Not talk about MES.
Not show a slide deck full of features.
But prove it.
That was the spirit of the ProveIt stage — and it’s why the session resonated so strongly with the room.
As Walker Reynolds (4.0 Solutions) put it in his introduction:
“Stop trying to sell to me. I don’t care about features and benefits. I care about the solutions to problems…”
So that’s exactly what we did.
We showed what Kanoa MES looks like when it’s deployed, configured, extended, and delivering value — not in theory, but in practice.
And we did it live.
Manufacturing Execution Systems sit at the intersection of IT and OT — and that creates a fundamental challenge:
Software alone does not deliver value.
Real MES success requires:
Fast operational wins
Operator adoption
Practical integration with existing plant systems
Extensibility when reality doesn’t match the “standard model”
As Jason Coope explained on stage:
“The actual challenge… is not proving that our software works… it’s proving it has value.”
At Kanoa, our mission is to make MES implementation achievable, agile, and real — not a multi-year science project.
Kanoa MES is built entirely on the Ignition platform.
When installed, it delivers a full MES foundation immediately:
A normalized SQL Server Core database
A full Ignition application deployment
400+ MES system functions inside Ignition
Ready-to-run application projects on day one
As Sam described:
“When you install Kanoa MES… we automatically set up our core database… deploy the application… and give you a fully functioning system on day one.”
Kanoa is delivered as a modular platform with four integrated solutions:
Kanoa Ops (OEE, downtime, scheduling, work orders)
Kanoa Trace (genealogy + material flow)
Kanoa Quality (forms + SPC + dispatching)
For ProveIt, we connected all four modules to the ICC Virtual Factory via MQTT + Unified Namespace.
The architecture was intentionally simple:
Reserve a Kanoa container
Install dependencies
Install the Kanoa module
Install Cirrus Link MQTT Engine
Connect to UNS data
Total setup time:
“Under an hour.”
From there, we configured the full plant:
Asset hierarchy
Production runs
Downtime tracking
Lot traceability
SPC quality checks
All running live.
The heart of the session wasn’t just deploying MES out of the box.
It was proving that MES must be extendable.
While analyzing the plant data, we uncovered a common real-world issue:
Machines often report only “running” or “not running” — but not why.
Walker confirmed this exact operational reality:
“The operator is not compelled to select the reason… so all the downtime is one or zero.”
So we built something new:
A streamlined operator workflow to quantify losses across:
Downtime reasons
Scrap reasons
Performance/speed losses
And then push that categorized loss data back into the Unified Namespace.
This is the MES difference:
Not just tracking data — but making it actionable.
The session culminated in the moment that had the room buzzing.
Walker said it best:
“The fact that you were able to build full blown MES in 8 weeks for the entire facility is ridiculous… it’s absurd.”
That’s the ProveIt mission:
MES that is fast, real, and built for manufacturers who need results now.
The full ProveIt recording is now available.
🎥 Watch the session here: [YouTube Link]
If you’re an Ignition user, integrator, or manufacturer evaluating MES, we’d love to talk.