The Digital Plant Takes the Next Level: Less Paperpushing, More Engineering

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DÜPERTHAL Sicherheitstechnik GmbH & Co. KG

TURCK GmbH

Glatt Ingenieurtechnik GmbH

Rösberg Engineering Ingenieurgesellschaft mbH für Automation

For documentation administration, on the other hand, a wide range of functionalities are available which support, for instance, the revision of documents and the planning of changes. Michael Brendelberger is convinced by this practical division: “At present we have approximately 1,500 Livedok users in Ludwigshafen. Despite its comprehensive functionality the tool is easy to use, and for this reason it was quickly accepted by our plant personnel”.

Everything at a Glance

However, a good documentation system has to be capable of more than the digital recording of redlining markups. The tool in use in Ludwigshafen also enjoys wide acceptance because it depicts the whole documentation workflow, from data recording to revision.

Before the digital solution was adopted, the revision process in particular was very time-consuming and often involved many check backs, for instance because handwritten changes were not legible, or because information about the date of a change or the identity of the employee making it was missing. With the digital tool these processes are compulsorily required — meaning that the user is “forced” by the system to enter all the relevant information.

Brendelberger also regards this as an advantage: “We have realized that a great deal of time is being saved in the revision of the documents following redlining. Another advantage is that changes flow into the documentation very quickly, and in the plant we always have the up-to-the-minute documentation at our fingertips, wherever we are. Before introducing the documentation tool, there was often a substantial time-lag between redlining and the availability of a revised new version. Another plus point is that everyone can see the redlining entry before revision, so everyone is always informed about the current status.”

After redlining input documents are not barred from further processing, but can continue to be used as normal documentation until the next revision. For this situation the tool offers appropriate concepts which highlight and deal with any conflict in content that may occur.

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