The Computer Integrated Manufacturing (CIM) Centre is a specialist centre set up as part of the Applied Research Group of Nanyang Polytechnic.

It serves as a technological showcase and provides a platform to undertake applied research and development in CIM related technologies. The emphasis lies on the physical, application and business integration to realise greater functional synergy traversing conventional boundaries among engineering, production and management activities so as to facilitate integrated information and material flow.

The prime objectives are:

• to promote greater awareness by offering a tangible insight into CIM technology.

• to serve as a vehicle to propagate the technology and to channel the knowledge and expertise gained towards helping to improve the manufacturing engineering curriculum of the polytechnic so as to keep abreast with technological progress.

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Areas of Specialisation

The CIM Centre focuses on the use of open computing technologies to support the development of IT systems for the engineering domain.

The key areas of
specialisation include thedevelopment of enterprise application, advanced machine controller, Web Services for intra- and inter-organisation integration, knowledge-based & expert systems and mobile computing solutions.

Industry Services

The CIM Centre actively supports the industry by providing research and development services in these areas:

1. Identification of information sharing requirements between heterogenous CIM systems. This will:

• Define and provide an information architecture which establishes structure and uniformity whilst enabling sharing and transfer of information in a distributed and heterogeneous database environment.

• Establish Interconnection facilities.

• Implement an integrating infrastructure which simplifies and structures interconnection by separating application and integration issues, providing inter-process communication services and mapping of distributed processes on the physical resources contained within a target manufacturing system.

• Manage Functional interaction

• Govern dynamic system behaviour in a data and event driven manner. This is based on their functional dependencies, information needs and availability.

• Incorporate intelligence and knowledge within the system. This is to empower it with capabilities for greater autonomy and adaptability.
  

2. Development Collaborative Engineering systems. This includes:

• Human-computer interface to offer a global perspective and intra-organisation support for "more-informed" decision-making.

3. Design and Development of systems employing a more formal and structured approach suited for:

• engineering integrated manufacturing systems.
  
• the support the system over its useful life. This is to facilitate ease of integrated system development and change management.

Project Information

The CIM Centre has been effective in promoting technology transfer to the local manufacturing industry through consultancy services. One fine example is Philips Machine Factory Pte Ltd, which is involved in discrete part manufacture. It acquired a distributed numerical control (DNC) system which is implemented in the CIM Centre to help improve its shop floor management and control activities. The CIM Centre was approached to conduct feasibility study for implementation requirements as well as provide "hands-on" training for the DNC system.

The interest from the local manufacturing industry to the CIM related work can be gauged from the overwhelming response received regularly to attend demonstration and presentation sessions. From the general response and feedback, more presentations of such nature were requested to help improve greater awareness in CIM.

Employers of graduands who have undergone training in the CIM Centre have expressed much satisfaction in their capability. They agreed that :-
"the multi-discipline nature of the training offered (involving mechatronics, manufacturing and software engineering) provides a wide and holistic view of the factory automation domain. The exposure and confidence gained will undoubtedly help yield higher productivity from these new breed of engineers".

For more information, please contact:

David Soo
Manager (Enterprise Business Automation) Manufacturing Systems & Software Engineering Group
School of Engineering (Manufacturing)

Nanyang Polytechnic
180, Ang Mo Kio Avenue 8
S569830
Tel: 6550-1846
Email: David_SOO@nyp.gov.sg

Last updated on 21 Oct 2008 by Lawrence Durai