Advantages of Digital Instructions

Advantages of digital work instructions in manufacturing

We are in the middle of the fourth major revolution in our working world. We use Industry 4.0 to refer to the next step in automating processes within industry. Digitization is penetrating all areas and can give a big boost to the industry, especially with the help of digital work instructions. 

After the use of computer technology and the development of automatisms, the next big push is now coming through digitalization and process optimization in all areas of work and especially in manufacturing. While the previous industrial revolutions focused on standardization and mass production, individualized manufacturing has now become increasingly important. Customers want products according to their own wishes and spend more money accordingly. The desire for individualized production is there; standardized mass production has partially had its day. Flexible production can therefore only be implemented with a complete change in the working environment. Globalization and the demands for a modern and up-to-date working environment also represent the new big change in industry. But how is a company transformed so that the new processes succeed and are learned by the employees? How does a company best support its employees?

What are digital work instructions?

Using digital work instructions is the easiest way to take its manufacturing to a higher level, to modernize processes and give its workers the best possible support to increase efficiency in production. A digital work instruction is the logical evolution of the classic printed help. In this case, the receptivity of the employees was often limited. Endless manuals and texts often paralyzed processes and workflows within a company's production. Innovations were also difficult to develop as a result. With digital instructions such as videos, images, audio recordings, data glasses, plans, diagrams and texts that can be accessed on all end devices such as tablet, smartphone and machine display, a company is once again positioning itself in line with the times. The increasingly desired individual orders are now more easily possible. Associated additional work and rising costs for individualized production can be eliminated. Errors are minimized and processes are documented, consistent and traceable. Short films are the best method for optimally presenting work instructions and steps and for instructing employees. To avoid language barriers, videos can be produced without sound, for example. This way they can be used everywhere. Many instructions are often easier to understand visually than traditional printed texts. They serve the purpose of simplicity and make complicated work steps appear easier. In addition, individual processes can thus be broken down into small parts and thus offer the worker optimized support in the production process. 

Networking people and computers

The "Internet of Things" (IoT) brings us the interaction of the human workforce with digital systems. Here, workers interact with intelligent electronic systems and are supported by them in their work. In addition, the systems can also network with each other and thus take over entire work steps independently and automatically. In the past, machines were always retooled in a long process, and individual production was difficult and costly. It was not possible to react flexibly and the focus was on mass production and standardization of processes. This has increasingly changed in today's world, individuality has become more important and thus also finds its way into production. The needs in the world are changing and thus also increase the demand for individualized products. Companies and the working world have to react to this and present themselves in a modern way. Documented work processes on paper are no longer up to date and tend to slow down the work process. They cannot reflect the new flexibility demanded, but hinder efficient production. Digital instructions are easier to create and understand. They can also be changed more easily and thus promote further possible developments and innovations. Work plans and checklists are also easier to manage and change digitally. Alongside work instructions, they are the core element in the optimal description of the individual steps within a company's production.   

Increase in efficiency and QM system

Another major advantage of digital work instructions is the obvious increase in efficiency of individual work steps. The processes can be completed with less effort and the quality of the work is improved. As a result, productivity can also be increased, flexibility is enhanced and costs can be reduced. The ability to innovate, an important factor for many companies in their own future, can be increased by introducing digital work instructions within manufacturing. Digital work instructions are also an important step within a quality management system. They document the individual steps within manufacturing and thus serve as a building block for quality assurance within a company. The expertise of experienced workers can be integrated into the digital systems and is therefore not lost. It is much more time-consuming to create instructions and print them out on paper, then distribute them and possibly sort out and dispose of old texts. 

With digital work instructions, employees receive clearly documented, ideally visualized work tasks and can thus increase their own productivity. Employees also know more quickly what stock is in and errors are minimized. Assembly of the right parts is ensured, and assembly errors and testing procedures can be avoided. Real-time data allows better and more efficient decisions to be made in the manufacturing process. Employees thus receive the best support to follow the best possible process when manufacturing a product. New employees can be trained faster and, most importantly, effectively through visual instructions. Digital help and training are also more motivating than printed manuals. Knowledge loss is impossible due to the permanent availability of digital help. Digital tracking allows jobs to be monitored and work steps to be improved under certain circumstances. The right software and small-scale standardization of individual work steps are basic prerequisites for digitization within manufacturing. This will also make individualized production possible under the same economic conditions as large-scale production. Machines and systems will be more flexible and act independently and intelligently, thus completely changing our current working world.   

Conclusion

For a company that wants to position itself well for the future, digital support in manufacturing is essential. Visual work instructions have been proven to increase quality within production and prove to be the perfect support for manufacturing employees.   

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