A manufacturing execution system from MPDV.

About Hydra MES

HYDRA by MPDV USA is a fully integrated Manufacturing Execution System (MES) that helps organizations collect and analyze critical data related to production, HR, and quality management. With HYDRA, manufacturers can gather real-time data from their shop floor, personnel, machines, and other processes.

Video Overview

MPDV gives organizations access to a global solution that is both ISO certified and FDA validated, so it can be used in automotive, plastics, metals, electronics, as well as medical and food and beverage industries.

HYDRA lets companies purchase only the applications they require, with the ability to roll out additional modules at any time. The functionality includes shop floor scheduling, machine and order data, material and production logistics, tracking and tracing, tool and resource management. As HR-related features HYDRA provides functionalities or Time & Attendance, Personnel Scheduling, Incentive Pay and Access Control. The MES solution also provides quality management for in-production inspection, process data analysis, and gauge management. HYDRA can integrate with most ERPs in the industry, including Oracle, ABAS, SAP, PENTA, and MS Dynamics as well as all kinds of shop floor equipment.

As leading MES solution, HYDRA provides important benefits to manufacturing firms:

  • It can integrate shop floor level and management.
  • It has a modular structure, which provides a seamless flow of information.
  • It offers powerful functions for Production, HR and Quality.

Shop Floor level needs information and planning functions in the following areas: Production Data Collection (PDC), Shop Floor Scheduling, Material and Production Logistics, Traceability, Machine Data Collection, Tool Management / DNC, Quality Assurance / CAQ, Process Data Collection, Time and Attendance, Personnel Scheduling, Incentive Pay, Access Control and Escalation Management.

Today, more than 880 companies of all sizes and in all industries benefit fromHydra MES. Among the customers are production SMEs as well as internationally operating industrial groups with activities in the following industries: plastics / vulcanized rubber, metal industry, automotive manufacturers and industry subcontractors, food and beverages, plant and mechanical engineering, furniture and wood industry, printing and packaging, precision mechanics and optics as well as electrical engineering and electronics, medical technology and pharmaceuticals.

Access Control

HYDRA enables you to monitor access of employees and visitors. You are instantly informed in the Security Control Center if an alarm has been triggered or if security rules are hurt, i.e. a door is left open in a secured location. HYDRA is able to handle offline components for access control.

Complaints Management

HYDRA module WEP reduces the inspection and quality cost in goods receipt. Flexible dynamic sampling procedures refer back to the inspection history in order that only necessary inspections are suggested. HYDRA WEP also includes supplier evaluation

Configuration Data

With HYDRA you can transfer your NC programs via the existing shop floor infrastructure (BDE terminal) to the machine control system. When the machine is set up the correct setting data is already available for the machine. This can be used for various machine types.

Crucial Benefits Are:

  • Interfaces to all common NC machines
  • Maintenance and management of all NC data records
  • Automatic download for the BDE terminals
  • Select function for NC programs
  • DNC viewer displaying the NC programs in the BDE terminals
  • Storage and upload of optimized programs
  • Utilization statistics of NC programs

Energy Management

HYDRA Energy Management (EMG) supports you incorporating measures to save energy complying with DIN EN ISO 5001. Collect and display your energy consumption in detail. Identify “energy guzzlers” and process-induced peaks in consumption referring to products, used raw materials, machines and tools. HYDRA EMG assists you to introduce specific measures to improve energy efficiencies and to develop new planning strategies.

Crucial Benefits Are:

  • Management of energy counters and hierarchical structures
  • Collection, visualization and monitoring of energy consumption
  • Automatic alert system of infringing target values
  • Analysis of consumption in correlation with other production parameters
  • Consumption profiles to identify power peaks
  • Energy KPIs and planning strategies to improve your energy consumption

Incoming Goods Inspection

HYDRA module WEP reduces the inspection and quality cost in goods receipt. Flexible dynamic sampling procedures refer back to the inspection history in order that only necessary inspections are suggested. HYDRA WEP also includes supplier evaluation

Machine Data

HYDRA monitors your machines automatically, continuously and around the clock. Information is visualized up-to-date and can be displayed for example in a realistic machine layout. Collected machine data is used for KPI calculation in real-time.

Crucial Benefits Are:

  • Automatic collection of pieces and quantities
  • Automatic detection of production and downtime
  • Configurable shop floor monitor
  • Collection of downtime and failure modes
  • Various overviews and evaluations including OEE functions
  • Integrated maintenance calendar
  • Interface to maintenance systems

Material and Production Logistics

With HYDRA MPL you can define WIP buffers (Work in Progress) and material buffers, which are displayed and controlled in real time. The range of raw materials and intermediate products is calculated and the availability is accounted for during the detailed planning in the shop floor scheduling.

