For getting a better overview of the overall performance of machines and crew leaders the following four new reports have been implemented:

Overall Machine Performance

Overall Machine Performance by Crew Leader

Overall Crew Leader Performance

For some reasons like very complex product shapes or limited machine capabilities it can be necessary to die-cut orders in two passes. In addition to Second Pass Printing, PC‑Topp now also supports second pass die-cutting.

The necessary data, i.e. cutting die number, location, availability and date of use, can be sent via OTDATA, the extension of the Order Entry / Update screen has to be specifically configured. If you are interested in using this functionality please contact the PC‑Topp Team.

For more precise scheduling it is now possible to enter the expected end of current downtimes at the Machine Terminal and Multi Machine Terminal. This automatically corrects the calculation of the end of the current as well as the following orders. As scheduling will adapt accordingly this will make sure that the displayed situation is as accurate as possible.

PC‑Topp’s calculation basis for estimating order end time has been improved. Basically this means that for calculating an order’s speed we have modified how PC‑Topp allows for downtimes during an order’s production.

In the past, the system used to take into account every downtime, regardless of its length, for order end calculation. Therefore long downtimes during an order’s production lead to an unrealistically long expected order duration.

To improve this, the following changes have been made:

• Mini downtimes are always taken into account.
• For all other downtimes a maximum duration can be specified in the DataSet Parameters.
  • Downtimes exceeding this maximum duration are ignored for calculating order end times.
  • For downtimes below the maximum you can specify which type of downtime should be taken into account for calculating order end times (order, machine, or operator related).

(By default, the maximum downtime duration is 30 minutes, and only order related downtimes are taken into account.)

This change helps estimating order end times in a more realistic way.

If a corrugated plant produces orders with more colors than its conversion machines can print at a time those orders have to be printed in two passes.

PC‑Topp.NET Conversion Scheduling now better supports this way of production by displaying the colors for each printing step of an order. The colors appear in one line per printing pass, those for the current production step in black, the others grayed out. A tooltip shows the full color name.

There is a new link in the PC-Topp.NET Conversion Machine Scheduling page toolbox that lets you print out several job cards at once in PDF format. You just need to select the orders you want to print out (via the checkbox) and then click “Print Job Card”. This feature is very useful for planners because they can print out the job cards for the program of the day in just one step.

You can now adapt the columns displayed in the PC-Topp.NET Machine Terminal, the Multi-Machine Terminal, and the Machine View to your individual needs and preferences.

• Machine Terminal
  The machine schedule at the Machine Terminal allows you to insert as many columns as you like in which you can display any desired content, be it order fields, personalized fields or even information provided by external data sources. You can arrange the columns in your preferred sequence and width; the number of possible columns is only restricted by the screen size. Besides, you can also modify the font size and type of the "Due", "Order" and "Available" columns to make them more easily readable.
• Machine View
  The new display options apply to the Machine View, too. The Machine View lets you create your own individual information board by inserting any number of columns (i.e. as many columns as the page width allows) in the machine schedules. And you can personalize those columns in the same way as at the Machine Terminal.
• Multi-Machine Terminal
  Here only the width of all columns can be customized.

If you are interested in using this option please contact us so we can make the necessary changes:
http://www.pctopp.com/en/about_us/contact.mspx

In the Next Orders section of the PC-Topp.NET Machine Terminal toolbox a new button prompts the machine operator to confirm any schedule changes done outside of the Machine Terminal.

 

PC‑Topp now supports information on stereo and tool location. Location data for two stereos and one tool can be sent to PC‑Topp via the new location field that has been added to the order data and OTDATA interface.

Likewise the stereo / tool availability module including the AVDATA interface allows specifying the location of stereo and tool numbers. If the location information is not specified in the stereo / tool availability module or AVDATA interface, this is ignored in order to not erase any existing information about location in particular orders.

(The stereo and tool location feature used to be available only as a personalized option; it has now become a standard PC‑Topp functionality.)

In the near future the location data will be displayed in the PC‑Topp Order Summary and the Job Card, the Conversion Machine Schedule, the Machine Terminal, and the ink, stereo and tool requirements lists.

The new PC-Topp.NET Machine Terminal succeeds the PC-Topp Machine Terminal that still ran with legacy PC-Topp components in the background.

The PC-Topp.NET Machine Terminal is entirely free of any classical PC-Topp Windows programs. It has been designed to provide the full functionality of the old PC-Topp Machine Terminal plus many extra features.

