Glossary Terms
Terms that are used on the Manufacturing Automation website
Discrete manufacturing
Production of distinct items such as automobiles and computers.
Discrete part manufacturing
a manufacturing process that produces discrete parts in comparatively small lots or batches of from one to perhaps 50,000.
Disk mirroring
data protection by duplication on disk drives.
Displacement
The measured distance traveled by a point from its position at rest. Peak to
peak displacement is the total measured movement of a vibrating point
between its positive and negative extremes. Measurement units expressed
as inches or millinches.
Distributed processing
the physical and/or logical connectivity of hardware, software, information, and load sharing.
Distributed system
a system consisting of a group of connected computers sharing software, information or load.
Distribution management
Systems that determine optimal quantities of each product to be made at
each plant and to be distributed to each warehouse, such that
manufacturing and distribution costs are minimized and customer demands
are met.
Diversity
The characteristic of a workforce which is a result of individual
differences between its members. Specific differences may include:
gender, workforce minorities, or individual disabilities. Workforce
diversity is a major organizational strength when the knowledge,
abilities and strengths of individual workers are recognized and
respected.
DMS
Document management system
Document management system
Allows users to store, search, and manipulate documents electronically
and to maintain a library of text and images in a compact space. Most
systems also provide a means for passing documents across a network.
Downtime
periods where computers, equipment, or manufacturing systems are not available to perform work.
Droop
A common occurrence in time-proportional controllers. It refers to the
difference in temperature between the set point and where the system
temperature actually stabilizes due to the time-proportioning action of
the controller.
DSP
Digital signal processing or digital signal processor.
Dual Element Sensor
A sensor assembly with two independent sensing elements.
Dynamic dispatching
in real time, as it occurs, status changes such as work computed,
operational problem, priority changes, updates the entire factory floor
automatically rescheduling ALL operations for ALL released jobs to
reflect those changes.
Dynamic scheduling
Software that allows refinement of production schedules as conditions
change. In a client/server configuration, the scheduler takes data from
an MRP II system and runs multiple simulations to find the optimal
scheduling solution.
