Machine monitoring and control without MAP

The Rover Cars have recently (1989) installed new manufacturing facilities for an aluminium engine, gearbox, and a new car model, the Rover 200. The facilities had to be designed for: high levels of efficiency; high levels of quality; minimal inventory; and cost effectiveness. With the new project, a design was required for the degree of `integration´ of these new facilities with that of existing and planned computer based systems. The authors describe the development of the project in machine monitoring and control without using MAP. It is concluded that the wider acceptance of `MAP´ would have made the machine application software easier, but technically it is still a much more expensive solution when dealing in low data flow integration projects