Perform Different Production Steps

When the Production Supervisor releases an order, it signifies that the order has been dispatched to the production area for the production. Upon order release, the system places the SFC in a queue at the first phase of the recipe. The worker responsible for this phase selects one SFC from the queue, performs all required production steps, and then notifies the system upon completing their work. After, the system puts the SFC into a queue at the next phase, and this process continues until the manufacturing process finishes with the last phase. You can also perform phases in parallel if necessary.

Technically, the Worker performing the production process interacts with the SAP Digital Manufacturing system via the Production Operator Dashboard (POD).

For each order, the order POD displays a list of all phases of the process order. The worker can perform all production steps of the entire order in one single screen. After starting a phase by choosing the button Start, the SFC's status changes to active and the worker can perform the steps that are required in this manufacturing phase. For example:

• Display of work instructions: To provide workers with additional information about the current manufacturing phase, the system displays work instructions on the Work Instruction List tab. This information, maintained by the Master Data Specialist, pertains, for example, to the materials to be produced or the recipe to be followed. Examples of work instructions include:

  • Safety data sheets, which inform workers about necessary safety procedures for specific production resources,
  • Detailed process instructions on how to perform the mixing of the individual components in the reaction vessel (→ temperature, stirring rate, and so on).

  From a technical perspective, maintenance options for these instructions include simple text files, PDF documents, links to Web sites or external document management systems, images, videos, and so on.

• Component consumption: During component consumption, the worker consumes materials in the quantities listed in the BOM, respecting the consumption sequence and allowed component quantity thresholds. Since the BOM items are assigned to phases of the order, the system displays only those BOM components that are relevant in the current manufacturing phase.

  From a system perspective, the worker opens the Material Consumption tab in the POD, selects the component (and component batch if the component is batch-managed) that they wish to consume. Then, they enter the consumed quantity, and confirm the consumption. If the Master Data Specialist has defined alternative components, for example, if the main component isn't available, the system displays the list of alternative materials and the worker can alternatively consume this material. If they require unplanned components (materials that are not part of the order BOM), for example, to adjust the final properties of the mixture, they can also record the consumption of arbitrary components.

  In the background, the system updates the SFCs genealogy record and documents information such as:

  • The material (and batch) number of the consumed component.
  • The quantity.
  • The date and time.
  • The operator performing the component consumption.
  • The phase.

  Since process orders are integrated with SAP S/4HANA, the component consumption is transferred to SAP S/4HANA and the goods issue for the process order is recorded.

  Let's consider a practical example: In the mixing phase, the worker consumed 500 liters of water, 50 kg of sugar from batch 4711, and 250 liters of caramel color from batch 8900. Since the three items are part of the order BOM, the system displays the three materials and the respective batch numbers and the worker confirms the consumed quantity. To fine-tune the sugar concentration, they must add an extra 50 liters of a sugar solution from batch 3344. Since the latter is not part of the order BOM, the worker adds this component consumption as an unplanned consumption. then, they manually select the batch from the list of available batches for the material.

• Recording of process data: The Master Data Specialist can configure the system that the worker records information about how a production process was performed. For example, before they start filling components into the reaction vessel, the worker must confirm that they've cleaned the vessel. During production, the worker periodically checks the environment temperature and the temperature in the reaction vessel and records the measured values.

  From a system perspective, the worker opens the Data Collection List tab. The system displays a list of parameters (for example numeric values such as pH and temperature, or boolean values such as "Cleaning performed according to SOP?") and the worker provides input for each data point.

  Similar to the genealogy record, the system stores process data at the SFC level. You can later evaluate this information, for example, when investigating a quality issue.

  Note

  To minimize user input, SAP Digital Manufacturing offers interfaces to, for example, tools and scanners, so that process data can be recorded automatically.

• Recording of quality data and nonconformance records: If you perform quality inspections parallel to the manufacturing process, the worker collects in-process inspection results in the respective data fields.

  From a system perspective, the worker opens the Quality Inspection tab. Here, the system displays the characteristics to be inspected, the sample size, the recording method, and the tolerance limits. The operator selects the inspection characteristic and enters the measured value. In the background, SAP Digital Manufacturing transfers the inspection results to SAP S/4HANA where the inspection lot is updated.

  When they detect a deviation, such as impurities or values outside the specified limits, they immediately create a nonconformance record to document the quality issue.

  Let's consider a practical example: The Master Data Specialist defined in SAP S/4HANA that in-process inspections during production must be performed. After performing the mixing phase, the worker measures the pH value (6.5) and the sugar concentration (29.3 %) of the mixture and records the results.

• Quantity confirmation: At the end of a production phase, the worker confirms how much they produced during the phase (→ phase yield) and how much needed to be scrapped.

  From a technical perspective, the worker opens the Quantity Confirmation tab and enters the yield and scrap of the phase. If necessary, for example if one shift ends and the production process continues, you can post several quantity confirmations.

  In the background, SAP Digital Manufacturing posts a yield confirmation to the process order in SAP S/4HANA.

  Let's consider a practical example: After the mixing phase of the carbonated beverage, the worker confirms a yield of 995 liters and a scrap quantity of 5 liters. The yield moves to the next phase for bottling while the scrap quantity remains in the reaction vessel since it cannot be emptied due to technical reasons.

• Recording of activities: At the end of a production phase, the worker confirms efforts for machine and labor. For example, the worker cleaned the reaction vessel for 15 minutes. Then, they needed 10 minutes to fill all components into the vessel. Finally, the mixer ran for 45 minutes.

  From a technical perspective, the worker opens the Activity Confirmation tab and posts cleaning time, machine time, and labor time.

  In the background, SAP Digital Manufacturing posts a yield confirmation with activities to the process order in SAP S/4HANA.

• Completion of the manufacturing phase: After the worker has performed all steps, they complete the SFC by selecting a button in the POD. The system then evaluates whether there are more phases in the recipe and automatically transfers the SFC to the respective queue. Once the SFC reaches the final phase of the recipe, the system marks the SFC as completed and creates an inventory record for the manufactured item.