In this episode, we’ll continue our digitization route in order to improve our performances. This time we’ll pay particular attention to another of the three KPIs monitored with the OEE: quality.

Resume of the previous episodes

We started digitizing the performances of our machine by installing a PLC and HMI workplaces. We splitted the machine efficiency in three crucial KPIs (machine breakdowns, flow performance and scraps). We then took a picture of the status of the things, reciving some good news and some bad ones.

It’s on the bad ones that we’re interested on taking action, as the improvement margin hides into them, so we continued our digitization process in order to make that picture better.

We started from the machine breakdowns with the solution Machine Ledger 4.0 and then we continued with another solution developed to support the various operators in order to improve their performances and optimize the job flow: the Visual SOP.

Today we’ll see how to work digitally in order to improve the product quality.

Let’s improve quality and speed: Pick To Light

Quality and speed are two concepts that often contradict each other in case of an analog world.

The digitization allows to satisfy that crucial ness: speed up the production and improve the quality of the product.

Let’s check out a solution whose purpose is to do exactly that.

Our Pick to Light is a very useful solution in order to support the operators in charge of assembly. Its purpose is to guide the operator step by step.

The necessary tools are grouped by type in various drawers. Each one of them will be equipped with a light that will turn on as soon as it’s time to pick a specific piece. Once the component’s been grabbed the light will turn off, while the one of the next product to pick will turn on.

Advantages of this solution

  • Killing mistakes until the fatidic “0”
  • Granted speed as the operator won’t have to remember what to do but everything is guided.
  • Possibility to assign a less experienced operator to the assembly process while more experienced personnel will be able to dedicate to higher complexity tasks.

Pick to light

TOOLBOX

– PTL KIT
– Pick To Light Module

Let’s scientifically control the quality of some kinds of products: VIBCO

The quality of certain types of products can be scientifically proven, overcoming other types of control (visual, tactile, etc…)

We’re talking about metal products, or, better, all of those products capable to “vibrate”: mechanic parts, automotive parts, house appliances, etc…

This type of solution consists in a software called Vibco.

Vibco is an application whose purpose is to control the quality basing on vibration and noise analysis, therefore it can be used only with products able to vibrate.

It’s capable of improving the quality of the product by isolating and removing all the acoustic problems.

This can happen thanks to some crucial features of this solution like:

  • Characterization of the breakdowns
  • Signal acquisition and Fourier analysis
  • Evaluation of the sound intensity
  • Acoustic analysis in octave bands

TOOLBOX

– Laser shifting sensor
– Mini PC (Optional)
– Vibco Module

We will definitely continue this digitization process in the following episode. Stay tuned!

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What it means to digitize processes: Pt.5 ->