Digital Transformation – connecting workflows and data

Smart devices are one of the fundamental tools of our time. Being able to access information in large print where it is needed is essential for better workflows and more efficiency.

Digital transformation only succeeds if we always keep an eye on the interaction between users and their environment. When we were asked to bring the control console to the smartphone for Koenig & Bauer, we asked ourselves at the beginning:

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What added value does this offer?

?The control console is the control centre of every press. This is where all the data from production comes together, jobs are sorted, checked for quality, and press data such as warnings or errors are displayed.

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Design thinking reveals potential

The control console environment was analysed with the famous “thinking outside the box” approach. How is the data provided by the control centre processed and what tasks arise for the employees? It quickly became clear that every task involves walking, especially commuting between the control centre for information retrieval and the location of the event. A mobile control centre with the most important information helps to save distances.

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Technology as a tool

The highly complex machines extend over many metres, but maintenance work is often a matter of detail. In order to carry out maintenance and service work correctly at the right place, appropriate information should be available directly at the point of action. The individual elements of the press were equipped with NFC tags. With the app, not only can data such as maintenance instructions be called up, but also new data, for example the documentation of a service, can be directly stored and saved.

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Raising potential and creating added value

This led to another work step, the loading of the machine. The app already displays fill levels and wear data. In addition to notifications before the machine comes to a standstill, information about which materials are available in stock and where they are located is also helpful. For this purpose, a connection to the warehouse management was created and the workflow for warehouse management was further digitalised. Material is identified by means of the barcode and assigned to the corresponding warehouse.

The same applies to removal and subsequent use in a machine: log on to the NFC tag at the machine, scan the barcode, task completed. As a result, not only is the workflow faster and simpler, but the networking with the warehouse makes it easier to plan when materials and raw materials will be available in the future and therefore need to be reordered. With the new data management, it is now also easier to track which raw materials were used in which jobs. Track and trace is particularly required for products for the food industry.

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Integration instead of an isolated solution

With the app, employees have a tool at their disposal that can provide location-based information, describe work processes and integrate documentation into the workflow. Work is carried out more efficiently and downtimes are avoided. For Koenig und Bauer and its customers, this data is processed, can be transferred back to the MES and ERP and ensures greater transparency throughout the entire production process.