No strings attached

by Paul Markgraff

“Telephone” is a game played by preschoolers and kindergartners across the U.S. In this game, children sit in a circle. The first child whispers a phrase in the ear of the second child, who whispers it into the ear of the third child, and so on until the phrase reaches the last child, who announces the phrase aloud and with general gusto.

Laughter ensues because the phrase uttered aloud by the last child is usually far different from the phrase whispered by the first.

In manufacturing this lesson is too-often forgotten. Any time we transmit data to each other through a variety of methods before it reaches the place it’s stored, we can hear the whispers of Telephone. Unintended errors arise; decimal points are misplaced and worse.

Wireless technologies now available to maintenance and production workers nearly eliminate Telephone problems caused by data transfer. They also increase flow by allowing workers to enter data from the point of work. And, wireless tools are cutting costs and increasing safety.

“You’re privy to the throughput of the manufacturing process,” says Ari Master, director of business strategy for Avexus, a manufacturer of mobile computing solutions for manufacturers. “You get increased accuracy of data and you don’t have shop floor technicians walking back and forth to a computer.”

In the palm of your hand
Most manufacturers are familiar with barcode readers. This precursor to current wireless technology is still used in many manufacturing environments, and rightly so. By pushing a few buttons and scanning a barcode, the operator performs the same purpose as a handwritten form and reduces the likelihood of mistakes.

Then, the barcode reader can easily sync with enterprise resource planning software and pump its information directly into the software system.

AvexNet Mobile Services, new handheld mobile technology from Avexus and its partners, is the next generation in wireless technology for the plant floor. These tough mobile computers are designed to take a beating while at the same time reduce cycle time for repairing an asset. They also help increase work capacity and machine availability.

For example, if one of four identical machines on your plant floor fails, the others may fail for the same reason. A maintenance technician can use an Avexus mobile computer to search for causes of a particular machine’s failure. The computer then provides the best practice for fixing the machine, right there on the spot, eliminating the need to walk anywhere to search files or page through catalogs.

“The data collection device becomes an execution enabling device,” says George Zdravecky, vice president of technology and engineering for Avexus.

Can’t live without my radio
Radio may seem like an old-fashioned technology today, but it is  seeing a resurgence on the factory floor, boosting uptime, cutting costs and increasing safety.

L.S. Starrett Co. is currently testing a protoype wireless data collection system that will allow quality assurance workers and machine operators to transmit data to a computer system via radio frequency. The system replaces the long cables attached to precision-measuring hand tools.

In wired data collection systems, there may be four to six tools on a quality assurance bench. Wires inevitably become tangled.

“Subsequently, there’s a rat’s nest of wires,” says Jeff Wilkinson, general manager of the advanced technology division of L.S. Starrett. “This creates problems. If a user is trying to measure a part and wires become tangled, pulling the tool to get a little slack may accidentally knock another tool onto the floor, hampering productivity and potentially damaging an expensive tool.”

Wilkinson also points out other safety and cost issues of wired hand tools. Wires always need to be replaced because they break, are cut, run over by forklifts or other mishaps. And if someone trips over a cable, add injury to the list.

They’ll be watching you
New Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) solutions are also hitting plant floors. One particular solution is helping manufacturers track indirect materials in a brand new way.

The Accuport from WinWare Inc. is a commercial, turnkey portal that uses RFID to track people and product moving in and out of maintenance cribs. When a worker walks through the Accuport, the machine announces your name and unlocks the door. You go through the door and get your items, which are all tagged with reusable RFID tags, and when you walk back out, the Accuport signs you out along with the product you are carrying.

This increases uptime in a couple of ways. First, manufacturers won’t lose items that may not have been signed out on a note card. The system logs an accurate list of every item that goes through the port, thus increasing cost savings and productivity minutes associated with filling out paperwork. Plus, the Accuport does not require an attendant, so more work can get done with the same amount of labor.

This article appeared in the October/November 2005 issue of MRO Today magazine. Copyright 2005.

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