Get to the Point: Solve Your Problems

QR-code system that provides critical information at the point of interest shortens delays that slow maintenance operations.

What impact does maintenance and operational inefficiency have on your organization? Consider the problems reflected by the following situations:

• Maintenance personnel frequently must leave work areas to obtain technical documents, schematics, or vendor contact information. How much does this cost in terms of time, dollars, and lost opportunities?
• Personnel can’t access live process data or trends at the equipment they are testing or troubleshooting. Instead, they must call the control-room operator for help, or station another person in front of a remote HMI panel to get the required information. How inefficient is this scenario?
• A crucial production line goes down, and the support engineer is offsite. Hard as a supervisor tries, the problem can’t be adequately described and/or effectively communicated by phone or email. How much downtime can you afford?

The list goes on and on. Fortunately, so does the search for solutions.

If the explosive growth of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) is any indication, technology providers are listening intently to end-users across all industry sectors and working feverishly to help solve problems such as those listed here. Countless smart, “connected,” break-through solutions and strategies seem to hit the market every month and, according to industry analysts and observers, even more are on the way.

QR-code-based point-of-information technology delivers important information at the time of need, reducing maintenance delays.

The right information in the right hands at the right time

One recently introduced solution resulting from a supplier having paid close attention to its customers’ wish lists is the VIP Services portfolio from engineering leader Wunderlich-Malec (Minnetonka, MN). Incorporating an acronym for “Virtual Information Portal” in its name, VIP Services offers an array of capabilities that get to the point in more ways than one.

Designed specifically to improve efficiency and productivity, VIP Services is based on a Point of Interest (POI) concept. A POI is anything in a plant or process, real or abstract, that can be characterized by data. Examples include motors, pumps, production-line output, work cells, and  warehouse activity. Pre-configured POIs can contain OPC or ODBC data, technical documents, email addresses, phone numbers, links to intranet data entry, or reporting systems.

A POI generates a unique QR code that can be mounted on or near the equipment system or process it represents. A VIP Services Client app on a user’s tablet scans the QR codes generated by the configuration utility and opens on-the-spot access to live process data for the selected equipment. This includes displays of multiple POIs and associated process data, charts, graphs, and relevant documentation, including what can often be cumbersome schematics, parts lists, and manuals. Users can directly enter work orders or trouble reports into their local intranet systems right at the equipment or process site.

In addition to recognizing equipment and processes on the plant floor and immediately displaying desired information on the user’s tablet, VIP Services includes tools for improving communications with remote personnel regarding process issues. The point of it all is quicker, more accurate problem identification and resolution than is possible with more conventional means.