Lighting Up Production Efficiency

British American Tobacco, South Korea

BAT suspected that it could achieve dramatic improvements in efficiency by deploying MES technology in its production plants, but would it work? There was one way to find out.

British American Tobacco (BAT) is the world’s second-largest publicly traded tobacco group by global market share, with a product portfolio of more than 200 brands. BAT recently completed a pilot manufacturing execution system (MES) project at its Sacheon plant in South Korea, aimed at optimizing the overall production process and aligning production activities with its supply chain. Following the pilot exercise in Korea, BAT now intends to roll out MES technology across its production plants worldwide. An MES links together all the supply chain inputs and real-time production process information and uses these data both to control the processes and to provide management with the data needed to make timely and appropriate decisions.

Tobacco processing requires a set of complex procedures from the tobacco leaf (left) to the intermediate tobacco (center) and the final product (right)

Global MES initiative

The MES initiative is part of BAT’s vision and strategy to lead the global tobacco industry through growth, productivity, and responsibility. BAT did not choose a small plant for its pilot MES exercise. To combine this growth with productivity and responsibility, BAT wanted a system that would effectively manage the production processes and handle the process and quality data. By increasing the automation and control of the production processes, BAT aimed to improve production efficiency and quality and enable tracking and traceability along the supply chain. The global MES project would provide BAT with the hands-on experience it needed to understand the opportunities and challenges of MES technology. It would enable BAT to evaluate the impact on business and production operations and to learn how the systems could be standardized and reused.

The Korean site was selected for the pilot operation because it was a relatively new, high-performing plant with standardized processes already in place. With the choice of site confirmed, a vendor was selected. Siemens was chosen for its expertise in the field and its commitment. A key factor was the completeness of the Simatic IT MES and the good fit of Simatic IT with BAT’s requirements. In addition to the technical advantages of Simatic IT, another key factor was Siemens’ global presence and partner network. The pilot project involved teams from many locations around the world. BAT deployed its teams in Korea and at BAT’s global headquarters, while Siemens coordinated contributions from Siemens MES Delivery Services, Siemens UK, and Siemens in Korea. The mutual commitment and collaboration among the teams were significant success factors for the project and laid the foundation for future collaboration in manufacturing IT developments.

Fully integrated manufacturing solution

For the pilot MES project, the teams implemented a fully integrated manufacturing solution based on Simatic IT. All the production stages were covered, from the primary processing of incoming materials to quality control and finished goods dispatch.

The deployment of the MES at Sacheon facilitates ongoing improvements in production efficiency through integration with the enterprise resource planning (ERP) system (e.g., production orders, material data, bills of materials). This integration enables a fully automated exchange of product and production data. Key performance indicator (KPI) reports are compiled based on real-time and historical data. Advanced quality management features are also included, such as material verification, defect tracking, and statistical process control (SPC) charts. The laboratory information management system (LIMS) automatically collects results from quality control instrumentation such as scales, Cerulean quality control and testing instruments, gas chromatography machines, and analytical smoke constituent capture equipment. The LIMS then places the results in a central database. The embedded reporting tool allows management and operators to use a suite of predeveloped reports in addition to customizing their own report views and content.

With the new MES solution, BAT Korea has already achieved significant time savings, reduced manufacturing and material costs, and increased asset efficiency and availability. Additionally, the system facilitates fast and effective decision making based on real-time production information.