Creating Documentation for Custom Equipment

Do you build and engineer your own equipment in-house? If so, how up-to-date would you say your service manuals are? Since third-party vendors can only support the components and subsystems that they provided, this is a common issue. If machine A interfaces to machine B, for example, and there is a communication problem that exists between the two machines, don’t expect either vendor to be able to support it. Hardware and software vendors will typically test their products in the most common configurations and develop documentation for the scenarios that most of their customers use, but in all likelihood, your facility will encounter faults and conditions that the vendor didn’t think of.

Keep an Accurate Log

If you run a multiple-shift operation with a team of different technicians, it’s important to keep a log file on each machine and system. Electronic logging will allow you to observe patterns that occur on different machines. More importantly, though, it will make it easy for you to update your training manuals and maintain continuity as new staff are hired. Let’s say, for example, that error #459 pops up on a digital readout on third shift, and that error number is not listed in the OEM manual. The technician on call spends 30 minutes on the phone figuring out the source of that error—during which time, your equipment is down.

Test, Test, Test

If you hired an outside vendor or contractor to provide you with a full and complete integrated solution, do not assume that they will provide all of the documentation that you need. During downtime or slow periods of the week, test-run the machines in different operating states, with product if possible. Simulate different machine faults and observe the error conditions that might occur. This will give you the opportunity to capture and diagnose faults that might have caught you by surprise during a production run.

The 80/20 Rule

In the current past-faced environment, hardware and software changes are growing more frequent. It’s important to develop a minimalistic mindset when it comes to creating documentation, while at the same time covering a comprehensive spread of potential issues that might be encountered. It begins with identifying the most commonly-occurring faults in the system—particularly those faults that are specific to the customized setup that you use. Focus on integration issues rather than component specific issues that should be supported by a third-party manufacturer.

Develop for Flexibility

Being flexible is also key. The days of standard operating procedures that fill up 6-inch binders are going away. Electronic documentation is becoming more widely-adopted for the simple reason that it’s more fluid and easier to update on the fly. Also, it makes like easier if your documentation might be accessed via smart phones, tablets, and computer terminals over a network.

Facilities with complex equipment installations all face this problem, and it becomes even worse if you are responsible for supporting equipment at remote locations. Getting past this issue is largely a matter of exercising the discipline to document your designs.

This entry was posted on November 6th, 2013 and is filed under General, Technology. Both comments and pings are currently closed.