• Palletisation Module Integrated into the Machine Terminal
  • Allows printing pallet labels with the correct quantity of products per pallet right at the machine.
  • The quantity on each pallet can be entered / modified individually; likewise pallet labels can be printed for each individual pallet.
  • PC-Topp.NET assigns SSCC numbers to all pallets und stores pallet information for use by a warehouse system.
• Fast Order Finishing
  • Smoother production flow thanks to the possibility to finish an order with one click instead of entering all its production data. The next order can be started immediately.
  • Orders finished with this one-click option are collected in a list to be closed for good when the machine operator has time to spare. He can then modify quantities, times and waste if necessary.
  • If the correct quantity on the last pallet is entered palletisation is updated right away and a correct label is printed for this pallet.
• More Precise Machine Schedule Due to Entry of Waste and Stock Quantities During Run
  • Entering waste quantities and quantities added from or transferred to stock during production allows correct calculation of order end times. The following orders’ start times are adapted so the machine schedule is closer to reality.
• New Counter Software Helps Keep Production Data Up to Date Even Without Server Connection
  • Thanks to a locally installed counter module production machine speed and downtimes are recorded even when the Machine Terminal web page is closed or the PC-Topp server is offline. (Order changes can’t be recorded without server connection, though.)
  • As soon as the communication with the server is re-established downtimes are recorded subsequently and statistics and performance graphs are updated.
• Innovative Quality Checks
  • In contrast to the predefined and limited classical quality checks the new quality checks can be defined in any desired number.
  • They are fully customizable and can be defined to exactly meet your needs.
• Extensive Shift Information Available at the Machine
  • For the current as well as for any past shift performance figures, key shift and performance data and the shift report are accessible in the Shift tab of the Machine Terminal.
  • Downtimes can be modified, order comments can be entered.
• Display of Article Comments, Flop Ten Alerts, Internal Complaints at the Machine
  • The General tab lets you enter article related comments that will be displayed at the Machine Terminal whenever an order with the same article number is run.
  • Likewise, the Machine Terminal displays information on Flop Ten customers and internal complaints in the General tab so the machine operator immediately sees them.
• Improved Staff Time Registration
  • The functionality for signing in / out at the machine has been brushed up and shows an overview of the personnel who have signed in at the machine during the current shift along with their times of presence.
• Send Messages to Any PC-Topp User or Machine Terminal
  • The Machine Terminal allows sending messages to any PC Topp user or other Machine Terminal. Incoming messages are shown in the toolbox so the operator can’t overlook them.
• Use the PC-Topp.NET Machine Terminal with a Touch-Screen
  • If the Machine Terminal is run on a touch sensitive screen all interaction can be done with a tap of a fingertip which makes using the Machine Terminal much easier and more direct.
  • All page elements are extra large for good readability and usability.

If an article is run for the first time on a machine (First Run) the PC-Topp Machine Terminal can show an alert and a user-defined message asking for extra attention. The PDF conversion machine schedule for print-out now contains this information on First Run orders, too.

Besides, if a tool or a stereo is unavailable for an order in the printable PDF conversion machine schedule this order is marked with a color-coded dot like on the Conversion Machine Scheduling page.

The PC-Topp.NET Machine Settings page now supports setting up your palletizer for automatic downtime detection by means of a signal from a sensor.

A new optional column for the number of sheets in per order has been added to the Conversion Machine Scheduling page.

The PC-Topp.NET Article page allows entering comments for articles that used to be shown only at the Machine Terminal so far. The PC-Topp.NET Conversion Machine Scheduling page nows displays those article comments in a tooltip that pops up when you move the mouse over an order's article number (if there is a comment for this article).

The PCTopp.NET Machine Settings page now offers the new machine types "To Stock", "From Stock", "Predecessor" and "Successor". 

(So far the conversion steps "To / From Stock" (for orders with sheets / products taken from or going to stock instead of a preceding or next machine) as well as "Predecessor" and "Successor" (for linked orders) could only be modelled with the help of a workaround: The machine types "NIL Corrugator" and "Shipping" represented them in PC-Topp.)

The new report offers downtime analysis for the conversion machines with information on number, duration and totals per downtime cause.

The Production Progress Report which is available for the  conversion machines and the corrugator gives an overview of production speed and efficiency by machine including graphical representations for at-a-glance information.

The following improvements have been made in the PC-Topp Machine Terminal: 

• The Shift Report tab now shows performance data for shift and current order.
• Downtime reasons and times can be modified in the PC-Topp Machine Terminal as well (so far only possible in the classical Machine Terminal).
• A flashing red icon in the tab navigation informs on order comments for conversion and pending quality checks.

Via the OTDATA file stereo and ink colors for printing on a second machine can be transferred. Moreover, the new color fields introduced in OTDATA for second pass printing can also be used to transfer colors for orders with more than six colors.

