Next-Gen MES for Automating Discrete Manufacturing Processes

Discrete manufacturers are being pushed to turn out reliable products at a pace and level of variability that would’ve been hard to imagine a decade ago. Product mixes shift quickly. Automation islands keep growing. Supply chains change mid-quarter.

Yet on many shop floors, the systems meant to support day-to-day work look the same as they did years ago. Operators still move between paper packets, aging terminals, and tools that don’t talk to each other. As a result, you're forced to deal with the fallout every day: slow feedback loops, workarounds that spread quietly, and teams piecing together answers when something drifts.

Tulip was built to cut through that gap between what the factory needs and what traditional systems can deliver. Our platform gives engineers and frontline teams a practical way to connect equipment, digitize routine steps, and automate tasks without depending on long vendor projects or rigid templates.

This allows you to iterate at the pace of production, adjust to real conditions, and roll out changes without waiting for a systems overhaul. It creates a workspace where operations teams can shape their own tools and keep the line moving with fewer handoffs and fewer surprises.

The past decade has reshaped how discrete manufacturers think about their factory tech stack. What once counted as “digital” was basically a swap from paper to on-screen forms. That bar no longer holds. Plants now need systems that keep pace with shifting schedules, connect cleanly with machines and existing software, and give frontline teams the support they need to solve issues before they ripple across the line.

Automation is driving much of this change. As you add robots, sensors, and other connected devices, you get faster cycles and tighter tolerances, but you also inherit more moving parts to coordinate.

A new automation cell might eliminate a bottleneck, but if it’s not connected to upstream work instructions, or if quality data can’t be captured in-line, the improvement creates new problems instead of solving them.

Many of the systems manufacturers rely on today were designed for a different era, one where change was slow, automation was limited, and IT controlled the pace of deployment. In that context, rigid software architectures made sense. Standardization came from enforcing uniform processes, not adapting them.

But modern discrete manufacturing doesn’t work that way. Product lines change monthly. Machines are customized per site. Operators move between stations and teams. A centralized, top-down system can’t account for that level of variability. And when those systems do need to evolve, change is expensive, both in time and resources.

Traditional MES platforms tend to be heavily customized during deployment, making future updates difficult. Even a minor adjustment to an inspection form or the integration of a new device might require weeks of development, validation, and rollout. For frontline teams, that means living with workarounds or waiting for fixes that may never come.

The more automation a manufacturer adds, the more brittle these systems become. They weren’t built to handle edge devices, or connect easily to PLCs, or support inline feedback loops between operators and machines. As complexity increases, legacy platforms become bottlenecks, not solutions.

Tulip was designed to meet the demands that traditional systems struggle with: real-time automation, human-centric workflows, and operational agility at the edge.

Our platform isn’t a re-skinned MES or a template-based toolset. It’s a frontline operations platform built to connect machines, people, and data through modular, customizable apps that reflect how work actually happens on the shop floor.

What makes Tulip different is its architecture. Manufacturers can start by solving a local problem (digitizing an inspection process, capturing machine signals from a press brake, guiding operators through a changeover) and scale those solutions across lines and sites without reimplementation. Each app is independent, reusable, and adaptable to site-specific needs.

At the core, Tulip supports three pillars of execution-layer modernization:

• Real-Time Connectivity - Tulip integrates with machines, sensors, and PLCs via open protocols such as OPC UA, Modbus, and MQTT. Through Tulip’s Edge IO, teams can capture cycle times, signal events, or track tool parameters, then trigger logic or alerts based on that data. This allows manufacturers to automate beyond machine control and build context-aware workflows that respond in real time.
  
  

• Operator Enablement - Apps built in Tulip include interactive work instructions, embedded media, logic checks, and automated data capture. With Tulip Vision, manufacturers can add camera-based validation to verify components, detect anomalies, or confirm tool presence during assembly. These capabilities guide frontline work without slowing it down.
  
  

• Agile Deployment - Every Tulip app is created through a no-code interface and managed in a composable environment. That means engineers, supervisors, and CI teams can build and improve solutions themselves, rolling out updates in hours rather than months. Shared logic and connectors ensure consistency, while local teams maintain control.

Because everything in Tulip is modular, improvements made at one site can be packaged, shared, and reused across the organization. That accelerates learning, standardization, and iteration, especially in environments with fast-moving product lines or distributed automation assets.

ERP have long been relied on for job handling, planning, and coordination. They do a good job of keeping track of orders, inventory levels, and demand signals across the business.

