Plex Supply Chain Community Conference

Editor's Notes

• #2: Good Morning / Good Afternoon everyone. My name is Matt Brienzo and I am the Weld Equipment Division Manager at Jefferson Industries Corporation. (Introduce Ken Keller with Revolution) Today I will be sharing JIC’s experience with Plexus Maintenance Module. Todays presentation is titled “Keep your manufacturing floor operation at full capacity with a first class Maintenance Operation”.
• #3: Today we will cover (Click)JIC’s company background, (Click)review the existing system and conditions, (Click)discuss our Path forward and solution, (Click)outline the benefits we were able to see using Plexus Maintenance Module and (Click)explain our future direction with Plexus.
• #4: Jefferson Industries Corporation is located in West Jefferson, Ohio which is about 20 miles west of Columbus, Ohio just off Interstate 70.
• #5: JIC was established in 1988. We are a manufacturing company that specializes in Stamping and Welding of Automotive Structural steel. Within our family of companies, there are 6 North American locations. JIC has expanded 12 times and consists of 12 stamping presses and over 550 industrial robots(Material handling, resistance welding, Mig Welding, etc). Today we will be focusing more on the Welding side of JIC’s operation.
• #6: In our existing situation, I will outline how our system worked and the type of data entry and data output that it was capable of. At JIC, our Weld Equipment Division is responsible for maintaining the Computerized Maintenance Management System or CMMS, downtime analysis and OEE tracking and reporting. Over the next few slides, you will see an overview of this system.
• #7: JIC’s Computerized Maintenance Management system required a lot of daily input to be able to maintain the system. (Click)Work Requests were initially a paper document filled out by production or other maintenance associates. (Click)Maintenance would then enter this into our (Click)CMMS system. Access to the maintenance system was limited to 2 PC’s within the company. Once the work request was entered into the system, it was then assigned, printed and given to the responsible technician. The technician would complete the work request and then turn it back in to be entered as complete in the CMMS. (Click)The Preventative Maintenance(PM) Inspections were scheduled within the CMMS system and a schedule would be printed. Due to the limited access, technicians would turn in completed PM Inspection forms and 1 technician would enter all of these into the system. This required several man hours daily to maintain the system. Daily communication between technicians was very difficult. All technicians would communicate to shift supervisor and then the shift supervisor would communicate to the next shift supervisor and manager. The next shift supervisor would then communicate forward to each technician. This resulted in gaps in communication, missing information and additional hours spent by leadership communicating between all members in the department.
• #8: Downtime recording and reporting required several different associates and there was a good chance for errors due to the number of steps required to get data from our system. (Click)Production associate would record downtime status on a production sheet at the production line. (Click)The production sheet would then be turned into production control to be entered into our (Click)existing ERP system. Once the data was input, (Click)you would then have to download this data to an excel file. After downloading, (Click)you would sort the data into graphs and also use it to calculate OEE. You could not see downtime data until 2 days after production, this is the delay from when the downtime was recorded to the time it was input into the system. The reports were built in excel using pivot tables, graph’s, etc. We were not able to quickly identify daily issues and had to spend additional time retrieving data from the system.
• #9: Our Path forward was to implement Plexus Maintenance Module. Initially this would allow us a seamless integration of an ERP system and a CMMS system, linking both production and maintenance departments. Our goal was to get Plex implemented and operational within 3 months in the maintenance department.
• #10: The equipment list must be input or uploaded to plex before scheduling any PM’s or creating work requests. It can be very detailed or just an overview of your equipment. There is a large difference in pieces of equipment between our stamping and welding department(Welding 1900 / Stamping 50). Within the stamping department, there are also die sets that require maintenance. There is another module within Plex called the tooling module that is designed to track and manage Stamping Dies. Before uploading your equipment list, there are several details that should be decided to reduce the amount of time it takes for implementation.
