Solumina vs FactoryFour

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Our analysts compared Solumina vs FactoryFour based on data from our 400+ point analysis of MES Software, user reviews and our own crowdsourced data from our free software selection platform.

Solumina Software Tool

Product Basics

Solumina is a robust software solution designed to manage complex manufacturing processes, particularly excelling in Manufacturing Execution (MES). It is tailored for industries such as aerospace, defense, and other sectors requiring stringent quality control and compliance. Solumina streamlines production by integrating quality management, supplier collaboration, and maintenance operations into a unified platform, enhancing efficiency and traceability.

One of the standout benefits of Solumina is its ability to provide real-time visibility into manufacturing processes, which helps in reducing errors and improving product quality. Its powerful features include detailed work instructions, comprehensive defect tracking, and advanced analytics capabilities. Users appreciate its intuitive interface and the depth of customization available to meet specific operational needs.

Compared to similar products, Solumina is often praised for its scalability and the seamless integration it offers with existing enterprise systems. Pricing details are typically customized based on the scope and scale of implementation, so it is advisable to contact SelectHub for a tailored quote.

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FactoryFour is a cloud-based system designed to configure and analyze operations and scale production. It identifies bottlenecks across processes and balances resources throughout work centers for optimum resource utilization. It maintains a master schedule visible to project managers, operators and salespeople to simplify communication.

Real-time alerting helps users respond quickly to production issues and alerts key stakeholders through customized emails or SMSs. It ensures operators’ productivity with responsive, Kanban-style dashboards.
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$1,500 Annually
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$45 Monthly
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Tailored to your specific needs
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Product Assistance

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Product Insights

  • Meet Compliances: Verify that supplier operations meet compliances regularly with the supplier quality management apparatus. This tool provides users with real-time communication between suppliers and consumers to swiftly react if problems appear on the shop floor. 
  • Full Transparency: Monitor every step in a supplier's trek to compliance and quality management regulations, such as defects uncovered during inspections with the 360-degree visibility tool in the suppler quality management module. This tool can ensure suppliers meet and remain compliant with ever-changing standards from various departments. 
  • Reduce Waste: Leverage the manufacturing execution system's paperless online work instructions and procedures accessible across all product centers from any location at any time. Less paper means less mess and a reduced chance of losing valuable information in a sea of documents or a cluttered filing cabinet. 
  • Simplify Work Instructions: Dwindle complicated work instructions and inspection requirements by including data collections and certification requirements via the maintenance, repair and overhaul module. This module ensures that users have everything they need to complete inspections hassle free, increasing a product's time to market. 
  • Enhanced Collaboration: Merge Solumina Quality Management with CAD, PLM and ERP solutions to ensure there's effective collaboration between various departments within the facility. This integration also provides visibility on the creation and testing of product models to easily catch defects or problems before building a full-scale product model. 
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  • Gain Visibility: Gain real-time visibility into production processes through visual dashboards. It helps to identify and resolve issues quickly to ensure smooth performance. 
  • Optimize Operations: Identify the root cause of problems, create alerts to resolve issues and analyze production bottlenecks to optimize operations. 
  • Enable Accurate Costing: Get an accurate picture of total costs, including labor utilization to make pricing, production and investment decisions. 
  • Obtain Marginal Costs: Price products and services precisely by gauging every component of production processes to derive marginal costs. 
  • Simplify Communication: Simplify communication across salespeople, project managers and operators with the aid of a master schedule. It facilitates collaboration and mitigates errors. 
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  • Process Control: Streamline tasks on the production floor by confirming that operators with modern skills and certifications execute the best tasks possible based on their obtained training. This accessory also ensures that machinery, tools and systems meet compliances regularly with the most current calibration dates, the most complete process paperwork and the latest change procedures for process instructions for engineering and manufacturing. 
  • Device History and Documentation: Trace and find records associated with a product by tracking the serial or lot number through any manufacturing process stage. 
  • Project Planning: Document all units to better plan responsibilities and improve work instructions over time for future units. 
  • Quality Review: Supervise all service units, removed subassemblies, critical elements or skins carefully to verify if specific projects need reassemblies. 
  • Notifications: Receive notifications for outstanding data collections and when measurements exceed particular control limits with Solumina alerts. Users may also input information into the system and evaluate data collection displays from various data entries. 
  • Industry Standard Requirements: Reach compliances with AS9100, ISO 9001, FDA 21 CFR Part 11 and more. This accessory permits operators and inspectors to validate completion and approvals online and perform discrepancy reports from buy-off points in work orders. 
  • Supplier Tracking: Trace supplier performance for full transparency of supplier-induced issues and defects discovered during the inspection from the source or further along in the manufacturing process. Users may review quality metrics in comprehensive charts and reports that exhibit particular purchase orders and inspections. 
  • Quality Requirements and Inspection Planning: Utilize tools that administer inspection and verification plans to guarantee compliance specifications established by engineering requirements, agreements and industry process standards with this module. Inspectors may review and authorize source inspection data remotely, such as measurements, checklists, certifications and more.  
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  • Automation: Implement custom scheduling logic for order data and notify relevant stakeholders when the due date changes on production plans. 
  • Data Capture: Customize workflows to display standard operating procedures for the current task and prompt operators for quality data like key metrics or videos. 
  • Real-Time Alerts: Send customized email or SMS notifications to alert stakeholders about shop floor errors. 
  • Incident Handling: Enforce corrective action plans for anticipated or recurring production incidents to identify non-conformances quickly. 
  • Kanban-Style Dashboards: Create responsive kanban-style dashboards and customize task prioritization logic to ensure operators’ productivity and alignment with business priorities. 
  • Operator-Centric Interface: Boost operators’ efficiency and productivity with a unified interface for order information, work instructions, time-tracking and data capture. 
  • Work Instructions: Provide task-specific instructions and standard operating procedures and display the latest documentation to reduce errors. 
  • Traceability: Record production, quality and material events to simplify auditing and root cause analysis. Review order history with event logs throughout the application. 
  • Lean Principles: Customize task prioritization logic to align with business objectives and keep operators productive and prioritized. Operators can pull work orders from the top of prioritized backlogs. 
  • Resource Utilization: Leverage capacity planning to maximize resource utilization. Identify under-resourced work centers and move flexible resources to balance capacity and increase order throughput. 
  • Distribution: Maintain a master schedule visible to project managers, operators and salespeople to simplify communication. Update backlogs to inform operators about the latest priorities. 
  • Monitor Schedule Achievement: Monitor in-process order updates live from the floor, mitigating the need for daily progress updates. 
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Product Ranking

