Lean Production with Microservices

The trend to break down complex system functions into any number of networked microservices is particularly topical today due to the breakthrough of cloud infrastructures. However, the concept is much older and was first implemented at syspro in 2011.

The benefits of switching to virtual mini-applications are particularly high in production solutions. This is because a conventional application never achieves the necessary flexibility at this level to adapt to variable components in the process, to adapt precisely to new specific scenarios again and again, and to deal intelligently with new categories of faults and errors.

Changing a powerful application each time for individualization and other adjustments would be neither efficient nor safe. Instead, we rely on independent microservices that communicate with each other in close networking via standardized interfaces. Each of these services autonomously performs a small, precisely defined task.

An example of this principle is our data acquisition terminal proDet, in which individual microservices map each individual step of the process. In the superordinate proDet framework the process logic is established via the sequence of the process steps and furthermore the intercommunication with devices, remote services (services or applications) and user inputs is configured. This structure has an invaluable advantage for customers: The user can design his processes flexibly, stable and user-optimized.