Automation pyramid

Levels of Automation Pyramid

• Level 0:  Field Level/Production Process
• Level 1: Control Level/Sensing and Manipulation
• Level 2: Supervisory Level/Monitoring and supervising
• Level 3: Planning Level/Operations Management
• Level 4: Enterprise Level(Business Planning and Logistics)
• Level 5: Cloud

Level 0: Field Level/Production Process

This level has devices, actuators, and sensors that are found in the field or on the production floor. The field level is the production floor where physical work and monitoring happens. Electric motors, hydraulic and pneumatic actuators to move  machinery, proximity switches to detect movement of certain materials,  photoelectric switches that detect similar things are some examples at the field  level.

Level 1: Control Level/Sensing and Manipulation

PLC’s and PID’s operate at this level.

At this level, you control and manipulate the devices in the field level that actually do the physical work.

Level 2: Supervisory Level/Monitoring and supervising

This level is known as the supervisory level. Where the previous level utilizes PLCs, this level utilizes SCADA. SCADA is short for supervisory control and data acquisition.

Level 3: Planning level/Operations Management

The fourth level of the automation pyramid is called the planning level. This level utilizes a computer management system known as MES or manufacturing execution system. MES monitors the entire manufacturing process in a plant or factory from the raw materials to the finished product.

Level 4 : Enterprise level(Business Planning and Logistics)

The top of the pyramid is what is called the management level. This level uses the companies integrated management system which is known as the ERP or enterprise resource planning.

Level 5 : Cloud

Cloud is what forms the digital transformation part of the factory where data from any of the previous levels can directly be fed into a data lake or other applications and insights could be gathered. Here is where the next level of efficiency and operational excellence is achieved.