Auk Blog
Auk Community Note: Leveraging Data for TPM
Total Productive Maintenance starts with accurate shop-floor data. How one client built their TPM framework on Auk's OEE, MTBF and MTTR history.
Auk Community Note: Feature Release – Smarter Event Labelling with Signal Integration
Connect button or sensor signals to Auk and changeovers, breakdowns and material shortages are detected and listed automatically, ready to label.
Auk Community Note EP26: Feature Release – Smart Scheduling
Smart Scheduling separates running SKUs automatically, benchmarks each against the right production plan and shows planned versus actual output in real time.
Auk Community Note EP05: Hidden Opportunity – Uneven Shift Performance
Night shifts often underperform day shifts unnoticed. How one manufacturer used shift-level data to close the gap and lift output.
Auk Community Note EP04: Mastering MTBF & MTTR for Sustainable Operations Excellence
What MTBF and MTTR mean, how to calculate them, and how manufacturers use both to cut breakdowns and shorten repair time.
Auk Community Note EP03: Feature Release
This week, we’re excited to announce the enhancement of 2 features, designed to deliver even greater control and visibility over your manufacturing operations.
Auk Community Note EP02: Unlock Hidden Energy Savings in your Operations
Idling machines quietly burn energy. How a metal fabrication client cut energy costs by 15% by measuring and acting on machine idle time.
Importance of Takt Time and How to Calculate it
Takt time matches production pace to customer demand. What it is, why it matters in lean manufacturing, and how to calculate it with an example.
Short Interval Control (SIC) in Manufacturing: Importance and Implementation Challenges
Short Interval Control (SIC) checks and adjusts production in short cycles. Why it matters, how to implement it and the challenges to expect.
Understanding OEE to Maximize Operational Efficiency
What OEE measures, how availability, performance and quality combine, and how to use OEE to lift operational efficiency in your plant.
Understanding SMED: Importance and Implementation in a Factory
SMED (Single-Minute Exchange of Dies) cuts changeovers to under 10 minutes. Why it matters and how to implement it in a factory, step by step.
What is Fulfillment Rate, How to Calculate it and Challenges in Achieving the Targets
Fulfillment (fill) rate is the share of orders delivered complete and on time. How to calculate it and the challenges in hitting the target.
Capturing Industry 4.0 value: 4 Use Cases for your Plant
Industry 4.0 is more than automation. Four use cases where IoT data improves efficiency, quality and customer satisfaction in a plant.
What If All Your Staff Understood OEE?
If everyone understood OEE, waste would get found faster. Why OEE literacy across the whole plant matters and how to build it.
I4.0: 4 Reasons NOT to take the Leap
Tired of hearing all about why you should take the step towards i4.0? Read on to find out why you SHOULD NOT.
I4.0 Technologies for Business Owners, Operations, Engineering and Operators
What Industry 4.0 technologies mean in practice for business owners, operations, engineering and operators – and what each role gains.
The Agile Manufacturer: Line Balancing and Production Levelling with Real-Time Data
Line balancing is the arrangement of machine capacity and operators in a line to eliminate bottlenecks and excess capacity.
What is OEE and How To Get Started
OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) explained: the formula, what good looks like, and practical first steps to start measuring it.
The 2 Essentials Needed to Commence Remote Operations
Remote factory operations need two things: real-time data from the floor and a way for teams to act on it from anywhere. What each involves.
Is Your Digital Transformation Failing? This Could Be Why.
Most digital transformations miss their targets. The common reasons factories stall – and what the ones that succeed do differently.
6 Steps to Kickstart the Digital Transformation Journey in Your Factory
Six practical steps to start a digital transformation in your factory – from goals and quick wins to data, people and scaling what works.
Moving Out of Adversity: Combating Covid-19 with Auk Industrial IoT System
How manufacturers used Auk's industrial IoT system to keep operations running and visible through COVID-19 – and came out more resilient.
Theory Of Constraints: Using It Ahead Of Competition
The Theory of Constraints still works: find the bottleneck, exploit it, subordinate everything else to it. How manufacturers use it to stay ahead.
Achieve More Good Than Harm: Put an End to Over-Maintenance
Too much maintenance costs money and causes failures of its own. How to spot over-maintenance and right-size your maintenance programme.
Implementing Downtime Analysis The Effective Way
Downtime analysis finds the real reasons behind OEE losses. How to set it up, categorise stoppages and turn the data into fixes that stick.
IoT-Readiness: Going Beyond IoT-Ready Machines
IoT-ready machines are only the start. What IoT-readiness really takes in a factory – data, connectivity, people and processes – and how to get there.
The Right Maintenance Techniques for Your Plant
Predictive maintenance is only part of the picture. Reactive, preventive, condition-based and predictive techniques – and which fits which machine.
Truths About Measuring Line Performance: Manual vs Tech
Manual line-performance tracking vs real-time technology: what each misses, what it costs, and why hidden losses stay hidden on paper.
Unique Advantages of Cloud-Based OEE Solutions
Why cloud-based OEE beats on-premise: faster rollout, real-time visibility across plants, automatic updates and a lower cost to scale.
Value Stream Mapping for Continuous Improvement
Lean tools work best on a mapped value stream. What value stream mapping is, how to draw one, and how it drives continuous improvement.
Invest in Real-Time Machine Monitoring Systems: Yes for these 6 Reasons
Still unsure about real-time machine monitoring? Six reasons the investment pays off for manufacturers – and why it no longer means a costly build.
OEE For Business Owners: Driving Positive Financial Impacts
OEE explained for business owners: how measuring equipment effectiveness avoids needless CapEx and turns existing assets into profit.
Should Lights-Out Factories be the Standard for Every Manufacturer?
Lights-out factories run without people on the floor. Whether every manufacturer should aim for one – and what remote operations really need.
Top 8 Lean Manufacturing Tools and How To Use Them
The 8 most-used lean manufacturing tools – Jidoka, JIT, PDCA, 5S, Six Sigma, Heijunka, OEE and TPM – what each does and when to use it.
Top 9 Common OEE Mistakes Made by Organisations
Nine OEE mistakes manufacturers keep making – from the wrong baseline to chasing the number – and how to measure and use OEE properly.