Zuken Extends E3.Series with New Applications for Paperless Wiring, Assembly

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Zuken announces three new applications for the digital assistance and documentation of the wiring process for machines, vehicles, and control cabinets. The new E3.series applications E3.AssemblingCockpit, E3.WiringCockpit and E3.WiringChecks provide operators on the shop floor with all information required for assembling, wiring, and commissioning in a paperless form via portable terminals.

The new applications extend the existing E3.series manufacturing interfaces for cabinet machining and wire processing, offering a digital alternative to today’s paper-based assembly and start-up documentation practices. They have been developed in close cooperation with leading customers in the mechanical and automotive engineering sector, where they are already in productive use.

"Many companies in the machinery and transportation sector still rely on paper documents for the wiring assembly and documentation," comments Joachim Frank, Managing Director of Zuken E3 GmbH. "This is not only a time consuming and error-prone practice, it also requires qualified and hence expensive specialist skills. In addition, it represents a major challenge with regards to consistent change management".

With E3.AssemblingCockpit, E3.WiringCockpit and E3.WiringChecks, all documents required for the wiring and commissioning of a new machine or vehicle can be generated directly from an E3 project and visualized on a portable device. In this way, even less qualified workers can confidently follow through the single steps. The solution records and documents every single wiring step; any adjustments and corrections that need to be made during production can be documented and reported back to the engineering department in a digital format, thereby satisfying the needs for consistent change management.

Digitally assisted assembly of modular components
E3.AssemblingCockpit assists shop floor staff during the assembly of modular connectors and other component assemblies, which need to be assembled from a comprehensive component kit. The application lists all required components, such as connector housing, frames, and plug inserts as well as mounting parts and accessories, so that workers can proceed with confidence.

Digitally guided wiring
E3.WiringCockpit enables the definition of an optimized wiring sequence, through which the operator can be guided step by step. For every connection in the wiring sequence, the wire paths are highlighted in the 3D control cabinet design, and all information needed to establish a correct connection is displayed in a dedicated window. After completion and confirmation of a connection, the next wire will be displayed. The progress of the single wiring steps is fully documented so that work can be interrupted and continued at any given time at exactly the point of interruption.

Digitally assisted commissioning test
E3.WiringChecks supports the verification of the completed wiring installation of a machine, vehicle, or control cabinet before or during the start-up. The results are documented as part of an E3 project; every completed checked wire and device check is digitally recorded and marked as checked or error. In the event of an error, an event can be created and placed in the schematic diagram. Error descriptions can be exported and forwarded to the engineering department for correction and resolution.