The Find Orders of a Customer functionality already familiar from the Corrugator Scheduling page is also available in Shipping scheduling now.

A new Crystal report shows usage rates for cutting resp. printing dies by die number.

The conversion machine schedules as well as the list of internal complaints and the paper stock are available as PDF files for easy printout.

This new PDF report offers comprehensive data on production and speed of corrugator and conversion machines for each day of the selected week, with week totals.

A new button in the General tab of the PC-Topp Machine Terminal allows entering machine specific article comments that are displayed not only at the Machine Terminal but also in Conversion Machine Scheduling.

The downtime causes defined in PC-Topp have different effects on the calculation of times in the PC-Topp production statistics.

These effects are best explained by taking a look at the basic hierarchical concept for calculating production times in PC-Topp.

Category	Abbr.	Definition
Available Shift Hours	ASH	Shift duration, e.g. 8’00 plus any overtime after the beginning or before the end of the shift.
Machine Shutdown Hours	MSH	In case of shorter shift duration Machine Shutdown Hours explain the difference between shorter Open Hours and Available Shift Hours.
Open Hours	OH	The total period of time during which a machine is open (Available Shift Hours minus Machine Shutdown Hours)
Break Hours	BH	Total time of breaks
Scheduled Downtime Hours	SDH	Total scheduled downtime
Work Hours	WH	Open Hours minus Break Hours minus Scheduled Downtime Hours
Set-Up Hours	SH	Set-Up Hours including downtimes during set-up
Run Hours	RH	Run Hours including downtimes during run
Downtime Hours	DH	The time taken up by breakdowns (including Mini Downtimes and times unaccounted for which are treated the same as Mini Downtimes).
Downtime Hours during Run	DHR	Downtime Hours during run
Downtime Hours during Set-Up	DHS	Downtime Hours during set-up
Production Hours	PH	Work Hours minus Downtime Hours
Net Set-Up Hours	NSH	Set-Up Hours minus Downtime Hours during set-up
Net Run Hours	NRH	Run Hours minus Downtime Hours during run

The following diagrams illustrate how the PC-Topp times are based on each other.

 

Focus on Stopped Time and Machine Productive Time

Here the PC-Topp times are visualized by stripping away one after the other of the different stopped times from the machine’s available time. The final result is the time during which the machine actually produces goods.

 

 Focus on Downtimes during Run and Set-Up

Downtimes can occur during set-up and run. Therefore in this diagram the Work Hours are divided into Run Hours and Set-Up Hours which are again subdivided into Net Set-Up and Run Hours vs. Down Hours during Set-Up and Run.

This is necessary to determine the time during which the machine actually runs without interruption by downtimes. Of course the Down Hours during Set-Up and Run equal the Down Hours in the above chart.

The above times are the basis for calculating speeds in PC‑Topp: The Run Hours can serve as a reference value for estimating the Planning Speed (used to compute how long an order will run). Speeds calculated using the Net Run Hours offer a guideline for a realistic machine Target Speed.

The palletisation functionality available in the PC-Topp Machine Terminal is now also available as an independent new PC Topp Terminal.

The PC-Topp Palletisation Terminal is designed for the following purposes:

• Re-printing a label that has been damaged or lost
• To correct palletisation information and print new labels when palettisation was changed.
• To print labels at a central location, for machines with no terminal or where the label printer has failed.

The Palettisation Terminal is available as a stand-alone station, or can be reached from the PC-Topp Supervisor Terminal.

Operation is straightforward: You type in the order number, and identify whether you want shipping labels (by selecting the last operation) or internal labels (by selecting the corresponding operation). The terminal then shows the palettisation in the screen known from the Machine Terminal, offering all functionality like changing pallet information, or printing selected labels, or all labels for the order at a time.

PC-Topp.NET prints pallet labels in real time at the machine: Ideally, the person at palletisation will find just one label in the printer when he needs it, the label for the pallet he is just finishing. This is ensured by printing the label when the pallet is half full (or alternatively at the beginning or at the end of the pallet).

This gets desynchronized by waste during production: The counter shows the pallet as half full, but in fact that quantity is not reached yet. Small differences are not a problem, but when the waste goes near the quantity on a pallet the user will find two labels in the printer, the right label and – on top of it - the label for the next pallet. Of course, this can lead to errors.

Therefore, we created buttons to enter waste during production to re-synchronize the label printing in such a case. And while we were at it, we added a few more buttons, to make the solution complete.

Set-Up Waste

Sheets used during set-up are usually waste, and the terminal can be configured to count set-up waste automatically (the number can be corrected manually during or after set-up). Set-up waste is entered in sheets (and not in finished goods, e.g. on a die-cutter).