• #11: (Click)There are 3 fields that the user can specify the options. (Click)These 3 are the Type, group and status. (Click)(Click)We used “Type” for equipment classification(Robot, jig, welder, etc), which allowed us a filter when searching the equipment list. (Click)“Group” is used for a department filter to eliminate departments from seeing equipment that they may not be responsible for. (Click)“Status” is used as a inservice, out of service or relocated and is used to identify spare or extra equipment. In these 3 fields, options can be added, removed or changed as it fits into your needs. These should be established prior to uploading your equipment list.
• #12: Plex offers an excel template to upload your equipment list into plex. Take your time when performing this step as it requires a lot of consideration. You want to get as much information in the excel spreadsheet as possible to reduce the amount of changes that may be required once the list is uploaded. This list may also help populate the user defined fields in Plex as well. Once your Equipment ID is created, you can not re-upload a change or addition to the equipment ID, you must make these changes using Plexus-Online and do each piece of equipment 1 by 1, which requires a lot more time especially if you need to make changes to multiple pieces of equipment. You should understand if you are going to use this for asset tracking, what each field may be used for and have all the information entered into the template. This will save a lot of time in the end. We exported our equipment list from a Microsoft Data base format and input into excel, following the format provided by Plex. (Click)We then took consideration for “Description”, “Brand”, “Model”, “Equipment Type”, “Workcenter”, and several others.
• #13: After we uploaded the equipment list, we began working on linking the equipment together. (Click)The “Linked Equipment” allows you to tie pieces of equipment together and then create a Parent Equipment ID. (Click)This served several purposes at JIC. (Click) We used the line name with “All” as the equipment ID. “Line” was used for the description and the type is a “Workstation”. This allowed us to reduce the number of inspections tracked from over 10,000 to less than 700. We have 7 different PM’s that are scheduled against all equipment and this would have created too many PM’s to track, manage and would also create a lot of additional work for our technicians when completing the PM in Plex. It also allows new technicians to understand which pieces of equipment belong to the line. This ensures all pieces of equipment are PM’ed and helped us meet OE survey requirements.
• #14: To get the preventative maintenance part of plex working, there are 3 different areas we had to setup. (Click)Maintenance task, (Click)PM schedule and (Click)PM Schedule frequency types (Click)We started with setting up the Maintenance Task’s 1st.
• #15: The maintenance task’s is what we used for setting up our inspections. (Click)We took our current work instruction and created a task for each step. (Click)These will show on each work request with the PM Checklist. (Click)By checking the “Create Followup Task”, this will create a new work request with a type of “Follow-Up” any time a task is checked as NG. This is crucial if you are considering using workflow. This will allow you to apply special conditions in workflow for NG items during a PM inspection. (Click)Special codes are used for specific NG descriptions. These can be modified by the user. We decided to be very detailed with each task during creation. This will help technicians during the PM inspection to assure inspections were done correctly.
• #16: The next step was to setup the PM Frequency types. (Click)The PM Frequency type is used to establish intervals between PM’s. There are different options you can use to establish these intervals. (Click)You can use completion date, workcenter cycles, production hours, etc. We are using Completion Date and Production Hours. We use Production Hours for a Robot PM that is scheduled based on the number of hours a robot has been working.
• #17: PM Schedule is used to create PM checklists and also to schedule the checklists. (Click)We are using the checklist as the full PM inspection. (Click)Checklists are created by attaching Maintenance Tasks. Any number of tasks can be added to a checklist. (Click)We are using the special instructions section to refer to Work Instruction documents to easily reference documents and maintain ISO/TS certifications. (Click)Minimum and Maximum tolerances can be set if a specific measurement or test is needed.
• #18: Within the PM Checklist, you have the maintenance tasks. (Click)You can attach documents to each individual task. (Click)We chose to use a PDF format to reduce the overall size of the document and also eliminate any need for special software(Click). You may also refer to a document that is in the document control system within Plex.