What they don’t handle well is the messy, minute-to-minute work of production. When teams try to force ERP screens or logic onto the shop floor, they usually end up with brittle shortcuts, lags in decision making, or operators stuck navigating interfaces that weren’t designed for their reality.

Tulip fills the space between enterprise planning and frontline execution. It sits close to the work and seamlessly integrates with ERPs like SAP, Oracle, and Microsoft Dynamics through secure, configurable connectors.

Work orders, routing details, and part specifications flow in. Production data, inspection results, and downtime logs flow back out. The value lies in the clarity that comes when each piece of data is tied to the right step, station, or operator.

A typical flow might look something like this:

1. The ERP releases a work order. Tulip pulls it in immediately.

2. The app on the station generates instructions that match the variant, setup, and skill level of the operator.

3. As the job runs, signals from machines or connected devices are immediately captured. Quality checks happen at the point of use. If something drifts, the system creates an alert and guides the operator through rework or escalation.

4. When the job is done, the completed record goes back to the ERP with timestamps, traceability, and quality metrics intact.

This pairing lets manufacturers keep centralized planning where it belongs while giving production teams the flexibility to run the work the way the line needs it. The ERP remains the system of record. Tulip handles the variability, workflows, and in-the-moment decisions that define daily operations.

By separating what needs to stay rigid from what needs to stay adaptable, factories can modernize without tearing out core systems or pausing improvement efforts.

Tulip’s influence shows up where work actually happens. At the stations where operators keep lines moving. In the moments when engineers troubleshoot a process shift. In the handoffs where a delay or missing detail turns into scrap or downtime.

Enterprise systems manage the larger picture, but the edge is where production either flows or stalls. That’s where manufacturers are using Tulip to tie machines, data, and people into a single rhythm so teams can scale good practices without adding extra layers of overhead.

Mack Molding offers a clear example. As a contract manufacturer handling complex medical and industrial assemblies, they built more than ninety Tulip apps in less than a year. These covered digital travelers, operator training, and live production dashboards.

When a new product line came online, they tracked first pass yield, build compliance, and document changes without slowing the line. Engineers tried ideas, refined them, and rolled out updates in days. No long development queue, no stop-gap fixes.

TICO Tractors made a similar shift when moving away from a legacy MES. Their engineers replaced paper packets with Tulip apps that pulled part data from upstream systems and confirmed steps with scans.

This shift removed the guesswork from assembly and gave teams a clearer view of what was happening across the line. They ended up doubling output capacity without adding staff or rebuilding their entire stack.

Stanley Black & Decker brought Tulip into their global production system to support standardized processes while giving each site room to adapt.

With more than a hundred locations, they needed tools that could scale without forcing every plant into the same mold. Tulip apps now support inventory reduction efforts, service level improvements, and in-line quality assurance across multiple sites.

And finally at DMG MORI, Tulip is integrated directly into the CELOS X machine interfaces to guide operators through machine maintenance and troubleshooting steps.

These apps help new operators get ramped up faster and create consistent machine interactions across global sites. As a result, supervisors get clearer visibility. Errors drop. Uptime improves because support happens at the point of use.

Across all of these examples, Tulip wasn't implemented as a sweeping MES replacement. Each organization started small, solved real problems, and expanded once teams saw the results for themselves.

Manufacturing is changing fast. Automation is no longer a specialized investment; it’s a foundational strategy. But as machines become smarter and systems more distributed, the software that ties it all together can’t rely on the assumptions of the past. Discrete manufacturers don’t need more complexity in their stack. They need systems that help their operations move faster, adapt with less friction, and capture value where it’s created: at the frontline. Platform solutions like Tulip provide that layer.

Composable Frontline Operations Platforms don’t try to control every process from the top down or lock teams into fixed templates. Instead, local teams can solve real problems, using tools that reflect their processes. Those solutions can scale across lines, plants, and regions, without losing flexibility or adding overhead.

Because Tulip integrates with the systems manufacturers already use — from ERP to IoT devices to quality management platforms — it builds on existing infrastructure rather than replacing it. Manufacturers gain visibility, agility, and accountability across the edge of their operations.

The future of manufacturing will be shaped by systems that learn, adapt, and scale from the edge. Tulip offers the architecture to make that possible, it’s composable, connected, and built around the people doing the work. For discrete manufacturers ready to lead the next chapter of industrial automation, Tulip is the foundation to build on.