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Workplace Planning
Unlike
manual workstation analyses with paper and pen, Workplace
Planner makes quick and easy work of generating accurate
walk path diagrams. With Workplace Planner, you can keep
drawings up to date with simple modification of your
previous work.
Incorporating
process times (predetermined or observed), walk times, LEAN, and
ergonomic assessments into one calculator eliminates guessing
and enables engineers to analyze cycle times, value-added work
percentages, and ergonomic issues for the proposed workplace.
Workplace
Planner can evaluate simultaneous operations in linked work
stations to see how changes in process times will impact
downstream operations. With Workplace Planner you can set up
each workstation for the best line-side presentation of parts to
reduce the time spent walking and improve efficiency of manual
operations!
Drawing Output: The Workplace Planner outputs to the
drawing by placing walk path lines, direction arrows, and
distance labels all on the drawing. These can be clarified with
an operator walk path legend that assigns the operators to their
representive color line. Additionally, the drawings and
operations can be animated right within AutoCAD. |
Evaluate savings and large overhead reductions fast.
Animate workers walking to see and calculate
non value-added
work. |
The Workplace Planner allows the user to save a plethora
of output to report, MS Excel, and drawing files. All
data within the program can be input or exported via
cut, copy, and pasting to and from the program. Full
versions will enjoy unlimited station, operator, and
task input abilities. Along with the full version comes
product updates, phone and email support, training, and
an available AutoCAD engine to substitute if a full
version of AutoCAD is not at the customer's disposal.
AutoCAD Engine: For users who do not have their own copy
of AutoCAD 2002 or higher, Proplanner offers a version of
the program with a build in AutoCAD 2005 Engine for a small
additional fee. The engine itself supports all 2D authoring
tools with only a few peripheral functionalities disabled.
Operator Analysis
Loaded/Unloaded Operator Speeds:
Speeds can be assigned to both loaded and unloaded operators
walking. This allows for more accurate simulation of
operator walk times. This also integrates into the
ergonomics application when looking at NIOSH lift and carry
evaluation.
Man/Machine and Man/Man Delay: This program can
calculate when operators have to wait for other operators or
machines to complete work. This delay is tracked numerically
as well as displayed graphically in the animation. This can
also be evaluated in a Gannt chart showing the timeline of
parallel activities.
Line Balance Integration: Workplace Planner can take
data from a balanced line created in Proplanner Line Balance
and evaluate the operator times based on different model and
option mixes for multiple operators and stations. After this
import and calculation are done, they can be further
balanced by returning these new walk times to Line Balance.
Combine
Layout with Process with this Simple Interface
Creating
new workplace studies or modifying existing ones can be done
in just a few minutes. The Workplace Planner uses your
existing workstation layout drawing and imports process
steps and routings from a Microsoft Excel text file.
The simple
comma-separated data file can also be created from within
Proplanner or generated from other labor time estimation
applications. Since the Workplace Planner reads and writes text
files, users can quickly modify the spreadsheet and immediately
calculate the impacts of process changes on cycle time and
percent of value-added work.
Newer versions of the Workplace Planner have the ability to
copy and paste data directly into the application in mass
amounts, just as you would in MS Excel spreadsheets. This
eliminates any middle-man operating between the data source
and input to the workplace evaluation.
Link to MTM and MODAPTS
The
Workplace Planner is the first workstation analysis tool
that combines pre-determined labor times from organizations
such as MTM and MODAPTS with AutoCAD-based workstation
layout drawings to create walk-path diagrams. Workplace
Planner can interpret standard work codes from work
measurement systems to calculate processing and walk times.
The Workplace Planner will also automatically create Action
and Walk parameter values for predetermined walk activities
to improve your study accuracy; effortlessly. |
Use time standards such as MTM and Modapts to
define work
content.
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Stationary and Moving Parts
The Workplace
Planner can model both stationary layouts and workplaces where
parts are moving on a conveyor or moving line.
Stationary
Part Analysis:
As in most cell production, this analysis calculates walking
with a part and stopping at stations to perform work. A walk
speed can be set for both loaded and unloaded walking.
Additionally, users can define walk paths to better
evaluate real times where operators may walk around tables and
avoid safety hazards within the cell.
Moving Part Analysis:
The
moving part capability helps you quickly compute and diagram
operators walking to and from moving parts on straight or
multi-segmented paths. A built-in animation feature allows you
to see operators moving in the workplace and performing tasks at
locations. This quick-animation feature greatly improves the
evaluation, understanding and communication of the
workstation-based process for managers and line personnel.
Analyze Multiple Workers' LEAN & ERGONOMICS
Workplace Planner can diagram walk-paths, compute and chart
value-added (LEAN) work content percentages and evaluate Lift
and Carry ergonomic requirements for up to 10 workers
simultaneously. It can also synchronize up to 3 workers at a
time when work is performed that requires workers to
collaborate.Lean: Value Added versus Non-Value Added
and Non-Value Added but Necessary percentages are calculated for
each activity. After calculation they are charted for each
operator and can be copied and pasted for reporting purposes. |
Chart depicts value added work content for each worker. |
Ergonomics: Using NIOSH lift and carry and GARG energy expenditure
tables, Workplace Planner calculates the ergonomic factors
associated with each task and evaluates risk for each
operator. These outputs greatly reduce risk and enable for
the reduction of labor injuries.
Features
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Automatically create flow paths and manually create
user-defined paths
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Analyze up to 1000 flow paths and up to 25 operators
concurrently
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Automatically scale path segment thickness according to
walk intensity, and create variable-sized flow path
arrows and distance labels
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Evaluate MODAPTS, MTM-1/UAS/B and user defined process
time codes, or interface with Proplanner, Microsoft
Excel and other standard work measurement systems to
evaluate additional labor time standards
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Automatically compute LEAN value-added %
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Import and Export from / to Excel CSV files
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Analyze walk flow paths from and to moving parts on
multi-segment part paths
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Evaluate Lift and Carry of weight according to the OSHA
approved “SNOOK” method
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Animate operator walk flows in 2D or 3D for stationary
or moving parts (2D only in standalone)
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Synchronize up to 3 workers concurrently and diagram
operator walk paths with unique colors per operator
Benefits
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2D or 3D outputs are easy to understand and suggest
improvement possibilities. They look professional
and are good to show anybody who is not familiar
with the setup, how the system works. -
Excel data input and output makes the program simple
to use and more versatile at dealing with data. This
also adds to the numbers of ways that data can be
inputted, adding to the user-friendliness of the
program. -
Time needed is greatly reduced by automatically
generated workpaths and calculation of variables.
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Use of MTM and MODAPTS codes speed process and walk
time calculation and add recognizability to the
data.
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Stationary and moving parts along with multiple
operator integration makes accurately representing
the real world more manageable.
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LEAN analysis is a must in today's work place and
this feature can save your company large amounts of
money by helping reduce and prevent worker injuries.
Also see the
Flow Path Calculator...
Also see the
Layout Planner...
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