Keep writing those device drivers

The business-to-machine markup language (B2MML) developed by the World Batch Forum has the potential to ease shop-floor to enterprise-system integration. But it's not yet clear whether the standard will get needed vendor support.

For instance, Proctor & Gamble (P&G) can transform data taken from its GE Fanuc manufacturing execution system (MES) into B2MML, but it spent six months writing an interface for translating the B2MML messages into a format that its SAP ERP system could understand, according to David Cornell, a P&G systems manager in West Chester, Ohio.

In an interview at the recent World Batch Forum, Cornell said passing data on what material P&G uses during production to its ERP system is crucial in managing inventory and keeping product processes standard.

Sudipta Bhattacharya, VP of manufacturing solutions at SAP, told MSI that SAP announced its support for a different integration standard—the ANSI/ISA95 model—at its recent user group conference, but he couldn't say whether the ERP supplier would also support B2MML.