• #19: After the tasks, checklists and frequency types have been created, you can now schedule the PM’s against single pieces of equipment or more than 1. Plex gives you the ability to schedule a single PM to multiple Equipment ID’s which will reduce the amount of time for setup. (Click)We are using PM’s that are scheduled weekly, Bi-Monthly, Annual, every 30 months and every 3 years. (Click)Certain fields are required when scheduling PM’s
• #20: A PM will show up as a Work Request in Plex. The Work Request will have the checklist attached to it at the bottom. These are all of the tasks that are attached to the PM Checklist. (Click)When completing the PM in Plex, you must check either Good or Bad for each task. Plex will not allow you to complete the work request until all of these are checked. (Click)If a task is checked as NG, it will require information in the “Note” section. (Click)It will also require a special code to be selected if that option is available. Once everything is checked, you are able to complete the work request.
• #21: Once the PM system was setup and working, we moved on to Workflow. Workflow will allow you to take a flowchart approach to the Work Request procedure. You should have a flow chart established prior to creating workflow. There are conditions that can be set to determine who will be notified. The notification is instant and can be by email, SMS, etc. Conditions can be by department, work request type, status of work request, etc. We had to consider 2 different departments using the Work Request system as well as various types of work requests. We ended up with 4 main steps to our workflow.
• #22: JIC had previously established a flow chart for Work Requests prior to implementing Plex. We used this flow chart to setup workflow. You can see an overview of our flow chart for work requests that was used to develop workflow. The 1st step is to decide whether if it is a PM. (Click)If it is a PM, it will go directly to the technician. The technician will then perform the PM. Once they are done with the PM, they will then complete the Work Request in Plex. Once they complete the work request, a new one will be generated based on the PM Frequency. If an item was checked as NG, a “New” Follow-Up type work request will be generated. This will then be directed to the Leadership team. They will review the work request to see if any additional follow up will be required and if no additional follow up is required, the work request is completed. If there is additional follow up required, the work request will be assigned to a technician. (Click)If the Work Request is not a PM, then it will follow the path to the leadership team of the department that is responsible.(Stamp / Weld) (Click) It will be assigned to a technician to complete. Once the technician completes the work request it is sent back to the leadership team. The leadership team will review to make sure the correct action was taken and it will then be completed. If additional work is needed, it will be reassigned to the technician. This process assures proper follow up when needed.
• #23: We decided to utilize the Equipment log for daily communication between all technicians, leadership, Production and QA. The equipment log already had a history of all PM activities. We needed a solution for activities during production when lines would stop running for an equipment issue. (Click)Each technician makes entries into the equipment log on a daily basis. They will have an overview of what they did that day as well as anything unique or abnormal. The leadership team will review this at the beginning of the their shift as well as technicians. This will allow them to understand what happened the shift before and if there is still a problem, what may have already been done. You can also search the equipment log for previous problems or fixes to help with existing problems. (Click)The equipment log also links the Supply List as well. Anything that is removed from MRO and signed out to the Equipment ID, populates in the equipment log. This helps with spare part usage and maintaining inventory levels.
• #24: Downtime recording is performed by the production associate directly at the control panel, called (Click)“Workcenter Status”. (Click)You must 1st setup workcenter status’s before being able to utilize downtime recording. JIC separated workcenters into groups. This made it easier for associates to find their workcenter when logging into plex. We have over 70 workcenters to select from. We also were dealing with 2 different departments for workcenter status’s. This required us to setup individual workcenter status’s for each workcenter group. (Click)Within welding, 5 workcenter groups were setup which required us to setup identical workcenter status’s for each group. This allowed us to limit what the associate was able to select from and they are not able to select a status that is not applicable. You have the ability to setup 3 levels of recording. The 1st level is the Workcenter Status. This will tell us if it was equipment, materials, meeting, etc. (Click)The next level that can be used is Event Type. This is used under materials to filter if it is a JIC or supplier material problem. (Click)The next level is event reason. This is the final level that gives us a specific reason why the equipment has stopped. This could be a sensor, cable, shift, etc. (Click)This is also where you have the ability to select the Equipment ID associated with the problem. We have this option selected and you must select the equipment ID to proceed. This gives us the ability to drill down to a specific piece of equipment causing the most amount of downtime. This has helped support meeting OE survey requirements.
