Blind spot shop floor communication: how aucobo enhances the digital twin

Digitization is advancing in the industry with great strides. Automated machines, digital twins of production plants, and digital storage spaces for data documentation are implemented in the era of industry 4.0 in the sector of production.

For some time now, the digital twin stands for the digital modernization of production and business processes. It is a digital replica of real, physical objects in the production. In the form of virtual 3D models, physical systems such as machines, processes or entire production environments can be mapped.

In production, the digital twin is suitable for clear real-time monitoring to supervise and optimize the machines on the shop floor. Production quantities, machines states, but also material expenditure, power, and temperature, can be mapped.

This means the first step has been taken – away from outdated processes and towards increased efficiency. But what remains is a final step – a blind spot.

Digital mapping of communication on the shop floor is not possible yet with the help of a digital twin. This is where the aucobo solution provides a remedy.

Aucobo digitizes the communication on the shop floor

Nowadays, communication in the production mostly still takes place as it did 20 years ago.

Workers still communicate with each other on the shop floor using old-fashioned communication methods, such as the telephone or by shouting. True to the motto “The one who shouts loudest gets help”, tasks and information are passed on imprecisely and cumbersome.

These outdated methods of communication mean that communication paths cannot be traced, and information transfers cannot be documented properly. What results is a blind spot.

The aucobo solution provides a remedy here. On the one hand it digitizes the communication on the shop floor and on the other hand it enables to close the blind spot of a missing digital illustration of the communication processes.

By integrating the aucobo collaboration platform in conjunction with smart wearables, old methods of communication can be put aside on the one hand, and on the other, any communication exchanges on the shop floor can be documented and recorded digitally.

Integrating the aucobo software in conjunction with smart watches also facilitates the communication among the workers. They can communicate digitally in matter of seconds by pushing a button.

For example, if a worker is currently executing an order and at the same time receives a new fault message, he can simply pass it on to a colleague with a click. In addition, with the help of the aucobo solution, employees can easily request help when they need it by pushing a button.

Thanks to the digital form of communication, all information flows and exchanges can be displayed transparently with the aucobo system. The intelligent collaboration platform enables to communicate digitally and the subsequent digital mapping of communication on the shop floor.

Aucobo digitizes the communication on the shop floor

There is also a blind spot in production regarding the human-machine communication on the shop floor. Nowadays, this is still carried out by outdated systems and can therefor not be recorded digitally.

Machine malfunction messages are indicated by signal lights in the production hall. To know, which kind of malfunction is present on a machine, the production employee first has to go to the appropriate machine. This is not only tedious, but also time wasting.

A digital solution is needed to optimize efficiency in production regarding the communication. This should make human-machine communication transparent and thus comprehensively digitalize the shop floor.

By integrating the aucobo platform combined with industrial smart watches, production workers are informed digitally about machine fault messages. This enables the employee to know exactly where and when which malfunction occurs.

The real-time reporting of malfunctions to the wrist of the worker reduces not only the response times but also the downtimes of machines. The worker can react immediately and consequently rectify the malfunction more quickly.

Digitizing the communication processes between man and machine has above all the advantage that any steps can be mapped digitally.

Aucobo enables a digital illustration of the communication

Thus, the aucobo solution enables a simplified and more efficient human-machine communication. At the same time it creates a transparent display of all communication paths on the shop floor.

The digital and transparent mapping of the data can be used both in the short and long term for optimization processes within the production. With the help of the aucobo solution, production managers, the management as well as directors have the possibility to create a fully comprehensive digital image of the production site.

Due to the hardware-interdependent connection of the aucobo platform, the solution can be used flexibly and across departments. Uncovering and making transparent the previously existing blind spot in production makes a significant contribution to digitization.

The aucobo solution thus makes today’s production more efficient, more cost-effective and thus more competitive at the same time guarantees the company the digital representation of all processes on the shop floor.

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Would you like to make your production more efficient and close the blind spot on the shop floor? Please feel free to make an appointment for an initial exchange!