Chrysler and the Digital Factory
Primary information sources: Chrysler and Computerworld
One of Chrysler's key initiatives before the takeover is spreading to Daimler, which is spending tens of millions of dollars to automate the design of its plants. The goal is to reduce new vehicle production cycles by up to a third, which would greatly speed time to market; it would also lower costs by about 10 percent and increase flexibility.
Susan J. Unger, DaimlerChrysler's CIO - she was instrumental in Chrysler's electronic innovations before the merger - said that the entire production process could be simulated before any physical work is done on the factory, from initial facility drawings to functioning assembly lines. This would echo the automaker's past move to designing cars electronically, from start to finish.
The work will use Dassault Systemes tools, not surprisingly, given that Dassault also developed Chrysler's car-design software. The tools will be used to help design and build new plants, and to retrofit current ones, by 2005.
The first actual use of the Digital Factory was used in the construction of a new engine plant in Germany, for the Daimler side, and at a Mercedes factory (also in Germany) which isi being retrofitted. Jeep's Toledo facility was also mentioned as a precursor to the current effort; that plant makes the Liberty, which has set new standards for build quality at Jeep.
Similar efforts are being undertaken by all the major automakers. In addition to cost and turnaround time reductions, there should be benefits in quality, work flow, and scrap reduction.
The Toledo plant
The 2.1 million square foot Toledo North Assembly Plant, or T-NAP, was designed to be as technologically advanced as possible, and drew on a variety of DaimlerChrysler sources. It uses a system that lifts and lowers the body as it moves from station to station (credited to Mercedes, but based on a system invented by Volvo decades ago); and, more to the point for this page, an electronic notification system, also used in the Brazil Dakota plant, which notifies closely-tied suppliers of needs "just in time." The system is very specific, letting suppliers know when a vehicle is scheduled and started so they can do their part to outfit it. There is almost no inventory, and most delivered parts are used right away, which means it is susceptible to traffic and other problems.
The Jeep plant was designed using UGS' e-VIS software, which allows for 3D factory and process design. An ergonomic analysis was conducted for all 200 workstations, using a simulated employee named Jack, whose moves were carefully modelled. Time and motion and health (e.g. back strain) could all be studied by computer - along with such niceties as clearance (would people and parts fit in the allotted space?). A full model of the plant allowed for a simulation with cars running down the conveyors, and virtual workers actively picking up and attaching parts.
2003 update (Chrysler's words)
One of the tools critical to improving quality, value and speed to market is the Digital Factory. Chrysler is already doing virtual product development, using CATIA and digital mockup, but it doesn't stop there, said IT chief Sue Unger. The goal is to have "an end-to-end solution, flowing from design and development to product planning and production." [This was a pre-takeover goal.]
The Toledo North Assembly Plant, home of the Liberty, was the first Chrysler facility built using manufacturing simulation for only $54 per square foot, an industry benchmark when compared to the industry average of $70-80 per square foot.
"Our global vision is that by 2005, every production factory will be planned, built, launched and operated first using full simulation, before going to bricks and mortar," Unger said. "Every digital vehicle must pass the Digital Factory quality gate - meeting cost, quality and timing targets - before approval will be given for the actual factory."
According to Unger, the Digital Factory has the potential to shorten production planning cycles by up to 40 percent; enforces quality and "best practices"; and reduces cost, while improving quality to achieve gains in productivity, efficiency and safety.