Production Waste

Waste occurring after set-up is entered as the number of faulty products taken out before palletisation.

Waste Before the Machine

Sheets sorted out before feeding them into the machine have no influence on label printing synchronisation. But if a high quantity must be sorted out, then PC-Topp's estimated ending time should be adjusted. To do so, enter the waste before the machine using the corresponding button (quantity is entered in sheets).

Sheets From / to Stock

Like waste occurring before the machine, sheets added from stock (or excess quantities not converted but moved to stock instead) can change production time quite dramatically. Therefore, we added a button that lets you change the quantity that will go through the machine by entering the number of sheets going to (or coming from) stock.

This information is not stored at this time. We have future plans to keep quantities moved into stock in memory so that the terminal can later suggest what quantities (and from which production orders) could be added from stock for a given article.

Products Moved to Stock

A final button added at the end of the machine lets the crew reduce the quantity going to Shipping or to the next machine. This is useful if e.g. printing is done for a big overrun coming from the corrugator, but because the customer accepts only exact quantities, only a smaller number must go to the die-cutter.

The reduced quantity gives the order a correct duration on the next machine and thus allows more precise planning.

The entries are not stored, however: Again, we have future plans to create a memory of quantities of an article (or semi-finished goods) moved into stock, so that they can later be identified and retrieved.

The PC-Topp Machine Terminal has been enhanced to meet customer needs for printing pallet labels with the correct quantity of products per pallet right at the machine and for assigning a unique identification number to pallets for use with a warehouse system.

The Palletisation tab in the Machine Terminal (to be found under the Order tab) can handle internal pallets as well as pallets intended for the customer and serves the following purposes.

Flexible Pallet Label Printing at the Machine

The Palletisation tab lets you print out pallet labels at the machine. Labels can be printed in the following ways:

• Label by label – the label is sent to the printer when the pallet is half full so that it is always ready when the crew needs it
• All labels at once at the start of each order,
• Individually when required (e.g. when a label is damaged or wrong)

The label for the last pallet is only printed when the order is finished and the quantity on the last pallet is clear. The system also makes it easy to e.g. move a small quantity on the last pallet onto the last full pallet (or the last two full pallets), and to reprint the labels for those pallets with the corrected quantity.

Assigning Unique IDs to All Pallets

Whereas in the past PC-Topp.NET only printed pallet labels without retaining the information on the pallets, the system now creates a data base entry for every pallet it processes. PC-Topp.NET assigns a unique identifier to each pallet by generating an SSCC number, an ID capable of identifying any single unit (pallet) produced by any company worldwide.

The pallets information is kept in PC-Topp’s database ‘forever’ and may be useful e.g. in tracing where the problem on a pallet sent back by the customer comes from, a particular operator or a bad paper reel.

The main use of that database is, however, to inform an external warehouse system of the pallets it will be receiving, and to give it the exact quantities and other pallet data. The system ensures that the warehouse system (or ERP) receives a record for each pallet that will enter the warehouse, and that no pallet will be published that eventually does not arrive there.

Manage Every Pallet Individually

Not only the quantity for the last pallet can be different from the rest of the pallets, there may be other differences as well: There may be several ‘small’ pallets, or a part of the order is put on pallets of a different size or type (because the order is palletized alternatingly on tall and low pallets, or because there were not enough pallets of the right type in stock).

In short, any detail of each single pallet will reflect reality exactly, and the label will contain the right quantity and other information for each and every pallet.

The graphical user interface shows the pallets in an easy to understand and intuitive way, making it easy for any machine operator to make the required entries or to re-print a label.

Better User Interface, New Options

The PC‑Topp.NET Downtime Causes page combines breakdown causes, scheduled downtimes and internal complaints plus the freshly introduced downtime category "Machine Shutdown Reasons" in a single page. The downtime categories can be selected via the tabs at the page top.

This is what sets apart the four different categories:

Breakdowns	Downtimes caused by machine breakdowns	Breakdowns count as work time and thus reduce the average speed of the machine or the order during which they occur.
Scheduled Downtimes and Breaks	Planned downtimes	Like breaks in the machine timetable these downtimes do not count as work time and thus don't reduce the average speed of the machine or the order during which they occur.
New: Machine Shutdowns	Causes to explain why the machine is closed for a shift, a part of a shift or a longer period of time.	No effect on production times as shutdowns are periods when the machine is closed in the machine timetable.
Internal Complaints	Causes to explain why a machine runs more slowly than normal	No effect in production statistics

Like before, the causes in each category are broken down by groups. It is easy to create new groups and downtime causes, or to edit entries.