• #25: Downtime reporting can be done in several different ways. Plexus-Online gives you the ability to run reports from the workcenter logs. This will give you an overview of all workcenter status’s. This also requires the user to run the report. This is efficient when you need to look for something specific or unique. JIC required reports on a daily, weekly and monthly basis that would be identical. (Click)For us to accomplish this, we utilized Intelliplex. Intelliplex is a tool that can be used to create custom reports using data sorted in plexus-online. Through Intelliplex, we were able to create custom reports that meet our daily management needs as well as schedule them to run automatically. We created an equipment downtime report that pulls information from the workcenter log. The workcenter log contains workcenter, workcenter status, reason and equipment ID. This allows us to sort downtime using several different filters. (click)Our downtime report runs every morning at 5am for a daily report, Monday’s at 5am for a weekly report and on the 1st day of the month for a monthly report. This report is run and emailed to Maintenance Department leadership, production leadership and the plant manager. This allows quick analysis of downtime for efficiency improvements. (click)We also have an intelliplex report running from the Equipment log. This is sent to Maintenance, production, and quality leadership. This allows us to understand what each technician is doing and if there is anything specific that may need additional follow up. We are also able to look for any change points that may impact quality and trends on a daily basis. The equipment log report runs at 5am, 3:15pm and 10:45pm. This creates quick communication between shifts.
• #26: I will now discuss the benefits that JIC found with using Plexus..
• #27: After implementing Plex, there were several immediate benefits that JIC noticed. (Click)The first 2 steps in the process, data recording and data input, are now combined. Production and Maintenance input data directly into the Plex system at the workcenter. This includes downtime, Work Requests, PM inspections, etc and is real time. This eliminated the need for an associate dedicated to data input. (Click)Once the data is in Plex, it is very easy to get data out and generate schedules, reports, etc. More reports are available from Plex as well as automatic reports allowing them to be near real time.
• #28: Since implementing Plexus at JIC in the maintenance department, we have seen direct improvement in 3 areas. (Click)JIC has seen an increase of 9% in OEE. Plexus allowed us to quickly identify and understand where we were struggling and implement countermeasures for improvement. (Click)We are also now able to forecast man hours for PM’s and other activities. We understand what the manpower requirement is without any waste or short comings. (Click)We have been able to reallocate man hours associated with data input and maintaining the existing system. We were spending 4 hours daily on data input for the PM system that is no longer needed. We were also spending 4 hours daily on data input for downtime recording and reporting that is no longer needed. JIC allocated those man hours for other responsibilities within JIC.
• #29: There are 3 ideas that JIC has to move to the next level with Plexus. (Click)1st, we would like to see the workcenter status automatically populate into the Equipment ID history when equipment downtime occurs. When the production associate selects equipment downtime and an equipment ID, we want to see that automatically populate an Equipment log entry to use in the equipment history. This will allow a detailed equipment history for future improvements. (Click)The next idea is being able to assign Equipment ID to multiple work centers. JIC has many lines that are split into 2 workcenters. This is because they produce a left and right part. We can only assign the equipment ID to one workcenter which creates a problem when recording downtime. If the downtime occurs on the workcenter that does not have the equipment assigned, there is no equipment ID to select. We are then unable to see details of the downtime. (Click)We would also like to have automatic notifications when a workcenter is in a specific status for a period of time that the user can establish. JIC is a just in time supplier and management needs to quickly understand when lines are down. This will provide us with accountability and quickly identifying where resources are needed. (Click)Lastly, we will utilize the Equipment History to develop equipment standards on future specifications. We will be able to understand what is working and what is not working.
• #30: Thank you for your time and we will now open the discussion for questions and answers.