

Mazak purchased Merlin to manage its plant in Florence, Kentucky, and has cited a 42 percent increase in equipment utilization.

“The availability of key data is crucial to managing operational performance. The combination of MTConnect and MERLIN will deliver performance details including dashboards that open up tremendous real-time visibility for both individual machines and the entire shop floor,” added Mazak’s general manager of sales support, Marc Lobit.

MTConnect is the open, royalty-free standard that is intended to foster greater interoperability between manufacturing devices and software applications. It is used with Memex’s new CNC hardware adapters, bringing OEE network connectivity from the shop floor to management, no matter the make, model or vintage of machine.

To see the full article, please click here.

Mazak Optonics and Memex Jointly Demonstrate at FabTech: How to increase production and income from operations with MTConnect-based MERLIN

Burlington, ON, Canada – October 17, 2014 – Astrix Networks Inc., operating as Memex Automation (TSX-V: OEE) (“Memex” or the “Company”), the global leader of manufacturing M2M productivity solutions, is pleased to announce that Mazak Optonics has invited Memex to jointly demonstrate MERLIN’s ability to connect all manufacturing machines to management, reports plant-wide capacity utilization, and increases production and income from operations in real-time.  Mazak’s laser cutting systems and MERLIN will be demonstrated at FabTech, Booth 3525, November 11-13, Atlanta, GA.

Yamazaki Mazak is the global leader in the design and manufacture of highly productive machine tools and automation systems. Mazak Optonics is the laser-cutting systems division of Yamazaki Mazak Corporation and the third division to demonstrate MERLIN as a value-add MTConnect-based partner solution. MERLIN was demonstrated by Mazak at IMTS, September 2014, and at EMO, Hannover, Germany, in September 2013.

Mazak USA purchased MERLIN to manage its plant in Florence, KY, published in Automation.com a 42% increase in equipment utilization, and offers MERLIN on its price list.

“We are very pleased to continue our collaboration with Mazak and to demonstrate our combined capabilities to their extensive customer base and distribution channels,” said David McPhail, CEO.  “MERLIN, as a forward and backward compatible MTConnect-based solution, universally connects all machines to management in real-time, measures plant-wide capacity utilization and shows manufacturers how to make more production, generating IRRs of up to 400%,” said McPhail.

“The availability of key data is crucial to managing operational performance. The combination of MTConnect and MERLIN will deliver performance details including dashboards that open up tremendous real-time visibility for both individual machines and the entire shop floor,” stresses Marc Lobit, General Manager Sales Support of Mazak Optonics.

About Mazak Optonics

Mazak Optonics Corporation is a major supplier of laser-cutting systems, offering 50 laser models and leading the industry in the implementation of emerging laser technologies. The company’s 50,000 sq. ft. North American Headquarters are located in Elgin, Illinois, and feature a 30,000 sq. ft. laser technology center housing up to 18 machines for demonstrations and training. Mazak Optonics is part of Yamazaki Mazak Corporation (Oguchi, Japan), the global leader for the manufacture of machine tools and systems for the precision machining of metal parts, including CNC turning centers, horizontal and vertical machining centers, Multi-Tasking machining centers, turnkey cells and software solutions. The North American Headquarters for Yamazaki Mazak are located in Florence, Kentucky. For more information on Mazak Optonics’ products and solutions, visit www.mazakoptonics.com, email sales@mazaklaser.com or call 847-252-4500.

About Memex Automation Inc.

Memex Automation (TSX-V:OEE) is the leader of manufacturing Machine to Machine (M2M) productivity solutions and the measurement of Overall Equipment Effectiveness (“OEE”) in real-time. OEE is the measurement of plant-wide capacity utilization. MERLIN (Manufacturing Enterprise Real-time Lean Information Network) generates OEE enterprise-wide, machine by machine. On April 15, 2014, PEM awarded the Company the 2013 Plant Engineering & Maintenance Award for Best Company Under 50 Employees. Frost & Sullivan awarded MERLIN its 2013 Technology Innovation Leadership Award for Machine Monitoring. Microsoft picked MERLIN to be its mid-market ERP machine connectivity solution. Mazak, North America’s largest original equipment manufacturer of machine tools, purchased MERLIN to manage its plant in Florence, KY, published in Automation.com a 42% increase in equipment utilization, and now offers it on its price list. Okuma America Corporation, a world leader in CNC machine tools, announced in April 2014 that Memex Automation became a Partner in THINC. For more information, please visit: www.memex.ca.

For more information, please contact:

 Mazak Optonics:
Marc Lobit, General Manager Sales Support
Phone: 847-252-4522
Email: MLobit@mazaklaser.com

 Memex Automation Inc.:
Thomas Smeenk, VP Business Development
Phone: 905-536-3138
Email: Thomas.Smeenk@Memex.ca

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation services provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To see the full press release, please click here.

Memex installs 34 new MTConnect hardware adapters for GE business, gets new order

Proactive Investors – Octover 16, 2014 – Memex Automation (CVE:OEE), whose hardware and software solution works to improve manufacturing efficiencies, said it has completed the installation of 34 MTConnect-based universal machine interface boards at GE Power & Water in South Carolina, while also receiving an order for an installation from GE Aviation.

MTConnect is the open, royalty-free standard that is intended to foster greater interoperability between manufacturing devices and software applications. It is used with Memex’s new CNC hardware adapters, bringing OEE network connectivity from the shop floor to management, no matter the make, model or vintage of machine.

The result is a tool that allows Memex’s Merlin software to track a large number of MTConnect data inputs that measure OEE [overall equipment effectiveness] in real-time, machine by machine, as well as other operational machine information.

It enables customers to address production bottlenecks as they happen, converting idle time back into production and ultimately improving throughput and increasing income from plant operations.

The Memex hardware will allow GE to better measure and manage production, Memex said, as well as monetize improved processes.

“Our universal hardware solves the last meter problem with a plug-in adapter that generates MTConnect data,” said chief executive officer, David McPhail.

“Uniquely, because MTConnect as a protocol includes a data dictionary, our adapter enables all machines to talk XML in exactly the same way, which means the data can be consumed by GE’s business intelligence tools.”

Memex’s product was recently described in a case study by Mazak, which said that Merlin-related efforts to reduce downtime yielded a 42 percent improvement in utilization for the monitored machines.

In addition, Mazak also reduced operator downtime by 100 hours per month, while 400 hours per month of previously outsourced work was returned to the company.

To see the full article, please click here.

Memex CEO David McPhail attending Internet of Things World Forum

Memex Automation’s CEO David McPhail is attending, by invitation, the Internet of Things World Forum, October 14 – 16, 2014.

The Internet of Things (IoT) is opening up a world of real opportunities and rapidly transforming our communities, our cities and our daily lives. The second annual Internet of Things World Forum (IoTWF) in Chicago, October 14–16, 2014 marks a defining moment in the growth of the IoT.  It is an exclusive annual event that brings together the best and brightest thinkers, practitioners, and innovators from business, government, and academia to accelerate the market adoption of the Internet of Things.

At this year’s Internet of Things World Forum, the top thought leaders, implementers and creators across public sector, private business and education will gather again in one place at one time to collaborate, network, partner, and build the industry’s ecosystem together. The IoTWF is the one place where the entire IoT community can share the latest developments and emerging applications, all of which will be on display — here and now — onsite at the event in Chicago.

Attendees will walk away with an enhanced understanding of what they can do to advance the Internet of Things, new relationships with other, similarly-minded leaders, and strategies for maximizing its benefits—both for their organizations and the industry as a whole.

For more information on the Internet of Things World Forum, please click here.