Increase in production efficiency as a result of digital data collection and process automation

In many areas of the manufacturing industry, the collection and documentation of production and quality data are based on standards and norms. These include, for example, defect and control charts, glass lists or audit records. Frequently, they are the basis for production-relevant decisions. This means that the release of a batch in production by the plant management can be dependent on certain quality data or characteristics. Very often, the collection and documentation of these relevant data is still done manually.

The problem of manual data recording

However, data and information collected by manual means is often incomplete, subject to errors and must also be entered into third-party systems. Research is very time-consuming and cross-departmental communication is usually difficult and consumes a lot of resources.

The solution of iMes Solutions GmbH

iMes Solutions' Digital Shift Book solution provides a paperless way to automatically enter relevant data into digital data entry masks. Subsequently, the data from various sources can be processed and provided in the form of reports (e.g. daily/weekly/monthly reports). All shop floor areas such as personnel, warehouse, machines, maintenance, raw materials, production and quality management are covered.

The benefits of workflow automation

The workflow engine integrated in the Shift Book provides a fast and flexible automation of workflow processes. Information relevant to production or plant safety is forwarded ad hoc to predefined recipient groups. Response time is reduced and information is reliably forwarded to the responsible persons.

In addition, complex if-then scenarios can be modelled on the basis of the recorded data across several interfaces or applications, e.g. machine controls, process control  and third-party systems (ERP, MES, LVS, CRM). This represents an enormous support for decision-making in the design of more efficient production processes..

Examples

The use of the digital shift book is a profitable investment in the production process in a wide variety of industries.

• Production in the pharmaceutical industry
  For the purpose of quality documentation and audits in the production of pharmaceutical products, the times at which, for example, certain temperatures or defined points in the step chain are reached are required at batch level. This documentation is fully automated by digital reading and recording of the times directly at the production line..
  
  
• Quality management in the food industry
  Food is subject to particularly strict rules during production. For example, metal detectors are used to detect any metallic contamination in the product, which on the one hand provides evidence for audits and on the other hand guarantees a safe food product.
  The automated creation of a shift book entry based on an external trigger, e.g. a variable in a machine control system, automatically records and reports incidents such as metal detector findings. Thus, the possibility of immediate action is ensured.
  
  
• Traceability in quality management
  The answer to the question "What was produced when and how?" is given automatically in the digital shift book. All production-relevant parameters, e.g. density, volume or moisture of the individual raw materials of the product to be manufactured are documented. The data is automatically recorded in the shift book and is available for evaluations and reports at any time.

Conclusion:

iMes Solutions' Digital Shift Book solution is a multi-functional tool in the production of various industries. The digital data collection guarantees a complete and largely error-free, standard-compliant and audit-optimized type of data collection and documentation for quality assurance in the company. Furthermore, the use of if-then scenarios offers possibilities for a more efficient design of production processes.