MBrain is designed to be a highly scalable and “composable” manufacturing execution system (MES) that can grow with your business needs. MTEK has deliberately worked to design a combination of technology and business and change management processes that together provide a scalable and flexible framework for MES. We achieve this through what we call our Four Pillars of Scalability. These include:A scalable architecture, a scalable application design, a scalable business model, and a value-based deployment plan.

This article provides a high-level introduction to what these four pillars are and how they can help your business deploy MES faster, cheaper, with a more relevant context and – perhaps more importantly – keep the system relevant over time. Fast deployment is, after all, just the tip of the iceberg. The lifetime value of a flexible system multiplies many times over compared to a cheap deployment.
Here’s a closer look at each of these pillars:
1. Scalable Architecture
MBrain is deployable on-premise, in the cloud, or in a hybrid environment, providing flexibility to suit various business needs. MTEK is comfortable deploying the system in a cloud environment managed by us, in the Client’s cloud tenant (think Azure etc.), in the client’s private cloud (think an IT-services managed data center) or physically on-prem at the factory. This allows any business need to be catered to, regardless of e.g. security requirements.
MBrain’s architecture is modular and containerized, forming a composable MES that can be easily adapted and expanded. This means you only need to deploy the parts of the software that are relevant to you. Only manual assembly? No problem. Highly machine driven? How about complex subassembly flows and a takted main flow and sequenced material for configured products? No problem… etc.
Technically, the software can auto-deploy using Infrastructure-as-Code (IaC), which automates the deployment process, ensuring consistency and reliability. So technical deployment is done in minutes.
This scalable architecture allows users to "dream big, start small, and scale fast," accommodating growing business demands without compromising performance or functionality.
2. Scalable and Easy-to-Use Application Design
MBrain features a method-centric design with a no-code interface throughout the application. Method-centric means that the system is built around how you do things, not around the concept of just picking up a machine signal. This is a very fundamental difference to how MES systems are typically built and allows MBrain to cater to many more aspects of manufacturing – and solve more business problems.
Using the established method, metadata can be easily added to various events, capturing not only timestamps, machine parameters, and sensor values, but also the context of equipment readiness, material status, certifications, competence levels, and other aspects of the supporting processes and methods on the shop floor. This comprehensive approach allows for a deeper understanding of how different processes and events are interrelated. This makes MBrain's data highly relevant for effectively applying artificial intelligence, as it enables the creation of truly useful solutions.
Moreover, MBrain’s design integrates robotic process automation (RPA) and business process automation (BPA) functionality, making it highly efficient and user-friendly. It also means that MBrain can make the daily tasks on the factory floor (and around it) much more efficient as well as allow users to have access to accurate and real-time information without the effort of collating and analysing it.
The patented no-code integration platform simplifies the integration of adjacent IT systems and industrial IoT platforms, enabling seamless interaction with machines, software, and people. This is crucial since MES (and many other shop-floor system) deployments are limited by the time, cost and effort required for integrations.
This comprehensive integration capability ensures that data is contextualized at the point of ingestion and real-time process and quality interlocking are maintained, providing a robust foundation for scalable operations and a step towards the journey to zero defects, zero time and zero cost.
3. Scalable Business Model
MBrain's business model is designed to eliminate common business process frictions. It offers a fixed-price model, removing the need for negotiations (internal and external) when adding new lines, cells, dashboards, workstations or machines.
This straightforward approach allows businesses to scale both in terms of application usage and cost-efficiency, allowing growth and system adoption to be spread from the organizations grassroots where much of the value is generated. The more MBrain is used, the more value it delivers, aligning costs directly with usage and ensuring that scaling up operations remains economically viable and hassle-free.
4. Value-Based Deployment Plan
MTEK recommends following a value-based deployment plan, starting with the highest impact aspects and following an 80/20 logic to quickly deliver value. While this is not every client’s preference, our experience it that is has driven adoption, ROI and senior-management buy-in much more quickly.
This approach leverages all of the no-code methods to map out the process flows, doing relevant integrations (usually not all of them at once) and ensures that implementation is efficient and targeted.
By focusing on the most critical elements first, MBrain enables rapid realization of benefits, paving the way for further expansion and continuous improvement. To date, we have not seen a deployment where the original plan has been adhered to throughout the deployment. Factory floors change, and plans change (especially when people see what is possible to do, with ease, with a system like MBrain).
This methodology also aligns with the principles of kaizen, emphasizing incremental, value-driven enhancements to achieve scalable and sustainable growth. This is probably how you approach everything else in your factory. So why should your MES be any different?
5. Conclusion
MBrain’s Four Pillars of Scalability provide a comprehensive framework for businesses looking to expand their manufacturing capabilities efficiently and effectively.
By leveraging a flexible architecture, user-friendly application design, frictionless business model, and a strategic deployment plan, MBrain ensures that businesses can scale their operations seamlessly while maximizing value and minimizing disruptions.