Production Line Monitoring: How to Get Real-Time Visibility Into Your Manufacturing Operations
Your production line is running. But do you actually know how well it's running — right now, not based on yesterday's report?
Most manufacturers operate with surprisingly limited real-time visibility into their production lines. They know daily output numbers. They know when something breaks. But the gap between "machine is running" and "machine is running at optimal capacity" is where millions of dollars in productivity hide. A study by Aberdeen Group found that best-in-class manufacturers with real-time production monitoring achieve 89% OEE compared to 72% for average manufacturers — a 17-point gap that translates directly to output, quality, and profitability.
This guide covers what production line monitoring actually involves, the metrics that matter, common pitfalls, and how modern IIoT platforms make real-time manufacturing visibility achievable — even for plants without dedicated IT teams.