Flags for Breakdown Causes

For the breakdown causes you can now say whether the downtime is machine related, or order or crew related. Note that any combination of those flags is possible.

These flags are not evaluated in most PC-Topp reports, except that some statistics show downtime totals grouped by these flags. However, they are available in PC‑Topp's SQL Server database and can be used in personalized reports.

Like before, you can say which downtime causes are supposed to appear on each machine, to exclude causes that don't apply. However, this "filtering" still needs to be done in the "classical" Downtime Causes program (DOS).

A more detailed explanation of the effect each kind of downtime cause has on the calculation of production times in PC‑Topp is available in the news entry Calculation of PC Topp Times for Statistics Explained

It can happen that gaps appear between the produced orders on a conversion machine, in particular if production data entry was manual (no Machine Terminal).

Those gaps usually do not reflect reality correctly: Either an order is missing where the gap is, or the machine was closed during that time. A new link now appears next to such gaps offering a quick way to close the machine for the corresponding time period.

This link appears instead of the link "Move following orders" that is offered next to a gap between planned orders. For produced orders, moving many orders at a time is not useful as it would give faulty starting times to potentially many such orders.

On the Machine Load page, so far you didn't have a chance to see whether the brown (scheduled) and red (full) days on a machine contain orders that will be late.

Now a small violet sign with a white exclamation mark tells you at first sight if you are in danger of running an order too late. There are two kinds of situation that this icon warns you about:

Orders Scheduled Late on a Machine
The violet icon tells you that there are orders threatening to be late on the machine in question and thus won't be delivered in time if nothing is done about them. When you click the icon the dialog displaying the day's orders opens, and orders scheduled late are marked by a red due date so you can easily find them to mend the situation.

Machine Load Is Too High to Produce Unscheduled Order in Time
The violet icon is also displayed when the machine load is higher than the machine capacity on that day (red background) and there is no chance to put the surplus load on any previous day, either, because the capacity on earlier days is insufficient. Therefore one or several unscheduled orders pre-planned on this machine can't be produced in time to meet their due date.

However, if you click the icon expecting to find the unscheduled late orders highlighted in the day details as well you might be disappointed: Unscheduled orders are not marked in red (except when their due date has passed) because the system can't predict which of them you will schedule on time using the available capacity on earlier days.

A new PC-Topp.NET page has been created to supplement (and eventually substitute) the classical Conversion Machines Settings. The Machines page offers some convenient extras the old version doesn't have.

View Machines by Machine Type

New Machine Features

Moreover, as you can see in the overview there are some new fields for the machines. You can now additionally define the following machine features:

• Die-Cutting
  PC-Topp wants to know if a machine can die-cut and if so, whether it exclusively die-cuts or can do more than that. The die-cutting type of the machine is displayed as a small symbol in the overview:
  

  Type	Symbol	Example
  Rotary Die-Cutter		Ward
  Flatbed Die-Cutter		Bobst
  Any Other Machine That Can Die-Cut (Gluer, Slotter, Inline Machine)		Rapidex
  No Die-Cutting	no symbol	Martin Printer

• Number of Print Units
  This value is needed for the automatic sequence optimisation in conversion machine scheduling, as it determines when an ink change is required to accommodate the colors of the next job.
• Whether Box Size or Other Measurements are Shown at the Machine
  If the machine is marked as a box maker the following values are displayed at the Machine Terminal (unnecessary for e.g. machines that just print or for die-cutters):
  • Internal dimensions
  • Sheet Size
  • Scores on corrugator and conversion
  • Tear tapes

Graphical Machine View

Clicking the "Edit" link to the right of each machine opens a graphical view of this machine like at the Machine Terminal. It shows you the machine design and its relevant parts in more detail. This detailed view also lets you modify the three new fields discussed above.

For viewing and updating the other machine settings PC-Topp.NET relies on the classical Machine Definition program: Click the link "Further Settings for this Machine (DOS)" and the DOS program will open.

In autumn 2006 the PC-Topp 2000 Machine Terminal Intranet page has been substituted by the much improved PC-Topp Machine Terminal.

The old Machine Terminal page was an important step toward PC-Topp's becoming a full Intranet and Internet solution. Yet its interface was too limited. It didn't offer enough space for all relevant information. Besides, the data was displayed in small fonts that are hard to read from even a little distance. And it offered only a small part of the functions the classical program provides.

The new Machine Terminal has been thoroughly revised. Among the most obvious enhancements is its optimisation for use with a touch-screen. You can now optionally operate the Machine Terminal with a finger tip (provided the machine is equipped with a touch-screen). And all information is displayed in large fonts for better readability.

