February 4, 2005 - Best known for its presence in the semiconductor fabrication space, Brooks Software later this year will roll out a comprehensive suite of products built around its flagship real-time manufacturing execution system (MES) tailored to the needs of aerospace & defense (A&D), automotive, medical devices and other high-tech companies.

The initiative, announced last summer by the division of Brooks Automation Inc., is finally showing signs of progressing from blueprint to reality. Last month the company introduced its Lean Manufacturing Solution for A&D. And over the next few months, products will emerge focusing on supply chain, RFID and reporting.

In an interview with Managing Automation, Matt Hobson-Rohrer, Brooks Software's director of A&D, pointed out that the industry-specific initiative is much more than a re-branding strategy. "We have over $30 million focused on R&D and we've allocated portions to each industry in the coming year," he said. "Part of my role as industry director is to look at the current product set, see if there are any gaps, identify what those are and focus R&D to close the gaps quickly so the products fit better in the industry."

The plug-in strategy could also include acquiring companies and forming alliances, Hobson-Rohrer said. For example, last December, Brooks announced a joint-development agreement with AssurX Inc. to develop and deliver an electronic Device History Record (eDHR) application that enables paperless manufacturing operations, the capture of compliance data and the creation of manufacturing audit trails to meet FDA regulatory requirements.

Every industry is grappling with regulatory issues. In the medical industry it's HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act); in automotive it's TREAD (Transportation, Recall Enhancement, Accountability and Documentation) Act; and in A&D there are FAA mandates. As a result, industry solutions require more than a subtle shift in semantics; rather, products need to be built for the specific needs of each industry, Hobson-Rohrer said.

Brooks' first foray into A&D is its Lean Management package. The software focuses on eliminating waste -- the central theme of any lean strategy -- but adds operational visibility through the company's MES, Real-Time Enterprise Asset Management and Real-Time Dispatching applications.

Highly regulated industries are finding that software, like the kind Brooks offers, is the key to agility and survival. "The amount of paperwork a company needs to comply with regulations goes against the concept of no waste," said Julie Fraser, principal at Industry Directions Inc. (Newburyport, MA), during a Brooks Software-sponsored webcast. "One great benefit is that the data you use to analyze a Six Sigma program is the same data needed for regulatory compliance. Having it in a system opposed to relying on human beings eliminates errors, fosters instant retrieval and allows continuous improvement."

The next three Brooks releases for A&D -- supply chain, reporting and RFID -- will roll out gradually this year. Similar software suites will be offered to the other three key industries in the same timeframe. "We will take each initiative and have a custom approach for each industry," Hobson-Rohrer said.