#8

among all
MES Software

#15

among all
MES Software

Find out who the leaders are

Analyst Rating Summary

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Analyst Ratings for Functional Requirements Customize This Data Customize This Data

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User Sentiment Summary

Great User Sentiment 82 reviews
Excellent User Sentiment 12 reviews
80%
of users recommend this product

Solumina has a 'great' User Satisfaction Rating of 80% when considering 82 user reviews from 2 recognized software review sites.

98%
of users recommend this product

FactoryFour has a 'excellent' User Satisfaction Rating of 98% when considering 12 user reviews from 1 recognized software review sites.

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4.9 (12)
4.02 (41)
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4.0 (41)
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Awards

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FactoryFour stands above the rest by achieving an ‘Excellent’ rating as a User Favorite.

User Favorite Award

Synopsis of User Ratings and Reviews

Streamlined Shop Floor Operations: Solumina replaces cumbersome paper-based processes with digital work instructions and workflows, leading to improved efficiency on the production floor.
Enhanced Quality Management: The system's robust quality modules help identify and track nonconformances, manage corrective actions, and ensure compliance with industry standards, ultimately leading to higher product quality.
Data-Driven Insights: Real-time data collection and reporting capabilities provide valuable insights into production performance, enabling data-driven decision-making and continuous improvement initiatives.
Adaptable to Unique Needs: The system's configurability allows businesses to tailor workflows and data structures without extensive coding, making it adaptable to specific industry requirements and evolving business needs.
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Improved Visibility: Users appreciate the real-time insights into their shop floor operations, enabling them to identify bottlenecks and areas for improvement.
Enhanced Traceability: The platform's ability to track materials, production processes, and quality metrics provides valuable data for audits and continuous improvement initiatives.
Increased Efficiency: FactoryFour streamlines workflows, automates tasks, and reduces manual data entry, leading to increased productivity and reduced operational costs.
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Sluggish Performance: Users have reported that Solumina can feel slow, especially when editing crucial manufacturing documents like work plans and work orders. This lag can hinder productivity on the factory floor.
Occasional Errors: The presence of random errors and glitches, while not constant, can disrupt operations and lead to frustration among users who rely on the system for mission-critical tasks.
Difficult Implementation: Implementing Solumina MES is often described as a complex process. This can lead to extended timelines and require significant resources from the company, potentially impacting budgets and project schedules.
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Difficult to Use: Some users have reported that FactoryFour is not user-friendly and requires extensive training to use effectively. This can be a major drawback for companies that need a system that is easy to learn and use.
Limited Customization: FactoryFour is not as customizable as some other MES solutions. This can be a problem for companies with unique manufacturing processes that require a tailored system.
Integration Challenges: Integrating FactoryFour with existing systems can be challenging. This can lead to data silos and make it difficult to get a complete picture of the manufacturing process.
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Is Solumina the solution for manufacturers seeking robust MES functionality? Recent user reviews suggest a qualified yes. Users consistently highlight Solumina's strength in regulatory compliance, particularly for industries like aerospace and medical devices. They praise its intuitive interface, which simplifies audits and daily tasks. For instance, one user raved about the software's user-friendliness during a recent AS9100 audit, stating that "Solumina made the process a breeze." However, some users express concerns about the software's performance, citing slow loading times, especially when handling large work orders. Customization, while possible, can also be challenging without technical expertise. What truly sets Solumina apart is its laser focus on regulated industries. This specialization, while a strength, also presents a limitation. Manufacturers outside of these sectors might find Solumina's feature set overly specific. In conclusion, Solumina shines for businesses bound by stringent regulatory requirements, particularly those in aerospace, defense, and medical devices. Its intuitive design, coupled with robust compliance features, makes it a valuable tool in these highly regulated landscapes. However, businesses in less regulated sectors might find more flexible solutions elsewhere.

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Is your manufacturing execution system stuck in the dark ages? If so, FactoryFour might be the beacon of light you've been searching for. Over the past year, users have consistently praised FactoryFour for its intuitive interface, which stands in stark contrast to the clunky, cumbersome interfaces of many competitors. One user even compared switching to FactoryFour to "trading in a rusty wrench for a state-of-the-art toolbox." This ease of use has been particularly valuable for smaller businesses with limited IT resources, allowing them to quickly implement and utilize the software without extensive training or support. However, some users have expressed concerns about FactoryFour's limited customization options. While the software's out-of-the-box functionality is robust, tailoring it to meet very specific or unique manufacturing processes can be challenging. This lack of flexibility could be a dealbreaker for larger enterprises with complex, highly customized workflows. Ultimately, FactoryFour seems best suited for small to mid-sized businesses seeking a user-friendly, streamlined solution to manage their manufacturing operations. Its intuitive design and affordability make it a compelling choice for those looking to dip their toes into the world of MES without getting bogged down by complexity.

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