The classical Machine Terminal still runs alongside the PC Topp Machine Terminal but many of its functions are now available on the PC Topp Machine Terminal page, too. Besides, some new functions have been added. To accommodate all those features the interface is now structured by tabs that bundle the Terminal's functions.

1. General:
   The General tab is displayed by default when the Machine Terminal is started. Here you find an overview of the most important data on the machine itself, its production status, and the current order, illustrated by a graphical schema of the machine that shows the production process along with the relevant figures. In the future, waste entry right at the machine will be possible here, too.
2. Order:
   The Order tab is divided into sub-tabs. "Data", the primary sub-tab, shows the summary of the current order. The further tabs offer access to PDF files of stereo, forme, and article (if available) that open directly within the page.
3. Schedule:
   Here you find the machine schedule, now vastly larger than in the old Machine Terminal page, and easily readable. A click or finger tap on the links of any order opens the "Order" tab and displays the sub-tab you viewed last.
4. Personnel:
   In the near future this tab will provide the Come / Leave functionality of the classical Machine Terminal. Personnel can log onto and out of a machine here or change to a different machine within the Web page instead of having to switch to the classical Machine Terminal.
5. Messages:
   PC-Topp.NET's messaging module has been embedded in the Machine Terminal so you can send messages to any PC-Topp.NET user and to any other Machine Terminal right from the Terminal page. Messages to the Machine Terminal are displayed as pop-ups in the toolbox so they can't be overlooked.
6. Quality Check:
   Another new feature available at the new Machine Terminal page are the Quality Checks. In spite of its name the functionality isn't connected to the quality checks in the classical Machine Terminal. Even though it basically does the same it is much more powerful. Whereas the classical quality checks are confined to a fixed set of possible quality checks the new functionality lets you run self-defined quality checks that you can adapt exactly to your needs. You can precisely define conditions when these new quality checks should be performed. And if there is a customer complaint for an article or if a customer is marked as Service customer or Flop Ten customer the system triggers a quality check-like message to make sure you notice.

In the TGV Machine Load machines often appear to be fully loaded because Planning has decided to produce similar orders together even though their due dates lie still far ahead, i.e. if those orders were scheduled according to their due date instead of their format the machine would have some free capacity left. Now the TGV Machine Load helps you find this hidden capacity.

The tool looks for orders that are scheduled earlier than required by their due date. It then displays the machine load situation as if those orders were scheduled in time to meet their due date but not earlier than necessary. The potentially free working hours per day appear as small white figures in the summary bar of each machine that indicates the machine load status.

Like this it shows where you can create free capacity by moving those early orders. So if e.g. you have to decide whether a rush order can be inserted into the existing schedule the tool makes it easier for you to find a day to squeeze it in.

You can switch on this functionality in the new section "Find Free Capacity" in the Machine Load Toolbox. If you click "Move Orders" you will see the number of potentially free working hours of each scheduled day displayed in the summary line of each machine. In the day details you can then look up the orders that could be moved to insert more urgent orders.

Take a look at the new feature at http://demo.pctopp.com.

Shortcuts for Opening and Closing Shifts

To open or close an entire shift, just click on the shift letter that precedes the opening and closing times of that shift. Of course, the old links on the top of the dialog are still there, for the same purpose.

More Intuitive Display for Shifts Starting Late or Ending Early

Previously, a shift that ended early looked a little odd: PC-Topp showed e.g. 05:00 - 13:00, and only on second looks would you discover a break from 11:00 - 13:00 and understand that the shift really ended at 11 a.m. on that day.

Now, the same situation is simply shown as 05:00 - 11:00, as one would expect.

A new feature of PC Topp.NET in Conversion Machine Scheduling performs a repetitive and time-consuming task that so far had to be done by the planner. The new link "Optimize This!" (displayed below the cart as soon as you select an order) helps the planner by automatically putting the orders in an optimum sequence, making sure that all orders are on time, similar jobs are together, minimizing the number of ink changes, etc.

The resulting schedule is optimized in many ways, and you will not very often find a sequence that would be more logical or better. However, you may have reasons to make manual changes for certain orders, reasons that will often be unknown to the system. So, let PC-Topp create a good sequence as a starting point, and then refine it further with a few manual modifications.

This is how you can use the new feature:

Usually, you will want to keep the beginning of the schedule as it is, because it is already at the machine. So, select the first order in the schedule that can be moved, and click "Optimize This!". PC-Topp will establish an optimized sequence, and eliminate any overlaps, gaps, or other mistakes.

Or, mark the first order as before, plus select other orders to integrate into the schedule. To add all orders of a day, click on the first order, then Shift-click on the last order of that day. Again, "Optimize This!" will give a good schedule that makes sure all orders are on time, and in the best possible sequence.

