Radiator assembly line signal grouping system and production vs target display for an automotive parts manufacturer in Thailand

How the brief came about

The brief for this case was to let the line side and the office see the radiator assembly line's actual production against target from the same set of data. The customer outlined this concept in the purchase request: group signals from the production line into one system, then show them on a large display in real time.

The customer is an automotive parts manufacturer in Thailand. A radiator here means a car radiator. The question the screen has to answer is whether the line's actual production is keeping up with the target in each time period.

What must be defined before work starts on a production display like this?

The data to be shown and the connection method must be defined before work starts. In this case, the customer's purchase request defined both. The combined screen for the office shows data in real time, and the line screen shows the target, actual production, a table by time period and a chart of actual production against target. For connection, it specified both Ethernet (wired network) and Wi-Fi. The main requirements are as follows.

• Group signals from the production line into one system
• Show results on a large display in real time, so that the line side and the office view the same set of data
• The line screen shows Target, Actual, a table by time period and a chart of actual production against target
• Connect via Ethernet and Wi-Fi, according to the concept in the purchase request

Why did this job include network setup along with the screen?

The screen can show production in real time only if data can travel continuously from the line to the display. This job therefore combined system analysis, network setup, signal grouping program configuration, the display screen and the display itself in a single job. The network used a Gigabit router and signal extender (Repeater), and the scope of work included network testing on site.

The data display screen (Data Visualization) is a system we developed specifically for this job according to the concept in the purchase request. The quotation for this job directly references the customer's purchase request.

Deliverables

We delivered the system work and the equipment in a single project. The items on the quotation and delivery note are as follows.

• System work: system analysis, network development, signal grouping program configuration and data display screen development
• Display equipment: 65-inch 4K Smart TV with stand, wireless keyboard and mouse
• Network equipment: Gigabit router and signal extender (Repeater)
• Testing within the scope of work: network testing on site, and system testing both at our company and on site
• Project management and project documentation

Results confirmed from the delivery documents

The confirmed results of this case are delivery and project closure. We delivered the display and network equipment against the delivery note in October 2020 and billed the system and display screen work in the same month. The company's annual project summary records that this project finished in 2020 and was handed over as normal.

This case has no post-deployment measurement figures. The display screen in this case is described according to the concept in the purchase request, and we do not report business results.

What we learned

This job offers the following principles for line-side production display work.

• The display is the end point of the system, not the system itself. The figures on it can be trusted once the data path from the line to the display has passed testing on site.
• Use the user's screen draft as the specification from the quotation stage onwards. In this job, the customer set out the figures, tables and charts it needed in the purchase request, and the quotation referenced that request.
• The office and line-side displays should read from the same set of data, so the figures at the two points do not conflict. The purchase request for this job specified both a combined screen for the office and a screen for the line, using signals grouped into one system.

How this approach can apply to your factory

If your factory sets production targets by time period and wants the line side and the office to see the same set of figures, you can use the same approach as this case: group signals from the line, set up the network to the display, then show actual production against target. What needs adapting is the source of the production count signal and the network conditions in your factory.

• Check where each line's production count signal comes from and in what format it can be exported.
• Survey the network signal from the line to the display mounting point before choosing between a signal extender and cabling.
• Decide who is responsible for setting the target in each shift, and which figures must appear on the display.
• Start with a line that has a clear target and a production count signal ready to use, test the screen with the on-site team, then expand to other lines.