Gerdau has completed the commissioning of the QMOS MES system at its Fort Smith specialty steel plant. QMOS will be responsible for receiving all orders from the business system and providing work instructions for the entire production line from the dual furnace melt shop to the direct charging caster all the way to the post processing lines.
The advanced quality management tools of QMOS will help the Fort Smith to better track and manage the complex customer requirements. At the same time, the analytical tools allow the quality engineers to better monitor the consumption of scraps and additives in order to create more efficient and cost effective recipes.
QMOS will help manage the activities of Fort Smith’s multiple finishing process lines eliminating the traditional paper based reporting and improving the information accuracy throughout the entire process. All delays and test results are captured and final production and performance numbers are reported back to the business systems.
Fort Smith utilizes Quad Infotech’s APEX system for creating web based reports, live displays and alarm notifications. The APEX system enhances the visibility of critical production and performance information throughout the plant as well as the corporation. The operators as well as management can readily have access to real-time critical information.