If you want more in-depth information on this subject please read our page "Automatic Optimisation in Conversion Machine Scheduling".

Pull planning means that orders are scheduled on the first conversion machine before they get scheduled on the corrugator. Such orders used to be marked with a yellow dot where otherwise the corrugator finishing time would appear.

That yellow dot has been replaced by three new icons which tell the planner not just that the order isn't scheduled but also in which part of the corrugator schedule it will have to go to be produced in time.

	-	This is what the old yellow icon used to be: It says that the order is not in Program Memory. There is time enough to produce it after the end of the current corrugator schedule.
	-	The yellow icon indicates that the order will need to be integrated into the corrugator program that is being prepared: It must be integrated somewhere in between the un-numbered programs that are already in Program Memory.
	-	The orange icon says that the order must be inserted into the schedule that is currently at the corrugator, as it must be finished at a time before the end of the current schedule (before the end of the last program with a program number).

In the past, many customers wanted to be able to attach comments to breaks etc. in the Machine Timetable. We have now implemented a functionality that lets them do that, and that can also be put to use in many other ways.

The new comments can be attached to any day in a machine's timetable and appear on top of the corresponding day in Conversion Machine Scheduling. Thus they can explain why a machine is open (or closed) on that day, draw attention to the fact that the shift ends 2 hours later (see also Improved Machine Timetable), but they can just as well be used for general reminders, information on personnel, or a comment on a particular order on that day's schedule.

To enter a comment, click on the Timetable icon of that day in Conversion Machine Scheduling. You can use the feature to attach a remark to a particular break or order by clearly specifying it in the comment, e.g.: "09:00-09:30: Maintenance of feed unit!"

The comments will slowly find their way also into other pages where information is organized by day.

So far, orders in PC-Topp.NET could be viewed by customer name, board grade, conversion machine, and article number. Now the scope of order views has been extended by two further pages:

The "Orders by Stereo" and the "Orders by Forme" page show all orders with a specific stereo or tool at a time, listed by due date. If you ask yourself whether there are other orders using the same tool or stereo as a given order, just click on the corresponding link and you'll see all past, current and future orders using that same tool or stereo.

In plants where drawings are available for stereos and / or formes, a little icon appears in front of the stereo / forme code in the toolbox. When active (=red), a click on that icon displays the drawing.

The functionality for flagging orders in brown (e.g. to mark them as printed) used to be limited to the classical Conversion Machine Scheduling program. Now it is available in the PC-Topp.NET Order Summary as well.

In the left column of the Order Summary’s machine routing there is a new check mark icon whose color indicates if the order is flagged on the machine in question:

•    A brown check mark means that the order is flagged on this machine.
•    A grey check mark means it is not flagged on this machine.

You don’t have to start classical Conversion Machine Scheduling any more to switch the flagging on and off. You can now conveniently do so by simply clicking the check mark icon.

The display of flagged orders in PC-Topp.NET Conversion Machine Scheduling with the check mark icon in front of the order number remains unchanged. Just the check icon now is brown instead of black.

The machine timetable can now be modified via PC-Topp.NET (so far this could only be done in the classical Machine Timetable program). The functionality is available in Conversion Machine Scheduling. The Timetable link opens a small window offering the most frequently used functions for changing the timetable for the current machine and day.

You can easily change the timetable with a click either on the link in the Toolbox or on the little timetable icon on the day you want to modify. To open or close a shift you can either use the links in the shift list or enter a period of time manually in the fields at the top of the timetable box.

Enter Order Duration

The new feature lets you enter either the duration or a starting and ending time for the selected order. The latter is particularly useful when you know the point in time when the order is expected to be finished. Clicking on "Enter Duration" lets you enter the number of hours an order will take, which may be the more direct way in other situations.

 

Schedule Several Orders in One Go

"Set Time / Duration" can also be used to schedule several orders at the same time, but you may find this feature less useful. (In this case, no ending time can be entered, just the starting time.) You can schedule whole packages of orders by selecting the orders to be inserted or rearranged. Then you can enter the starting time of the first order in your packet. The other orders you have selected are inserted into the schedule after this first one according to their order in the "New Sequence" window. If you leave the pre-displayed starting time of that first order unchanged, then the other orders will simply be inserted directly behind it.

With the new PC-Topp.NET Pallet Requirements you can instantly see how many pallets of what type are needed at which machine.

The page lists all available pallet types and formats in alphabetical order, along with a TGV-like time line that tells you what total number of each pallet type will be needed at what point of time. The intervals of the time line are 2 hours by default, but can be set to 6 hours, 1 hour or 30 minutes according to the users needs.

