Proplanner: Internet & Intranet Based Process Engineering

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Work Instructions

Select this link for a 10 minute video presentation

Select this link for an online demo of WorkInstructions Shop Floor Browser To view instructions with this demo, select a WorkStation and a Model and press the SUBMIT button. Then select a task in the explorer window to view. Some tasks have further links into videos, pictures and CAD drawings.

Automatically generate Operation Method Sheets with Proplanner's Work Instructions module.

Stop struggling with keeping work instructions up-to-date, because Excel, Word, and Adobe create static documents that become out of date quickly.

Proplanner provides a work instruction editor that helps users develop information by activities, product components, production resources, and shop floor locations.

Proplanner also provides a shop floor viewer which engineers can publish their work instructions to, so that all workers in the shop can pull up any work instruction for any task on any component at any station.

Select this link for a Case Study Tutorial PDF

Editor Interface

For each activity the engineer uses a simple notepad like work editor to create text, add images, and insert hyperlinks to movies and other files. The work instruction editor generates an html (web page) data for each work instruction. The editor is a simple “what you see is what you get” application which makes it easy for engineers to type text, insert images and add links to other files to supplement work instruction content. The engineer then writes instructions for each activity, resource used, parts, and plant location. The instructions then get stored in a database along with the other process information. Essentially the database keeps track of all work instructions and eliminates redundancy as an activity can be defined once and then reused for multiple products. Also, because data is pulled directly into the work instruction from the database the most recent version of process data gets populated into the instructions.

The Editor interface is for station selection along with a comprehensive activity list for which the Operation
Method Sheets will be generated.

Publishing Interface

Work instructions can be distributed electronically or printed on paper. The work instructions are stored as html files within the database so they are automatically compiled based on the task sequence specified by the engineer. The engineer can also set up a standard template, so that all instructions get displayed in a common format. When the operation method information is ready for publishing, the engineer publishes all the information to the latest revision. The work instructions can then be previewed and then printed, or viewed electronically. The publisher will keep track of all revisions and prior versions and maintain the history of changes for auditing requirements.

Publish Work Instructions for shop floor use

Thin Client Viewing

Proplanner provides a web page viewer (also known as thin client) that gives people on the shop floor the ability to view work instructions electronically using a web browser such as Internet Explorer or Netscape. Shop floor workers can input the process step or part number they are working on and the web page will display all the published information for that task. The shop floor terminal may also play movies for visual aids as well as display additional documents that have been linked to the work instruction to ensure the task is being completed properly. The paperless operation method sheets facilitates that the most recent documents are being viewed.

To avoid paper copies, this web version of the instructions can also show interactive movies and 3D models.

Features

Work Instructions are HTML based. Editing work instructions is done using our built-in HTML WYSIWYG editor which allows for customizing the formatting, including text colors and fonts.
Work Instructions can be defined for
- Components (Parts / Assemblies)
- Operations
- Activities
- Activity Locations
- Resources
Work Instructions can have documents attached, e.g. Images, Video, Audio, and other files (text, spreadsheet, etc.).
Work instructions can be assigned globally or overridden locally.
Templates can be user-defined in order to determine the layout format for the aggregated work instructions (saved in HTML). Special formatting codes are available for automatically numbering assembly steps or referencing part numbers from the BOM.
Work instructions can be generated (aggregated) by process or location
- Process based instructions in the mBOM view aggregate all of the Component, Operation, Activity, Location and Resource instructions necessary to create an end-item or sub assembly.
- Workstation based instructions in the Plant view aggregate all of the Component, Activity, Location, and Resource instructions necessary to document everything the operator needs to know on the shop floor.
Distribute the work instruction to the Shop Floor. Instructions can be delivered to the shop floor over the company intranet. The instructions may also be printed bound via traditional methods.

Benefits

Generate Instructions Quickly. By leveraging product and process data to automatically populate work instruction templates, the time to author instructions decreases dramatically.
Generate Detailed Instructions. By attaching supporting files such as diagrams, images, and CAD files to the instructions, the assembly personnel have all the information they need to understand the instructions.
Promote Accuracy of Information. Because instructions are linked to each operation, and are authored by the process engineers themselves, there is less chance of a communication error between multiple people and data re-entry.
Leverage Product Data. The application quickly and easily references to product, plant and resource graphics, so that actual product data is used in the creation of the work instructions.
Improve Accessibility to Instructions. Use of the application improves the readability and accuracy of work instructions by providing accessibility to product and process information located virtually anywhere.