Crucial Benefits Are:

  • Control and monitor material flow in production
  • Inventory control (raw and auxiliary material / intermediate products / WIP) for production
  • eKanban for modern material flow according to the Pull Principle.
  • Display of stocks inclusive stock development across all sites
  • Considering minimum storage times and/or expiry dates
  • Visualization of material buffers between operations
  • Alert and expiry statistics for material with a limited shelf life
  • Calculation of range for material, intermediate and semi-finished products.
  • Triggering escalations by identifying defined scenarios

Personnel Scheduling

HYDRA plans the deployment of employees depending on the amount of orders and considering qualifications and availability of staff. Graphical planning sheets can be used.

Personnel Time Management

The HYDRA module Time & Attendance (PZE) automatically collects clock-in, clock-out times and breaks of your employees and fully documents the times. Attendance and absence lists show you online who is in and who is not present currently.

Process Data

With HYDRA you can monitor and document processes running at your machines during production. If problems arise counter measures can be taken instantly to avoid producing faulty parts - sufficiently in advance. Collected data can be used for quality assurance.

Crucial Benefits Are:

  • Management of inspection characteristics and measuring channels
  • Assignment of inspection characteristics, parts and tools
  • Collection and storage of process values
  • Monitoring of action limits and tolerance limits
  • Logging of process interruptions
  • Online status of processes
  • Evaluations of process interruptions
  • Process logs
  • Interface to CAQ systems

Production Inspection

HYDRA enables you to monitor access of employees and visitors. You are instantly informed in the Security Control Center if an alarm has been triggered or if security rules are hurt, i.e. a door is left open in a secured location. HYDRA is able to handle offline components for access control.

Shop Floor Data

You can completely trace and monitor all production orders including operations in real-time and thus having details of the current status of order and order process at your disposal.

This information is constantly available for analysis and to control costs.

Crucial Benefits Are:

  • Transfer of orders / operations from PPS / ERP system
  • Generate production and overhead orders
  • Creating collective orders, splitting of orders / operations
  • Log on/off or interruption of orders / operations
  • Log on/off of personnel or groups
  • Configurable terminal dialogs to collect all relevant order data
  • Various overviews and evaluations
  • Immediate upload of real data to the PPS / ERP system
  • Support of eKanban systems

Shop Floor Scheduling

Using HYDRA HLS (shop floor scheduling) you plan orders taking into account required and existing resources (machines, personnel, material and tools).

Your are instantly informed about the impact of rescheduling, machine defects or missing resources.

Crucial Benefits Are:

  • Display of capacity utilization
  • Taking into account all resources
  • Improving set up times
  • Automatic machine assignment
  • Simulation of shift and utilization rate changes
  • Improving individual capacities
  • Monitoring material and stock levels
  • Various tables of overviews and evaluations
  • Interface to ERP and PPS systems

Test Equipment Management

With the HYDRA module PMV potential savings can be made when test equipment is examined and monitored thoroughly. Only immaculate test equipment can comply with the quality requirements. HYDRA also monitors calibration plans.

Time & Attendance

The HYDRA module Time & Attendance (PZE) automatically collects clock-in, clock-out times and breaks of your employees and fully documents the times. Attendance and absence lists show you online who is in and who is not present currently.

Tool and Resource Management

With HYDRA you can plan tooling and resources efficiently and thereby reduce times. HYDRA monitors your tools and their lifecycle compehensively and schedules maintenance by using cycle-count, machine status and / or operating time.

Crucial Benefits Are:

  • Management of tool inventory
  • Automatic collection of working and down time via BDE (shop floor data collection) and MDE (machine data collection)
  • Maintenance of tools
  • Assignment of tools within detailed scheduling
  • Combining machine and tools
  • Tooling history
  • Down time monitoring

Tracking & Tracing

With the HYDRA module Tacking & Tracing (TRT) you can document which raw material batches made up a product and the processes it ran through. The result is an electronically generated report of a batch tree which can help you with claims as it localizes the cause of the problem. Even complex requirements like FDA can be met.

Crucial Benefits Are:

  • Collection of batch data in the production
  • Overview of all active batches
  • Tracing batches containing detailed information in a table
  • Graphical batch tracing (batch tree / traceability)
  • Complete documentation by means of a batch history
  • Compliance with standards (FDA, GMP etc.)
  • Triggering escalations by identifying defined scenarios

Product Overview

Related Products

User Reviews of Hydra MES

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on February 7th, 2018 by Anonymous

They are one of our top contenders from a field of 13

The Good…

Most notably is they requested to come on site to review our systems and processes to evaluate our facility prior to conducting the demo, Conversations continued to focus on the routing process and not disrupt what we were already doing. Can pull information from SAP without having to re-write the whole system.

The Bad…

Mixed feedback from our team on modular structure, but seems like it will fit our needs. Can get overwhelming with how many building blocks and modules they have as part of their system.

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on February 7th, 2018 by Anonymous

Seems like a powerful software and could work, it just didn’t seem like it was the most user friendly.

The Good…

I thought they had a pretty good solution

The Bad…

Ended up not being in our top 2, compared to others seemed other solutions would be easier to work with

★★★★★
★★★★★
Submitted on February 7th, 2018 by Paul

Going through capabilities tomorrow but should work in our assembly areas

The Good…

Seems right up our alley and can support small and big companies

The Bad…

No concerns