A mouse click on a pallet type reveals the required number of pallets of this type, listed separately by machine. You can exactly determine when and at which machines the displayed number of pallets will be needed.

The blue and green (or red) machine capacity figures from the TGV plus the total number of sheets per day now appear on the right side of the date headers of Conversion Machine Scheduling.

The background color of the date headers indicates the machine load for the day in question (further details in Improved TGV Machine Load). The white figures on a blue background show the machines total working hours for that day. The figures in the green fields display the working hours available on that machine for that day. When their background turns red the machine is overloaded. Additionally, the third number gives you the total number of sheets on that day.

In some plants, there are lots of orders with due dates in the distant past that must stay in PC-Topp because they cannot be produced for one reason or another, but will definitely be produced at a later date. PC-Topp treats those orders as overdue and very urgent, although in fact they are dormant until someone decides to put them into production. As a result, they distort the figures in the TGV machine load.

The right way to avoid this would be to assign realistic due dates - in the future - to those orders. This however is not done in many places, for various reasons.

Now PC-Topp offers a way to keep those orders out of the TGV machine load:

When activated, this feature keeps those orders out of the machine load if they are marked as "blocked" either by Planning or by Sales, and either only for orders with due dates in the past, or for all such orders. (By default, the setting is inactive; all orders appear in the TVG.)

Any user with PC-Topp.NET administrator rights can invoke the feature from the TGV screen: A link in the toolbox on the left of the page leads to a configuration page.

New Display Units

Work in progress has got two new display units (ready for viewing on http://demo.pctopp.com).

• 1000 m²
• New: hours (h) - the hours of work time made up by the orders in the storage area
• m³
• sheets
• pallets
• New: floor space (m²) - the area taken up by the palletized orders in the storage area

The units serve the following purposes:

	Display Unit	Comments
Unit	1000 m²	This is the most reasonable unit for displaying Corrugator outflow.
Calc.	sheet length * sheet width * no. of sheets
Use for	Corrugator
New Unit	Hours of work time (h)	Hours of work time waiting in intermediate storage is an interesting value to watch for each individual machine: You may want to avoid values that are too low as these machines risk running out of work if there is downtime in the upstream processes. Excessively high values must also be avoided to keep work in progress low. Therefore, it is possible to set both high and low warning levels for these values.
Calc.	run time (minus breaks) + setup time
Use for	Individual conversion machines
Unit	m³	m³ is probably the most useful indicator for the total work in progress waiting in front of a group of machines. To help maintain a low level of work in progress high warning levels can be set here.
Calc.	m² * board thickness
Use for	WIP (work in progress for the machines grouped in WIP)
Unit	Sheets	Sheets can also be used for the WIP group if you want to display the group's overall work in progress in single sheets (as opposed to m³). Here, too, high warning levels can be set.
Calc.	(no. of sheets)
Use for	WIP
Unit	Pallets	The unit "Pallets" is of interest regarding the conveyor to the strapping machine. It mirrors the inflow of goods from conversion in terms of a Shipping specific unit and allows estimating the work load waiting to be palletized. High warning levels make sense for Pallets, too, whereas there is no need for low warnings.
Calc.	no. of sheets / no. of sheets per pallet
Use for	Conveyor to the strapping machine
New Unit	Floor space (m²)	This unit may not be exactly suitable for the capacity of the storage holding semi-finished goods, but it might make sense to use it for the Finished Goods area. Note that the calculation does not take into account that forklift trucks can store several pallets on top of each other. Thus, this value is possibly only suitable for conveyor systems. In forklift operated environments, use m³ instead. Setting high warning levels for this area prevents the Finished Goods area from being crowded by too many pallets waiting to be shipped. Low warnings are superfluous.
Calc.	no. of pallets * sheet width * sheet length
Use for	Finished Goods

New Order Display

Order information can be accessed with a mouse click on a figure now like in Conversion Machine Scheduling and the TGV Machine Load. So now the user can check peaks of work in progress to see which orders can be re-scheduled to reduce work in progress. If one of the figures in a machine row is clicked a popup box displays the orders making up the work in progress for that machine at the selected point of time. The popup header shows the machine code the production date of the orders in the list the point of time reflected by the figure that was clicked, i. e. the point of time when the stock reached its maximum or minimum level (depending on the stock type selected) totals of the quantity in 1000 m² and m³, the work time and the number of pallets of all orders in the list All orders in the list that are not marked with a grey background can either be re-scheduled to a later production time on the preceding machine or run earlier than planned on the machine in question. (Orders with a grey background have already arrived in front of the machine and thus cannot be re-scheduled any more.) Like this, it has become significantly easier to systematically decrease peaks in work in progress.