Concepts for digitalisation of assembly instructions for short takt times

摘要

Operational complexity for shop-floor operators can be reduced with effective presentation of instructions, which in turn improves product quality. While this has been researched for longer takt times, final assembly with shorter takt times requires new approaches to properly support operators. Hence, this paper aims to present findings regarding concepts for digitalised assembly instructions to support shop-floor operators in a mixed model final assembly with shorter takt times. A bottom-up mixed-methods approach was applied in an iterative development process, resulting in concepts for short takt time instructions. The findings indicate how to cognitively support operators in two situations. First, work tasks are preferably taught beforehand, with educational instructions. Second, operators should be supported with simplified instructions, presenting key elements and deviations in real-time. Conclusively, these concepts will increase the likelihood of the instruction to be used by operators, which enables standardised work and contributes to enhanced product quality.